Hello and Missing You Too!

Hello girls!
I'm sorry that I haven't been around today or yesterday...! Pete and I left New Ulm for Milwaukee/Seminary yesterday afternoon after I worked all morning and were on the road until 9 o'clock last night. Then today we weren't near a computer all day, but were out and about seeing apartments and going to job interviews until dinnertime. Thankfully, I hunted down a Caribou coffee while Pete was in an interview, and I savored the quiet time to catch up on the last two days' readings and just enjoy some coffee-God time. :) It was wonderful - but I haven't been able to post on anything until now. But I have most definitely been thinking about you all and praying that you've been learning valuable lessons about godly wisdom from this week's section in James. These few days are and have been a whirlwind so I definitely have a need for a serious quiet time and reflection on all of God's blessings to me - because busy-ness tends to diminish my gratitude sensitivity. It's hard to know how good God is if we never stop to look around with truly seeing eyes.
Anyhow, I look forward to Monday and getting back to a normal routine with my Bible study time. I surely miss it when it's gone! And I miss you girls too; it's easy to put off time with our Lord when other priorities seem more pressing. But it's good to remember what really fulfills us when we're busy and - it's really more important even then to keep perspective.

We all need others to urgently and gently remind us what we need and what others need from us sometimes, too.  Hoping you are all doing well and hope to hear from you soon! Just like Paula said, love and encouragement are the theme of my prayers for you. :)

I will post again on our verses from James to wrap up the week when I have some private time with my laptop. :) For now, I hope you have a relaxing weekend!!
Love,
~Cait

I miss you girls!

Hey!

Shout out to all you gals. Just wanted to say that I miss your heartfelt insights from time to time. And in the literal sense, too, I miss you. Wish that we could all just sit down at Panera or something and chat sometime. I wish you all weren't so far away!!

Wondering if I can pray for any of you in any way in particular. I know some of you are in school, so I pray for you in that sense. If you are like me, this time of the year can find you caught in some anxieties over looming projects and papers. I need to remember to cast it all on him, for he cares for us!! (I Peter 5:7) I am praying that God will strengthen you and help you take things one day at a time (whatever the trials might be), for each day has enough trouble to deal with. Praying for you all in your relationships and daily encounters with others, and in your relationship with the Lord. Miss you and want you to thank you thus far for all of the encouragement, discussion, and insights. It reminds me that I'm not alone!

Love, Paula

P.S. I could use prayer in the area of trusting God to take care of things and not letting anxiety rule in my heart over things that really don't matter so much.

James 3:18

When I read 17 yesterday I was reminded of the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians. Then 18 says, "Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness." Seems like a pretty big deal to God that we "sow in peace."

I have been reading a book called The Peacemaker. If you need a WELS seal for credibility, it was accepted at a WELS pastors conference as being one of the better books that are not WELS. It references the Bible a lot, which is cool, because you can read it first without looking everything up and then go back and make it like a Bible study and look all the verses up. I am doing that now, because I really liked the book. My husband and I enjoy reading "couples" books about communciation, etc.--secular and faith-based--but this book is the best we have read for conflict solution. And it applies to any relationship, and, more importantly, our relationship with God. I just want to put in a plug for this book, because it has changed my life in small ways. Though becoming a peacemaker is a daily challenge yet for me and always will be, the Biblical insights in this book have really opened my eyes and urged me toward peace, time and again. I would highly encourage it for any person.

The first chapter talks about the slippery slope of peacemaking. Picture an arch with words written over it like a rainbow. It reads from left to right, "Suicide, flight, denial, overlook, reconciliation, negotiation, mediation, arbitration, accountability, assault, litigation, murder." Did you see some patterns? The first three and last three are pretty undesirable, right? Those in the middle at the top of the slope are peacemaking responses. The bottom sides of the slope have something in common--selfishness at the core. Whether fleeing from conflict or blaming it on someone else (flight or assault), we are considering only ourselves. Someone who is a peacemaker is not selfish, but a selfless lover who views conflict as an opportunity to love.

This is the kind of love the Christ has for us. He reconciled us to him through his death on the cross. I pray he reminds us of this daily, drawing us close to him, that we would be at peace. :) Only then can we be peacemakers in this world.

James 3:16

"For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice."

My NIV footnote says that God is not a God of disorder, but a God of peace. Thursday and Friday's readings show us godly wisdom's way to peace. But for today, our verse shows two direct correlations, four words that God through James specifically chose for us to read in one sentence.

Envy = Disorder
Selfish Ambition = Evil Practice

And we could replace any of those four words with each other and it would still make sense. Wherever envy/jealousy, bitterness, selfish goals, and pride are the theme, disorder, chaos, and evils of all kinds will also be present. It quickly becomes one ugly, heart-breaking situation!

Today this verse makes me think of what kind of home I'm making for my husband...and what sort of home I desire to have for our family someday when we have children. Three of us are home-makers for husbands, but all of us share living spaces with someone and so we can ask ourselves what kind of "home" we're creating for those living with us?

I desire for our home to be a place of refuge and a place where my husband can be real, and relax, and be honest, where he can be vulnerable. I want this for myself also. I want our home to be peaceful. So it's very important to stop jealousy, bitterness and selfishness in their tracks when we see them creeping into the very personal place called home...because when home is chaotic and full of disorder and evil things, the devil has had his way. Home is where we are molded, and I long to be molded by peace - God's peace that comes from wise choices and godly living.

I'm excited for our verses tomorrow and Friday that will teach us more about that!

Praying for us all that God would help us become better "homemakers of peace" for those living in our midst. Have a great Wednesday, girls!
Love,
~Cait

James 3: 13-15

"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life..."

We have an unlimited amount of 'wisdom' from the world today. I admit that I am sometimes a sucker for magazines that offer their advice to women every where, and SO many, including myself, buy into it. We treat these unimportant words as if they will make or break things for us. And I think the reason they are so popular are because they are how to make things better for us now, and make our life seem more glamorous. When we put things like this at a higher priority than God's wisdom, we are being completely selfish. Worldly wisdom gives our life a boost now, but God's wisdom is truly the best for us. It might make our life difficult and testing, but through it all we are gaining faith and wisdom from God.

Such 'wisdom' does not come down from Heaven, but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.

It's sometimes scary to think just how sinful the world we live in really is. We can't rely on it even though most of the time it gives us an easy way out... Psalms 119:130 says "The entrance of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple." God's love and wisdom will guide us through life so we can live with Him eternally. :) Have a great night girls!

James 3:13-15

Good morning girls!
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are enjoying the sunshine we're experiencing this week - it's finally starting to look like spring! :)
This morning I read yesterday and today's readings about wisdom, and noticed also how James is focusing on being wise in humility, love, and truthfulness. The world's wisdom is selfish and puffed up, proud in its victories. But in Christ, our wisdom ought to look so, so different.
This week, it looks like we'll only be studying 5 short verses, so I'm excited to really dig into them and let God teach me some particular things that may need attention in my life...a life that is often so foolish and self-centered...!

So this week I think our challenge could be to keep a keen eye on what in our lives is being affected by worldly wisdom or godly wisdom, and what sources of worldly wisdom we need to get rid of in our lives! Is it TV, books or magazines, unbelieving friends? I pray that God would give us the strength and wisdom to realize what advice we're following and then with his help, expel the worldly wisdom and replace it with real wisdom, God's wisdom! It is always the more unpopular way, but it brings a life that is rewarded and remarkable in God's eyes.

I pray you all have a wonderful week and find your own little treasures in this week's study! Love you all!
In Him,
~Cait

James 3:13-15

I had a hard time putting my finger on the focus of these verses, but what I'm led to understand is that this is talking about the difference between a selfish heart and a sincere one. A heart that wants to see the world with the eyes of Jesus vs. one that has an ulterior motive for oneself to be glorified, valued, and successful. Only Jesus can see these motives. He knows. People can applaud people for supposed "wisdom," but only God sees if someone is truly being wise, and even in our most shining moments (made possible by his Spirit), our hearts can never be perfectly wise or loving. This part of James reminds me that wisdom is thinking and doing as God would, with everyone else's needs at the forefront of his mind, not focusing on the self.

This got me thinking about how sometimes people do things that I think are strange, but they might be doing them because they want to serve God, and it just comes out differently than I think it would. Last night I read about Mary washing Jesus' feet. Though Judas thought this unwise, it was a beautiful act of love on Mary's part. It came from her heart, much like the heart of Rahab who hid the spies. Again I am reminded that love is not following a set of rules, but it comes from impulses of the heart.

It also made me remember that I need to be careful where I get my advice from, because there are people who might have their own agenda on their mind, and they might push me toward doing what they want me to do or what they would have me do. This might not be what God wants. His wisdom is the best. I pray that he would lead me to the source of that wisdom time and again, and that he'd give me his Spirit. I'm so thankful that he's in control, not me, because my plans are so close-minded, and he sees everything, knows everything, and plans for in advance for me and for you. His wisdom trumps our best thoughts and plans. I pray that our Father in heaven would help us to trust in him and that he'd give us wisdom--the kind that comes from him--unselfish love that sees the needs of others.

James 3:13

Hello, girls! I read today's verse on wisdom, but I don't have a lot of time to write this morning. Praying that you all have a blessed week. Our Lord is near in prayer to help. The God of hope will be with you. : ) He loves you so much.

Love, Paula