H.A.L.T.

Okay, I know it's been too long, but last post, I promised I would share the H.A.L.T. concept that has helped me.

There are four areas in which I need to be aware of a need to halt:

H.ungry

If I am feeling hungry (especially with blood sugar issues!), I need to halt whatever I'm doing and grab a handful of raw almonds, put some nut butter on a multi-grain cracker, or grab an apple... Get something in that stomach.

Can this affect my spiritual walk? Absolutely! When I am hungry, and I force myself on, not meeting that need, I can become grumpy. Next thing you know, I've bitten a family member's head off or I'm just an emotional wreck. All because of hunger. The direction ongoing, unmet hunger takes us can affect our spiritual lives.

Note: Another reason for feeling hunger at times is simple thirst. Most people (myself included) do not drink enough water. You might be amazed how much better you would feel if, when you feel hungry or unwell, you would simply drink a tall glass of water in about 15 seconds! I try to make it a practice to do this first thing in the morning.

Hungry and thirsty, their soul* fainted in them. Psalm 107:5
*Soul=mind, will, emotions!


A.ngry

Angry feelings are a signal that something needs to be addressed. This does not mean that dwelling in the anger is justified. But ignoring it or denying it is not the answer. If I don't know why I am angry, I need to get alone with the Lord and ask Him to reveal to me the root. Once I'm aware of the root, with God's help and His Word, I can lay an axe to that root. Does this mean I should just cut off from my life the person who made me angry? Is that "dealing with it"? I don't believe so. Jesus said to love our enemies (Luke 6). In the same passage He told us to be merciful as God is merciful, because God is kind to the "unthankful and to the evil"! That kind of love in action is only done through a "yieldedness" to the Spirit of God within me. And that's a whole other topic for another blogpost! Ha ha!

Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Ephesians 4:26
The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy. Proverbs 14:10


L.onely

There are times when I don't realize I am lonely, but if I stop and think about why am I feeling sad or why I just generally feel "yucky" emotionally, I realize I am lonely. God created this need within us first and foremost, so that He could meet the need! I need to acknowledge God as my sole provider of comfort and friendship. He is all I need. My husband can't be with me every second of every day, and even if he is there, he is human and cannot possibly meet every single emotional need I have! So I have to turn to the Source of comfort. Secondarily, there are many times that I need to reach out to someone, even when I don't feel like it. Maybe I need to say hi to a neighbour, take some cookies to them, or set up a time to meet a girlfriend for coffee or have her over for tea.

A man [that hath] friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend [that] sticketh closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24


T.ired

Sometimes, I'm just plumb worn out! Moms tend to burn the candle on both ends. So I need to be sure I'm getting enough rest. Maybe that's six hours for you. Generally it's seven to eight hours for me. If something interferes {ahem, a three-year-old girl!}, then I need to take a nap when she does.

[It is] vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows*: [for] so he giveth his beloved sleep. Psalm 127:2
*Interesting that lack of sleep is associated with sorrow!

Next time you are feeling "yucky" spiritually, physically, or emotionally, and you cannot seem to find a reason, remember this little acrostic: H.A.L.T. There is an answer.

1950s Housewife?

You have probably seen the list of housewife's traits that supposedly appeared in a 1955 home economics book. Though the source and truth is actually undetermined (according to Snopes), when you read about that era (and prior), it doesn't seem too far fetched. In truth, many of the 1950s housewives' ways were more biblical than the habits of the majority of modern-day women. We would do well to "eat the meat and throw out the bones" and not "throw the baby out with the bath water."

One admonition that comes through numerous points on this list is the importance of attitude. So many women today have a complaining spirit that is entirely self-centered. We want to tell Husband all our woes of the day the minute he walks through the door, and we continue complaining about everything that needs to be fixed or male jobs he needs to do around the house all the way until bedtime.

Think about it. Put yourself in his shoes. Would you want to come home to that negativity every night after a long, hard workday? Imagine Little Miss Office Chic, who never has a hair out of place, always has her make-up and hair done, and flirtatiously admires him every day. Now think of your appearance and the tone of your home. If you were your husband, would you look forward to coming home at night?

Does this imply that I should always just "put on" an act of happiness and never approach my husband with anything negative? Of course not. This is dishonesty, which never pleases God. There are correct ways we should approach our husbands with issues. This keeps our relationships healthy.

However, we need to think about the tone we set in our homes. You know the phrase, "When Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!" Think about your own home. It's true! We mamas affect the mood of the entire household. We may not like it, but no matter how much we dislike it, it's still true.

I remember my mom getting us kids together and ready to shout, "My Daddy's the GREATEST!" when he came through the door. It was one of the greatest feelings I had as a kid, knowing that my parents loved each other and supported each other.

Scripture teaches that "All the days of the afflicted are evil..." (Proverbs 15:15). When you look on the bad side of things, that's all you will see and it's all you will talk about. Ever met a miserable woman? Every word out of her mouth is a complaint and all you can think about is how to get away from her and how to avoid her in the future? Yeah. Well, the rest of the verse says "...he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast." When your heart has made the choice to see the merry things of life, you have a continual flow of joy!

I have a friend from college who lives this so plainly. She has seven happy, contented children (ages 15 years down to eight months), she doesn't hide her adoration for her husband, and she herself radiates happiness! In her words, she "can't help but smile." And... her husband has been out of work for three months. She has made 50 pies already this week and will make 62 additional pies before the week is over, in order to help her husband from home! She is also working nights, full-time, as a front desk clerk at a hotel! And she's still oozing gratefulness!



Now, just picture her husband's response IF he came home to this...

She is on the couch watching TV or she's on the Internet... in her bathrobe... he steps over clutter... the entire house wreaks and it's a wreck... there is no dinner ready... kids are screaming and fighting...

Versus...

He walks in the door... she is dressed and has fixed her hair and make-up... the children are clean and dressed... there is soft music playing... the smell of dinner is in the air... the house is neat and clean (at the least, clutter is cleared)... the children are playing contentedly... she rushes to greet him at the door, overjoyed to see him, taking his coat, asking him about his day...

I ask you: Which scene would make her husband look forward to coming home?



Check out Courtney's post on her grandmother, a real 1950s housewife, at Women Living Well: Comparing Myself to a Real 1950s Wife.

How to Be the Woman of Your Husband's Dreams

Completing Him Challenge--Final Rundown

Well, I'll be honest... I got a quite a bit behind on this Completing Him Challenge! If you did too, here's the run-down from Courtney at Women Living Well.

#8's my favourite! :)
I'm still in love...

As you look ahead to the fall, do not lose your focus on building a strong marriage.

1. We must continue to remember those dating days and what made us fall in love with our husbands in the first place.

2.Remember our sacred vows.

3.Remember to ask your husband how you can be praying for him daily.

4.Remember to tell your husband how you admire him.

5.Remember to keep your priorities in line.

6.Remember to follow your husband's lead and vision for your family.

7.Remember to respect your husband.

8. Remember to keep kissing him like you mean it!

No matter what season you are in, God longs for you to follow His design for marriage.

Fullness of Joy

Joy Forney is a blogging friend I have never met face-to-face. Yet she encourages me so much!




















Joy is a missionary wife and mother in Indonesia. Her husband is a missionary pilot who is frequently gone for days at a time in places where there is no way to reach him. Joy is left at her home on foreign soil with her five young children--homemaking in the truest sense of the word, homeschooling, and on top of it all, inspiring hundreds via her blog.



Her recent post In His Presence especially encouraged me:

I am a mother, wife, missionary, friend, neighbor, daughter, sister, and many other things. And as such, there are so many times in my life that I feel that I am just surviving. Surviving from one mess, one meal, one exhausted morning, one tantrum, one homeschool day to the next.

However, as I am (slowly) learning, there is so much more to my life than merely surviving. I can choose to have deep, rich communion with my Heavenly Father in the midst of these seemingly mundane things that fill up my life.

I can choose to live my life in His presence, minute by minute. In Psalm 16:11 it says, "in His presence is fullness of joy." I can have the fullness of joy each and every day, no matter how difficult it may seem to do anything more than simply survive!!

I pray that this will be a reality in your life and mine as we serve the Lord in whatever He has called us to do!

In His strength and for His glory!
Joy

Will you pray for Joy and other missionary wives around the world today?

...And will you live in HIS presence today? There you will find "fullness of joy"!

Completing Him Challenge

Two New Challenges from Courtney at Women Living Well:

1. Let Him Prioritize.

Make a list five things you currently do, and then ask your husband to prioritize them for you according to what is important to him. For example: a clean home, home-cooked dinner, coupon clipping, service at church, having friends over for dinner, watching/doing sports with him, etc.

2. Admire Your Husband.

Pop quiz:

a) List all the flaws of your husband.

b) List all the things that you admire about your husband.


Grade yourself: Which question was easier to answer?


Comment below and list the things you admire about your husband and then show your list to him!

Check out more ways to Complete Him at Women Living Well.

Here are just a few things I admire in my Peter:
-His love and passion for God
-His sensitivity to the Voice of God
-His preaching... I'm so proud of him every time he's in the pulpit.
-His smile... It makes me smile.
-His laugh... It makes me laugh.
-His ability to dress up in a suit and tie and also to dress down and also be a redneck cowboy on a horse
-His work ethic
-... AND SO MANY MORE!

I love, respect, and admire you so much, Honey! I'm so grateful God put us together!

Completing Him Challenge: Be What Your Man Needs

I love this challenge!

Click the button above for the challenge list of ways we wives can be what our husbands need and/or check back here for each new challenge.

The current challenge is Making Your Bed for the Glory of God.

If you don't normally make your bed each morning, try it for a couple weeks and see how different you feel! There is something about a made bed that makes you feel accomplished and put together. Your husband may say he doesn't care if the bed is made or not, but if he comes home from work to a tidy bedroom with a made bed, I would venture a guess that he will sense that his home is more efficient and that things are more under control, whether he ever says so or not.

Proverbs 31 says that a virtuous woman makes "coverings of tapestry." The harlot attracts her lover by decking her bed "with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt" (Proverbs 7:16). Should we wives do less than a harlot to make our bedroom attractive for our husbands? Let's keep our home attractive and a haven for our husbands to come home to. He won't want to look anywhere else if he's happy and content at home!

Note: This is not to excuse men who cheat on their wives, nor saying that it is always the wife's fault when he does.

Kitchen Money-saving Tips

"The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil." ~ Proverbs 31:11

I occasionally purchase lettuce in handy square or rectangle plastic containers. These are great to hang onto and reuse when I buy heads of lettuce. I tear the lettuce heads up into the container, which keeps the lettuce fresh and crisp much longer than normal, and the lettuce is easy and quick to use.

Lately I discovered another use for the containers: freezing my Christmas baking in them, between sheets of wax paper!

Speaking of wax paper, a friend gave us some homemade, frosted donuts recently and I noticed that her wax paper was actually cereal bags (the kind from inside cardboard cereal boxes)! She carefully opened them up along the seams to flatten them, wiped them clean, cut them to fit the plastic container, and used them for between her donuts! So now I save all my cereal bags and make use of them the same way! Free wax paper--and much more sturdy! Great idea, Sara!

Another money-saving tip I learned from another friend: save and rinse out your milk bags. These make great freezer bags for garden vegetables in the summer and fall! Thanks, Monique!

More on the Proverbs 31 Woman...

"She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." ~ Proverbs 31:27-28

First Anniversary

My wonderful husband Peter and me on our 1st anniversary, Nov. 7, 2008!!! One year and counting!

He took me to Bella Jack's Mexican Restaurant in St. Thomas. I bought him the sweater he's wearing in the picture. :)