Moderation
Philippians 4:5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
Let’s look at the many things in our life and gauge it according to the above Scripture.
How are your emotions? Do you ever suddenly get angry? Maybe you’re standing in line at the store and someone ahead of you is taking way too long to get checked out. You feel yourself becoming aggravated and you dwell on the fact that you need to hurry home to cook supper for the family and you quickly become angry. You might just stand there stewing in your own juices or you may make an unkind remark about the wait. Maybe at home you misunderstood something that your husband said and flew hot at him. However, ladies, we need to have better control over our emotions. You may say that you can’t help it, but it can be controlled. As Christian ladies in this day and age, we really need to get into God’s Word about His expectations of us. Whether we’re at home or in public, we need to be known for our moderation in all things. Start being more concerned about others. We do not know what someone else may be going through and our impatience or anger will not help the situation. When we feel the flesh rise up in us, take a moment and think, “Is this how a Holy woman of God should act?” God’s Holy Spirit will instantly convict us. If we ignore it and go with the flow of our fleshly emotions, we will quickly have regrets. It is so damaging to our Christian testimony.
Okay, you knew I’d get to the food and drink sooner or later. I’m still working on this one myself. Americans eat way too much food! Take special notice the next time you’re out shopping. There are usually more overweight people than average anywhere you look. This is a tough one, but we must get our minds set on what God wants. I want to please Him, don’t you? Here are a few things to keep in mind every time you eat. You might want to post these on your fridge to remind you.
1. Your normal stomach should be about the size of your fist.
2. Whatever you eat, make the portion about the size of the palm of your hand. Eat only one portion of each item of food.
3. Eat slower and chew your food thoroughly. In about 20 minutes your stomach will tell your brain it is full. The slower you eat, the less you’ll eat.
4. Cut down or cut out the soft drinks. They have no nutritional value.
5. Drink more water.
Sure, I love soft drinks, but I’ve made myself start drinking more water. I still have a soft drink sometimes, but I’m starting to really enjoy an icy cold glass of water. Guess what else I’ve noticed? My skin doesn’t seem to be as dry! It is all a matter of habits. I’ve heard it takes about 30 days to form a new habit. I’ve always wondered why it doesn’t take as long to learn a bad habit. Hmmmm.
How about spending money? Your husband works hard for the income to support his family. Learn to be frugal. Frugality is not being cheap. It is being wise with the money you have. As a stay-at-home mom and wife you should be making at least a weekly menu of the foods you are going to prepare. This way you will save yourself time in the grocery store because you’ll know exactly what you’ll need to buy. It also saves time and frustration in trying to decide what you’re going to have for supper each night. If you know that your family is busy on a certain night of the week, you may want to schedule an easy meal such as soup and sandwiches, or a crock pot meal that you can put on in the morning and have it ready to be eaten that evening.
You can save quite a bit of money by using homemade cleansers instead of buying the expensive already made cleansers. By purchasing a few spray bottles you can mix and label each one and place in the rooms they’ll be used. I’ll be placing some helpful website links for you soon.
Clothing can be very expensive! A moderate woman will abide by the scripture that states: In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 1 Timothy 2:9 - But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 1 Timothy 2:10
Okay now, I know that some people think that a Holy woman of God shouldn’t wear make-up and pretty clothes and never cut their hair. However, let’s remember moderation here. Wisely applied make-up will cover imperfections and people will not notice your make-up. Some women do not need to wear it as they were blessed with beautiful skin. But, most important is to have a sweet spirit and a smile on your face. Have you ever noticed the women that refuse to wear make-up or fix their hair in a becoming style? A lot of them have either a sad look or a mean look on their faces. If that is the picture of a Holy Christian woman, I don’t think it will help women sinners to even want to become a Christian. As for the clothes, a woman should look like a woman. Not a sack of potatoes. You can find nice, modest apparel in many places. Try the thrift stores for a change. It takes some looking and going back several times, but they can be found. If you can afford to buy new clothes, you don’t have to go overboard. I think we all have too many clothes in our closets to begin with. Look for the classics. These usually look better on women than the current styles. If you sew, look for the classic patterns or start your own trend of modest clothes! Ladies, you know deep down what is appropriate for a Christian woman to wear. We are not to draw attention to ourselves and we are responsible for helping our brothers in Christ not to sin. For Jesus said, But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. Matthew 5:28
Some of you may say you’re not responsible for anyone but yourself. I strongly disagree! For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life. Proverbs 6:26
Our brothers in Christ need to at least be able to go to church and worship God without having to worry about averting his eyes from that “Christian lady” with the low-cut blouse or short skirt.
Let’s start thinking and acting in moderation in all areas of our life; because we are representatives of Jesus Christ our Savior and people pay more attention to our actions than our words.
May God bless you!
Let’s look at the many things in our life and gauge it according to the above Scripture.
How are your emotions? Do you ever suddenly get angry? Maybe you’re standing in line at the store and someone ahead of you is taking way too long to get checked out. You feel yourself becoming aggravated and you dwell on the fact that you need to hurry home to cook supper for the family and you quickly become angry. You might just stand there stewing in your own juices or you may make an unkind remark about the wait. Maybe at home you misunderstood something that your husband said and flew hot at him. However, ladies, we need to have better control over our emotions. You may say that you can’t help it, but it can be controlled. As Christian ladies in this day and age, we really need to get into God’s Word about His expectations of us. Whether we’re at home or in public, we need to be known for our moderation in all things. Start being more concerned about others. We do not know what someone else may be going through and our impatience or anger will not help the situation. When we feel the flesh rise up in us, take a moment and think, “Is this how a Holy woman of God should act?” God’s Holy Spirit will instantly convict us. If we ignore it and go with the flow of our fleshly emotions, we will quickly have regrets. It is so damaging to our Christian testimony.
Okay, you knew I’d get to the food and drink sooner or later. I’m still working on this one myself. Americans eat way too much food! Take special notice the next time you’re out shopping. There are usually more overweight people than average anywhere you look. This is a tough one, but we must get our minds set on what God wants. I want to please Him, don’t you? Here are a few things to keep in mind every time you eat. You might want to post these on your fridge to remind you.
1. Your normal stomach should be about the size of your fist.
2. Whatever you eat, make the portion about the size of the palm of your hand. Eat only one portion of each item of food.
3. Eat slower and chew your food thoroughly. In about 20 minutes your stomach will tell your brain it is full. The slower you eat, the less you’ll eat.
4. Cut down or cut out the soft drinks. They have no nutritional value.
5. Drink more water.
Sure, I love soft drinks, but I’ve made myself start drinking more water. I still have a soft drink sometimes, but I’m starting to really enjoy an icy cold glass of water. Guess what else I’ve noticed? My skin doesn’t seem to be as dry! It is all a matter of habits. I’ve heard it takes about 30 days to form a new habit. I’ve always wondered why it doesn’t take as long to learn a bad habit. Hmmmm.
How about spending money? Your husband works hard for the income to support his family. Learn to be frugal. Frugality is not being cheap. It is being wise with the money you have. As a stay-at-home mom and wife you should be making at least a weekly menu of the foods you are going to prepare. This way you will save yourself time in the grocery store because you’ll know exactly what you’ll need to buy. It also saves time and frustration in trying to decide what you’re going to have for supper each night. If you know that your family is busy on a certain night of the week, you may want to schedule an easy meal such as soup and sandwiches, or a crock pot meal that you can put on in the morning and have it ready to be eaten that evening.
You can save quite a bit of money by using homemade cleansers instead of buying the expensive already made cleansers. By purchasing a few spray bottles you can mix and label each one and place in the rooms they’ll be used. I’ll be placing some helpful website links for you soon.
Clothing can be very expensive! A moderate woman will abide by the scripture that states: In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 1 Timothy 2:9 - But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 1 Timothy 2:10
Okay now, I know that some people think that a Holy woman of God shouldn’t wear make-up and pretty clothes and never cut their hair. However, let’s remember moderation here. Wisely applied make-up will cover imperfections and people will not notice your make-up. Some women do not need to wear it as they were blessed with beautiful skin. But, most important is to have a sweet spirit and a smile on your face. Have you ever noticed the women that refuse to wear make-up or fix their hair in a becoming style? A lot of them have either a sad look or a mean look on their faces. If that is the picture of a Holy Christian woman, I don’t think it will help women sinners to even want to become a Christian. As for the clothes, a woman should look like a woman. Not a sack of potatoes. You can find nice, modest apparel in many places. Try the thrift stores for a change. It takes some looking and going back several times, but they can be found. If you can afford to buy new clothes, you don’t have to go overboard. I think we all have too many clothes in our closets to begin with. Look for the classics. These usually look better on women than the current styles. If you sew, look for the classic patterns or start your own trend of modest clothes! Ladies, you know deep down what is appropriate for a Christian woman to wear. We are not to draw attention to ourselves and we are responsible for helping our brothers in Christ not to sin. For Jesus said, But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. Matthew 5:28
Some of you may say you’re not responsible for anyone but yourself. I strongly disagree! For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life. Proverbs 6:26
Our brothers in Christ need to at least be able to go to church and worship God without having to worry about averting his eyes from that “Christian lady” with the low-cut blouse or short skirt.
Let’s start thinking and acting in moderation in all areas of our life; because we are representatives of Jesus Christ our Savior and people pay more attention to our actions than our words.
May God bless you!
1 Comments:
Sharon...I have to tell you that I am having a wonderful...blessed time catching up on your older posts......I am can tell that we think alot alike and I am so blessed that the Lord has lead me to your blog.
Deby
WA. State
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