Participants:
Series Code: TDYL
Program Code: TDYL250015B
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00:10 Welcome back to our 3ABM Thursday Night Live.
00:14 This is our Woman's Live. 00:16 We've been talking about helper, not lesser. 00:19 God's purpose for woman. 00:21 If you missed the first hour, you can always go on YouTube or 00:25 3ABM Plus and you can watch it on demand later. 00:29 It was a powerful hour we heard from Sister Angela Vandervalk 00:32 as she shared about the helpmate in marriage. 00:35 Right now we're talking with Fotini. 00:37 Martinez and her story as far as being a helpmate as a single 00:42 mom and her daughter being autistic and that journey and 00:46 what that looks like. 00:47 And then of course we have Sasha Thomas with us and Sasha 00:51 is going to be sharing about helpmate as a mom with your 00:54 children and then Sister Terri Stanley in the middle here is 00:58 going to be sharing as well about helpmate as a mentor and 01:02 then I'm going to be talking about ministries. 01:04 So just a blessing to be together and to share. 01:07 And we left off last hour right in the middle of Fotini's 01:12 testimony talking about Artemis. 01:14 So you want to pick back up? 01:16 Sure. 01:22 child with autism and allowing room for growth is something 01:29 that you want to keep at the forefront of your mind if 01:31 you're a parent of a child with autism because what comes to my 01:35 mind is Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly 01:41 above all that we ask or think and add that to your prayer 01:46 life, add that to the way you interact with your child. 01:51 And I don't want to give a false hope because I know 01:53 sometimes things go a different way, sometimes they don't. 01:56 But especially in those early years when you receive a 02:00 diagnosis, it can seem so grim. 02:02 But just keep that in mind that God can work good things out of 02:06 every situation. 02:07 And I wanted to make sure to point that out. 02:09 That's beautiful. 02:11 I love that. 02:12 Yeah. 02:19 being a helpmate outside of being a mom, because I know we 02:23 spoke about identity and being a helper. 02:25 And one of those ways would be understanding submission as a 02:33 Christian virtue at large, right, because we all strive to 02:37 be more Christ-like. 02:38 Well, Christ was a very submissive person while he was 02:41 here and still is. 02:43 And we even hear in Ephesians 521 that we need to submit to 02:47 one another. 02:55 understanding that very practical. 02:58 Yeah, I was going to bring that out as how it works in the 03:01 friendship circle, too. 03:02 And that's the word that came to mind. 03:03 I'm a very practical helper because, one, I don't have a 03:06 lot of time to sit there and think about or plan grand 03:11 gestures for somebody. 03:13 And I don't want that to also fall astray and not be what the 03:17 person really wanted, because I understand helping is actually 03:20 advancing the cause or doing something that assists the 03:23 person instead of just doing stuff. 03:26 And so one way that I do that is helping in a very practical 03:30 way, like for a Sister Lenny, it will be helping with her 03:35 with her son, either that picking him up from school or 03:37 watching him for a couple of hours or things like that. 03:40 And that's how I try to be help made both in the church and in 03:45 friendship circles. 03:47 Now, mind you, I do consider myself an introvert, which 03:51 means I can only handle about one or two friends at a time. 03:55 So this is maxed out. 03:57 This is super maxed out. 04:02 Could I just share a thought real briefly about you saying 04:06 aside from being a parent and how you help in the community, 04:10 I would just like to say that as you are helping, you are 04:13 helping your child because you're teaching her to serve. 04:17 And that's something that I've put a big emphasis on with my 04:20 girls is I don't want them to be self, just always looking at 04:25 themselves and wanting everybody to serve them. 04:28 But I want them to have the spirit of service. 04:29 And so as you're doing that, Artemis is seeing you and she 04:33 will develop that same thing, because that's what she's 04:35 growing up watching. 04:37 See, I love what you have to say. 04:41 Your role is so perfect. 04:44 And so while I'm doing that, you mentioned like your 04:49 daughter sees you grow, right? 04:51 That's kind of what I'm hoping for, I guess now. 04:53 Thank you for wording that that way for me. 04:56 She's seeing me grow. 04:58 And so I see it as part of my responsibility to be able to 05:01 foster skills that are actually helpful, right? 05:04 And teaching her how to serve and training up a child in the 05:07 way she should go. 05:14 every so often. 05:14 And I wonder if you guys can figure it out. 05:17 So let me give you a scenario and then I'll ask you a 05:20 question. 05:24 Well, it's a mug, really, like, or dainty as mothers say, so 05:28 it's teacup. 05:31 It's really pretty teacup. 05:33 And I put some nice tea in it and I'm walking around going to 05:37 go sit down on the couch and set it down on the table with 05:41 my Bible study. 05:42 And then Artemis comes and runs into me slightly and the tea 05:46 falls out or some of the tea spills out. 05:49 So now why did the tea spill out? 05:52 Because she ran into it. 05:54 Because it was full. 05:56 It has something to do with what was in it. 05:58 Tea came out because tea was in it. 06:02 And so I try to think of filling my heart, filling my 06:07 mind, filling my spirit with godly virtues. 06:12 I don't want to come across as complaining, as whining, as 06:18 thinking that she's not good enough, you know, because she 06:22 can't do something a certain way. 06:24 And so I want what's in my heart to come out when she 06:29 bumps into me and some spills out of her, right? 06:32 So in a spontaneous moment, I want more joy and cheerfulness 06:36 and support to come out. 06:40 And that's something that I keep in my mind. 06:42 And it's not that sounds very lovey-dovey. 06:44 That's not always what happens. 06:46 That's just the analogy that I keep in my mind. 06:49 Even after the fact, I'm like, oh, remember your teacup, 06:52 remember your teacup. 06:54 And then so then I go back and I have that conversation with 06:57 Artemis. 06:58 And I think that that helps her to understand things too. 07:02 That's so important to have those conversations with our 07:05 kids because I grew up in a household where your parents 07:08 did not apologize to you when they were impatient or said 07:12 something unkind. 07:13 And so that's something I've tried to cultivate with my 07:16 grandchildren is to let them know that grandma's not 07:19 perfect. 07:21 Grandma's growing too. 07:23 Absolutely. 07:30 child because I feel, you know, when you when you look at your 07:36 parents, and I'll come into this in a second, they they're 07:39 supposed to know everything. 07:40 Right. 07:44 support. 07:44 Right. 07:46 They've got a plan. 07:47 They know how to do stuff. 07:49 And along with being a single parent comes the fact of not 07:54 wanting to show weakness in front of your child because, 07:57 you know, you're their only guard. 08:02 Right. 08:05 And, of course, they've got extended family and things like 08:07 that, but they view their parents differently. 08:11 And that's something that I really struggle with, 08:14 especially when it comes to the point of being a helpmate is 08:17 being vulnerable also in certain ways and acknowledging 08:21 where you can grow because you need to be real and vulnerable 08:25 with yourself too. 08:27 And when you have that guard up of, oh, no, I can't cry. 08:30 That's weak. 08:33 scare them, you know. 08:34 And along with that autonomy, like I said, it's really hard 08:39 to work on being submissive and putting others before you when 08:46 you're used to being the person in charge. 08:50 So and I'm sure you can attest to that. 08:53 That's powerful. 08:54 I think, and I don't know, maybe it's just a human thing. 08:57 I was going to say maybe it's a female thing, but maybe it's 08:59 just humanity. 09:00 It's difficult to let those walls down. 09:02 I love what you said about being vulnerable or not feeling 09:06 like you have to be the one always in control or in, you 09:10 know, I've got this. 09:11 I'm the good Christian, as you mentioned before, Angela, you 09:13 know, not bringing up those negative emotions because a 09:16 good Christian wouldn't feel that way or wouldn't whatever. 09:18 But it's hard to let that down and to let yourself cry or to 09:22 let yourself whatever. 09:23 But in a safe place with sisters or a spouse where you 09:29 can be vulnerable. 09:31 Hey, I'm struggling today. 09:32 Can we pray? 09:33 That's a beautiful thing. 09:36 I think it's very important, you know, when you find that 09:38 one person that you can relate to, that you can be yourself 09:41 and that helped you just make sure that person is Christlike. 09:45 Because I have friends that they go and they get advice 09:48 from people that are not Christlike. 09:49 And then they're like, why didn't this work out? 09:53 It's very important. 09:54 And I know I always had my cousin Suzanne. 09:57 She was always there whenever I had trouble in my house or I 10:01 wanted somebody just to cry or talk to. 10:03 I'll always call her and she would just always open up the 10:06 Bible and just help me all the time. 10:09 I was just I am so thankful for her. 10:14 Amen. 10:15 And then considering submission as a greater Christian virtue, 10:20 First Corinthians 1227 also comes to mind. 10:23 It's like now you are the body of Christ, but you're also 10:25 members individually. 10:27 Yes. 10:28 And so that's how I try to find which member I am. 10:36 Because you don't always know, especially if you're a young 10:39 Christian. 10:40 You're like, OK, I'm here. 10:41 What do I do? 10:44 And they're like, well, you could be the pinky toe. 10:46 I don't know. 10:48 You're trying to figure that out. 10:49 You might try to do it all and just be overwhelmed. 10:53 Oh, or that. 10:56 Yeah, I feel that. 10:58 And so that's something that I'm still trying to figure out 11:04 is how to use the gifts that the Lord has given me to be 11:10 part of the body. 11:11 And we can't all be the head, right? 11:14 We can't all be the brain. 11:16 I understand that, which means I'm somewhere down here, 11:20 possibly. 11:21 You know, I could be the pinky toe. 11:22 I could be the left nostril. 11:23 Like, I don't know. 11:24 OK, I'm still working on it. 11:27 So it depends on on what God would have me do. 11:30 But I do kind of have this understanding or communication 11:36 with God, if you will. 11:37 Because if I'm asked, I will do my best to do what I'm asked, 11:42 even if I can't figure it out on my own or step up to the 11:45 plate or volunteer for things. 11:48 If I'm asked and if it comes in front of my eyes often enough, 11:51 I will say something. 11:54 And that is pretty much the only way that I found to be 11:58 able to be submissive in a church environment, if you 12:01 will. 12:03 super structured. 12:04 There's definitely a hierarchy there. 12:06 But understanding my role in that as a single woman in the 12:10 church, and I understand the elders give good advice. 12:15 And I would likely go to an elder for more life important 12:21 advice. 12:22 I'm not sure if that's the way to say it. 12:24 But then overall understanding my place in how everything 12:29 works in the big machine that is called church. 12:32 Amen. 12:32 That's beautiful. 12:34 Thank you so much for sharing. 12:35 I mean, I love the analogy of the body and we each are 12:38 members and we each have that role in that part. 12:40 That's beautiful. 12:41 Thank you for sharing, Sasha. 12:42 Let's come to you and the role of mom. 12:45 And I know she was talking about a mom from a single mom 12:48 perspective, but you have the married mom perspective. 12:51 Well, as a mom, I would say I would label my role as helping 12:55 to build characters fit for eternity. 12:58 And one of the first things that we need to do is to know 13:00 God for ourselves. 13:02 And there's a quote in Adventist home that says the 13:05 Christian mother has her God appointed work, which she will 13:09 not neglect if she is closely connected with God and imbued 13:13 with his spirit. 13:14 And I look at Hannah as an example, like she clearly had a 13:18 relationship with God individually in her marriage. 13:22 So she was able to go and talk to God. 13:23 And because of that, her prayer was answered. 13:26 So it's important to have a relationship with God yourself 13:28 prior to getting married even. 13:31 And it sets you up for success, especially when the trials come 13:35 and many trials will come. 13:37 And we're able to handle it better, like Hannah did, if we 13:40 have that relationship with God. 13:42 And also, there's a quote that says the mother is the queen of 13:46 the home and the children are her subjects. 13:50 And at immediate thought, people might think, oh, is 13:52 mother supposed to be a tyrant? 13:54 She is in charge. 13:55 But no, that's not what it means at all. 13:57 But it is our job to acquaint children with Jesus and lead by 14:01 example. 14:02 It's the mother's duty to create a pleasant and orderly 14:05 atmosphere and teach children to do the same. 14:09 A quote from Letters and Manuscripts says, 14:21 So as the queen of the home, you're doing your duties, but 14:23 you have your children to help you if you're leading them in 14:26 the way that God would have them to go. 14:29 And my next point is to be a help and not a hindrance. 14:33 And I think of Moses and Zipporah. 14:36 Moses was commanded to circumcise his son by God and 14:39 Zipporah didn't want that. 14:41 And she ended up being a hindrance. 14:43 But as women, we have to recognize that there's a heavy 14:46 weight resting on the husband and the father to ensure that 14:49 his family is following where God would have them to go and 14:53 following God's instruction. 14:54 And as a mother, we can't get in the way, which is easy to do 14:57 sometimes, but it's important that we don't. 15:01 And sometimes moms can be ruled by our emotions and not by a 15:06 thus say of the Lord. 15:07 So that's when we can defer to our husbands as the priest of 15:10 the home. 15:11 Okay, what does God say? 15:12 And we can come together. 15:13 What does God say? 15:14 And not be fooled by those heartstrings that sometimes we 15:17 think, well, I'm a nurturer, so I have to do this as a mom. 15:20 Sometimes we have to go straight to the word and say, 15:23 well, God doesn't say to do that. 15:24 So you might have to go against what we feel in our heart to 15:27 do. 15:28 But can we pause a second on that? 15:31 I love that thought about emotions because we are 15:33 emotional creatures. 15:35 I don't know if that's the right word, but women can be 15:38 emotional and men can too. 15:39 Of course, emotion is a human thing. 15:41 But what do we do with that? 15:43 I love what you said about going to the word of God. 15:45 But any thoughts on that with emotion as far as as a woman 15:49 and as a mom from anyone? 15:52 Well, I think it's hard, especially when you're seeing 15:54 your child struggle with something, to not want to do it 15:58 for them. 16:02 way. 16:05 child grow is a hindrance to their development as well. 16:10 And that's one thing that I really appreciated about what 16:14 you said right now. 16:18 emotions leaning in the direction of not wanting to 16:23 discipline children. 16:25 And it's important that we do discipline our children because 16:28 it's our responsibility to teach them the difference 16:31 between right and wrong, the power of choice, but also that 16:34 when they make the wrong choice, there are consequences. 16:37 And so when we're allowing our children, because of our 16:40 emotions, or they'll think I don't love them or whatever 16:45 emotion comes up when it's time to discipline, we have to 16:48 remember that we're doing what's best for that child. 16:51 And we're not doing them any service by allowing them to 16:54 make poor choices without having some kind of 16:56 consequences. 16:58 I'm like, there's parents out there that don't even care. 17:01 I care. 17:02 That's why you're getting in trouble. 17:03 That's why you're going in your room or something. 17:05 I'm like, I'm disciplining you because I love you. 17:09 Honey, sorry about Angela. 17:11 It was cute. 17:17 must have fallen off his bike at some point. 17:19 Something happened with her. 17:20 It was Emma. 17:21 It was Emma. 17:22 Well, Angela goes running across the field and she said, 17:25 Mommy's coming! 17:26 Mommy's coming! 17:28 He's a teenager. 17:29 Poor son. 17:32 He will always be my baby. 17:35 It was cute. 17:36 He actually got off his bike to help his cousin. 17:40 But I thought it was him because he was sitting on the 17:42 floor. 17:42 So I was like, oh, no. 17:45 And other times she would call him to say, all right, Liam, 17:48 it's time to get some water. 17:49 And he's like, Mom. 17:52 So it is important to have those emotions. 17:55 They are important. 17:56 And Alan White says, even when your children are bothering you 17:59 or coming to you with some small thing that really you 18:02 think is not important, you take time and you show that 18:05 emotion. 18:08 But especially when it comes to discipline is important that 18:11 you are unified in purpose with your husband. 18:15 Because I could be studying Adventist Herm all I want. 18:18 But if he hasn't studied with me, we're not going to be on 18:21 the same page about what God expects of us as parents. 18:25 So he could be looking at child guidance and learn a principle 18:28 that I haven't looked at. 18:29 But if we're not studying together, it's not going to 18:31 make much difference. 18:35 to disciplining our children. 18:36 So what we can do is pray and study together, especially 18:40 about our children and the government of the home and what 18:43 God requires of us. 18:45 Because we both had, Doral and I had two different upbringing. 18:49 So the ideas of raising children are going to be 18:51 different. 18:54 together and see what God wants and exercise that in our home. 19:00 And to be a help and not a hindrance when differences do 19:04 arise, especially with discipline, it's important that 19:08 you don't discuss these things in front of your children. 19:10 That's good. 19:12 Because that can cause a breakdown with your children 19:15 and your children can then minimize the authority of your 19:19 husband. 19:22 right in front of your children. 19:23 I'll be honest, I struggle with that still sometimes. 19:26 But it's in those moments that silence is eloquent. 19:30 And really, if there is a problem, you go behind closed 19:33 doors and discuss those things and then work together to 19:37 fulfill what God would have you to do. 19:40 And my third point is to carry out your household duties with 19:45 joy. 19:46 It's not always easy. 19:49 And many times women may complain about the laundry, 19:51 like you were saying earlier, the laundry and the dishes. 19:54 And a lot of times I am included in this will say, I 19:57 wish my husband would help more in this. 19:59 Doesn't he see that the laundry is piled up? 20:02 Doesn't he want to help? 20:04 But just my husband is doing audio for this program and he 20:08 will probably be thrilled with what I'm about to say. 20:13 That's great. 20:15 In Titus 2, 3 through 5, it gives some attributes of a 20:20 woman that we should learn from the older women. 20:22 It says we should be discreet, that is of a sound mind and 20:26 self -control. 20:27 Chaste, which is pure, modest and clean. 20:30 Homemakers, which is to take care of the household. 20:33 Be good, which is pleasant, joyful is what we're talking 20:36 about, having joy in these household duties. 20:40 Obedient to your husband, which really means to yield to one's 20:44 admonition or advice that the word of God may not be 20:47 blasphemed. 20:51 It is our duty as women to be a homemaker. 20:53 As much as we complain and want our husbands to help with it, 20:57 it's our duty. 20:58 And this is not an excuse for husbands to not help because it 21:03 is your God-given duty to ease the burden of your wife. 21:05 Because this is what Jesus did for the church and they should 21:10 love their wives as Christ loved the church. 21:12 But since it's our duties to be the homemakers, if there's 21:15 anything standing in the way of doing that, we might have to 21:19 let it go. 21:19 Because this is our first work. 21:22 And there's a quote that says this work of molding, refining 21:28 and polishing is the mother's. 21:30 The character of the child is to be developed. 21:34 The mother must engrave upon the tablet of the heart lessons 21:37 as enduring as eternity. 21:39 And she will surely meet the displeasure of the Lord if she 21:42 neglects the sacred work or allows anything to interfere 21:46 with it. 21:51 have to rest on just us. 21:52 We're training our children to also take care of the home. 21:55 So as they get older, they will also take on that burden of 21:59 taking care of the home and being homemakers themselves. 22:04 And I also want to discuss self -care versus home care. 22:08 There's a movement for women to make sure you have self-care. 22:13 And I don't want you to think that is not important. 22:16 It is very important that you take care of yourself, you 22:18 exercise. 22:20 But if you have a home that is not a well-ordered, well 22:23 -disciplined, clean home in which your children love to 22:27 obey, you can go and have all the self-care that you want. 22:30 It's only going to be a temporary fix. 22:32 So you're going to get a manicure, get a massage to 22:35 escape this chaotic household. 22:38 And when you come back, you still have to deal with it. 22:40 So how much better would it be to have a peaceful, well 22:44 -ordered home so that there is where you can find joy. 22:48 And then if you have time to do the manicures and pedicures, 22:51 then you can do that. 22:55 And finally, my final point is to redeem the time that may 22:59 have been lost. 23:01 Many times we have discord between our spouses, but we can 23:05 redeem that time and try to make right those wrongs and the 23:11 areas that we disagree and come to God, bring it to prayer, and 23:14 we can make them better. 23:16 And also the mistakes that we have made in raising our 23:19 children, we can also do better in that. 23:22 My personal testimony is that I went through a period of great 23:27 depression. 23:31 lives of my children. 23:33 I had a baby. 23:34 I moved away from my home. 23:37 Sickness struck my husband and my son, and it caused a great 23:41 depression. 23:43 And I can liken myself to Rachel as she was given birth 23:46 to Benjamin. 23:48 She decided to call his name Benoni, I think, Benoni, which 23:53 means son of my sorrow. 23:55 And so I felt after my children in my household, I felt as 23:58 though my life was slipping from me. 24:00 I just wasn't the person that I was. 24:01 I was dying and I was depressed. 24:04 But it doesn't have to be that way if you would follow God's 24:08 counsel, because Rachel's husband, Jacob, then went and 24:15 called his son Benjamin instead, which means son of the 24:18 right hand or strength. 24:20 So even though having children can bring those trials that 24:24 sometimes feel as though your life is slipping away, I'm just 24:27 not the same woman that I was before. 24:29 But it can, if you would follow God's advice, you raise your 24:33 children to take on the burdens of the home with you, then they 24:37 can be the children that bring strength to you. 24:39 They can be your right hand. 24:41 And I'll finish with this quote. 25:04 That's beautiful. 25:06 I like you sharing that. 25:07 That's a personal testimony about the depression, because I 25:11 think people in general struggle with that. 25:15 And women can deal with that. 25:17 Depression is a real thing. 25:18 So let's talk just a moment about that before we switch to 25:21 Terri. 25:22 Any thoughts or ideas? 25:24 Because you at home could be struggling with depression 25:27 right now. 25:27 And we say, be a ray of sunshine. 25:30 And you say, but I can't, but I don't know how to get out of 25:33 what I'm in right now. 25:35 And I understand there's biological reasons. 25:37 There could be a chemical imbalance in the brain 25:39 contributing to that. 25:41 We know that. 25:42 But there could also be other factors that could play into 25:46 that or other factors that play into healing from that. 25:49 Any thoughts on that? 25:50 What really jumped out at me that she shared was that our 25:53 children are our first work. 25:55 And back around, I think it was in the 1960s, I was a baby, but 25:59 I know that there was a women's lib movement. 26:02 And women were, from that point on to this very day, taught 26:06 that, oh, I can do anything a man can do. 26:08 I can be out there working all day and then come home and take 26:13 care of the family. 26:14 We put such high expectations on ourselves. 26:17 And I think sometimes that's what brings on the depression 26:20 is that we have these high expectations of what our life 26:23 should be like. 26:26 And then when we find ourselves struggling and doing too much, 26:30 it becomes very depressing. 26:32 Yeah, I agree with that. 26:34 Absolutely. 26:35 Because it's not possible. 26:37 And a lot of times the goals that are part of movements like 26:42 that, they're not even realistic. 26:44 They're just fiction. 26:46 There's something that's made up. 26:48 And yeah, you could probably maintain something like that 26:51 for a year or two, maybe longer. 26:53 It probably is possible. 26:55 But then once you start adding more things to the equation, 26:59 like, oh, now you have, I don't know, a pet. 27:00 Or now you have children that you need to take care of. 27:03 And you're noticing, oh, the spouse is more like a child now 27:09 because now I have to go to work. 27:10 I have to take care of the home. 27:13 I have to take care of the children. 27:15 I have to take care of the husband. 27:16 I have to take care of myself. 27:18 And you're supposed to be very happy while doing that. 27:21 That's not real. 27:22 It's not real. 27:24 No one can sustain that. 27:27 And I think that has kind of taken the place of the biblical 27:32 role, of biblical womanhood, right? 27:34 Of being submissive, of being able, yes, to put others above 27:39 yourself, right, or before yourself. 27:42 But also recognizing for what purpose. 27:44 It's not to clean up after them. 27:46 It's not to make sure that they're successful in life. 27:48 It's to speak life into them because you're rooted and 27:52 grounded in the word and not trying to chase behind every 27:55 fashion and, you know, whatever it is that the world puts 28:00 before our eyes. 28:04 You walked that journey, Sasha. 28:06 Anything that helped you specifically come out? 28:08 Well, for me personally, I don't know that I could advise 28:12 anyone else to do this. 28:13 But I had to step away from the situation. 28:17 We had moved to Michigan and I was isolated. 28:20 So I went back home, even though it meant separating 28:24 physically from Doral for a time. 28:26 I don't know, really, if it's what God wanted. 28:29 But at that time, I just needed that familial support and the 28:32 raising of my children. 28:33 He worked long hours. 28:34 He was away from home. 28:35 I didn't drive. 28:36 So I was stuck inside all day with these children. 28:39 So it was depressing. 28:40 So I had to step away from the situation, just get my 28:42 bearings. 28:46 And another example is I desperately wanted to 28:50 homeschool my children. 28:52 But when I got moved out here, I was still getting my bearings 28:56 and trying to get back on my feet. 28:59 So I had to send my children to school for a time. 29:02 And I'm considering homeschooling again. 29:04 And I have no problems with the school. 29:06 But it's just I want to kind of have that firsthand role in 29:10 raising my children and developing their characters. 29:13 But I had to send them to school for a time. 29:15 And like Hannah, I had to put them in the hands of someone 29:18 else. 29:24 And I pray that if I do go back to homeschooling, I now have 29:27 that strength built back up again and that faith in God and 29:30 that relationship with God to help me overcome. 29:33 That's beautiful. 29:34 You all talked about expectations. 29:36 And sometimes we put expectations even on recovering 29:39 from depression or the things that we, the challenges that we 29:42 deal with. 29:43 Well, it needs to look this way. 29:44 But everyone's situation is different. 29:46 And we incorporate those biblical principles. 29:49 But yet the expectation, oh, I want to homeschool. 29:52 But maybe right now the right thing is in school, you know. 29:54 So I like that. 29:55 That's good. 29:56 Absolutely. 29:57 Terri, I know we're running out of time here. 29:59 So let's transition the role of a mentor. 30:02 Yeah. 30:04 And I'm here to represent the older women. 30:06 And so God has blessed us all with gifts. 30:10 And no matter what age we are, we can use those gifts for his 30:13 glory. 30:14 And so I've already shared a little bit about my background. 30:16 But I'll just start by saying I was married to a wonderful man 30:19 for 33 years. 30:21 We had a wonderful marriage. 30:22 We had a lot of growth together. 30:24 And we had one daughter together. 30:27 Unfortunately, when my husband was only 53, he died from an 30:31 autoimmune disease. 30:33 And that was very difficult. 30:35 And so I became a widow at 51 years old, unexpectedly. 30:40 And around the same time, my daughter gave birth to our 30:44 first grandchild. 30:46 And under some other circumstances, I ended up with 30:48 that child. 30:49 And a year later, I ended up with another child. 30:51 And so I'm raising my two grandchildren by myself. 30:55 But it's been a tremendous blessing. 30:57 I will say God has a way of speaking to you. 31:00 And my first grandchild was born on my husband's last 31:03 birthday. 31:03 So that was a beautiful gift. 31:06 And he was able to see her. 31:07 And then our second one is what I will call his heavenly 31:10 surprise. 31:12 But I wanted to share with our viewers at home that we can 31:18 relate our experiences to a lot of the experiences in the 31:21 Bible. 31:25 in there? 31:29 the things in the stories to your own life. 31:30 And so the one that I relate to is found in the book of Ruth. 31:34 And I love the story in the book of Ruth because it 31:38 includes a lady by the name of Naomi. 31:42 And so Naomi's situation was very similar to mine in many 31:46 ways. 31:47 She was married to a man named Elimelech. 31:51 And they had two sons. 31:52 And as a result of a famine, they had to go to Moab and just 31:58 to survive and have food. 31:59 And so they go to Moab. 32:03 And unfortunately, the Bible doesn't tell us what happened. 32:05 It just says that her husband died. 32:07 And so here she is in Moab by herself with her two sons. 32:14 And after the husband's death, her two sons married two 32:18 Moabite women, one named Orpah and one named Ruth. 32:22 And so, you know, everything she still had a family and 32:26 everything, everything was probably going OK at that 32:28 point. 32:33 And again, the Bible doesn't say what happened, why they 32:36 died. 32:36 But here she is now in a foreign country. 32:39 And she's with her two daughters-in-law. 32:42 And she decides that she's going to go back to her home 32:46 country because she heard that they now were doing better with 32:49 food and she could go back there. 32:50 So she decides to go back to Bethlehem Judah. 32:54 And this is where I love where the story picks up because the 32:58 character of Naomi really shines here. 33:02 And her two daughter-in-laws want to go with her, which, I 33:06 mean, speaking in general, it doesn't always work out where 33:09 the mother-in-law is someone that you're really close to. 33:11 But these two women, they wanted to leave their home 33:14 country and go back to Bethlehem Judah to be with 33:18 their mother-in-law. 33:23 kind of person she was. 33:24 And so she encourages them not to go with her to stay back in 33:29 their own country because she wants them to be remarried and 33:33 have a productive life and be able to have children and all 33:35 that. 33:36 They didn't really want to. 33:38 In the end, Orpa decides that she'll go back. 33:41 She will not stay with her mother-in-law. 33:43 But Ruth says, No, I'm not going. 33:45 She says, I want to be with you where you die. 33:48 I will die and your God will be my God. 33:52 And so I just thought that here's a here's an older woman. 33:56 She is ministering to these two younger women, one for a time 34:02 and one for a lifetime. 34:04 And so as women, God will bring other women across our pathway. 34:08 And sometimes we'll just minister to them for a short 34:11 time. 34:15 that it's meant to be for a lifetime that we're going to 34:18 mentor them and we're going to be there for them. 34:23 So Ruth goes back with her and they they get back to town. 34:30 And it's really interesting what happens when they get back 34:33 to town. 34:36 Naomi's everybody comes out and they're like happy, so happy 34:39 that she's back. 34:40 Oh, you're back. 34:40 You're back. 34:44 She says, I don't want to be called Naomi anymore. 34:46 And they're like, Well, what do you want to be called? 34:48 And she says, Just call me Mara, which translates as 34:51 bitter. 34:53 And so I thought about that and I thought, Well, you know, she 34:55 had a loving character. 34:56 She had these two women that wanted to follow her. 34:58 She couldn't have been that bitter. 35:00 But I looked more into it. 35:01 And it's the same word that was used in Job's situation and in 35:06 Jeremiah's situation for two examples. 35:09 It was bitterness of soul. 35:10 It was more of a grief over the loss of her loved ones. 35:14 But it wasn't like a bitter, an angry bitter. 35:17 And so there's a difference there. 35:18 And so I think it's important for us as women to remember 35:21 that we can have a situation that can be bitter. 35:25 The grief of the loss of a loved one. 35:28 But we don't have to allow it to make us bitter. 35:31 And that's so important for me to really reflect on that 35:34 because after I lost my husband, I can honestly say 35:37 that I wasn't bitter about his death because he died in 35:41 Christ. 35:47 relationship with him. 35:48 And I knew how he related with God. 35:50 And so I was secure in that. 35:52 But what I was bitter about was the fact that my daughter was 35:55 not living up to her responsibilities as a mother. 35:58 And so now here I was with this baby at 51 years old. 36:01 And so I was still going to church and I was still doing 36:04 all of those things. 36:06 But I was bitter because now it had disrupted my life. 36:09 But also I knew that my grandchild was growing up 36:12 without her mother. 36:13 And so I would just encourage all of us as women, your 36:18 situation can be bitter, but you don't have to allow it to 36:21 make you bitter. 36:22 But praise God, he doesn't give up on us. 36:26 And so Ruth went back and her and Naomi were back in town. 36:30 And what I see here now is that Naomi is guiding Ruth on her 36:35 journey because now Ruth is in a foreign country. 36:39 And Naomi has an understanding of all the customs and 36:42 traditions and things like that. 36:43 And so she's guiding her on where she can work and the 36:47 things that she can do. 36:48 And of course, we know Boaz comes into the picture. 36:54 And so what I see there is Naomi steps out of the role as 37:00 mother and wife. 37:02 And now she's become a mentor to this young woman who doesn't 37:06 have an understanding of that culture or that religion. 37:11 But she had the desire to follow that. 37:14 And so Naomi is leading her step by step. 37:17 And what I think is beautiful is that through the course of 37:21 events, God allows Ruth to marry into Naomi's family 37:26 again. 37:27 And so I encourage everyone at home to go and read that story. 37:30 There's so much more that could be said. 37:32 And so as a result of Ruth marrying into the family again, 37:37 she gives birth to a child. 37:39 And Naomi has the privilege of becoming what the Bible calls a 37:43 nurse. 37:46 She becomes the nanny for that child. 37:48 And I saw a similarity in my situation where I was a wife 37:53 and a mother. 37:53 My husband dies. 37:55 My daughter steps out of the situation by choice. 37:57 God gives me these two beautiful grandchildren to take 38:00 care of. 38:01 And then I have a new role in life. 38:03 And so something else that you wanted me to speak to was 38:07 figuring out who you are after you lose your husband. 38:10 Because when you've been married to somebody for 33 38:13 years and then they're gone all of a sudden. 38:15 It's like, wow, now what do I do? 38:18 But thank God that he's a faithful husband. 38:21 And so it even tells us in the book of Isaiah, thy maker is 38:24 thy husband. 38:25 And so I leaned heavily on that. 38:27 And I remember my sister saying to me, sis, how are you going 38:30 to live by yourself? 38:31 I married him when I was 18 and now here I am alone. 38:34 And I said, well, you know, I'm not going to do anything but 38:37 live by myself because I didn't want to be a burden to anybody 38:39 else. 38:40 And I was going through a heavy time of grief. 38:43 And I couldn't hardly really study or pray. 38:46 But I read through the book of Psalms because the book of 38:49 Psalms just has such rich meaning and prayers. 38:52 And it's just real. 38:54 It's what I would call raw. 38:56 And so as I was reading through the Psalms and then into 38:58 Proverbs, God brought me to a beautiful verse. 39:00 And it just simply says that God establishes the border of 39:04 the widow. 39:09 And he says, you can come here to anybody else. 39:11 You can come here, but you can't come any further. 39:13 And that brought me such comfort and such peace. 39:16 And so I was able to live by myself and not worry about 39:19 anybody coming in the house to this day. 39:21 I still don't worry about anybody coming into the house 39:23 because I know that God has established the border of the 39:26 widow. 39:28 And so that's been that's brought me such peace. 39:30 But back to finding out who we are, something else that the 39:34 Lord has shown me. 39:35 Did somebody else have a comment? 39:36 Go ahead. 39:38 I'm sorry. 39:39 About the being in a bitter situation, but not allowing it 39:42 to make you bitter. 39:44 That made me think of Abigail and in the Bible, right, where 39:48 her marriage was likely arranged or whatever. 39:51 And Nabal was a drunkard. 39:52 So I'm sure if anybody had reason to be disappointed in 39:55 their marriage, it was Abigail was right up there on the list. 39:59 But still, you know, later on, when we see her interaction 40:02 with David, who's coming to kill her husband, she's still 40:06 submissive to Nabal. 40:09 She takes the responsibility for him. 40:11 She still doesn't blame him or talk poorly of him. 40:16 You know, so she didn't allow that to make her bitter because 40:18 she could have very easily been like, yeah, this is great. 40:20 Come kill him. 40:21 You know, I'll be I'll be rid of him. 40:23 But she still takes on that role and honors her husband in 40:27 that biblical way because she she loved the Lord. 40:30 And I absolutely saw that and how you were describing the 40:35 situation with Naomi and her daughters-in-law. 40:38 So that was beautiful. 40:38 I just wanted to point that out. 40:40 Thank you. 40:41 Thank you. 40:42 Did anyone else have a thought? 40:44 I thought it was amazing how you know, God gave you courage 40:47 and living with your husband for 33 years. 40:49 So that's like more than half your life. 40:52 It was like and everything you knew. 40:54 Yeah. 40:55 And we grew up together. 40:56 And everything you've learned. 40:59 Yeah. 41:01 So it took time. 41:02 It wasn't something that happened overnight, but it took 41:05 time for me to settle into my new role as a single mom and as 41:10 an unmarried woman. 41:11 I still have times that I miss him. 41:13 But something the Lord has been showing me lately is that 41:16 everything is for a season. 41:17 Yes. 41:21 and verses 1 and then 11. 41:24 So Ecclesiastes 3 verses 1 and 11. 41:27 And the Bible says to everything, there's a season, a 41:31 time for every purpose under heaven. 41:34 I love verse 11 because it says he has made everything 41:37 beautiful in its time. 41:40 Also, he has put eternity in our hearts, except that no one 41:45 can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. 41:48 But what I just want to point out is yes, everything is for a 41:50 season. 41:54 Now I have a season of the privilege of raising my 41:56 granddaughters. 42:00 like this. 42:01 And it's just a beautiful thing. 42:02 But what I wanted to point out in verse 11 is that he's made 42:05 everything beautiful in its time. 42:08 And sometimes we want to rush things. 42:09 So if you're going through a time right now where you're 42:12 grieving the loss of your husband, just know that this 42:14 too shall pass. 42:18 or forget about him because that won't happen, but you will 42:22 get better. 42:23 So just hold on to the Lord. 42:25 And when it says that he has put eternity in our hearts, we 42:29 can look past the here and now to the season that we're in and 42:32 know that God has a greater plan for us. 42:35 And he has given us eternal life through his son. 42:37 And so we can hold on to that as our blessed hope. 42:41 So we need to look past our present circumstances. 42:44 And what I love about the life of Jesus is that he lived in an 42:48 atmosphere of heaven. 42:50 Even though he was surrounded by people that were finding 42:52 fault with him and persecuting him, he still kept his peace 42:57 about him. 42:58 And I love Hebrews 12 verses 1 through 3. 43:02 It says that therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so 43:07 great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and 43:11 the sin which does so easily beset us and let us run with 43:15 endurance the race that is set before us. 43:18 Now, how do we run with endurance? 43:20 The Bible tells us looking unto Jesus, the author and the 43:24 finisher of our faith. 43:25 And here's the example that Jesus gave us. 43:28 It says, 43:37 And so Jesus was able to endure the cross because he was 43:41 looking at the joy that was set before him. 43:43 He was looking at the souls that would be saved as a result 43:46 of his sacrifice. 43:47 And so my sisters out there listening to the conversation 43:51 today, just know that you can dwell in the presence of God 43:55 each day. 43:57 You don't have to wait just for the coming of Christ. 43:59 You can dwell in his presence today knowing that he has 44:02 promised you eternal life and you can live in that joy now. 44:06 And like I said, I do miss my husband, but knowing that he 44:11 died in Christ, I have that hope of seeing him again. 44:14 And I know right after he died, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 just 44:19 really came alive to me where it says, The Lord himself shall 44:21 descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the 44:23 archangel and with the trump of God and the dead in Christ 44:26 shall rise first. 44:28 And I got so excited and I'm like, OK, I'm going to see him 44:30 again. 44:35 because he said, you know what, your husband didn't die for 44:38 you. 44:42 Christ before he died? 44:44 And so it's not that he was rebuking me for being excited 44:47 to see my husband, but more so to be excited to see the face 44:51 of our Redeemer. 44:52 And so the last thing that I really want to share is that 44:56 God can do a new thing in your life. 44:59 When you go through the seasons of life, when you've had 45:02 different experiences, no matter what you're going 45:06 through, God can bring you out of it. 45:08 And I love what he says in Isaiah 43, 18 and 19, Do not 45:13 remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. 45:17 Behold, I will do a new thing. 45:20 Now it shall spring forth. 45:22 Shall you not know it? 45:23 I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the 45:27 desert. 45:31 matter what you're going through, God can do a new 45:33 thing. 45:36 to him in prayer. 45:37 And he hears you. 45:39 And so I have the testimony now that God has done a new thing. 45:43 After my husband died and I ended up having my two 45:46 grandchildren, the Lord was putting a heavy burden on my 45:49 heart that I needed to raise those kids in a different 45:52 atmosphere. 45:56 System. 45:58 And I was working in their maintenance department as a 46:00 senior bookkeeper. 46:03 my window in my office and saying, Lord, I just need 46:07 something different. 46:08 If you don't get me out of here, I just don't know what's 46:10 going to happen. 46:11 And so I just had this heavy burden to move away. 46:14 And I started looking online for different places that I 46:17 could move to. 46:18 And the last place on earth I ever thought I would move to 46:21 would be Thompsonville, Illinois. 46:24 But God brought me here. 46:26 And so through a course of events, I moved my girls 1,100 46:29 miles away. 46:31 Was it easy? 46:32 No, it was not. 46:33 And I just remember after I made an offer on a home here 46:36 that I had not seen, by the way, which people at home are 46:38 probably going to say, are you crazy? 46:40 You bought a house you didn't see. 46:42 But I said to the Lord, Lord, if this is really what you want 46:45 me to do, you're going to have to give me faith. 46:47 And you're going to have to give me the courage to do this. 46:50 Because, mind you, my sisters, you need to know that when I 46:54 first gave my heart to Christ, I was afraid to go out of the 46:56 house at night by myself. 46:58 I married my husband at 18 years old. 46:59 He took me everywhere. 47:01 I didn't drive at night. 47:02 So to pack up a six by 12 U -Haul and two little girls and 47:06 drive 1,100 miles by myself and even through the Smoky 47:10 Mountains because we took a little detour to go to the camp 47:12 meeting in North Carolina, that was an amazing feat of God. 47:15 It wasn't me. 47:17 But anyway, the Lord brought me here and I have a wonderful 47:20 church family. 47:21 I have a wonderful 3ABN family. 47:24 And it's just been such a blessing. 47:25 God has done a new thing in my life. 47:28 And so my encouragement to those of you watching is that 47:33 God makes everything beautiful in His time. 47:36 You look past your present circumstances and hold on to 47:40 Him. 47:40 Don't let Him go. 47:45 way. 47:46 But Lord, I'm taking you at your word. 47:47 And just know that you're going to go through times. 47:50 I went through times where I was very bitter and things were 47:52 very dark. 47:53 But I just kept holding on to the Lord. 47:56 And it wasn't that I was faithful. 47:58 It was that God was faithful. 47:59 And now that I look back on my past journey, I can see that 48:03 His hand was always with me. 48:05 So just know that He's a loving God. 48:07 He loves you and you can trust Him. 48:10 Amen. 48:11 That's powerful. 48:12 Praise the Lord. 48:12 Makes my heart so happy. 48:14 Thank you for sharing that. 48:15 Yes! 48:16 Yes, Terri, yes! 48:17 I just think how God has handpicked each one of you and 48:21 our camera people and people at 3ABN to come here for such a 48:24 time as this. 48:25 You know, to be able to proclaim the gospel message. 48:28 We are sisters in Jesus. 48:29 I'm so grateful for that. 48:30 And God is your husband. 48:32 That's just a powerful testimony. 48:34 It encouraged my heart in our few moments here. 48:36 Just share just a little bit. 48:38 And then we'll have a time of prayer at the end. 48:40 I want to make sure we have that as well. 48:42 But just a little bit about when your spouse is in 48:45 ministry. 48:47 And when your spouse is in ministry, you're in ministry, 48:49 too. 48:50 That's just an automatic given. 48:52 But I have three keys to be a helpmate in ministry. 48:55 Key number one, be sold out for ministry yourself. 49:00 So very important. 49:02 You know, say your husband's a pastor and you're at home 49:06 saying, Well, why do you have to go visit so-and-so? 49:09 Well, why are you preparing sermons? 49:10 Why do you spend so much time at the church? 49:13 If you are, as the wife, sold out for ministry yourself, if 49:19 you know God, if you love God, then you will encourage your 49:25 husband in that ministry. 49:27 You know, sometimes we can just think about ourselves. 49:30 Sometimes we can be selfish, be sold out for ministry yourself. 49:35 Love God, love other people, seek to serve Jesus. 49:40 I remember a ministry spouse talking to me. 49:43 This was a few years ago. 49:45 And her husband's a leader in a ministry. 49:47 And she said, When they got married, they were on their 49:51 honeymoon. 49:52 And he said, Let's go visit this project that the ministry 49:55 was associated with. 49:57 And she said, Honey, we're on our honeymoon. 50:00 You know, this is us time. 50:01 This is whatever. 50:03 And he said, Oh, but we got to see the progress of the 50:06 project. 50:07 We need to see what's happening. 50:08 She said, I learned right then, Jill. 50:11 I need to give up my selfishness and myself. 50:16 And I need to be able to think of things beyond me and things 50:21 beyond the marriage. 50:23 And so that's a beautiful thing. 50:25 Be sold out for ministry yourself. 50:28 And that leads us to key number two, be balanced. 50:31 It's so important because we could overbalance that and we 50:37 could always give and always serve others and never make 50:42 time for your own walk with Jesus. 50:45 Never make time for your own relationship with your spouse. 50:50 So there's a balance in that. 50:52 Yes, we don't want to be selfish because ministry is 50:54 about serving other people. 50:56 Ministry here at 3ABN is about proclaiming the gospel. 50:59 But at the same time, you can't give what you don't have 51:02 inside. 51:03 And so if you don't have your own time with Jesus, if you 51:08 don't do that, if you don't take time as a marriage with 51:12 your relationship, that's important too. 51:15 So that's kind of boundaries around the marriage and around 51:19 the relationship. 51:20 For Greg and I, that boundary is suppertime for us. 51:26 So ministry here is 24-7. 51:29 And middle of the night, we have phone calls. 51:32 It's constant. 51:33 It never goes away. 51:35 And so for us, we put our phones aside and we won't pick 51:40 up a text. 51:40 We won't answer the phone. 51:42 And it's just he and I to talk and have that time together. 51:45 It's so vitally important. 51:48 As we look at, yes, we want to serve others. 51:50 And yes, we need to be sold out for ministry. 51:52 But you need balance in that and have time for your own walk 51:57 with God and your own relationship. 52:00 Number three, be an example. 52:04 You know, like it or not, when you're in ministry, people 52:07 look. 52:08 People say, oh, well, is this the way to do it? 52:12 Or is this, oh, I didn't recognize. 52:14 You know, you look at other people. 52:16 Are they a true Christian or are they hypocritical? 52:19 Are they fake? 52:20 Are they real? 52:23 I'll never forget. 52:24 We were at it was camp meeting here, 3 p.m. 52:28 And a man came up and he said, my wife always says you can 52:31 tell the health of a marriage by watching the wife. 52:35 Now, that's an interesting comment. 52:37 And he said, you can tell the health of a marriage. 52:39 Just look at the wife. 52:40 Is she free? 52:42 Does she have joy? 52:44 Does she seek to serve? 52:46 And when you look at that, it gives an indication of what's 52:50 actually happening behind closed doors, you know, in that 52:53 relationship. 52:58 ministry and be balanced. 53:00 Be an example. 53:00 Be prayerful. 53:01 Pray for your spouse when they're involved in ministry. 53:05 Be real, be authentic. 53:08 Don't be afraid to be honest about your own battles and 53:11 struggles because we can share together and encourage each 53:15 other as well. 53:16 The last thing I want to touch on before a time of prayer is 53:21 leading with spiritual gifts yourself because sometimes your 53:25 spouse can be involved in ministry and you say, well, my 53:28 role is just to sit here and I'm going to pray and do my 53:32 thing. 53:37 Greg and I, it's interesting. 53:39 We don't really have time to unpack this, but in marriage or 53:44 I should back up from a woman's perspective. 53:48 I used to think, okay, the gifts of a woman are to have 53:52 grace and humility and serve and compassion and nurturing. 53:59 But what about teaching? 54:01 What about sharing the word? 54:03 And I used to think, well, maybe I'm not supposed to do 54:05 that, but I love to study the word and I love to read the 54:09 word. 54:13 would say, don't you want to teach Sabbath school? 54:15 Because then we can teach together. 54:17 This was years ago because I thought, well, maybe I 54:20 shouldn't be the one teaching and my husband should be the 54:22 one doing that and I shouldn't be doing that. 54:24 And he would say, okay, Julie. 54:27 And so he would prepare and we would team teach together. 54:31 And then he said, Julie, why don't you share what God has 54:35 given you? 54:36 Why don't you step forward in that? 54:39 Now, I'm not ordained. 54:41 We're not stepping over into, you know, I'm not a pastor, 54:44 nothing like that. 54:45 But we do women's events and conferences. 54:49 And Greg always says, Jill, I love to sit back and watch you 54:52 share and operate in what God has given to you. 54:56 So that means as women, if God has given you spiritual gifts, 55:01 operate within the gifts that God has given to you. 55:06 I think of Deborah in the Old Testament. 55:08 She was a judge and she was a prophetess. 55:11 And she led the woman in battle. 55:13 Now, that's incredible. 55:14 You could spend a long time on that. 55:16 But operate within the gifts that God has given to you. 55:21 We're at the end of our time. 55:22 I can't believe it. 55:23 Thank you for being our family. 55:25 Know that we love you and pray for you. 55:27 And let's have some time of prayer. 55:30 Sasha, you want to pray for us and pray for our sisters at 55:33 home and maybe the battles and things that they're dealing 55:35 with. 55:36 Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time that we have 55:39 had together to discuss you and how you can help us in our 55:42 roles as a helpmate in our various areas. 55:47 We pray for each woman that is listening. 55:49 We have single moms. 55:50 We have moms who may be battling depression. 55:52 We have women who are in ministry. 55:56 We have women who may be taken on the role of a mother who are 56:01 grandmothers. 56:02 We have women who are single mothers. 56:05 We pray for each and every situation that you will be by 56:07 them. 56:08 Come in every household. 56:10 We pray that each household will seek after you and any 56:14 struggles that they may be going through. 56:16 We pray that you would help them. 56:18 You said, Lord, that our homes can be a little heaven on earth 56:21 whether we're a single mother household or a married 56:23 household or household with children. 56:25 And so we ask that you would help us to look to you for that 56:28 strength. 56:29 Look to you to be our burden bearer when we feel 56:32 overwhelmed. 56:37 you care for us as mothers, as women, and as wives. 56:41 We pray that every listener will be blessed by this program 56:46 and that we will also take a hold of this blessing, take the 56:49 things that we have learned here and go on to make our 56:52 homes a little heaven on earth as we seek that better home, a 56:56 heaven up with you. 56:57 In Jesus' name we pray. 56:58 Amen. 56:59 Sasha, Fotini, Terri, and Angela, thank you for being 57:02 sisters in Jesus, for sharing tonight, and we thank you for 57:05 joining us as well. 57:07 We will see you next time. |
Revised 2025-05-08