Monday, 18 September 2006

Dear Girls,

Dying to self

Here is a beautiful poem entitled, Dying To Self:

When you are forgotten or neglected or purposely set at naught, and you sting and hurt with the insult or the oversight, but your heart is happy being counted worthy to suffer for Christ-that is Dying to Self.

When your good is evil spoken of, when your wishes are crossed, your advice is disregarded, your opinions ridiculed and you refuse to let anger rise in your heart, or even defend yourself, but take it all in patient loving silence-that is Dying to Self.

When you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, any irregularity, or any annoyance, when you can stand face to face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensibility, and endure it as Jesus endured it-that is Dying to Self.

When you are content with any food, any offering, any raiment, any climate, any society, any attitude, any interruption by the will of God-that is Dying to Self.

When you never care to refer to yourself in conversation, or to record your own good works, or itch after commendation, when you can truly love to be unknown-that is Dying to Self.

When you see your brother prosper and have his needs met and can honestly rejoice with him in spirit and feel no envy nor question God, while your own needs are far greater and in desperate circumstances-that is Dying to Self.

When you can receive correction and reproof from one of less stature than yourself, can submit inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising up within your heart-that is Dying to Self.

~Author Unknown

Questions

Think about these questions. I’ll email you further information on these questions shortly.

Read Galations 2v20:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

What does it mean to be crucified with Christ or to die to self?

What are some of the character traits you will have if you have truly died to yourself?

How can you learn to die to yourself with your Dad?

How can you learn to die to yourself with your Mum?

How can you learn to die to yourself with your brothers?

How can you learn to die to yourself with your sisters?

How can you learn to die to yourself with your friends?

How can you learn to die to yourself when your family has visitors?

How can you learn to die to yourself when someone is being mean to you?

How can you learn to die to yourself when you are tired but can’t rest?

For the Greater Glory of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,

Genevieve Smith

Issacharian Daughter

Monday, 11 September 2006

Dear Girls,

Being a Beautifier

Part of learning about being visionary daughters is learning how the Bible describes daughters.

Psalm 144 is an exciting chapter of the Bible which describes how daughters can be a blessing. Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin, the authors of the excellent book, So Much More, recently shared about this verse on their website: www.visionarydaughters.com.

In Psalm 144, David is praying for God’s blessing on the homes of the righteous. He asks the Lord for a number of things and in verse 12 he asks this:

Let our sons in their youth be as grown-up plants,
And our daughters as corner pillars fashioned as for a palace;

So what does this mean to be corner pillars fashioned as for a palace? A pillar is a support for the roof isn’t it? But a pillar is more than framework or crossbeams. As well as having a support role it also has an ornamental role. It helps to create an environment of beauty doesn’t it? It is graceful and plays a big part in establishing the atmosphere in the palace.

This verse teaches us that as daughters our role is to be a support to our parents. And it indicates to us what a big part we can play in influencing the atmosphere in our homes.

What sort of a home would you love to live in? Do you dream of being a part of? That you would like to create one day?

When I think of the sort of home I enjoy and would like to create one day these descriptive words come to mind: Light. Beautiful. Happy. Laughter. Colour. Kind. Smells wonderful. Clean. Orderly. Friendly.

You can help to create such an environment in your own home. Do you know how?

The environments in our homes will be influenced by all the senses. Can we look beautiful? Can we smell beautiful? Can we feel beautiful? Can we taste beautiful? Can we sound beautiful?

If I walk around with a scowl on my face I won’t look beautiful. My scowl will influence the environment in my home and the people around me. It might influence them to be sad or angry or impatient or short-tempered.

On the other hand if I smile nicely I will look beautiful. My smile will influence my home and the people around me. It may cause them to feel happy and to be pleasant, kind, friendly and patient.

The types of homes we create can be influenced by something this simple! The more we smile the better. The jollier we are the better! Our voices can influence the atmosphere in our homes too. We can be whiny or we can be soft and gentle with our voices! And as we influence the environment it will also influence the people around us.

What about our homes? Can we help them to look beautiful? Can we help them to smell beautiful? To sound beautiful? To feel beautiful? To taste beautiful?

There are practical things we can do to make our homes lovely places. We can keep our things orderly. We can help to keep our homes clean. We can make things like lavendar bottles¹ or pomanders² which will help our homes to smell nice. We can cook great tasting meals and make lip-smacking treats. We can learn how to play beautiful music or pick out sound tracks which will make lovely sounding background music in our homes.

At the end of Psalm 144, King David says,

How blessed are the people who are so situated.

So when we as daughters learn how to be pillars fashioned for a palace…when we learn to be a support and to add to the beauty of our homes this is a blessing. It blesses our parents. It blesses our families. It is a blessing to us too!

For the Greater Glory of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,

Genevieve Smith

Issacharian Daughter

1. This web page gives instructions on how to make lavender bottles. http://www.allfreecrafts.com/nature/lavender-wands.shtml

2. This web page explains how to make pomanders. http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=channel1462

Monday, 4 September 2006

Dear Girls,

Issacharian Daughters

This is the first of what I hope will be many emails of encouragement to young ladies like myself: girls who have come out of the workforce or left university to come home. In 2001 and 2002 while I was travelling in the USA, the Lord taught me many things (my testimony about this time is attached). The end result was that I came home and put my efforts towards the following endeavours:

1. helping Dad in his ministry to home educators;

2. helping Mum with her work around the home;

3. working on home-making skills;

4. preparing for marriage;

5. building and strengthening family relationships;

6. deepening my relationship with God;

7. encouraging other girls.

When I got back to New Zealand I noticed that while the Lord had been working in me while I was in the USA, He had also been working in my parents as well. As time went by, I noticed that He was working in other girls and other parents up and down the country too. What a blessing to discover that in this world where independence, individualism and selfishness are all encouraged, I was not alone in my efforts to reject the ways of the world and to try to discover a more Biblical path for daughters!

You are not alone either. There are many of us out here forging a path of visionary daughterhood (pioneering away with machete in hand to cut a path for ourselves—and girls to come—with Scripture and our parents as our guide and the occasional example of another girl from the USA or some other far off port!). Just think of the sweet fellowship we can have if we network together and get to know one another! It could encourage and strengthen us for the work we have in our role as daughters.

This is the purpose of these emails: fellowship and encouragement as well as exhortation. To this end I would love to send out the following sorts of things in these emails:

1. articles, links, testimonies, book recommendations, quotes, etc.;

2. teachings from our mothers and other Titus 2 women (and fathers too!);

3. writings from my pen. I have been home for nearly four years and was anticipating going home for another year and a half prior to that. During that time I’ve experienced various feelings, thoughts, pressures, opportunities, persecutions, learning experiences, etc., that are likely to be felt by us all as we start on this path. I’d like to share what I have learned with you Issacharian Daughters!

4. Introductions from yourselves…not necessary…but it would be neat! You could simply give your name and general location. Or you could answer some or all of these questions too: Have you made the move home? What prompted it? What is your family structure like? What have you learned since coming home?

5. Responses you have to these emails; questions and answers on daughterhood.

These emails are under the oversight of my parents and due to their encouragement. It is my desire to primarily encourage you to honour and obey your parents. Please bear that in mind in any introductions, comments or questions you direct to me for inclusion in these emails.

For the Greater Glory of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,

Genevieve Smith

Issacharian Daughter

Notes:

I have sent this email to girls who have embraced a vision of victorious daughterhood as well as those who may be thinking about doing so (and even to some girls who may just like some encouragement regarding different areas of home life). Some of the girls are in the USA. Most are in New Zealand. You are welcome to forward this email on to others so long as you do so in its entirety. If you do not want to receive these emails please just send a return email to me stating that fact. If you know of other girls who would be encouraged by receiving these emails, feel free to forward the email to them or send me their email address.

Click on heading to see whole post and to make the link live

id001-testimony.doc

How My Heart Was Turned To My Father, Family and Home

I was raised to be independent and career oriented. My schooling included a strong academic programme, which left no time for learning domestic skills. You wouldn’t think it now to look at me. I’m 24 and am living at home. I help my father in his ministry and assist my mother at home. But it was not so long ago that my ambition was to be the first woman prime minister of New Zealand. And it was even less time ago that I was working a highly paid legal executive job for a prominent solicitor. The Lord has done quite a work in my life since this time. He has turned my heart to my father, my family and my home.

My story starts a number of years ago when I traveled with my brother to the USA for a lengthy stay. The same day we left New Zealand, the solicitor I was working for sold his practice to study for the ministry. If I’d wondered before, I had no doubt now that I wouldn’t be able to pick my job back up on returning to New Zealand. So began a long period of praying for direction from the Lord and seeking His will for my life. A number of things happened during this time which changed the course of my life.

Firstly, my eyes were opened to some of the sinful practices I’d fallen into at home. I had developed ways of relating to my parents, which were not honouring or respectful to them, and I realized that in many ways I had not been a good example to my younger siblings. This realization of my sin had me stunned for some time since I’d always aspired to be like my father and had always counted the members of my family as my best friends. Nevertheless, it is true that I needed to repent of many wrong actions towards my family.

Secondly, I heard four separate speakers in the space of a short time give a vision for family ministries. In particular, one speaker, Doug Phillips, on his tape entitled, What’s a Girl To Do? revealed the beauty of family ministries by explaining that girls, prior to marriage, could practice being a helpmate to their husbands by assisting their fathers in their ministries. I was taken by the representation of family unity and strength he described. And it struck me, ‘My father has a ministry. I could work for him.’

Thirdly, I came across and read some amazing books: The Way Home by Mary Pride; Domestic Tranquility by Carolyn E Graglia; How To Be Your Own Selfish Pig by Susan Schaeffer Macauley; Mother by Kathleen Norris and Home-Making by J R Miller.

Each of these things led to a change of heart and priorities. While I was raised to be independent, my desire grew strong to be under the roof and protection of my father, to submit to his day-to-day direction and guidance of my life and to work to make his life and ministry a success. And while I had been raised to be career oriented, my desire to work outside of my home dwindled. I became cautious of becoming an employer’s helpmate and instead wanted to become my father’s helpmate and prepare for marriage. My relationships with my family became all important, as did my desire to learn how to be a Godly and skillful wife, mother and homemaker.

On a long-distance phone call home to my parents from the USA, I broached the idea of working for my father. They were delighted at the prospect. This delighted me, and I could hardly wait until my trip in the USA was over – but I had another whole year before I was scheduled to go home! It became apparent fairly soon that while my father could give me lots of work to do, his ministry did not have the finances to support another worker. Surprisingly, to me, this did not bother me at all.

I have now been home for quite some time. I have been able to be of help to my father and have thoroughly enjoyed our walks to the post office each morning. My mother has appreciated my help around the house, and I’ve benefited immensely from being able to assist her. She recently had her hip replaced and will have her other hip replaced shortly. Since I’m at home, I was able to take over the managing of the house and also care for her while she was bedridden for several months. I’ve delighted in being able to build friendships with my siblings and have marveled as the Lord has brought another little wee child into our lives – a little sister we take care of and hope to be able to adopt one day. My mother has assigned me to take care of all the budgeting, buying and cooking, and I’ve loved learning these new skills and experimenting with cooking styles and recipes to come up with mouth-watering meals to please my family. I have noticed that my hardness, brusqueness and impatience, which was built into my life as a result of having to protect myself, has given way, as I’ve put myself under the protection of my father, to a newly forming softness, warmth and love.

In the eyes of the world, I’m wasting my life as my old legal cronies take every opportunity to tell me. I’m not earning any money and am not pursuing independence or a career the way I ‘should be.’ But I reject the ways of the world. The Lord has shown me His ways. He has turned my heart towards my father, my family and my home and in following His leading I have come to recognize that I’m taking part in a much more important work with far more lasting consequences and a much higher priority than anything I was doing or pursuing before. God be praised.

~ Genevieve Smith