Amazing Coincidence!

Yes, I know this is a strange sort of post. One written to an individual. I tried to post a reply to the article but there was no way to leave comments, so I began to email and realized this would make a wonderful story to tell.

Dear Lady Lydia,

You recently left a comment on my blog, Domestically Inclined, and I went to your site today to catch up with you. Much to my pleasant surprise I read "The Sleeper". I had to laugh out loud considering the possibility of two such wonderful young men alive in our lives at the same time. My son also turned 25 this year on Feb.4th. I call him Stevie and he has married a tiny little wife, who says she feels like she is in the land of giants at our home and she the Lilliputian. It's cute to watch her feet dangle from the chairs like a little girl's. These two just had our first little grandchild. Had I had time I might of thought of posting a poem and a similar picture for our Stevie's 25th, but he does read my posts, and the week of the birthday which marked a quarter of a century for him, we were busy welcoming their first child into the world. So thank you for the visit and the laughs, and the uncanny resemblence to our sons situation.
Best Regards,
Domestically Inclined

Altough to you my Stevie, for your 25th, celebrated in a hopsital room/rooms/hallway/ but for a very good cause...

May you make it through tax season Mr. CPA,
to praise God another day.

As you trust in the Lord to care for your new family,
Jesus will hold you all tight and oh so tenderly.

Look to Him for all your needs,
and He will direct your path.
Your wife who loves you dearly will be waiting
to serve your dinner after a long day of math.

Your little one will smile and coo
as she hears your voice and looks up to you.

Your dad and I are proud to say you are our son,
and trust God to keep you in His care.
For none other can love you more
than the One who knows the number of your hairs.


Especially since you might lose a few during tax season :)

PS: Dear Daughter in law you and baby girl are welcome anytime!... Of course you are as well Stevie. Love you and congrats to you both on the new little one!
Link to "The Sleeper"

Out of the mouth of babes You have ordained praise!

Out of the mouth of babes You have ordained praise!

I was driving home from Bible study late one night during a snow storm when I listened to a message my sister left on my cell phone. Thank God I turned it off before service...(don't you just haate having your's ring during service, how embarassing!)
My sister is not a believer in Jesus, yet, but she thought I might be interested in hearing what my niece said. Their family is packing to move and while taking a break from the work my niece who is 4 years old, sat down at the piano bench in the garage and began to plunk away at the keyboard. She has not had any lessons, but loves music. She can still recall the words to many praise songs, that she heard us sing and play to her when she came to visit a few years ago. Her mom listened intently and when the music was over she told her "Honey that was beautiful".
Very thougthfully my niece replied..."thanks, I know mommy, I wanted it to be, because I was playing for my Jesus!"
My eyes teared over so quickly listening to the message I almost couldn't see between the snow flakes. It was so sweet to hear what was in the heart of that little one. I miss her dearly, but I know that even though she is far away, Jesus loves them, and is drawing them to Himself.

Submission...a beautiful thing?

Struggling with submission? You are not alone, although it wasn't really an issue just a few generations ago. It's just that the culture around us is causing us to question the order that God has set in place, as well as questioning His entire Word! Even the popular books of our day can lead us astray.... Let's take a look at what God says on the matter.

“What? Do you expect me to be a doormat”
“What me, obey him?

Paul reminds me in the book of I Corinthians…why do you not suffer the wrong
The book of Peter reminds me…be subject one to another, clothed in humility
The book of James reminds me…Submit to God, resist the devil
The book of Hebrews reminds me…to submit to those in authority above me
The book of Colossians and Ephesians reminds me… to submit to my husband as unto the Lord
The book of Ephesians reminds me…that we are all to submit one to another.
Jesus reminds me…Nevertheless, thy will be done Father.

Submission should be based on Mutual Surrender to the Lord.

Now I am speaking to those who have husbands that are not asking them to do anything directly against God’s word. We will all stand before God to give an account of what we have done with our lives and our works will be judged by fire to see whether they be wood, hay or stubble, or gold, silver and precious jewels. That does not mean that we will always agree with each other, but we will be in the unity of the Spirit. Our husbands will be held accountable for what they do, but so will we. Only in Christ are we saved, not by our church, not by our husbands.

We cannot submit in our own power. It takes the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, which means we cannot be walking in the flesh.
I have seen book, after book, that leads women astray in this matter of submission.
It is not gold and silver, hairdo’s, make-up and outfits that fix these matters, but the heart of a women that matters. To quote a Pastor... if the barn needs painting ladies, by all means paint it (not to attract other men, but to please your own)
But remember... favor is deceitful and beauty is vain but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall praised. Proverbs 31:30

We can be taught by “books” to be charming, and alluring, even deceitful, but it is the heart of a submissive women, a women whose heart is SURRENDERED completely to the Lord that can say…nevertheless, THY WILL BE DONE LORD.
It is a matter of surrendering our will to our Father’s.
Submission/Surrender comes hard to those who do not TRUST God with all that concerns them.
Submission/Surrender is hard when SELF wants it’s own way. We are to die to self, take up our cross and follow JESUS. Jesus gave up everything, and died to self for me.
We know there is sin in the world so it will not be perfect but, as a wife, and husband surrender/submit to Jesus, their wills will align with the will of God.

Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Ephesians 5:17-24

God has set this order up to be a testimony to the world, and even to the angels! As you obey you bring glory and honor to God. You have been bought with a price..the precious blood of Jesus! That salvation is free to us, but it came at a very high price! We are expensive ladies! It cost Jesus everything. So why do we live as we belong to ourselves? Jesus has every right to pound and chip away at what is not right in our lives. Some times he uses our husbands, or situations to do that. By refusing to surrender and taking matters into our own hands we are telling God that we do not trust HIM. Not to worry we are to mutually surrender to Jesus and serve one another. God took care of it all!

By trying to wriggle out from under the circumstances of our lives we may loose the benefit of the refining fire for the sake of our own will.
God will work out the details with a surrendered heart attitude.
Submission… total heart surrender… really is a beautiful thing!

Originally published by Lady in 2005

© Monika Hardy