Chapter Eleven - "No Need of Spoil"

Everything we have comes from God.  Whether we decide to look at it that way is up to us.  No matter if you are a one or two income family, everything you bring in through a paycheck is a gift from God.  And God expects us to be wise stewards of our gifts - money, time, talents and things.

So how can we avoid wasting His gifts?  Darlene writes "The way to avoid waste is by making an effort to take care of our things, and by avoiding the temptation to be lazy."  "The more dis-organized I am, the more things get damaged, lost, moldy, rusted and forgotten."  How true is this for you?

Proverbs 18:9 KJV

He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster.

I know when I am disorganized, I am more likely to lose or misplace something and buy a replacement, only to find the original weeks or months later.  This is not being a wise steward of my money - or my time!  How much time did I waste looking for that item and then using up time to go get a replacement?

We can be great wasters of time and not even realize it until we get so far behind in our work.  And this just really makes for a stressful environment, doesn't it?  We end up spinning our wheels playing catch up while also trying to get the day's work done too.  I'm getting tired and frazzled just thinking about it.

Not only do we show God respect when we value and care for our gifts, we can also show respect to our husbands.  We can show him that we appreciate all he does for the family.  If we are good stewards of the money he brings home, he will see that his work is not in vain.  He will see that he can trust us to use it wisely and minimize waste in our homes.

Proverbs 31:11 HCSB

The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will not lack anything good.

I liked Darlene's final thoughts on the issue of waste - "By cherishing the gifts that we have - even in small acts of stewardship, we reflect a heart of appreciation, respect and reverence."  Do I truly cherish my gifts?  And am I showing my appreciation by being a good steward and not wasting them through laziness?

A Well Balanced... Life

Chapter 4 - "The Good Wife's Guide"

We all know about the importance of eating a well balanced diet.  Making sure we eat from each food group helps us get all of the nutrients our bodies need to be at our optimum performance.

The same goes for our spiritual and day to day living.  We should make it our goal "to be moderate in all things so that we're living a balanced life."  We must balance work with rest and play.

Being a good wife and/or mother takes effort and determination.  And it takes sacrifice.  The road is not always easy but each role we fulfill is most definitely a gift from God.  And when we look at it as such, we will make it our priority and want to invest our time and energy into doing these roles well.

Darlene writes "the bottom line is that change begins in the heart where a battle is constantly taking place.  Our flesh wrestles with our spirit as it attempts to get its own way.  Meanwhile the Spirit directs us to value God and our family, to prioritize them above everything else, and to avoid the tendency we have to be lazy."

The first section of Chapter 4 ends with 1 Peter 5:8.  When I was studying this verse, I found this version in The Message and really liked it.  Satan wants to catch us napping, with our guard down.  When we are not diligent in our daily living, we are like sitting ducks waiting for the roaring lion to pounce on us.

1 Peter 5:8 MSG
Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up.