Chapter 5 by Heidi

Well Chapter 5 was a great chapter. I can say that I used to believe Lie #18. And then God showed me a awhile ago, that I was doing to much that I wanted to do and was burning myself out. I do believe that he wants me to do a lot, but through prayer I am finding out what His exact will is. My goal is to make the devil hate my guts. Meaning that I will be an even more effective Christian, because I will be doing exactly what the Lord wants for all areas of my life. And he will hate my guts, because when we walk in total obedience we get so much more done for His Kingdom. It sure makes things easier too. This is something that I already knew, but did not always practice it. :)

Lie #19. I have always believed that I can do nothing without Jesus. I love what she said on page 122. "The essence of Satan's deception is that we can live our lives independently of God. The enemy doesn't care if we believe in God, if we are doctrinally orthodox, or if we fill our schedules with a lot of spiritual activities as long as he can get us to run on our own steam, rather than living in conscious dependence upon the power of the Holy Spirit.. If he can get us to try to live the Christian Life without cultivating an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus, he knows we will be spiritually impotent and defeated." That is so true. I think as mom's especially we have to start our days in the word and in prayer, so that we can make it through the day. Because being a mom is a hard job. I am so thankful that my parents instilled in me at such a young age, that I have to have Jesus. That I have to have a personal relationship with him, and that my good works would not get me to heaven, or good talk, or just knowing about him, but that it was a personal relationship and that he had to live in my heart.

Lie#20...I think this lie, is one that many woman believe. Being a mom can be such a thankless job. We wear so many hats, and our kids don't always thank us for all that we do. I think that is what drives a lot of moms to work. In the past this is the exact reason for me working. We get a paycheck, thank you's, compliments, etc. I know for me though, I can not work a full time job, be a mom, go to church and be involved there, cook, clean, laundry, get my kids to where they need to go, without it affecting me or someone close to me. More specifically my family. We can not rely on man to fulfill us. We have to rely on Jesus. When we rely on Him to fulfill all our desires and needs, we can be "just moms" and be satisfied. I know that some mom's have to work, or maybe someone is single with children. I have been there, and I know how incredibly tough it is to juggle all that. Even more reason to spend more time in the word to get filled up. :)

Chapter 4 by Heidi

Sorry it has taken me so long to post this. Time goes by way too quickly. I thought I would just touch on some of the things that I highlighted while reading this chapter. I thought it was a great chapter. And I have learned a lot from the book so far. Great choice. :)

• Sin's nature never changes, and it will always come back to bite us. (pg. 92)


• I like the 2 points that she made on page 94: 1) Lack of restraint in one area of our lives makes us more vulnerable to lack of discipline in other, more major areas; and 2) the indulgence we excuse in moderation may well produce in our children a harvest of extreme indulgence.


• I think today's society justifies way to much. And I think if we stopped to think about how our actions hurt the heart of God, or how they can be passed down to the next generation, or how we are teaching our kids, or maybe even how we are affecting other believers...just maybe we could stop and slow down and think about what we are doing. Everything is so Self-Service. And that is the biggest problem, people have become so self-centered instead of God-Centered.


• The way to see the Truth about sin is to see it in the light of who God is. I think that is so true. I know for myself I am constantly trying to line up all that I do with that statement. I still make lots of mistakes. But that is what is so amazing about the grace of God. He picks us back up. He corrects us, and then we keep trucking along.


• (page 108) John 15:5, "Apart from me," Jesus said, "you can do nothing." This is so true. Even though I know this to be so true, I still can get caught up in doing things in my own strength. And I am learning even more so now....I am absolutely nothing without Him. Everything I do is only because he allows me to do it. And because He gives me the strength to do it. I am merely a vessel on this earth.