Can I highly recommend a book to you that I was required to read in Bible School? It is, “When People are Big and God is Small” by Edward Welch. It is easy to read and convicting. You should pass it on to another after reading it yourself.

Mr. Welch writes that many people know God loves them, but they think they need love or approval from other people. They are controlled by whomever or whatever they believe can give them what they think they need. Their fear of man includes not only being afraid of someone, but it goes farther—holding someone in awe! They are controlled or mastered by people, maybe worshipping them, putting all their trust in needing people!

As I read this, I had to admit to these things of myself (a lot of times). There are three categories mentioned that we claim. In our teens we call it “peer-pressure”; next we fall into “people-pleasing”; and as we get older we seek “co-dependency”. Where does God fit in? I read that Scripture shows us we shouldn’t put a need or want on people; we should love them. Proverbs 29:25 says, “The fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trust in the Lord is kept safe.” Great verse! Why do we have to have someone (even Jesus) think we are great?
One whole chapter of Ed Welch’s book deals with a problem many have; it covers self-esteem, low esteem, etc. Not only do we worry about how people see us; but will they reject us? We want acceptance, love and to get rid of worthlessness. We have all that in Christ! We have love and salvation, and He liberates us form sin and guilt. The ‘gaze of God” should be our first concern, not the gaze of people!

God knew we’d have need in this area. He records many men in Scripture who had thoughts and words for us. Deuteronomy 1:17 – Moses said, ‘Do not fear any man, for judgment belongs to God.’ King Saul feared rejection; Peter battled as he feared man and denied Christ three times. Imagine Peter as Jesus gazed into His eyes! Read 1 Peter 3:13-14 to see how Peter changed
whom he served. Mr. Welch’s book ends by telling us we do have a need for people – for the
body of Christ. We need each other. One can’t do it alone, so we work together, love each other, and serve for the glory of the Lord. The “gaze of God” is in His Word. I need to read it, fear Him and do all for His glory, not for people. God is big, people are small. Best of all, God is love!

Dottie

Today is the final chapter of Martha’s vignette. What we’ve been given is a glimpse into the possible life of many a believer –maybe even you. For me, this snapshot has been a serious hug from God. Only a loving Father cares enough to teach us, rebuke or correct us and then draw near enough to allow us to lean way, way in and rest our weary repentant and sorrowful heads in and under the shadow of His Wings.

Psalms 36:6-8 speaks to us of God from history pasts, “How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights.” The Message, -a Scripture paraphrase- sets the pen to paper in a way that is full of description.
“God’s love is meteoric, his loyalty astronomic, His purpose titanic, his verdicts oceanic. Yet in his largeness nothing gets lost. Not a man, not a mouse, slips through the cracks. How exquisite your love, O God! How eager we are to run under your wings, to eat our fill at the banquet you spread as you fill our tankards with Eden spring water. Psalms 36:5-8

Dear sisters we don’t have to be thirsty or hungry! Let’s invite Him who is the Bread of Life into our day. Let’s taste and see that He, the Lord, is good.

Who but God is big enough to be all and everything we need…to…be? Who but God can take our time and somehow multiply it, to enable us to accomplish all that He will impress upon us as important? “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”

Psalms 19:23-24
“Investigate my life, O God, find out everything about me; Cross-examine and test me, get a clear picture of what I’m about; see for Yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong then guide me on the road to eternal life.” The Message Paraphrase

Remember we serve a God who is, “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power in us.” Ephesians 3:20

My Question For You:

Will you allow God to try you concerning the time you are given?

Stephanie

Yesterday we left Martha with 4.5 hours, to be all that she could and would be to all the people in her life that she is lovingly attempting to serve, in a godly manner. Now let’s fast forward a few years in Martha’s life. She’s still attempting the same pace and yet she is no longer all that happy with herself or with life. Something isn’t right. She can’t remember the last time she felt good about her faith walk and she sometimes wonders if her faith is even real. After all if it was,
wouldn’t she have more time to sit at the feet of Jesus? She can’t seem to find any time for herself, let alone more time for her Lord. And if and when she does think about setting time aside for herself (which would include time with the Savior) she tends to feel a bit guilty.

Now, let me say right here and now-whether Martha should or should not feel the way she does is not relevant. The fact is – she does!

This puts us right back where we started, with my phone conversation. After examining an average day in my friend’s life, she was actually relieved. She took a deep breath, exhaled loudly, and in so many words said, “Then it’s okay for me to take time off in my day for me?” Of
course it is. But…let’s not forget what the Holy Spirit revealed to us. Remember what He said, He told us that our guilt or put another way, our sorrow was due to our need for Him; a very real need which was not being met by the busyness that characterized our existence. So, while it is good to schedule yourself into your day, it is better still to schedule Him, Who Is above all earthly things into your day. And do it in such a way that you experience His Presence. Dare we take a new step of faith and cease from our activity long enough to experience a true rest? Dare we call upon Him, seek Him and actually wait to find Him right there where we are?

“Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me. When you seek me with all your heart…”Jeremiah 29:13

My Question For You?

When is the last time you laid at the feet of Jesus?

Stephanie

Let’s begin today by examining an average day in the life of busy Miss Martha. Martha’s average day begins at 6:45 a.m. Now Martha is not a morning person, so getting up at 6:45 is, in itself a challenge. But, nonetheless, she is up and ready to invest herself in the life of her day. By 7:45 Miss M has managed to wash her face, brush her teeth, make her bed, start a load of laundry, fold the load from the night before, open all her window blinds, make her morning protein drink and drink it, take her medicine and maybe even her vitamins. All of this with her
eyes only half opened. Okay, I know it doesn’t sound like much, but hey, she’s moving.

Now ever-present, all the time on Martha’s mind is she needs and wants to spend some time with the Lord in praise, prayer, and in His Word seeking to know Him better. So, maybe, as much out of desire as out of duty, she sits and does a quick, 5-20 minute devotion. She bows her head in prayer (ever mindful of the ticking of the clock) says a quick, Amen and she’s up and running to get through the rest of her morning routine to get out the door on off to work on time. By now it’s around 8:00 a.m. and she has to leave the house by 8:35 at the latest to arrive
at work on time. Before we go on, let’s do a quick time scan of the possible hours she has in her day to accomplish all that she believes is required of her. If we begin with the given 24, and minus 8 for sleeping, 9 for work, 1 for driving time to and from work, and the time she has used already to get going in her day, she is left with 4.5 potential hours to do everything else. And we all know that the, everything else -her husband, kids, dinner preparation, church meeting, choir practice, exercise, etc. – is not going to fit into 4.5 hours. But that won’t stop Martha from trying. To be continued tomorrow…

My Question For You:

Are you catching a glimpse of why Martha isn’t enjoying more Mary moments? What would you say to Martha to encourage her heart?

Stephanie

Recently in conversation with someone regarding the use of our time, God, by His Holy Spirit infused some very practical wisdom into our session. My friend shared with me how she often feels guilty if she takes time off to “just do nothing”. I can’t remember how many times I have heard those words spoken over the years, and often by some of the busiest women I know. As my friend and I talked about this guilt and why we seem to feel it regardless of our best intentions, the Holy Spirit stepped in and gave us an unmistakable answer. His words –not mine- were as follows: “The reason you feel guilt is because we, Father, Son and Holy Spirit have been absent from your day.” We were both stunned by this revelation. However, we both
had to admit to each other the extreme truth of it. Yes, we were both given to having many “mini” devotions and yet, peace was definitely lacking. There just didn’t seem to be enough time in a day to accomplish all the tasks that we set for ourselves and still have time for more meaningful moments of repose before the God of our salvation. I’m sure at this point God chuckled at our silliness. We all get 24 hours, no more-no less. If this is what God has given us, then surely it is sufficient. As our conversation continued, the Holy Spirit led me in a very
practical way to “get real” about the time that we have. Since it will be impossible to share all of this with you in one edition of Victory Call, I will spread it out over a few days, so as to do justice to what God shared with us. I believe with all my heart that this is applicable to so many of us and my sincere hope is that we are challenged to draw near and nearer still, to God. I pray that we be unafraid to do as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes 1:13 –“seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven”, as it relates to pursuing communion with God. If it means I get disciplined and organized in the use of my time, then I am willing.

My Question For You Today:
What does time with God look like in your daily life?

Stephanie

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13

I know this week of Victory Call have been straight forward talk on a sensitive subject. I need to warn you today’s will be the toughest yet. For many of you reading this, the topic may be foreign to your thinking but I assure you it is a very real issue. I want to talk today about the power a woman has via her body. Some women dress to attract attention. For a few, it is perfectly innocent but I am going to suggest (and you may choose to disagree) that for the
majority of these women they are dressing with intention. I don’t mean that every day they get up and say, “Today, I’m going to turn heads”, but rather the selection of clothes in their closet betrays their heart. I gave very little thought to this whole area before I came to AK. Through
the ministry to hundreds of wives, I have made some observations and offer this conclusion: Women enjoy the sense of power they get from turning heads of men. It feels good to be noticed. Now, I’m not talking about all women, I talking about women in general. You may be quite offended by my conclusion but in the world of counseling I live in, it is very real. Is it really power? Whatever you want to call it, men react to women. God made men visual. They are wired to be sexually aroused through what they take in through their eyes. But Satan has taken that which is good and twisted it so that men (in general) are confronted with the temptation to lust.
Let me share a quote from “Every Man’s Battle” by Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker (this is written by men to men): “Males Receive Sexual Gratification Through the Eyes: … We have our eyes and can draw sexual gratification through them at any time. We’re turned on by female nudity in any way, shape, or form. … We have a visual ignition switch when it comes to viewing the female anatomy. … Visual sexual gratification is no laughing matter in your fight for sexual purity. Given what the sight of nudity does to the pleasure centers of our brain, and these days it’s pretty easy to see many naked or near-naked women, it’s no wonder our eyes and mind resist control.” As I am writing this the thought occurred to me that lust may look different
in women than in men. I’m going to throw this thought out for your consideration. Is it possible that lust in women is manifested through their dress and the sense power to entice? Could it be, women lust through their body –body language, flirting, the way they walk, dressing to accent
(through tight clothes) or expose (through minimal clothes) their figure? Just a thought.

Ladies, knowing that men are prone to lustful temptation, the law of love warrants that we as women, seek to love them by being mindful of our attire so as to be a blessing rather than a temptation. Phew!! I’m glad this week is over.

Diane

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13

As we have been focusing on modesty this week and seeking to love our brothers by not being a stumbling block to them, I can’t help but think we need to understand balance. Lest you think I am advocating a return to floor length dresses or face veils I want to communicate the heart of love not law. How do we balance proper dress out of love for our brother without becoming legalistic about it? The difference is in the heart. There is a world of difference between being modest because ‘I gotta’, and being modest as an act of relational obedience and love for Christ and our bothers. One is a result of outward compliance the other the result of a heart of love.
I believe we are called by God to bring every area of our life under the authority of God. It’s not man’s rules or regulations that should be our highest concern but rather the expression of God’s heart in our lives. Are you willing to take your wardrobe to the Lord with an open hand and let
Him sort through it and discard those things you believe are not pleasing to Him? If you are holding on to your freedom to wear what you want with a closed fist…it’s time for a heart check.

We’re almost done, one more day on this very sensitive and difficult topic. Tomorrow is the hardest yet.

Your challenge today is to ask yourself if you are willing to change if God expresses His desire for you to do so. Are you willing or are you dismissing those nagging thoughts? Are you willing?

Diane

“You, my bothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.”

This week we have been having a frank discussion (more like a monologue) about modesty. Today I want to briefly discuss the difference between men and women and the lack of understanding of each other and for each other. If you are single, hang in there because this is just as important for you to understand as for us “old married women”.

Men are visual. Women are tactile and relational. Men can be aroused by someone they don’t even know simply by the way she looks or dresses. Women are not so much aroused by the way a man looks but more by the way he looks at her. Sexual purity for men involves discipline with their eyes first and foremost. Sexual purity for women involves discipline with their hearts.

Ladies, we may not understand how quickly a man can become aroused, how quickly he can be drawn away and tempted to lust, but I believe Jesus calls us to have compassion not contempt. Our lack of understanding does not invalidate the reality of the struggle for men. I know if your
husband is involved in pornography, this hurts. Perhaps we can “talk” about that another week.

How does this relate to our theme-the law of love? If we as women seek to understand and to be compassionate, I believe we would be much more mindful of our dress so as to not increase the struggle.I don’t believe that contempt for people is ever the godly response. Let’s get angry at the culprit-Satan and pray for his failure in this area.

Your challenge today is to pray for understanding and compassion.

Diane

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13

We started off yesterday with a call to modesty. The standards of dress have changed so drastically over time that things that we don’t think twice about today would have not have only raised eyebrows a hundred years ago but probably earned us a name we would not like.

Yesterday, I suggested some very pointed guidelines regarding modest attire. You may be thinking I’m being legalistic or prudish. Oh sister, hear my heart. Our theme verse this week and several others in Scripture clearly assure us we are free. “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” Romans 6:14. “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. “I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.” Psalm 119:32. BUT, we are never to use our freedom as a license to do whatever we want if it causes a brother to stumble. Our theme verse says, “…do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” The law of love constrains the law of freedom, or law of liberty. In other words, we give up our freedom out of love for a brother or sister, if the exercise of our freedom is a stumbling block for them.

You may be thinking, “This isn’t fair.” I’m not the one that has the problem. Why is modesty such a big deal? I’m not wearing anything too revealing. If a man gawks, that’s his problem. As a
Christian woman, it is your “problem” because Christ has called you to serve your brother in love. How loving is it to wear clothing that attracts his eye, distracts him, or causes him to stumble? I’m not talking here about within your marriage I’m talking about the men that
are not your husband. It takes a woman of strength, conviction and dignity to make
such unselfish decision. Are you willing to be that kind of woman?

No challenge today, I think we have been challenged enough.

Diane

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13

Warning!!! This week’s devotionals are on modesty and sexual purity and are written with frankness and forthrightness. I apologize in advance if my frankness offends anyone. I would not do this if it wasn’t a burden on my heart that I think God’s wants His daughters to hear. I hope my mother is not reading these. It’s that time of year again, when the weather is hot and humid. For some of you this writing will draw a nod of the head, for others, I’m afraid I’m going to step on your toes. I am going to be bold today, bolder than usual that is. It is time for Christian women to take a stand with regard to our dress. Hear me clearly; I’m not talking about being dowdy, unstylish or puritanical in our dress. I’m talking about just plain modesty. There are parts of a woman’s body that need to be covered, plain and simple. A woman’s breasts need to be modestly covered, front, middle and sides. Modestly covered does not mean with see through fabric, or exposing the bra underneath. A woman’s abdomen, upper thighs, mid-drift and buttocks need to be covered. I’m nervous about being so pointed but I’ve long since learned forthrightness and frankness minimizes misunderstanding.

I have worked at America’s Keswick for almost 6 years. I have had my eyes opened to the sinful struggle of women and men, both which could be qualified as lust. I would venture a guess that the majority of calls I get from women relate to this issue of lust. It may manifest itself in ogling which means: to eye amorously or provocatively or to look at especially with greedy or interested attention (Merriam-Webster On-line Dictionary) or it may involve pornography, infidelity or inappropriate emotional ties. Statistics show that men are the primary offenders regarding the use of internet pornography sites, but there are a growing number of women falling into the same sinful trap. Bill Welte gave a statistic recently from a Christian Woman’s magazine survey that 34% of the women responding to the survey has been on a pornographic website within the last 24 hours. I think you have had enough frankness for today, but we are not done yet. There is much more to be said this week. I will explain through the week, how
our verse relates to this topic.

Your challenge for today is to ask God if there is any outfits in your closet that HE would like you to get rid of. If you’re courageous enough, ask your spouse or a close friend for an honest evaluation of how you dress.

Diane