Girl's Gathering Place

Something New This Way Comes!

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Tue, 04 May 2010 03:36:00 +0000

Please forgive the lag time of posting here. Leslie has a computer that is having temper tantrums and Kathy has had some big life changes. Even with all this they have some wonderful things in store for You!

One thing that will be scheduled soon is a NEW live Big Reveal for Talking Book Club! There were some techinical issues with the original call that were unforeseen. We were so bummed, and know that many of you were too! But as God works, we have found that having a little time between finishing Character Makeover and the call, may be all the more rewarding for the Big Reveal! So be on the lookout for the Live time for the Big Reveal Call and mark it on your calendar!

You are going to have to wait just a bit longer for us to let you in on the Fantastic NEW programs we will be presenting, because...well surprises are just so much FUN!

We can't wait to chat with all of you!
Kathy & Leslie

It's Your Turn to Chat!

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:51:00 +0000

LIVE Call In Chat Scheduled!

Hi to all! Just a reminder that our LIVE call in chat for Talkin Book Club's current selection, Character Makeover, is scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday, March 30, 2010, @ 11:00 am EST over on talk shoe.

We are all going to be sharing our stories and testimonies that have resulted from our book study on Character Makeover. Kathy & Leslie have shared some things during the weekly chats and their blog posts, and there have been ups and downs along the way, but every single thing has been a wtep towards their character makeovers as well!

Even if you are behind, we want to hear Your Story!
Click on the talk shoe link on the right sidebar.
Can't WAIT to chat with You!

~ Kathy & Leslie ~

Character Makeover: Perseverance--Chapter Eight/Day Five

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 02:13:00 +0000

Steps to Perseverance

Here we are at the end. At least the end of our blog journaling posts about Character Makeover.

This being the last post, I want to tell you a bit about the story of America’s 2010 Olympic pairs skaters. In case you didn’t follow the Olympics this year, for the first time ever, both pairs representing the USA were from Florida. Another first, they both came from the same rink. Yes, people ice skate in Florida.

Mark Ladwig and Amanda Evora, have been skating together for nearly 8 years. Jeremy Barrett and Caydee Denney have been skating together for 19 months. However all three have been skating since they were very young. I have known the pairs now for the last four years. When I first met Jeremy and Mark they were the guys who did everything at the rink. I mean it. Wherever you went, they were wearing a different hat; maintenance, zamboni driver, Basic Skills lessons, janitorial, public skating sessions, learn to play hockey, private lessons, snack bar management, personal training, performance music, and the list goes on. Amanda also is employed by the Ellenton Ice & Sports Complex and has worn many hats over the years. Caydee, being the youngest of the bunch, may not work there, but you can see her daily with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye. On any given day you can walk into the rink, see one of them, and engage in a conversation with some of the most wonderful young athletes on the planet.

What’s this all have to do with the last post? Perseverance! I would have been remiss if I didn’t end with the lesson I have learned about perseverance through these athletes, and they likely never know what a positive impact they have had on my life. In an effort to keep this post short (or somewhat short) let’s hone in on Mr. Barrett as one example. In the four years I have known Jeremy Barrett, I have had the privilege of watching him work through the peaks and valleys in the life of an athlete. He has had major setbacks, times of long suffering, struggling to work to make ends meet and still keep up with his training, and times when he thought he was going to give up on his dream. Yet, he didn’t. He persevered. Today he and Caydee are the reigning gold medalists Nationals pair skaters, Olympic stars, and just this week they have added a top ten at Worlds.

As I have watched Jeremy over the years, I have been in awe of his work ethic, his commitment to his dream, and his ability to overcome obstacles. Yet, it wasn’t until we began this chapter that I realized how much Jeremy Barrett has taught me about perseverance. Each day’s section I would relate something that jumped out at me to Jeremy’s intense perseverance. This is the level of perseverance I one day hope to achieve in fulfilling God’s purpose and will for my transformation. I also pray that He would have me be the model of a Godly woman that woud inspire others, in the same manner that these four skaters are an inspiration to the upcoming generation of figure skaters around them each day. God wants us to persevere like Olympic athletes! At the end of the race, we will all be gold medalists.

We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. ~Hebrews 6:11-12

Kathy and I have been honored to walk through your character makeover with you. We have persevered together. It is our prayer that this has been an insightful and pivotal book that you will return to again and again on your journey. And so…

We are excited to hear your stories! It’s time for you to chatter and share your testimony through your character makeover. This Tuesday, March 30, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. EST we will be having a LIVE Call in show just for you to share with other club members! It is going to be an amazing time of encouragement, inspiration, and glory to our Father!

Save the date right Now! Tuesday, March 30, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. EST right over on Talkshoe!

Character Makeover:Perseverance--Chapter Eight/Day Four

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 00:27:00 +0000

Hi Girlfriends!

I write and teach monthly Power to Lead leadership development workshops where I work. Last week our topic was: It's Not My Problem--unleashing the power of personal responsibility.

We talked about two things that happen when we do not own personal responsibility:

1. We play the blame game
2. We become creative excuse-makers.

I have been known to be quite proficient in both--how about you?

If we are going to cultivate the character quality of perseverance, we need to stop playing the blame game and we need say NO to excuses.

These days we want ease. We want to be comfortable. We want to "feel" good all the time. We want it, and we want it NOW! Could I be so bold as to observe that we become somewhat wimpy when it comes to persevering!

So here we are in day 4...and we are being challenged to be women who persevere!

To persevere in challenges, in prayer, and for long-term rewards.

I have a few questions to ask you:

1. As you think about the challenges you are facing in your life right now, can you name at least three skills you are developing as a result of your enduring perseverance?

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything. - James 1:2-4

2. Are you persevering in prayer even when you don't get any answers? How is that perseverance changing you and your desires? Are you growing in faith and trust?

Now glory be to God who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of--infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes.

- Ephesians 3:20

3. Do you realize that everything you do on earth by faith is rewarded? Katie and Shelley remind us that this means that every time you pray in faith, every act you perform in faith, every word you speak by faith. Are you ready to persevere in faith? Check out pages 308 and 309 for a better understanding of those rewards.

I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.-2 Timothy 4:7-8

Our perseverance today will make a big difference in our tomorrows. Let's stop playing the blame game and being creative excuse-makers.

Tomorrow we are going to talk about some steps we can take to perseverance. Until then...

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Perseverance--Chapter Eight/Day Three

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 07:00:00 +0000

How to Keep On to the End

I once read a children’s book by Janie Lee Curtis titled Is There Really a Human Race? It has a child looking at the topic of the human race as a humorous pun, taking the word race to mean a contest. If memory serves, and sometimes it doesn’t, the story was filled with light hearted plays on words, similar to the ever popular Amelia Bedelia stories by Peggy Parish. What brought this story back to my memory during today’s time of prayer and study is the fact that we have a tendency to always look for the finish line. Everyone has to have a plan to persevere to the finish line; whether the finish line is the end of a marathon, a project, or life on earth.

As I have been praying on my level of perseverance, I have begun to look at the fact that from time to time I focus on the exact point of the race I am in, not the finish line. When this happens my “self” kicks into high gear, leaving God waiting for me to return the control to Him, and laser in on the true focus; eternal life with Him in Heaven. A couple of week’s ago when we were discussing contentment, I shared what a friend asked, “Why do we compromise the greatest treasure for one less worthy?”

It can be so easy to lose our ultimate focus. As women our lives are complex and full from open eyes to shut eye, and even more so on the days when we really don’t get any shut eye. So it got me thinking, what if we visualized the treasure and used our visualization each time we felt ourselves weak and thinking about dropping out of the race? It may be a box of treasure, a worldly thought of an isolated island that has every amenity you could ever need or want, a completely healed body, the ultimate family reunion or…hey I just had a thought.

“Winners always focus on the prize.” (pg. 297) In the newest film version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Violet’s mother reminds her as they enter the factory, “Eyes on the Prize.” This is a good point in two very meaningful ways. Firstly, we have to be careful that our motivations for attaining the prize are correct and our means of achieving it are pure. Secondly, if our eyes are always on the prize, that must mean we are in constant relationship with God, study of the word, and application in our lives; keeping us further from Violet's self serving motivations to achieve the prize. Thus, we would be given the strength to persevere to the finish line. Isn’t it just awe inspiring to think of how simple God has made our lives of complexities if we keep our eyes on the prize? Our perseverance lies not in ourselves, but in God.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. ~1 Corinthians 9:25

I so enjoy the exciting journey for The Treasure and that keeps me going! How about you?

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Eight/Day Two

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 07:28:00 +0000

HOW TO BE A QUITTER

If you're committed to one course of action, but you come across something that looks like more fun, do you quit?

If you are in a friendship, and you have a misunderstanding, do you quit?

If a difficult class is going to ruin your grade point average, do you quit?

If your team is going through a losing season, do you quit?

If your job is underutilizing your talents and skills, do you quit?

Today we are talking about the opposite of perseverance: quitting.

In all honesty, it sometimes seems a lot easier to quit than it does to persevere, don't you think? Quitting seems to be an "acceptable" option these days. If you don't like something, quit.

I've sure done my share of quitting. I can relate to the points made on pages 288-289 about "how to be a quitter."

1. When the going gets tough, quitters run away.

2. After a failure, quitters put themselves down.

3. By exaggerating their problems, quitters get paranoid.

HOW TO BE A WINNER!

But here's the good news. When we cultivate the character quality of perseverance, we don't have to be quitters. We can be winners! We can get back into the game!

I love God's perseverance program that Katie and Shelley lay out for us on pages 290-291.

1. When you are exhausted, God give you rest and nourishment.

2. When you are discouraged, God lets you vent.

3. Whe you want to give up, God reminds you who He is.

4. When you are full of self-pity, God gives you a task and friends.

I don't know where you are right now in your life or what challenge you are facing or what troubles you may have just emerged from. But I do know this. God never intended for us to be quitters! The fact is, when we feel like quitting, He is pursuing us. Imagine!

Talk to Him today and give Him your discouragement, fatigue, self-pity, and desire to give-up. Tomorrow we are going to talk about how to keep on keepin' on!

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Perseverance--Chapter Eight/Day One

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 07:52:00 +0000

Inspired by God

The last several weeks have been eye opening and today seems to be a perfect day to begin tying it all together with our last chapter of Character Makeover, which discusses the topic of perseverance. Today as I awoke I found the headlines to be very interesting in that the American Senate just passed legislation that will change the country’s healthcare system from free choice to socialized healthcare. Many people that I know who opposed this bill have been deeply enraged and saddened. I have had emails that convey a defeated and tired sentiment. Not taking away from any of those things, my stance is we must persevere, regardless of what side of the issue one stands on.

Over the last seven weeks we have discussed character traits that are inter-connected. Perseverance is a trait that will assist us in keeping up with humility, confidence, courage, self-control, patience, contentment, and generosity. As time goes on and life situations arise, you may come back to this book and refresh your mind and soul of these traits to always be moving forward. This is perseverance.

It is interesting to me how a woman can have a negative experience that drains her entire spirit almost instantaneously. You know the kind I am speaking of; the experiences that cause you to have a swift feeling of stomach discomfort. As I read through this chapter, Katy better categorized them as dream killers. She sub-categorized them as projects that seem too big and people who are unsupportive. I sure know what these experiences are like. What I have learned over the years is that expectation can be an intense contributing factor in this. For example, let’s say you are planning a home party. You invited 25 women to come to your home and have fun. In your initial planning phase your mind places expectations on the event. As women begin to call and respond they cannot come you still hang on to your expectation with those who will be coming. You look through the catalog in your free time to make some wish list options for yourself, as the hostess. The day of the party comes and only two women show up to your home. Did your stomach dip just reading about the hypothetical experience? Mine did as I was typing it. He he he! The fact is that you would not have that emotional dip if you did not have a prior expectation. The expectation, in part, killed your dream.

Can you use perseverance even in a mundane situation such as this? Of course! Quietly say a prayer of thanks for the representative who has taken the time to plan and for the women who did show up. Ask for God to help you to focus on enjoying the moment, regardless of the turn out. Now, don’t let the negatives affect the rest of the event and have FUN! An event such as this is such a minor part of our life and certainly we might not categorize it as one of our life’s dreams, but you can now visualize that even the smallest things coupled with our own expectation can be a root of discouragement. After your prayer and letting go, you may even realize that you enjoyed the party so much because it was an intimate setting and you and your guests had so much fun and silliness that you really needed that week lighten some of life’s more intense issues. God always has a plan.

Kathy states, “God inspires you for a reason, yet he does not put you in a bubble and keep you perfectly protected while you are working toward your goal.” (pg. 284) Although the dreams we are talking about in this chapter are bigger, looking at how the little ones can affect us so deeply can truly shine a light on how we can better handle and persevere through the large, often times more difficult, issues that come about in our lives.

Won’t you join me today in taking some quiet time with the Lord to examine some of your expectations for upcoming events? You may have homeschooling goals, a project for an organization in which you are involved, a family issue, a new program at work, or a home management issue you are working on. What are your expectations? Be transparent before God with them. Ask him to help you put these in perspective, instead of dwelling on them. Ask for Him to inspire you in a way that will have you on the path accomplish His goals. Watch how your attitude of the situation on a whole is different than it has been in the past. It truly is amazing! Our greatest expectation is spending eternity with God...that's one that will never disappoint.

Here’s to a week of persevering!

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Seven/Day Five

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:10:00 +0000

Real change happens when we turn knowing what to do into doing what we know.

-Kathy Butryn

Well Girls, this week we spent a lot of time exporing the character qualities of generosity. We got a lot of information about generosity--it's effects on our life when we embrace it, the effects on our heart when we are greedy, and what God's Word tells us about this character quality--a quality that is part of the very nature of our Heavenly Father.

Now we come to our last day in this chapter. Its the day where we build our generosity action plan. As Les and I have been telling you over the past 7 weeks, choosing just one action and working on it, no matter how small and insignificant it may seem, is much better than choosing 3 or 4 and feeling overwhelmed in knowing where to start, so you don't start at all.

So let's look at how we can change knowing what to do into doing what we know. You will find the action steps laid out on pages 270-273.

I found it really helpful that the action steps were divided into four parts:

1. Developing a heart of compassion
2. Releasing the grip on your stuff
3. Generous giving
4. Generous living

Confused how to choose your action step for this week?

Here's what I did. I took a few moments to read the titles of those four parts and paid attention to which one was nudging my heart the most.

Why don't you do that right now. Stop and read those four parts. What is nudging at your heart?

For me, (this time at least--seems God is working at different things each time I read this book!!!) it is generous living!

Although over all, I just want to become more generous in my living, the two areas that stood out the most to me this week are:

1. Giving loving attention to my family and giving time and energy it takes to be a caring, generous listener to my friends.

2. Prayng for someone who needs grace from me. I needed the reminded that even though this person doesn't deserve it--I don't deserve to receive the many gifts of God's generosity to me either.

What action steps are you going to be taking?

I thought I would end our week on generosity the way that Katie and Shelley began Day 5...with a prayer by Igatius Loyola:

Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous.

Teach me to serve You as You deserve;

to give and not to count the cost;

to fight and not to heed the wounds;

to toil and not to seek for rest;

to labour and not to seek reward,

save that of knowing that I do You will.

God bless you...have a generous weekend!

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Seven/Day Four

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 07:01:00 +0000

Your Generosity Coach

Generosity is giving more than you can.

~Kahlil Gibran

This chapter has really got me chewing on a lot of different thoughts. As I read about the Macedonians generosity I began to ask myself some questions, such as: What time of the year are people most generous? Why do we wait until a disaster occurs to release our “big” generosity? What are the things that hold us back from being generous? These are a bit of my scattered thoughts from the question: “What type of joy, excitement, or results cause you to be the most generous?” (pg.265)

Firstly, let me just say, if you haven’t listened to this week’s chat session over at Talkshoe yet, you may want to do that before or right after reading the rest of this post. I don’t want to be redundant and there are some ideas that Kathy & I spoke about that might make my thoughts a little more clear.

I have always believed and practiced generosity as a general act. I have never thought that my financial or material contributions are any more (or any less for that matter) generous than those that are actions.

This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality. ~1 John 3:16-18 (MSG)

What I know about love is that love is an action. We could never have understood the magnitude of Christ's love for us with mere words. It was his actions that showed us. Those actions were the ultimate demonstrations of generosity. There are times in our lives when we want to verbalize our emotion and use the word love because we cannot think of any other word to describe our feelings such as when your brother went above and beyond the call of duty, you first realized that your husband was “the one,” or when you hold your baby in your arms for the first time. We are also quick to use the word love today in a manner does that not fit God’s definition of love such as, “I love that show,” “I loved that book,” or “Don’t you just love when...” The context today can be very different than God’s definition.

We need to be careful to know where a person is before giving. We need to firstly, make certain that God wants us to give. Secondly, we need to make certain that our motivations for giving are correct. Thirdly, we need to give correctly; with no strings attached. Bare with me here, I am trying to clarify my thoughts without being too wordy (is it too late?).

If we are to be generous with money, material possessions, and ourselves, we must be willing to make sacrifices. The most common example I can think of is our husbands. Think back to when you first told your husband you loved him. You may have said, “I love you,” or “I am in love with you.” Think about what you meant. Trying writing a few sentences to define your intentions. Now, think about what you mean when you say it today. Write a few defining sentences about it. Are the descriptions the same? You have likely heard the phrase, “actions not words,” in some context. Love is an action, not a word.

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. ~1 Corinthians 13:3-9 (NAS)

Do you notice anything about God’s definition of love in this verse? Yep. Each phrase describes an action, not an emotion. Using our husband’s as the recipient we love them by being patient, kind, not jealous, rejoicing in truth, bearing the good times and the bad, and believing in them, as well as not bragging about someone else’s man, being arrogant, acting unbecomingly, not putting ourselves first, not keeping an account of their wrongs (and bringing them up ad nauseum), not provoking them, and not finding joy in saying “I told you so.” When we do these actions we are loving our husbands as God desires. Can there be a deeper generosity?

This can be applied to any person or group of people in your life. But, I have to admit this is a TALL order. Do you find it difficult to be kind to your husband when he has said something hurtful to you? Do ever struggle with being patient with a co-worker who repeatedly brags about something? Have you ever been jealous of a friend? I know I have, sometimes still do, and likely will in the future. Yet, when we think of giving to people in our lives or even people we don’t know, we need to check our motivations, let God be our guide, and love like God. Being generous with love will require sacrifices, as the Macedonians knew, but the results will bring glory to God.

You can give without loving. But you cannot love without giving.

~Amy Carmichael

Please forgive my wordiness in this post. God has a way of using my keyboard when I am not looking. :-D

Here’s to getting ready to develop our generosity action plans!

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Seven/Day Three

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:22:00 +0000

Hi Girlfriend! Welcome back to the Talking Book Club!

Before we start talking about the 8 principles of giving that we find in our "how to be a generous giver" section, I want to take you to the very last page of this section. The question that stood out to me like a neon sign was this one: "Are there any blessings you feel you are lacking because you are not obeying God in generous giving?" What would your answer be? In know mine was a resounding YES, but it took a few moments of thought before I was willing to say that "yes."

Ok, let's back up for a moment. How do we become generous givers? That's where the 8 principles come in.

For those of you who do not have the book to refer to, let me list those principles now for you. The rest of you can turn in your books to pages 260 and 261.

Here they are:

1. The amount doesn't matter.
2. Pray about every giving decision.
3. The Lord rewards.
4. Pre-determine your giving for the year.
5. Decide against pride.
6. Research a ministry to make sure you are making the best kingdom investment.
7. Be wise and prioritize.
8. Take part from your heart.

Did you complete the "Generous Giving Self-Test?" I found that this test helped me to figure out how to put these 8 principles into practice.

Here are the questions we are asked in the Generous Giving Self-Test:

1. Are you giving to please God more than people?
2. Do you pray before giving?
3. Are you regularly storing treasures in heaven?
4. Do you evaluate purchases in light of your giving commitments?
5. Have you given even your giving to God?
6. Do you research before you donate?
7. Do you give where Jesus would give?
8. Do you donate more than your money?

Yesterday we talked about greed.

Today we are finding out how to stop holding on so tight--how to release that greed.

Number three of this self-test is the one the stood out for me at this time in my life. I really had to evaluate my motives for giving and realign my purpose for giving.

How about you? Which principle of giving are you going to start working on today?

Here's to your character makeover!
kath

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Seven/Day Two

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:04:00 +0000

Exposing Your Inner Scrooge

You know I am losing my mind. In my efforts to be efficient so I can keep my life simple, I crossed off of my list that I had posted about generosity today. Alas, alack I went to link it to FB and found indeed I hadn’t put it on the blog! D’oh! Better to realize it the day it is supposed to be up than tomorrow, when Kathy will be sharing, eh?

So here we are at week seven and I am feeling a little bit, uh sad. With only two weeks left to go, I have not only enjoyed working with God through so many character traits, but I have been so enjoying going on this journey with everyone, that coming to the end is a tad bit sad. When I reviewed the topic of generosity for today, that little bit of sadness was washed away. Why? Well, it occurred to me that I was experiencing a bit of greed of sharing time with you. I want to continue and I want to spend time with you and I want…oh there I go putting myself first again. Argh! Before I get in to the nuts and bolts of my thoughts, I want to thank you for being so generous to give me time to journey with you. This has been such a source of joy for me.

One of my all time most frequently read and much loved stories is Charles Dickens’s, A Christmas Carol. Over the years I have learned so much about people through reading this story, and watching it too. Being a people watcher and a person who tries to see her own faults and work through them with God, I admit I have seen parts of myself at different seasons of my life in almost every character. Scrooge is the one I would say I least identify myself with. Well...

However, reading through Day 2 of Generosity in Katie Brazelton's Character Makeover, I was able to see areas of my life that I can be greedy about. Looking at all the faces of greed in the chapter, I have been able to pull so many things together and learn so much about myself and how I operate. This in addition to the statement “Greed distrusts God,” (pg. 254) spoke to my heart. I have recognized that I am very protective of my agenda in regards to my daily schedule. But the issue is a bit more complex than it seems on the surface. Do you ever notice that? Here’s the dilemma I am working through:

I have learned to be careful about my schedule in hopes of gaining and maintaining a simple life. The reason for this goal is to allow myself time to serve God’s priorities for my life: God, my husband, my children, and others. Without ample time for the first three, nothing else is truly an accomplishment. Yet, in holding my boundaries firm, can I be holding them so firmly that I am hoarding?

As I prayerfully journaled through this, I kept asking for the reasons of this to be revealed. I asked myself some very difficult and uncomfortable questions. I will continue to work on this throughout the week, but I wanted to share this with you in hopes that it might give you some encouragement as you work through exposing your inner Scrooge. Could it be that in digging in transparently before God on this issue that we are about to be transformed? I can’t wait to discuss some of this with you on our live call in two weeks!

Here is to a day filled with identifying and preparing to rid ourselves of our inner Scrooge!

P.S. We are interested in hearing about titles you might like us to consider for future Talking Book Club selections. Feel free to leave a comment here or email us with your suggestions.

Character Makeover: Generosity--Chapter Seven/Day One

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:45:00 +0000

Welcome back to a brand-new week...and a brand-new character quality. This week we are going to be talking about generosity.

Before we get too far, let me ask you--have you listened to this week's podcast on generosity yet? You can find all our podcasts over at Talk Shoe.

Ok, let's dig in!

I have to agree with Katie and Shelley when they say that out of all the character qualities we have looked at, generosity is" the one that most clearly shows us God's passionate, all-out, go-for-broke, get-their-attention, over-the-top love for us." (page 247)

So what exactly is generosity?

Bottom line: Generosity sees a need and says, "I've got enough--let me share with you!"

Like the other character qualities that we have studies in our Talking Book Club thus far, generosity has a "partner" character quality. We talked about it last week--contentment.

We will have better success with generosity if we first work on contentment. Contentment is an inner restfulness that says "I have enough." Generosity says, "let me share my enough with you."

Oh how I loved reading through this section and being reminded again that God loves me abundantly and God gives to me abundantly and extravagantly.

But I was also reminded how I can go about my daily life without even acknowledging God's abundant and extravagant love and gifts to me. The word "mine" seems to pop-up in my inner vocabulary quite a bit. Loosening my grip on my stuff and on my life takes humility. In my pride, I desire to have more, keep more, and be more (for the wrong motive.)

The journal entry on pages 251 and 252 help us to work out our "mine" attitudes by becoming aware of the gifts that we have--and how we can give them away!

As the final prayer in this section so beautifully says:

"Help me to hold my stuff loosely, as if it's not mine, because it's not. Help me to share some of my things I would normally hold back from sharing. Help me to live as if my life is not mine, because it's not. You paid for me, and you gave me a life full of gifts to give away. I surrender my body to you--use me to deliver hope, help, grace, joy, mercy, and forgiveness to people who need those gifts this week. You have given me so much. It's the least I can do.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

(page 252)

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Contentment--Chapter Six/Day Five

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 +0000

Steps to Contentment

Over the last couple of years I have learned the tremendous value of making time of solitude with God. It has produced changes within me in ways that I never imagined possible. This week's topic of contentment has encouraged me to deepen this aspect of my relationship with God.

Our attitude is a major component of contentment. Isn't it funny how your focus can be one something you don't have and in the blink of an eye something happens in your life or you hear about a tragedy in someone else's life which jerks you back to the reality of your blessings? Humility really comes to the foreground at those times, doesn't it?

Last week a friend of mine shared with me something that a friend of hers said that I would like to share with you. When your mind begins to focus on the things of the world ask yourself:

Why do I compromise the greatest and most worthy treasure for a lesser one?

One project that I have been working on that has helped me to keep my God-focus and produced more contentment in my life is participating in Ann Voskamp's Multitude Monday. If you haven't visited Ann's blog, A Holy Experience,, before, get ready to be inspired! She is a fantastic writer and photographer for God! You canread the details of the Gratitude Community's project, Multitude Monday, by Clicking Here, but I can assure you that you will have a deeper awareness of your blessings. be an encouragement to others, and be inspired by the awesome work of God in the lives others.

Here's to realizing how much you already have!

Character Makeover: Contentment--Chapter Six/Day Four

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:01:00 +0000

What does contentment really look like? It was hard to find a picture to capture contentment, but don't you think this one is pretty close??!

Take a little walk around your home. How content are you with what you have? Are you embarrassed to have people into your home because it's not like your neighbour's home or a friend's home? Do you get a little ticked off with other women who always seems to be able to get exactly what they want for their home--when they want it? Do you walk around your home with resentment about what it is not, instead of thankfulness for what it is?

I have. Sometimes I still do. I am learning that contentment is a choice. Something I need to be attentive to all the time, or the seeds of envy will plant themselves in my heart again--quickly.

Choose rather to want less, than to have more.

-Thomas a Kempis

How content are you with what you do? I remember when my daughters were young, I was at Wednesday night prayer meeting in the nursery with another mom--a homeschooling, stay-at-home mom. Something was stirring up within me the whole night. Looking back, I understand that stirring to be envy and anger. I was so envious that she was able to wake up the next morning and do something significant--teach her kids and care for her home--while I had to go to a menial insignificant job, while leaving my girls in someone else's care. Do you compare what you do with what others are doing? It's not what we do--it is why we do it.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people.

-Colossians 3:23 GNT

What happens when things go wrong in your life? Are you content with what happens? Is there an ongoing circumstance in your life right now in which you feel discontented? What difference does it make to talk positively rather than negatively about this circumstance.

When my husband and I go through difficult circumstances or face daily challenges, he looks at it positively. I, on the other hand, tend to point out everything negative about it. Part of my "contentment makeover" is to cultivate a more positive and thankful perspective when facing these circumstances and challenges.

Contemplate on these three questions:

How content am I with what I have?

How content am I with what I do?

How content am I with what happens?

Tomorrow we are going to be looking at practical steps to contentment!

Until then, here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Contentment--Chapter Six/Day Three

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:00:00 +0000

How to Have Joy and Peace

When I read Kathy's post yesterday, I was struck by the quote from Charles Swindoll. I read it several times and then used it as a platform for a prayer. "Envy wants what someone else possesses." Boy do I! Odd thing is, it isn't a material thing I want to possess. Earlier in our book study, we talked about how we, as women, often compare ourselves to others, instead of comparing ourselves to Christ. Our focus can quickly shift from God-confidence to self-confidence, shattering our courage to move forward on our journey, sometimes to the point of putting us in a place of stagnation.

We spend so much time comparing ourselves to others that we completely overlook how God sees us. It can be difficult to accept that we are perfect in everyway from God's vantage point. He already sees us as He sees Christ and receives great joy throughout each part of our transformation. We are right where He wants us to be at this very moment. This doesn't mean He wants us to remain in this place, merely it means He is content with us. What? How can He be, what with ll of my sins and faults? How can He possibly love me just as I am? I believe it all lies in His knowledge of our ending. When we accept this, we can always look forward to our future with Him, and know that each day of our lives, each success we achieve, and each hurdle that we face are under His control for His purpose. He did not intend for us to be practically perfect here on earth. He created us to be a growing being and designed us for transformation.

The Gospel of John (chapter 9) re-tells the story of the Pharisees investigating a blind man's healing. The story es us many excellent messages, but one of the po that stands out the most to me, is the blind man's life. He was born blind. He is lived is entire life, until his healing, blind. Due to his blindness we can imagine the life challenges he faced. He had no knowledge that he would at some point be healed. Yet God had a purpose behind the man's blindness all along. It was to use him to demonstrate His awesome power and how His plan is in His time. There is so much more to this story, however I want you to think about the fact that the man lived his life without ever knowing that God, before he was ever born, planned for him to be blind for that very moment in time. Now, pick your jaw up off the floor...and pick mine up too while you are down there.

The message that is relevant to us this week in this is that we are to be content with our lives exactly as they are right now, with faith and knowledge in His plan. Your life, and all that encompasses it is a gift from God. Let us take time to be content with our lives, as God is content with them. Let us savor the moments, each one, and not constantly look forward in anticipation to the next one, in full awareness that discontent does nothing more than rob us of peace and joy.

I found the journal exercise for today (p.232) to be a true heart opener to contentment. Although my envy and jealousy of others for the "thing" I want to possess has not been stripped from me, I am learning to be content with myself, just as I am. I have faith that on the bad days, God will scoop me up, cradle me, and stroke my hair and tell me it is going to be ok...and I can be content with that.

Character Makeover: Contentment--Chapter Six/Day Two

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:54:00 +0000

Hi Girlfriends!

Today we are going to talk about the flip side of contentment: envy.

I love the quote the chapter starts with:

What makes us discontented with our condition is the absurdly exaggerated idea we have of the happiness of others.

Are you an envious person? I never thought I was. Oh sure, I'd look at what other people had, and maybe had a momentary surge of envy, but I always thought I got over it--that is--until my husband gently began to challenge my lack of contentment. It wasn't until I re-read this chapter on contentment that I clearly saw the relationship between contentment (or lack of) and envy.

Charles Swindoll describes envy like this:

Greed, jealousy and envy are akin to each other.

Greed wants more.

Jealousy hoards what it already has.

But envy wants to have what someone else possesses.

1. Envy says "It's all about me."

2. Envy always plays "the comparison game."

3. Envy "wants it all."

Oh Girlfriends. This week I have realized just how much I have nurtured a spirit of envy within me.

How easy it is to live in denial of it. We sometimes need a reality check!

Are you content? If not, I invite you to ask yourself:

"Do I make everything about me?"

"Do I compare myself to others."

"Do I want it all?"

Work through the journal on page 225. The questions there will help you clarify areas where you may have allowed envy to take root in your heart.

Probably my favourite part in this section are the verses listed on pages 223 and 224. Take some time to read them today:

Jeremiah 32:27

James 4:2

Matthew 7:11

James 1:7

Isaiah 55:9

Philippians 4:19

These verses remind us the God is able to give us anything we ask; that we can boldly ask; that He knows whats best for us; and that we can trust Him to provide us with everything and anything we need.

You shall not covet your neighbour's house. You shall not covet your neighbour's wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour.

-Exodus 20:17

Expose the envy within you to the light of God's grace. That's where contentment begins!

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Contentment--Chapter Six/Day One

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:01:00 +0000

I don't know about all of you, but I am still digging into last week's topic of patience. This week we are moving on to contentment, but before we do, I wanted to think out loud with you for a moment regarding an idea I have been pondering since last week. Are there seasons of life when you are the most impatient with yourself, and not those around you? Through prayer I have begun to recognize that there are times when I am short with others, not to due to anything they have said or done, but because I am annoyed with myself about an unrelated topic or issue. Does this fall under the topic of patience? Love to hear some of your thoughts on this.

On to this week's topic of contenment. This is one I often discuss and write about. The reason it is such a common, yet complex, topic for me is that we as women have so many different aspects of our personalities and our lives. One pair of shoes may look alright with certain outfits, but does not match other outfits. There is no one style fits all outfits shoes (and if you found those, please email where I can get a pair). We decorate a room in our home. We take much care and time picking just the right pieces, colors, and theme. When we get it just the way we want it...6 months later we find we need to make some changes; perhaps minor, perhaps major. A friend gives us a spectacular recipe. After a great response from the family, we place it on the menu regularly. Over time we make it less and less until it is off the menu altogether never to be cooked again. We take time helping our children learn something. Once they "get it" we are so happy, but the happiness is short lived as we soon find something else that they desperately need to learn, and we are almost embarrassed that we missed it before this point. I can continue if you'd like, however, I am thinking you know where I am coming from. The experience of discontenment can come at us from such a wide array of areas in our lives. What I have learned over the years is that we keep reaching for the next thing, without really enjoying what we already have, and we can become pretty irritable about it, too.

I have been in deep thought about the sentence, "Real contenment is perspective." (pg. 215) I know this to be true. In trying to achieve a more simple life, a main goal is to learn to be contenment with what we have, who we are, and what we do. When we stop and think about something, our thoughts are positive or negative depending on our perspective; kind of is the glass half full or half empty thought process.

Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that at this moment, all you have is all you need.
~ Sarah Ban Breathnach

During my prayer times I always have a time of thanksgiving, just like you. Yet, while I truly am thankful for the things I lay before God, I have never thought of my prayer as one of acknowledging contenment. It's more of a "Hey thanks for that...now what about..." I am sincerely thankful, but I also feel the hurried part of life driving me to move on to the next, instead of pausing and enjoying the moment. Is anyone hearing me? Am I even making sense?

Remeber last week when Kathy blogged about slowing down? Well, I frequently talk about making check points throughout life at different intervals so that you can pull back on the reigns before life spins so far out of control that simplicity seems like a mere fuzzy and unobtainable dream. This got me thinking, why not slow down and have contentment check points. Making specific times of each day or specific days of each week, or even a day each month to truly soak in all that we have. I can honestly say, that I have more in my life than I will ever need. If you have visited my blog Journey to Simplicity, you know that I am in a never ending cycle of purging and organizing. Yet, making specific "appointments" on my calendar to deeply focus on being content with what I hasn't been a part of my schedule. As we work through this week's chapter, part of my prayers will be focused on Contentment Days. Did today's reading spark any thoughts or ideas about contenment for you?

I can't wait to dig in to tomorrow's reading, but until then, Have a day filled with contenment!

Character Makeover: Confidence--Chapter Five/Day Five - Patience

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:54:00 +0000

Wouldn't it be nice if patience was like a salve or balm that you could smooth over your "impatience spots" and voila--you are patient? Too good to be true, isn't it?

Today's section starts with a great quote that speaks to that:

Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them--everyday begin the task anew.

-Francis de Sales

And so we are reminded once again that it's all about baby steps--choosing one or two things that we can implement into an action plan starting this week.

One of the things I very much enjoy about this book is the 5th section of each chapter--because of the very practical and "do-able" action steps.

As we wrap up this chapter on patience, we are given suggestions in three core areas of our life that require our patience:

1. Developing patience in the wilderness.

2. Develping patience in relationships.

3. Developing everyday patience.

For me this week, I resonated with the action of making an encouragement card to read whenever I need it. Katie and Shelley suggest writing out what I'm waiting for or struggling with on one side. Then, on the other side, to write the text of Isaiah 64:4: "Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him."

This verse is a sweet reminder of God's perfect timing and infinite care as I wait during this season in my life.

How about you? What did you choose as your action step? Remember, be patient with yourself, and begin the task anew each and every day!

It was fun "doing patience" with you this week. Be sure to drop by again on Monday as we talk about contentment!

Have a great weekend!

kath

Character Makeover: Patience--Week Five/Day Four

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 08:41:00 +0000

Patience Means Waiting in Silence

Every once in a while you have one of those conversations when you are a bit on the irritable side and you ask a question and hear silence as the answer. This can be especially frustrating when dealing with a family member. Inside your head, you are saying, "Answer me!" Outside you are rying your very best to maintain your composure and handle the conversation appropriately. What a crazy method and thought process that is.

We spend time teaching our children to gather the facts. There is much time spent training them to think before they speak. Yet we ourselves often let our tongues flip around like a fish out of water when we are under pressure. What happens within us that makes us such impatient people? During this week, we have committed in prayer to asking God to come into our lives and develop our patience to be more like His. Working with God is the best patience training I can think of.

Ever have a prayer that you are repeating asking God to show you, do for you, provide for you something? The longer He is silent the more impatient you become. Your brain starts working over time analyzing how you can produce the out come that you desire. You may even achieve that outcome, but the consequences that often come along with that are not only unforseen, but a slap on the hand.

I have always found it difficult to teach the patience of silence and waiting on God to my children. They too want an immediate answer. Go figure! Even more so, isn't it interesting how when we share with others our prayers, we sometimes find that to be a pressure, adding to our impatience? You share with a close friend that you are praying about a job. Each time you chat, she asks you about it. Each time, the pressure within you builds. How do explain the silence from God? Your mind begins to question yourself. Did I miss something? Was there a time when I wasn't really listening to God and so the answer was there, but I was deaf to it? Perhaps God wanted me to do something first. I better getting working on that. Then we busy ourselves so much so that we forget to take time to listen for God. It makes sense that if we are to have times of silence and contemplation, God does as well. Take a few moments each day this week to meditate on this verse:

God makes everything happen at the right time. ~Ecclesiastes 3:11 CEV

God's timing is always the right timing. Set your clock to be on God time and accept that at times, it will seem as though time has stopped. Use that time to really dig into God's word. Strengthen your relationship with Him. Building upon humility, courage, confidence, and self control will set the stage for you to continue in your efforts to becoming more patient.

You can't change people, but you can allow God to change you!
~L

Character Makeover: Chapter Five/Day Three - Patience

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 10:09:00 +0000

Don’t you just love “how-to’s?”

I sure do.

I think that’s why something inside of me perked up when I read the title to today’s section: How to Slow Down.

Oh my, if there is ever a how-to we could benefit from, this is it!

“What does it take to get our foot off the accelerator, sloooooow down, and keep from impatiently pushing our way through life?” (page 191)

Have you had to learn the hard way the importance of slowing down--perhaps through an illness, a mistake, an accident, a poor choice—actually, any negative consequence of the hurried pace you may live your life?

I sure have!

I started my “slowing down” journey about 8 years ago. Yes, I said journey, because I really think slowing down is a daily decision—not some wonderful destination we arrive at and never have to think about it again.

Katie and Shelley give us four strategies to help us slow down:

1. Don’t just do something; stand there!
2. Count the cost.
3. If there is confusion, wait on God’s gentle tug that pulls you closer to Him.
4. Stop indulging your pet peeves.

Sound intriguing?

By answering the questions in the journal exercise on pages 195-196 we can discover how to implement these strategies into our daily lives.

Ready to begin your slow down journey??

Character Makeover: Patience--Week Five/Day Two

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 08:13:00 +0000

Appplying Patience

In this “I Want it Now” world that we live in, patience can be in short supply for us as wives and mothers. Not only do we have our own wants sucking at our insides daily, but we also have the wants of others sucking from a completely different angle. Before we know it, we can find our cup so dry, that patience doesn’t even seem like a character trait we possess. We can sound off on our husbands, children, parents, neighbors, friends, cashiers, etc. just because we are operating from a point of thirst.

Remember what Kathy said about how she now views Moses being in the wilderness? That has helped me to change my own perspective on how I can recognize when I am in an inpatient mode, and to work with God to replenish me. I also have been coming to grips with the fact I can either use my inner state to react immediately and the consequences that come with that, or I can take time to listen. Listen to God. Listen to others.

I mention the word "clarify" in this week’s podcast and let me tell you, that I had the opportunity to put that into practice this past weekend. A conflict came up. I had an emotional hook in it. The issue that was brought to the surface should not have been brought to me, as it was not my responsibility. I asked clarifying questions. I asked for facts. I didn’t get any. Emotions set in. I got a lot of twisting, non-committal, and speculative comments. Emotions continued to build internally. I tried to stay to the point, that I should not be the person involved, and stated the fact that I was being pulled in, and thus would move forward. Now, it may sound as though I handled this well. I did…and I didn’t.

My emotions were kicked into high gear, and the reason doesn't hold any significance. I was left with a feeling of swirling in my stomach…my emotions were flared to be sure. While I did ask clarifying questions…I didn’t always allow the other person time to fully answer. Uh-oh. I came back to Character Makeover and re-read the chapter. Proverbs 19:11 leaped off the page and into my soul.

A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is one’s glory to overlook an offense.

I just wanted the confrontation to be over and so I was rushing right on through. Mind you this situation has occurred with this same person repeatedly, so I was little annoyed right from the start. If I had allowed myself to slow down (use self-control), allowing the other person ample time to answer my clarifying questions, I would have gotten a lot more information about how to move forward in a Godly manner. As it stands, this is going to drag on for a bit, as I now need to take time to get the facts another way. Hmpf!

Listening to others is almost easy to do when a friend approaches you with a dilemma of her own. When you are involved in the dilemma, your emotions can run your patience right out of you! I took time to go back to the person and clarify my stand, but I also took time to apologize if I was irritable, emotional, or loud. (You know full well I don’t have the most meek and quiet voice.) By doing this afterward I am now able to stay in prayer with God about the situation and ask for self-control and patience as I work through the rest. WOW! Another opportunity to position myself for what is coming next. God is the God of never ending chances!

If you have yet to download the podcast on Patience, I encourage you to do so today. Listen as you go to work, dust, or exercise. It is packed with great ideas and situations for those patience stealing moments in our lives. I so enjoyed the emails I received last week about courage and self control issues. Please keep emailing us about your Character Makeover. Have anything you would like to share with club members this week?

Let us show patience with others in the same manner He does with us!

~L

Character Makeover: Chapter Five/Day One - Patience

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:09:00 +0000

Ever waited for a long time in a crowded waiting room?

Recently, I have spent many hours in a clinic waiting room before seeing my orthopedic surgeon. All patients are told their appointment begins at 9:00 am. Most patients arrive before or around 9:00 am. By 9:15 am, the clinic is overflowing.

And the wait begins. Sometimes 2, 3, or 4 hours.

These recent appointments have reminded me in a very practical way my great distain for waiting.

How do I know? I feel the impatience stirring up within me with every glance at the big utilitarian wall clock that hangs over the entrance to the waiting room.

How about you? Do you like to wait?

Chances are, none of us are that crazy about waiting.

Chances are, all of us are given opportunities everyday to practice waiting.

This week's character quality is patience. In other words: waiting.

In Character Makeover on page 177, patience is described as an outwardly displayed character quality that results from the inward character quality of self-control.

The Bible is all about waiting. On pages 177 and 178, Katie and Shelley give us examples of waiting from God's Word:

waiting for healing
waiting to fulfill a vision
waiting to start a ministry
waiting to be vindicated
waiting to be rescued
waiting for a spouse
waiting for children

We are all waiting for something. As I write this, I am waiting for a phone call from my Mom, where during their Florida vacation, my Dad was hospitalized.

I needed to read this chapter again.

Here are three points that stand out to me right now in my current "waiting room."

1. God expects me to be patient.
2. God's timetable is definitely different from mine.
3. I can resist God's timetable, or relax in it. The choice is mine.

And you have the same choice. What choice will you make in your current "waiting room" today?

Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. - 2 Peter 1:6 NLT

Character Makeover: Self-Control--Chapter Four/Day Five

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 08:51:00 +0000

Do you have self-control? Then maybe you are hanging out with the wrong people! Wondering if this is true? Well there are several tests that have “proven” that your self control increases or decreases depending on the people who are around you. I read this in an article from the current AAA magazine, “Going Places,” I received this month. In short, the article suggests that people influence your self-control. Doesn’t this really mean we easily succumb to peer pressure? I wonder. The examples of the test controls given were ones I could easily relate to, such as types of food eaten in public. This gave me a wonderful platform to contemplate God control, as suggested in Character Makeover.

Today, being the fifth day of this character trait, it is the day to pray on and choose action steps. As I read through the Action Plan options, pgs.169-172, I was able to recognize just how easily self-control could be affected depending on the people we surround ourselves with. Ever have one of those days when you are around a person who is in a very negative state? Have you then found that you are in a negative mood as well? How about when you are around someone who is laughing? You likely find yourself smiling from ear to ear.

If we find ourselves focused on God control for our lives, we will be the people that others are affected by! Whether you have chosen to focus on developing self-control over your mouth, your self-discipline, or your good habits, even the smallest change in any of these areas will inspire and encourage those around you without you “doing” anything. Think about the rippling and splash affect you may offer to your husband, children, parents, friends, and co-workers. This gave me a new vision of, “My cup runneth over.” The chat for this week’s chapter was a little longer than normal, because this topic is so life encompassing on so many levels. Do you remember what we said about our self-control of self-control? That was too funny! One thing that gave me pause for prayre was what Kathy said about the Sabbath. It gave me a new way to view how I perceive that and where I can improve. Through much prayer I have finally narrowed this action plan down to 2 areas: self discipline and a good habit.

Did you find this chapter to lead you in prayer over a lot of different areas of your life? Did it help you to narrow down a couple of areas that you will work on? Would you be willing to share that with the club here? We would love to hear how your character makeover is coming along.

Let’s pray for each other to move forward in God’s will with all of the action steps we have been working on so far!

Character Makeover: Confidence--Chapter Four/Day Four - Self-Control

noreply@blogger.com (Kathy Butryn) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:59:00 +0000

First of all, can I just say how much I loved Leslie's "stress poster" yesterday? That was great!

Ok, let's dig in. Today we are going to talk about some very practical ways to embrace self-control into the "everyday" of our lives. Nike's slogan keeps coming to my mind: Just Do It!

Like many things in our lives, we like to wait until the perfect time or circumstances before tackling it. We want to feel like it before digging into action.

Let's face it. Waiting for the perfect time and/or when we feel like it will leave us waiting an awfully long time! Today is the day to just do it!

Real change happens when we turn knowing what to do into doing what we know.

-Kathy Butryn

It's time today to turn knowing what to do into doing what we know.

Katie and Shelley challenge us practically in two area of self-control:

1. Self-control of our habits.

2. Self-contol of our schedule.

Hmm, habits and schedule. These are two areas where I have had to turn my knowing what to do into doing what I know.

Former good habits that I had developed over a period of a few years have slid into "loosey-goosey" habits in recent months. I have had to take a close look at these habits that effect my schedule and decide how I am going to change them...and then just do it.

I recently found a blog that has helped me with this. It's called Inspired to Action. On this blog, you will find an excellent free e-book called: Maximize Your Mornings. This e-book has helped me with strategies to replace old habits with new habits in this whole area of having self-control with my schedule. Check it out, I think you will find it helpful too.

One thing I want to leave with you today...and that is the importance of building Sabbath rest into your week. Do you resist Sabbath rest? Does it feel like a waste of time to you?

Today in my devotional time, I was reading Psalm 119: 37 (ESV)

"Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways."

God has given us Sabbath rest and He has been our example in Sabbath rest during creation--in fact, it's so important, He commanded that we remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. Sabbath rest is so needed and worthy of building into our schedule. Yet, our eyes look at "worthless things" which are life-stealing.

May it be our prayer today that God, in His grace, would turn our eyes from looking at worthless things so that we may have life in His ways.

Here's to your character makeover!

kath

Character Makeover: Self-Control--Chapter Four/Day Three

noreply@blogger.com (Boltbabe) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 08:07:00 +0000

Stress. I bet you don't have any in your life, eh? I wonder when people use the word if you feel completely bewildered by its meaning. Oh, that isn't you? Well, it isn't me either. I believe that stress is a product of an imbalance in our lives; a Godly imbalance.

Not too long ago, a couple of friends brought to my attention that they thought I was too stressed. They were good enough friends to call me on the carpet as to the things they saw, as outsiders, causing my stress level to rise and how they saw it affecting my life. I have to admit, it took me back. I was so busy, that I hadn't even thought about it, not for a nano second. You see, I am a fixer. For me this means that I try to fix every situation for every person who comes across my path, and sometimes I try to fix those that haven't even been presented to me. In all honesty, when I let it take over it can cause me stress because of the time I devote to fixing things.

Kathy and I discussed this during our chat this week. (If you haven't gotten a chance to listen to this chat be sure to download it, because we dug in deep this week!) Sometimes it can be difficult for us to exhibit self-control when we are helping others. Our hearts are in the right place and we want to serve others, but at what cost?

This is a topic that many of us need to pray about. It is hard to be real and admit that we are losing ourselves in our effot to serve others. Putting others first, doesn't mean forgetting to care for yourself! Think of it this way, if you don't take care of yourself, you can't care for others. How can we be sure that God wants us to minister in a certain area? Why we only need to ask? If we forget to include him and jump in with two feet...again lead by our emotion...our choice may override God's will not only for us, but for the people we are trying to help. Oh dear!

If we remember that God cares us, truly cares for us, then it must stand to reason that He cares about the stress in our lives and how it is affecting us. When a situation is presented, wisdom has us ask God what part, if any, He would have us play. We must be careful not to "do" the fixing, but to offer others some guidelines to help them do their own fixing. What happens when we "do" the fixing, you ask? Quite frankly, we take on the responsibility of the problem and by doing so we take the responsibility away from the person or people that it belongs to. WOW! Is that deep or what?

Have you had situations where you got involved too deeply, too quickly, and then wished you weren't involved at all because now you ahve so much responsibility that you are exhausted and you feel as though all the weight for a solution is on you? Oh, this sure has been a struggle for me at different seasons of my life.

I so enjoyed working through the journal portion of today's section. Perhaps one or two of the verses really called to you. Would you be willing to share that with us? Well, maybe today you aren't ready. Consider sharing how God is working on you in this area during our live call on week nine. Sharing your testimony will help other women.

I wonder how tomorrow's activities will help us to look at the control issue in our lives...

Let's have a Cut the Stress week!
~L