Scrapping My Plans

Hello friends,

How do you start your days? Do you begin by making a plan? I generally begin with a plan, normally on paper but sometimes just in my head. It has things like: "Wash towels", and "fold laundry", "clean the kitchen", "vacuum living room", "bathe the puppy", "read Bible study book" etc. And then as I accomplish these tasks, I scratch it off my list with satisfaction. I don't always finish my list, my plan for the day and then I tend to feel like I'm a failure and beat myself up. I'm learning to let go, to be okay when I don't get it all down. As long as I know I've been a faithful steward of my time, I know everything is okay. I'm trying to live with open hands. I have a "Plan A", but most of the time, God has a "Plan B". I'm learning to trust in His Plan B when my Plan A has to be scrapped.

There are times when I can't accomplish everything on my plan because of sinful choices, but instead of succumbing to the temptation to give up the rest of the day because of my laziness or lack of discipline, I am learning to confess my sin and repent, then moving on with my day and starting anew. And when I look back on my day and regret that I couldn't do all I wanted to, I'm learning to see the difference between God's Plan B and my sinfulness. Some weeks are harder than others. Monday morning last week I woke up energized and ready to be faithful with my time. I accomplished much last week. This week? I woke up later than I wanted because I stayed up too late last night and then my day got started slowly. So today I'm choosing to confess my laziness and deny the urge to let my entire day go to pot and use the rest of the time I have wisely.

So far, the dishes are washed, the bed is made, the rice is cooked for dinner tonight, I've worked out and showered. To go? The floor is covered in leaves and dirt tracked in by the dogs, there is a pile of clean laundry on the bed and piles of dirty clothes in the laundry room. So off I go to use the time God has given me wisely.

Anna

May the Mind of Christ My Saviour

May the mind of Christ my Saviour
live in me from day to day,
Jesus' love and power controlling
all I do or say.

May the word of God dwell richly
in my heart from hour to hour,
so that all may see I triumph
only through God's power.

May the peace of God my Sovereign
rule my life in everything,
that I may be calm to comfort
sick and sorrowing.

May the love of Jesus fill me,
as the waters fill the sea;
Christ exalting, self denying,
this is victory.

May I run the race before me,
strong and brave to face the foe,
looking only unto Jesus
as I onward go.

- Kate Wilkinson

Link Love

Just some good reads lately.

• Increasing the Passion in Your Homemaking
• Teaching our daughters to be Godly wives - now!
• Just Say No to Sibling Rivalry
• Live Near to Jesus

Anna

Rejoice Always!: Part One

This series is meant to be an encouragement. Please don't come away from this thinking that I have it all figured out! I struggle day in and day out to rejoice always and to be content in all circumstances. In fact, I will share as part of this series how I very recently lost my joy. If you have any questions please leave a comment below!

"Rejoice always" ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:16

"Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice." ~ Philippians 4: 4

"in this [your heavenly inheritance] you rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ." ~ 1 Peter 1:6-7

"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." ~ Romans 5:1-5

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." ~ Romans 12:12

How do we rejoice always? How is that even possible? I think it has everything to do with trust and the sovereignty of God. Let's take a look at some things that the Scripture shows us about who God is and what He does for us.

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose." ~ Romans 8:28

"And He said to His disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouses nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why ar eyou anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass which is alive in the filed today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not see what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek His kingdom and these things will be added to you." ~ Luke 12:22-31

"And He told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in this city who kept coming to him and saying, "Give me justice against my adversary." For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, "Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming. "" And the Lord said, "Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to His elect who cry to Him day and night? Will He delay long over them? I tell you, He will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?"" ~ Luke 18:1-8

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" ~ Matthew 7:7-11

So now we've established that 1) God works all things for our good, 2) He is a loving Father who gives us what we need, and 3) that God brings us justice. Let's look at some verses that establish God's sovereignty:

"A man's steps are from the Lord, how then can man understand his way?" ~ Proverbs 20:24

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that stands." ~ Proverbs 19:21

"Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit" - yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil." ~ James 4:13-15

"[God] works all things to the counsel of His will" ~ Ephesians 1:11

"I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things." ~ Isaiah 45:7

"Shall we receive good from God and shall we not receive evil?" In all this, Job did not sin with his lips." ~ Job 2:10

"Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases." ~ Psalm 115:3

"all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and He does according to His will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand or say to Him, "What have you done?" ~ Daniel 4:35

"Also henceforth I am He; there is none who can deliver from my hand; I work, and who can turn it back?" ~ Isaiah 43:13

God is sovereign over all situations, good and bad. There are plenty more Scriptures all over the Bible from Genesis to Revelation that make this clear. So when we pair up that God is completely and totally sovereign over every situation, good and bad; and if we put that together with what we laid out earlier, that God is working for our good, then we can fully and completely trust in Him through each and every circumstance that comes our way! Even when we can't see why something might be good for us right now, God has a plan and will make it happen. Nothing can thwart Him! We can rest in that. Truly and completely understanding this is the key and bedrock of rejoicing always.
Not only is our joy rooted in the sovereignty and goodness of God, but also in the hope given to us in salvation. We aren't looking to our circumstances to give us joy. We must look toward a Saviour who has promised us that we have eternal life in Him. We must place our hope in the glory of God rather than the ups and downs of our daily life. That is when we can rejoice always, because our hope and trust have been place in something unshakable and unchangeable, rather than our fickle circumstances. And even within those ever-changing circumstances, God is present! They aren't just happening to us randomly, God has a purpose and He cannot be thwarted!
There's one other piece to rejoicing always, one that is inextricably connected: contentment. When we are completely content with our lot, the circumstances God has sovereignly ordained in our life, we will have joy. Jeremiah Burroughs, who wrote The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment says this, "Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to, and delights in God's wise and Fatherly disposal in every condition." The key to contentment? Knowing what we truly and completely deserve: death and eternal punishment. And once we have that perspective, we realize that anything - anything! - outside death in hell is a blessing! So how can we grumble and complain about inconvenient, difficult or sorrowful circumstances when we realize that this is so much better than we deserve? This is where contentment comes from. The peace of that contentment comes hand in hand along with the rejoicing always in every circumstance.
But what happens when the joy is gone? What does that mean? We'll take a look at that in part 2.

Love,
Anna

Once Upon a Time

Today I'm guest posting at Scribbles n'Things. Be sure and check it out!

Love,
Anna

Christian Optimism

My brother John has begun writing his own blog! I'm very excited about this because John is a very wise and mature young man. I know I benefit from his thoughts and I'm excited now that others can benefit as well. Please be sure to check out his blog Surprised by Optimism 


I thought while I was sharing John's blog, I would share the other blogs written by my family members:

My sister Lissie writes here at Impassioned Purity. She and John are twins and she also is a very wise person. She has steeped herself in God's Word and as a result, her lifestyle and walk reflect someone who wants to honour her Saviour.

My mom writes her thoughts over at A Deep Breath of Hope. That's truly what reading her thoughts are like: a huge gulp of fresh air. She's very honest and vulnerable about her struggles as a mom. I want to be a mom like her someday, she shares so much wisdom and she certainly has had a lot of experience! She's been a mom for 21 years and she has 12 children.

My family has a blog where they share daily happenings and pictures. I love going there to see what they're doing and see how they're all growing and changing. You can find that here: Unto Him We Live

This little blog has been pretty silent lately and I'm going to be changing that here soon, so don't worry that I fell off the face of the earth!

Love,
Anna

I Am Alive and a C. S. Lewis quote.

Our wedding day. 

So, I pretty much fell off the bandwagon for the last half of November. Part of the reason is Aaron and I went to see my family and the place that we were staying had very slow internet, so I didn't even try updating the blog. Well, I made it through the 30 Days of Thankfulness about halfway! Oh well. I was still thankful and definitely thought about something that I was thankful for each day. 


While we were with my family, my mom and I were talking about how wonderful marriage is and all that I've learned in my 8 months (almost!) wisdom (ha!). During the conversation, this quote came up that I really love and so I thought I'd share it with all of you! I have shared it in the past on my other blog, but I thought I'd put it here this time. 

“What we call ‘being in love’ is a glorious state, and, in several ways, good for us. It helps to make us generous and courageous, it opens our eyes not only to the beauty of the beloved but to all beauty, and it subordinates (especially at first) our merely animal sexuality; in that sense, love is the great conqueror of lust. No one in his senses would deny that being in love is far better than either common sensuality or cold self-centeredness. But, as I said before, ‘the most dangerous thing you can do is to take any one impulse of our own nature and set it up as the thing you ought to follow at all costs’. Being in love is a good thing, but it is not the best thing. There are many things below it, but there are also things above it. You cannot make it the basis of a whole life. It is a noble feeling, but it is still a feeling. Now no feeling can be relied on to last in its full intensity, or even to last at all. Knowledge can last, principles can last, habits can last; but feelings come and go. And in fact, whatever people say, the state called ‘being in love’ usually does not last. If the old fairy-tale ending ‘They lived happily ever after’ is taken to mean “They felt for the next fifty years exactly as they felt the day before the were married’, then it says what probably never was nor ever would be true, and would be highly undesirable if it were. Who could bear to live in that excitement for even five years? What would become of your work, your appetite, your sleep, your friendships? But, of course, ceasing to be ‘in love’ need not mean ceasing to love. Love in this second sense-love as distinct from ‘being in love’ – is not merely a feeling. It is a deep unity, maintained by the will and deliberately strengthened by habit; reinforced by (in Christian marriages) the grace which both partners ask, and receive, from God. They can have this love for each other even at those moments when the;y do not like each other; as you love yourself even when you do not like yourself. They can retain this love even when each would easily, if they allowed themselves, be ‘in love’ with someone else. ‘Being in love’ first moved them to promise fidelity: this quieter love enables them to keep the promise. It is on this love that the engine of marriage is run: being in love was the explosion that started it.”

~Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis, pages 108-109

Love,

Anna

Listening to Pandora radio - Trans-Siberian Orchestra (holiday)

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day Ten

Source: be-the-change.tumblr.com via Natalie on Pinterest

Today I am grateful that God is always our Rock. He is the one we can always run to in times of troubles. He never changes and is eternally the same. This is why we should never be anchored in our circumstances, because they will always be changing. Our anchor, our stay, our Rock should always be our God and when trouble comes we will never waver!

Love,
Anna

Listening to I'll Meet You There by Owl City

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day Nine

Source: google.com via Anna on Pinterest

Today I am thankful for fellowship with older women. I am doing a study of Carolyn Mahaney's book Feminine Appeal with some women at my church all of whom are older and it has been great! I read this book before I was married, but reading it now, everything is completely different! What a blessing. We met together today to discuss chapter two and the fellowship was so encouraging. So today I am thankful for the fellowship with older women.

Love,
Anna

Listening to Super Honeymoon by Owl City

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day Two

Today I'm thankful for my amazing husband. He is always looking out for my needs, even when they inconvenience him, especially now that I'm pregnant! Yesterday, I went for a walk with our puppy for about an hour and then exhaustion hit like a wall, so my sweet husband came and picked me up in the car. Isn't that sweet? He's so very seflless towards me. He stayed up last week until between 12 and 1 am working on a project for work and yet he still made some time for me in the evenings. Aaron truly lives out Christ's love toward me in so very many ways. I am very grateful for such a Godly man as my husband and I'm so grateful for him every single day!

Source: etsy.com via Anna on Pinterest

Love,
Anna

Listening to the Classical Radio Station. :)

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day One

This month, I'm joining Rachel and Jessica at Young Homemakers for their 30 Days of Thankfulness for the month of November. I will try to post every day, but I can't promise because this month is promising to be crazy! I will certainly do as many days as possible though!

Today I'm grateful for the little life growing inside me. Conception is such a mystery. God is the Author of Life and He gives life when it's the right time (even though sometimes we wish it were sooner or later!). This little one is causing many changes inside me, some that are not particularly pleasant, but I am very grateful for the gift of this precious little one.

Source: imgfave.com via Cara on Pinterest

Praising and thanking God for this precious little one!
Love,
Anna

Молитва за сирот-video: Guest Post

My sister Lissie from the blog Impassioned Purity wrote this blog post. She went on a ten-day trip to St. Petersburg Russia to work in an orphanage not to mention the fact that we have nine siblings adopted from Russia. It is very exciting for us to see God working among the Ukrainian church and causing people to rise up and stand in the gap for these children who have no hope. Who better than the Church could take great care of these children, teaching them about Christ and giving them an eternal hope? Praise God! Thank you Lissie for allowing me to reshare this post on my blog! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This video was created by Ukrainian Christians for Orphan Sunday (November 6, 2011): a day for the church to remember and act on behalf of the fatherless and vulnerable. In the words of Jedd Medefind on the Christian Alliance for orphans blog, the Ukrainian church is "on fire" in its desire to adopt and care for the orphans in its country. *Enter personal commentary: It makes me extremely excited to see Christ's church on the other side of the world passionately living out the Gospel to the needy!*

(The video is called "Prayer for Orphans," and the words at the end basically say that there are more than 30,000 orphans in Ukraine and that each person's prayer can make a difference.)

Is the church in America on fire to live out James 1:27? Please leave a comment if your church is doing something for Orphan Sunday! I would love to hear from you.

~Lissie

I Will Wait For You

Love,
Anna

Sister-Friends

Once upon a time, I went on a trip with some people from my church and some people from Pastor John Piper's church to help out the people in Pearlington, Mississippi with cleanup from Hurricane Katrina. The half from my church had never met the half from Bethlehem Baptist. We had some awkward first moments but the group pretty much hit it off right from the beginning. I'd like to tell you about one of my dear friends that I met as a result of those two groups coming together.

Her name is Ruthiey. She's quiet when you first meet her, but she has a radiant smile and a delightful laugh that immediately draw you in. She has these lovely eyes that smile all the time. But the greatest thing about Ruthiey? She's an encourager. I never fail to leave a conversation with her without a smile, a lighter step and most definitely an encouraged heart. She always seems to know what to say, what questions to ask, what answers to give in even the stickiest and most unusual of circumstances.

That's not all either! She's very genuine. When you're with her, you never feel like you're with a perfect person because she's honest about her struggles, that life isn't all daises and rainbows and she pairs that wonderfully with the hope the God offers in all of our daily lives. She doesn't just share about her struggles but how she's actively overcoming those struggles with the help of the Holy Spirit. Ruthiey isn't just talk, she gets up and works to change to become more conformed to Christ.

I can't tell you how much of an encouragement, comfort and inspiration this girl is to me. She's simply wonderful. I am so grateful to God for placing her in my life. I love you, Ruthiey girl!
While you're reading my blog, go check our her blog: Color My Life With Love .

Love,
Anna

Listening to Owl City's Halcyon (Pacman)

God Is Never Un-Motivated

Source: weheartit.com via Jasmine on Pinterest

There are days where it's hard work to simply put my contacts in. The bed doesn't get made, the dirty dishes sit in the sink, and the pile of laundry grows ever taller. Today is one of those days. I think part of the reason everything feels this way is because I woke up sick. I'm feeling better as the day has gone on, but I still feel like normal tasks are just insurmountable. I know I need to do the laundry, or Aaron won't have a clean undershirt tomorrow, but my body just sternly says, "No!".

After a day when I've "had it all together", as in, I taught three violin lessons, went grocery shopping (and didn't exceed the budget!) tidied the house, went through paperwork and generally felt like I looked put-together in my heels and sweater, today is a stark contrast. My to-do list is sitting with my calendar, untouched. I keep telling myself that if I'm not going to do laundry or empty the dishwasher, that I should at least study for my next test, since that doesn't require any exertion. But here I am, blogging.

I don't have it all together. I have my share of bad and hard days, just like any of us. But I know Someone who never changes or has bad days or is unmotivated to get those things on His to-do list done. He never get's frustrated or forgets something, He never leaves something unfinished. I always find that quite comforting on days like this, that God is not like this. He doesn't have something unexpected come up, ever.

So on our days like this one that I'm having now, we can cling to our Heavenly Father who is so far above, better and unchanging than we are. But more than just being comforted, this can urge us to action knowing that with His Holy Spirit we can be like Him and keep going despite our circumstances or how achy our body is or how unmotivated we feel. Because God is so much bigger than all of that!

So off I go to begin laundry and empty the dishwasher. I might sit down after I've done all of my chores to study and rest. And I'll be thinking about how great and marvelous our God is the whole time.

Love,
Anna

Link Love

Source: weheartit.com via Anna on Pinterest

• This Momentary Marriage - This post is soooooo good!! And in case you're curious, this is exactly the kind of marriage Aaron and I have as well. 
• This wedding was so sweet to read about! How often do you hear of twins marrying twins? And wow are they going to have beautiful kids, too! I thought the story about the girls' family was very inspiring as well.
• This was an encouragement for me to be a Radical Blessing to my dear husband. I want someone to be able to call me a "radical blessing" to Aaron.
• Two babies born this week! What a huge blessing. You can find William Paton here and Rebekah Rosalie here. Praise God, the Creator of life!
• I just love this adorable picture of my little sister, Oksana.I miss her!
• Check out this blog: all the leaves are rustling. 
• Really love this quote about love. It made me think.
• My sister Lissie posted this video. A good reminder of just how big our God is!
• Fall! I'm so excited for autumn and can't wait for it's official arrival. I've seen it peeking around the corner, but I can't wait for it to be here completely.

Love,

Anna

Listening to Adele - Rolling in The Deep played by Steven Sharp Nelson and Jon Schmidt

Who Am I?

I AM... an extrovert, a lover of music, and a poet.
I WANT... to share my love of music with as many people as possible.
I HAVE... many adventures I want to embark on.
I KEEP.... every note and card anyone sends me. I enjoy re-reading them at a later date.
I WISH I COULD.... have more time in a day to spend with my husband.
I HATE.... feeling unmotivated and procrastinating.
I FEAR... spiders. It's dumb, but I do.
I HEAR.... the roar on the other side of the silence.
I DON'T THINK... winter is a bad thing. Fall and winter are wonderful!
I REGRET..... placing value on things that have no infinite value at all. Like clothes.
I LOVE... God, my husband, my family, and my friends.
I AM NOT....quiet. Beware.
I DANCE.... when I'm with people I know really well, like my husband or siblings.
I SING.... with every song I hear, even with ones without the words, in my heart.
I NEVER.... am alone.
I RARELY.... slow down.
I CRY WHEN I WATCH.... gotcha day videos like this one. Lucy Lane's Gotcha Day.
I AM NOT ALWAYS... smiley. I know that comes as a surprise to some. I wish I was though.
I HATE THAT... it's easier to gain weight than lose it.
I'M CONFUSED ABOUT... the choices some people make.
I NEED.... God. Every. single. day.
I SHOULD.... be studying right now. But I'm catching up on blogging instead. Oh well.

Thanks to Sarah from Ampersand Photography for this list!

Love,
Anna

Listening to Vitamin String Quartet's version of Fireflies by Owl City

My Bookshelf

I just wanted to let you all know that I've added another page to my blog! It's the list of books I would like to read or have read this year. I've thought "Oh wouldn't it be nice to have a booklist on my blog" for quite awhile now but it wasn't until I saw Natalie's bookshelf that I knew I had to have one. So - voila!- here it is for all the world to see!

My Bookshelf

Love,
Anna

Waiting, Contentment and Desires

Credit

Waiting is hard. Especially when you have a desire for something. For instance, the desire in a girl to get married and have babies is hard. You want a man to hold you, to come home to you, to call you his own wife. You want a little baby to hold in your arms, a baby that is your own, a baby you don't have to give back to his mother and say goodbye to. Don't get me wrong, these aren't bad desires, they are wonderful, beautiful God-given desires! He wants us to desire to be a wife and mother! Marriage and motherhood is the highest calling for a woman that there is! But what do we do with this desire when there isn't an eligible guy in sight and hence babies are even farther away?

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in His way..." ~ Psalm 37:3-7

 God has you in the circumstances you're in right now for a reason. I think we've all heard the phrase, "Bloom where you are planted". It's the concept that God has you in this season of life for a reason and that we are to be content right where we are, not focused on another stage or another episode of life. Jeremiah Burroughs once said, in his book The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment,

 "Christian Contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God's wise and fatherly disposal in every condition."

I love the last phrase. It "freely submits to and delights in God's wise and fatherly disposal in every condition." Think about every single word in that phrase. This is something I definitely haven't attained yet! So, our prayer when we have these desires is to ask God for more contentment in our present circumstances.


Another way to help with these good desires is to channel them into action. When Psalm 37 verse 7 says to "Be still and wait patiently for the Lord", it's not saying to sit around and twiddle your thumbs until God brings you your heart's desire, it's saying to not force the issue. Don't try to "make" it happen. Wait on the Lord, He will do it! But while you're waiting on the Lord, it's our job to conform ourselves to His image and become more like Him in every way. So while you're waiting for Prince Charming to appear on the scene, your job is to become more like Christ. What sins do you struggle with on a daily basis? Work (with the Spirit, of course!) on eradicating that from your life. Ask God to show you what He wants you to work on. Here's another thought about that: what if God isn't bringing that Man into your life because of a certain sin in your life? Ask God to show you! He's always willing to, I promise.


And one last thought. Proverbs 31 verse 12 says, "She [the wife] does him [her husband] good, and not harm, all the days of her life." It doesn't say, "she does him good all the days of their marriage," it doesn't even say, "she does him good all the days that she knows him"! It says, "all the days of her life." So how can you be doing good for your husband now? Instead of pining away for Mr. Right, how can you be conforming yourself to become more like Christ and do your Mr. Right good right now?


Love,
Anna

Things I'm Learning As a Wife...

Here are just a few random things I've learned and I'm working on as a wife. I have a loooong way to go, just in case you think I've arrived. {laughs}

• Pouting isn't a good idea. It just isn't. And I knew that before I got married too. You'd think I would have figured that out by now! It just makes life miserable for both of us. And Aaron loves me and wants the best for me, so when he says no, it must be that it's for my good. (This principle applies to God too!)

• Every day right before Aaron gets home or I go to pick Aaron up from work, I spray a little perfume on and fix my hair and swish with mouthwash. I know Aaron appreciates it and it certainly makes me feel fresher! 

• "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1. It really works too. Funny how that is! The problem is that I tend to feel self-righteous after I've responded gently! So I jump from one ditch into the other. So I'm learning to stay right in the middle. 

• Even when you just know you're right, is it really worth arguing? In view of eternity, does the subject at hand need to be won? Maybe not, especially when it's put that way.

• Your spouse comes with habits, good habits and bad habits. And both good and bad habits are hard to be broken. Be patient, marriage doesn't change a person. They are the same person after the vows as before the vows. Just like you! You come with plenty of bad habits yourself. 

• When you pray out loud for your spouse, pray with your eyes open, staring deeply into their eyes. There is something intimate and tender about talking to God while gazing on the person you love.

• Don't talk badly about your husband. The wife of the pastor who officiated at our wedding is a dear friend of mine, and neither I nor my mom have ever (ever!) heard her say one negative word about her husband. That is who I want to be, all the time.

• Read together. Aaron and I are reading three different books together: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, and The First 90 Days of Marriage by Eric and Leslie Ludy. Most of the time it's just a way to relax together, but sometimes something causes us to have a good discussion. The best part is that I get to put my head in Aaron's lap and watch his face while he reads. 

I had thought of some others while I was driving to pick Aaron up today, but I can't remember anymore. If I remember them, they will probably become another post! 

Love,

Anna

PS - Being a wife is awesome!