This is a big one, ladies!

SELF TALK

The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his (her) life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

James 3:6

For most of my life I’ve read the James chapter 3 “Taming the Tongue” passage with the focus on what my tongue has the potential to do in the lives of others. Like a bit in the mouth of a horse or a tiny rudder on a massive ship, our tongues can steer people toward Jesus or away from Him. Our tongues can set the world on fire for Jesus or destroy like fire when we gossip, lie, swear, brag, exaggerate, complain, manipulate, and mislead. The tiny tongue is a massive weapon of destruction or a tender instrument of healing and an arsenal of truth.

That was the primary Communications 101 lesson I gathered from James 3 until the theme, Think Right: Win the Fight! Now I’ve come to fully understand that what’s true for what we speak to others, also holds true for what we speak to ourselves.

Your and my steady stream of self-talk has the potential to steer us toward Jesus or away from Him. It can set our hearts on fire as we speak His promises and focus on His presence, or it can destroy us when we lie to ourselves to cover up guilt and shame, when we are proud and consider ourselves and our choices better than our neighbors, or when we grumble in our spirits about mornings, long lines, and short weekends.

The words we speak to ourselves today set the course for all our tomorrows. Do you want to know what your life will look like 5, 10, 20 years from now? Don’t look in the mirror. Look in your thought closet. The words you speak to yourself are the bit and rudder that are steering you to the woman you will become.

The way we use our tongues, whether talking to ourselves or to others, demonstrates who we are and to Whom we belong. Our words align us with God or the father of lies. We know what it is to talk out of both sides of our mouth, don’t we? Sometimes our words are right, true, and pleasing to God. Other times we use the language of the enemy – speaking words that destroy and devour.

James says that this must not be! Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers (and sisters!) this should not be (v. 10). It shouldn’t be, but we know it is! What do we do? Outside of Christ, we can’t do a thing. We are incapable of perfect obedience. We need Christ. And when we cry out to Him, He will answer and help.

Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:57).

Think on it: What is the speech pattern of your self-talk? Ask Jesus for His power to speak Philippians 4:8 words to your soul. 

The things we think about, focus on, and surround ourselves with will shape who we become.

Author Unknown

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Do I have the mind of Christ?

THE MIND OF CHRIST

Let each of you look not only to his (her) interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 2:4-5, ESV

Very little is known about English hymn writer Kate Barclay Wilkinson. She lived in the early twentieth century and ministered to young women in west London. Based on the words of her only known hymn, one wonders if she talked to those girls about what it means to think right and win the fight!

This is the first verse of Kate’s beautiful hymn, which begins as a prayer for our mind:

May the mind of Christ, my Savior,

Live in me from day to day,

By His love and power controlling

All I do and say.

This hymn is based on Philippians 2:5: Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. There’s the command: Have this mind. But what is Paul referring to? It’s in the previous verse. Let each of you look not only to his (her) own interests, but also the interests of others. Have this mind (v. 4-5).

The mindset of Christ thinks about others more than self. It’s a mind that thinks humble, selfless thoughts. It’s an attitude that does nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility considers, thinks, and counts others more significant than ourselves (v. 3).

Do you and I have the mind of Christ?

·      Do we give more thought time to others or ourselves? Jesus looked to the interests of others (v. 4).

·      Do we count our rights and entitlements or do we calculate and do the math Jesus’ way? Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing (v. 6-7). 

·      Are our actions most often self-serving or servant-like? Jesus made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant (v. 7). He came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28).

·      Do a self-assessment. Are you humble or proud? Would others agree? Most importantly, what does God see in our hearts and minds – humility or pride? Jesus humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (v. 8).

When Jesus’ mindset of love and humility lives in us from day to day, it will control all we do and say.

Think on it: What can we do today to take a greater interest in the lives of others?   

Regularly contemplate the cross.  Nothing should humble us more than the perfect, sinless, Son of God willingly pouring out His life to rescue those who hated Him and rebelled against Him.

Mark Altrogge

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Are you hungry?

THINK ABOUT YOUR HUNGER PAINS

Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.”

John 6:53

I come from a long line of grumblers. All the children of Abraham do. The Israelite community grumbled in the wilderness because they were starving to death, so God provided manna. Every day everyone had as much manna as they needed. Miraculous. Sadly, in time they whined because they were sick of God’s menu; they hungered for the food of Egypt – cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic (Exodus 16:3, 18, Numbers 11:4-6).

Fast forward to John chapter 6. There are 5,000 men, plus women and children, sitting on the mountainside near the Sea of Galilee with no food to eat. It’s quite possible that a number of people from the group thought they were starving. Again, God provided. Jesus took five small barley loaves and two small fish, gave thanks, and distributed it. After eating until their stomachs were full, there were twelve baskets of barley loaves leftover (v. 1-13). Miraculous. Sadly, the very next day they were grumbling because they were hungry.

The crowds remembered the manna their fathers had eaten in the wilderness. Now they had received bread on the mountainside, and they wanted more. “Sir,” they said, “from now on give us this bread” (v. 34).

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life, He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty” (v. 35).

At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven” (v. 41). Sadly, they again whined about God’s menu. They hungered for food that spoils; Jesus gave them food that endures to eternal life (v. 27). They hungered for materials things (v. 22-27), hungered for good works theology instead of faith (v. 28-29), and hungered for miracles (v. 30-33). And when the One they needed most, the Bread of Life, offered Himself, and a promise that they would never go hungry or thirsty again, they refused Him (v. 35).

Think about your hunger pains. What do you and I hunger for most? Do we hunger for God or for His gifts? Are our thoughts and pursuits on “food that spoils” or on Jesus, the Bread of Heaven?

Think on it: When’s the last time you were starving for friendship, for a physical need, for peace, or for ____________? Surrender that hunger and pray: Jesus, feed me! O God, fill me. Just give me Jesus!   

Let’s renounce the secular or religious happy meals which prove so fatal to their eaters and which stop them from eating God’s salvation. Let’s feed deeply, daily and devotedly on Jesus.

Phil Moore

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Escapism...

ESCAPISM MENTALITY

Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

Psalm 55:22

Escapism: the avoidance of reality by absorption of the mind in entertainment or in an imaginative situation, activity, etc.

I’m not a big fan of going to the dentist, which directly correlates to having a lot of dental work done as a child. I remember opening my mouth wide for shots of Novocain and being told to think happy thoughts. Go to your happy place! In other words, avoid the reality of the present by imagining something pleasant.

In Psalm 55 we learn that even the Shepherd King David had times when he wanted to escape his reality. His thoughts were troubled and distraught. His heart was in anguish. Fear, trembling, and horror overwhelmed him. The wounds were deep and the pain intense; David wanted to escape.

He said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest – I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm” (vs. 6-8).

Can you identify? Have you ever wished for wings that would take you from the reality of laundry piles and runny noses to the seas of the Caribbean or the heights of the Swiss Alps? Have you ever wished you could flee from a storm brewing within your family, your workplace, or your health situation? Do you escape your reality by setting your mind on the weekend? Do you call on Calgon^®, coffee, or chocolate to take you away? Where do you flee when pressures and problems overwhelm you?

We live in a world that medicates itself with temporary pleasures that provide no true source of hope and healing. David points us to our Deliverer and Rescuer. I call to God, and the LORD saves me, He hears my voice, He ransoms me unharmed (vs. 16, 17b, 18a).

Instead of calling for an escape from our reality, we should be casting our reality and its cares on the LORD (v. 22). Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall (v. 22).

Notice what Scripture doesn’t promise. When we cast our cares on God, He doesn’t promise to remove our problems or pain. God doesn’t guarantee an exit door or escape route. He promises something infinitely better. He will sustain you (v. 22). God will hold you, guide you, and nourish you, right now in the midst of the storm. He will not let you fall. That’s His promise for those who put their trust in Him (v. 23b).

Think on it: If you could have wings of a dove, what problem would you fly from today? Choose to trade in your escapism mentality for full trust in the LORD, your Deliverer.    

I am the subject of depressions of spirit so fearful that I hope none of you ever gets to such extremes of wretchedness as I go to.  But I always get back again by this: I know I trust Christ.  I have no reliance but in Him.  Because He lives, I shall live also, and I spring to my legs again and fight with my depressions of spirit and my downcast soul and get the victory through it.  So may you to, and so you must, for there is no other way of escaping from it.  In your most depressed seasons, you are to get joy and peace through believing.

Charles Spurgeon

grace and peace,

Lenae         

God in my Thinking

GOD IN MY THINKING

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

Tim Hughes' song, “Everything”, is a beautiful prayer put to music that asks God to be in our living, breathing, waking, sleeping, resting, working, thinking, and more. The chorus repeats the heart’s cry, “Be my everything! Be my everything! Be my everything! Be my everything!”

Imagine a mind cleared of every distraction, worry, and preoccupation and the only thing filling it is Jesus: thoughts of Jesus, love for Jesus, worship for Jesus. What if God occupied every square inch of our thought life? 

Within his book, The Art of Prayer, Khariton says that a mind emptied of everything but God would keep the enemy far away! He writes, “When thieves approach a house in order to creep up to it and steal, and hear someone inside talking, they do not dare to climb in; in the same way, when our enemies try to steal into the soul and take possession of it they creep all round but fear to enter when they hear that . . . prayer welling out.”

Our minds are the gatekeepers to all we say and think and the women that we become. Prayer posts guards at the gates of our mind to defend and keep us from evil. When we pray about everything, God’s peace protects and guards our hearts and minds (Philippians 4:6-7)! 

Prayer shifts our mindset from our problems to God’s promises, purpose, and power. It moves our mind’s chatter from self-talk to God talk.

Are you anxious because you can’t figure out what to do next with your children, mortgage, or your life? Pray, trust God, and listen to Him. He will direct your steps (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Are you exhausted, doing all you can do to keep one foot moving in front of the over? Pray and go to God. He will give you rest (Matthew 1:28-30).

Are you lonely, feeling misunderstood and isolated? Pray and remember God’s promise. He will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).

Are prayers constantly welling from your heart and mind (1 Thessalonians 5:17)? When talking and listening to God continually fills every nook and cranny of our thoughts, the lies of the world, our sinful nature, and the enemy are squeezed out of our mind. There’s not room for both in the house.

Think on it: Do you typically spend more time talking to yourself or to God?   

Prayer is the very highest energy of which the mind is capable.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Whatever is True

WHATEVER IS TRUE

Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

John 17:17

We live in a time where the Bible has never been more accessible. It’s available online, in apps, Christian bookstores, thrift stores, and even rummage sales. Sadly, having easy access to Scripture doesn’t mean it’s being read.

In a recent survey of more than 2,900 Protestant churchgoers, LifeWay Research discovered that while 90 percent of those polled “desire to please and honor Jesus in all I do,” only 19 percent personally read the Bible every day. Based on these stats, eighty percent of Christians are living today dependent on the past. They’re relying on past Bible reading, past sermons, past Bible studies, rather than daily and actively arming themselves for the fight with the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17).

That’s a dangerous percentage when we live in a world that barrages us with deceitful messages, false ideas, subtle and out-and-out blatant lies about who God is and what He wants us to do.

One of my greatest joys is mentoring young women whose knowledge of God and Scripture is as diverse as their personalities and life experiences. During one Bible study, a gal confessed that she wanted to pluck someone’s eyes out. Her friend said, “She deserves it! Plus the Bible says, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’” She looked at me for confirmation.

“Let’s look it up,” I said. And in reading their Bibles they discovered that although she remembered the line “eye for eye, and tooth for tooth” from her childhood, the context of these words within Jesus’ command to love your enemies, eclipsed her (Matthew 5:38-44).

Within the familiar children’s song we sing, “Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so.” That knowledge of Jesus’ love, of who He is, of how He wants us to think and what He wants us to think about is found in the Bible. Knowing Jesus’ love should not be based on our feelings, hearsay, or even lovely devotionals that inspire our hearts. We know His love by reading the Bible, the greatest love story ever told: His story of redemption. We read Scripture because faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17).

If we’re going to think on whatever is true (Philippians 4:8), we must read the word of truth (John 17:17). Everyday.

Think on it: Does God speak to you everyday in Scripture? If not, do not go to bed tonight until you’ve read His Word.  

A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.

Charles Spurgeon

grace and peace,

Lenae         

Conference Registration is Open!!

Greetings everyone!

We pray you have had a wonderful and fulfilling Christmas and New Year season. We love to hear from some of you on Facebook or on the blog and hear about how things are going for you and for your GEMS Club!

By now you have probably received your Conference registration forms in the mail, and if not, they should arrive soon. It is so exciting to be able to have the opportunity to attend conference so close to home!

Here's a bit of information for you regarding Conference:

Registration -

Can be done by mail, fax, or the online form at http://gemsgc.org/conference/index.html - click on "Registration" from the menu on the left.

Early Bird Registration -

The early bird registration rate of $460.00 is available until February 20. The rate will increase on February 21.

Payment Installment Plan -

***To participate in this option, the first payment is due January 25! Please pass this information along as that date will approach quickly!!

Again there are several things to note with this process: If you choose, you can pay for your registration in multiple payments. The first payment is due on January 25, the second on February 20, and the third and final on April 15. Installments can be paid by check, credit card, or money order. 

• If you register online and wish to make multiple payments you MUST register with a credit card. Your first payment will be processed when you register.  You will receive an auto-generated email reminder when your second and third payments are due. You will then login to your online registration account and make your second and third payment.
• You can also mail in your registration form and each payment along with the coupons that are available in your registration book or online (scroll to the bottom of the left hand side of the Conference website to look for the registration form to download.) 
• Note: Checks/funds are to be received in Canadian funds of $460 or for US citizens the equivalent of the exchange fee for that day. US citizens should check the daily exchange rate or call the GEMS Service Center to verify the current days rate (616) 241-5616 ext. 2.

Registration Form -

If you have not received your registration form yet you can download one online Scroll to the bottom of the left hand side of the Conference website to look for the registration form to download.

Conference Website -

Check it out if you haven't yet for more information! More information is being added.
http://gemsgc.org/conference/index.html

Please pray about attending this awesome conference in July and register as soon as possible!

Blessings to you and your entire counselor team,
Julie Ball, Area Coordinator
Tami Cleveringa, Leadership Trainer