Mentoring Moments for Christian Women

Rescued: The Heart of Adoption and Caring for Orphans

Molly — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:00:31 +0000

We recently showed the movie Rescued: The Heart of Adoption and Caring for Orphans (Wintons Motion Pictures and Hedrick Brothers Productions) in our home during a night of encouragement and prayer for friends who are adopting. I knew the movie would be a great blessing to them as they embark on a new chapter in their lives, but I did not expect to be so powerfully impacted myself.

The movie combines interviews with several adoptive families and teaching about “caring for orphans and widows in their distress”, the definition of true religion in James 1:27. I was challenged in three ways as I watched the movie.

First, I realized as I watched Rescued that adoption is a valid way to participate in the Great Commission. Jesus said to “Go and make disciples, baptizing them….and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you.” When Jesus gave that command, he never said that we couldn’t bring the nations home to us! As a former missionary, this was a profound revelation for me.

Next, I was challenged that adoption is not an act of charity, but an act of spiritual warfare. Many orphans will never hear the Gospel, nor even meet a Christian. This is particularly true in foreign lands, where Christians are few and far between. Orphans want homes, love, families, medical care, and other earthly needs met, but their greatest need—like ours—is salvation. Their temporal losses will be nothing compared to their eternal suffering if they don’t put their trust in Christ. And “how can they believe in Him of whom they have never heard?” (Romans 10: 14). When purposeful Christian families adopt, they invade the enemy’s territory, and that is an act of war.

Finally, I grasped for the first time that adoption is something Christians do out of their love for others and their love for Christ—not in order to fulfill their own needs. As a mother of five children, I have no sense of “felt need” to adopt a child for my own sake. However, our family has many spiritual, emotional, and material resources to offer. If true religion is caring for orphans and widows in their distress, what am I doing about that? As a Christian, I know that children are a blessing from the Lord, be they adopted or flesh of my flesh. When Christians adopt, the Lord blesses both the child and the family in unforeseen ways.

This film makes it clear that not all Christians are called to adopt, just as all Christians won’t be called to the mission field. All Christians must be involved in the missionary cause, however, and likewise we should all be involved in caring for orphans through prayer, giving, and offering support to other Christians who are adopting.

My calling to the mission field was not an overly-emotional experience of “sensing God’s Will.” I simply heard someone preach about fields white unto harvest and the great need for workers to go out into the harvest field. I offered myself to God with Isaiah’s words: “Here am I. Send me.” If the Lord had a use for me, I was willing to go. Rescued opened my heart to see adoption in a similar light. That must always be our attitude as Christians: to ask what the Lord would have us do and to be willing to do it for the sake of the Gospel.

Rescued received 5 stars from the Dove Foundation and is a semi-finalist in the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival, competing for a $101,000 “Best of Festival” award alongside other high profile films including “Courageous” and Ray Comfort’s “180 Movie.” You can be a part of the nationwide premiere of this important film in your community by signing up to host a movie night for Rescued in your home, church, or other venue. A project of Freedom Film Distributors, National Movie Night provides Movie Night Hosts with planning and promotional tools to set up and promote their movie night and with discounts for the DVD.

Rescued: The Heart of Adoption and Caring for Orphans – Trailer from Rescued The Movie on Vimeo.

If you are reading this in an email and do not see a video, click here to watch the Rescued trailer.

What’s In a Name? Alpha? Omega?

Vicki — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:00:49 +0000

Years ago I read about a couple in England who gave birth to a girl and named her Tracy. They also gave her 138 other names. For the sake of brevity I won’t list them as a newspaper reporter did. Some included Carol, Beth, Amy, and Jean. Others were more unusual: Zsa-Zsa and Queenie. (I’ve only known two Queenies—one was a horse and the other was a dog.)

Did the girl’s parents do this for publicity or to set a record? Or did they run amok in the baby name book? The father said, “We just wanted to give her something for when she grows up.”

They certainly did give little Tracy…something. Think of the future for a child with 139 names. When she is six, she won’t know her full name. When everyone in her fourth grade class has finished the test, she will still be printing her name in the top right hand corner—and all over the page. She will be the only one in high school who can’t write her name without a cheat-sheet. As an adult, signing her full name to a legal document will cause writer’s cramp.

These parents have also added fuel to the sibling rivalry fire. Their three other children had three names each. I wonder how many times the parents heard this whine: “Why did she get 139 names and I only got three?”

The idea of saddling a little baby with a multitude of names is ludicrous. None of us need more than a few names to be easily identified. But while people don’t need a lot of names, God does. I don’t know if anyone has counted the names of God, but there are many.

God, by His very nature, is incomprehensible. Knowing some of His many names can help us to know Him better. His most common names are those we call Him by, such as Lord, God, or Savior. In the Old Testament some of the names of God described things He did, such as provide, heal, shepherd us, or give peace. In the New Testament He is known by many names, including the Son of God, the Messiah, and the King of Kings.

One of my favorites of His names is also one of the most inscrutable: the “Alpha and Omega” which is usually translated “the Beginning and the End.” Because Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters in the Greek alphabet, the most simplistic translation is that He is everything (good). We would say, using the English alphabet, that He is “everything from A to Z.” Another way of looking at the meaning of Alpha and Omega is that He is more than can be expressed using every letter of any language’s alphabet. He is indescribable.

If we just consider the English translation “the Beginning and the End,” there is another mystery involved: a kind of oxymoron. Jesus who is “the image of the invisible God” (see John 1:1 and Colossians 1:15-20) is the Beginning who had no beginning and the End who will never have an end. That is the very definition of “eternal.” He was with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, before anything was created and He will be with His redeemed creation throughout the eternal ages to come.

Obviously, this name “Alpha and Omega” is pretty complicated. But I take comfort in a simpler personal explanation of Jesus as the Beginning and the End: Jesus was the Beginning of my faith journey (Phil. 1:6) when I put my faith in Him as my Savior. Because of that, He is my End. One day I will end my life walking with Him on earth—only to begin it eternally again with Him in heaven—in a world without end.

Author and editor Vicki Huffman writes on issues secular and sacred, diverse and divine, fictional and faith-full. She is the author of two secular-based Christian non-fiction books and one Christian-based fiction book which are available in different forms through the author (email Mentoring Moments) or amazon.com. To read the first chapter of her novel A Secret Hope at no cost, follow here.

Letting Go

Tracey — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:00:17 +0000

In the 15^th chapter of Luke, Jesus tells a parable about a father and his two sons. Usually, those verses are under a heading titled, “The Prodigal Son” and the focus of numerous lessons I’ve heard preached through the years typically seems to be on the wayward younger son. However, these days as I move to a different side of motherhood, the side where I have to start letting go, where I no longer choose who my child can hang out with or how his time is spent, this parable is teaching me something new. I feel a connection with the father and can only imagine how the experience would have felt from his perspective.

Initially when his son asked for a portion of the inheritance, it had to hurt his heart. In that day’s culture to have asked for an inheritance from the living was like saying, “I wish you were dead.” Then upon deciding to give the money and let his son do whatever he pleased, the father had to have assumed it might end badly. Don’t you wonder if people came to this dad while his son was away to share the latest news and gossip of his exploits? I can just imagine someone telling him about the rumored booze and prostitutes. Later on when the money was gone, maybe a well-intentioned neighbor told him how his boy was now slopping pigs to earn a living. Don’t you suppose that in knowing, he would want to march right into that town and yank him back home?

How about if he never heard a thing about his son? In this era in which we live, this time of cell phones and texting, I have panic attacks when I don’t hear from my kids several times a day. Can you imagine if he had no idea whether his child was alive or dead? If it were you, wouldn’t you want to hire a private investigator, or go yourself and look? I have no doubt that this dad worried, that he cried out to God, that he wondered where he went wrong, but he also put aside all those feelings and he waited, patiently. Then when the wait was over, he welcomed his son home eagerly and with great joy.

If, like me, you have concerns over choices your child is making but need to let go as the father in Scripture did, take heart in the waiting–for God gives us hope.

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Proverbs 12:7 The wicked are destroyed and are no more, but the family of the righteous will endure.

Proverbs 11:21 The evil person will surely not go unpunished, but the children of the righteous will escape.

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Valentine’s Game: Getting to Know You

Molly — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:00:48 +0000

Every month we meet with five other couples for supper in one another’s homes. This Supper Club has been meeting together for years, and we know one another quite well. Or do we?

My husband and I host the Supper Club every year in February, and we enjoy preparing a Valentine’s quiz for our friends each year. The laughter—and even tears—around the table have drawn us closer as friends.

Husband and wife each answer the questions on their own, and then we go around the table one question at a time, sharing our answers aloud. Couples who have the same answer get a point and the couple with the most points “wins.” The second section (Things I want to say….) doesn’t earn a couple points toward the game, but everyone still feels like a winner as couples are drawn closer to one another through reflecting on happy memories and sharing expressions of love for one another publicly. You can read our quiz from two years ago here. Last year, we asked couples to answer the following questions:

If I recall right….

My first date with my spouse was to………?

I was first attracted to my spouse when……? Extra Credit…Where?

The strangest thing we ever did together was….?

We named our first child (their name) because…….?

Wives: The most romantic thing my husband has ever done is…..?

Husbands: The most romantic thing I’ve ever done for my wife is….?

What is the thing we have most in common?

Things I want to say….

If I could relive one thing (experience, time together, vacation…etc.) with my spouse and had to relive it exactly as it happened the first time around I would relive……

I don’t think I have expressed enough appreciation to my spouse for…..

Lately, my spouse has blessed me by…….

Free Superbowl Half-time Video with Tony & Lauren Dungy

Mentoring Moments — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:01:35 +0000

Are you hosting a Super Bowl XLV party this year?

If so, consider taking advantage of the free half-time video kit featuring Tony and Lauren Dungy discussing the importance of adoption. The 3-minute video along with event resources and instructions on how to download and play the video on your TV are available. Go to http://www.adoptionjourney.com/share/dungyhalftime/ for all the resources and details.

Please pass this information along to everyone you think will be interested!

Valentine’s Craft: Card Cans

Mentoring Moments — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:00:16 +0000

Valentine’s Day is one of those school days that lends itself to many special memories. Who doesn’t remember decorating that white sack in anticipation for all the valentines our classmates would pour into it. This year, make Valentine’s Day extra special with an easy to make card holder. Simply ask your local school lunchroom to save large vegetable cans. On a day when they serve soup, they will probably have all that you need. Wash these out and let them dry. Next, take the cans outside and spray paint them red, pink, or white. For the handles, drill two holes into each side of the cans. Slip colorful Valentine’s Day printed ribbon, cut to the desired length, into the holes and knot on the inside. Be careful as the drill may have left jagged edges at the holes. If you don’t want to drill holes for the handles, simply hot glue the ribbon to the interior of the can to form the handle. Now your children are ready to pick which can they would like and continue to decorate it. Provide Valentine’s Day stickers, paints, and even heart-shaped stamps. You will be amazed at your children’s creativity, and they will be so proud of their beautiful Valentine holders. Best of all, you’ve saved a lot of cans from heading to the landfill.

Why not plan a Valentine’s Day party and have everyone in attendance make a bucket? Invite all of your children’s friends and instruct them to bring cards to exchange. For a complete party planning guide, visit Currclick to purchase a Valentine’s Day Party eBook which includes printable cards, games, snack ideas and more.

About the author:

Kathy Hutto is a wife, homeschooling mother, entrepreneur and author. You can visit her online at www.toddlerbitesblog.wordpress.com.

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Words of Wisdom: Olympia Morata, Her Talents for His Glory

Guest — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:00:06 +0000

[NOTE: Often when we hear “mentoring,” we only think of the one-on-one kind. However, it struck me recently that I had been mentored by many women who never knew my name. I heard them speak or read their books and through their words, they mentored me. This series which will be posted occasionally includes some of the lessons we can learn when we receive Words from the Wise.]

Though born a woman, womanly things I have left behind:
Yarn, the shuttle, threads of the loom, and baskets.
It is the flowery meadow of the Muses I admire,
And the cheerful choral dances of double-crested Parnassus.
Perhaps other women are pleased with other things,
But these are my glory, and these are my joy.

These lines from a poem by Olympia Morata (1526 – 1555) are, under various translations, her best known work and have been quoted by some as an early feminist proclamation. I have included them in my historical semi-fiction, Weight of a Flame, because they represent one phase of her life, but I don’t consider them a feminist statement, for various reasons.

First of all, we can’t impose on the past categories that did not exist or had different connotations than they have today. Secondly, Olympia did not write these words in protest against inequality between the sexes. She was at that time a teenage girl trying to please her father and teachers, who encouraged her to cultivate her outstanding academic talents, exchanging, as one of them wrote, “the pen for the distaff, books for house linens, and writing exercises for needle-work.”

Probably Olympia didn’t mind leaving these women’s pastimes behind. She may have been proud of her unique abilities, but when her world was suddenly turned upside down, she lamented that she had neglected what was really important – the knowledge of God. As God allowed her to continue to use her talents, she saw them in a different light: “When I considered the matter over and over again as diligently as possible, I could find no other reason for me to work at these studies other than ‘it lay at the feet of God.’”

As we consider the many different situations Olympia encountered in her life, we can say that, when the occasion called, she ran her household well. When her health forced her to hire outside help, she took care to find a dependable person. When her younger brother was entrusted in her care, she acquired a book on godly child-rearing.

Her literary accomplishments remained outstanding and received great recognition, but she learned to keep them in the right perspective, holding God’s glory and the benefit of His church foremost in her mind. Her last poem expresses well what her focus had become.

I long to be fade away, so great is my confidence in Christ,
and to be with Him in whom my life thrives.

Weight of a Flame, The Passion of Olympia Morata

Simonetta Carr, a mother of eight, is the author of the ongoing series of
Christian Biographies for Young Readers published by RHB and of the young adult historical fiction Weight of a Flame, published by P&R. You may read more about her and her books on her blog: simonettacarr.com.

Captivated: New Film on Media Discernment premieres nationwide through National Movie Night

Guest — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 10:01:36 +0000

When was the last time you stopped and looked around on a busy city street? Have you noticed that the majority of people are looking down at a device in their hand? This rapid acceleration and dissemination of mobile media technology is fundamentally altering how people think and relate to one another. And that’s just one example.

Important issues related to media use and discernment are discussed in the new film Captivated: Finding Freedom in a Media Captive Culture, which will premiere nationwide through National Movie Night the weekend of February 3-5. The documentary is produced by Media Talk 101, a ministry that has been teaching Christians about how to exercise discernment with media since 2005. Produced by Media Talk 101 President Phillip Telfer and directed by Colin Gunn who also recently released the groundbreaking IndoctriNation documentary, Captivated was recently selected as a semi-finalist in the documentary category at the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF) to be held February 23-25.

Captivated is a wide-ranging look at the comprehensive set of issues involved with our modern media culture. It asks some of the following important questions:

Everywhere we go we are surrounded by screens. Have we entered a techno utopia or a virtual prison?
Should we be celebrating unreservedly or should we be cautious and skeptical?
Is it the greatest leap in productivity or the biggest setback from the things most meaningful in life?
Has today’s connectivity drawn us closer to one another or strangely more disjointed?
Is our social experience richer and deeper or more shallow and artificial?

Discover insightful answers to these questions from media experts, church leaders, and inspiring individuals and families from across the country, including:

Bob Waliszewski – Director of Focus on the Family’s Plugged In department
Dr. Jeff Myers – President of Summit Ministries
Dr. Ted Baehr – Founder and Director of MOVIEGUIDE
Kevin Swanson – Director of Generations with Vision
Maggie Jackson – Author of “Distracted – The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age“
Ray Comfort – Founder and President of Living Waters
Tim Winter – President of Parent’s Television Council
Trace Embry – Founder and Director of Shepherd’s Hill Academy
And many others

You can be a part of the nationwide premiere of this groundbreaking film in your community by signing up to host a movie night for Captivated in your home, church, or other venue. A project of Freedom Film Distributors, National Movie Night provides Movie Night Hosts with planning and promotional tools to set up and promote their movie night, and with discounts for the DVD. Please consider being a part of helping Christians learn about and exercise discernment with media through the screening of Captivated in your area.

“Captivated” Official Trailer from Media Talk 101 on Vimeo.

If you are reading this post in email and don’t see a video, click here to watch the Captivated trailer.

Jason Matyas is the Co-Founder of Freedom Film Distributors, which promotes independently produced films and videos that uphold the values of Faith, Family, and Freedom, and he is the creator of the National Movie Night project, which provides a vehicle for grassroots promotions of these films in communities across the country.

Alpha, Beginning–Omega, the End

Daphne — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 10:00:39 +0000

I hit the snooze button up to three times. My husband asks, “Why not set it right the first time?”

We put on our sneakers for our morning walk. We ask, “How’d you sleep?” and tell tales of our dreams.

We walk several blocks. We walk, we talk.

Heading back home, we reflect on the day and stop to pray.

Jesus is our Alpha—the beginning to our day.

I get ready for work. At the sink, I pray.

As I do my hair, I read God’s word.

Jesus is my Alpha.

My husband sits, coffee in hand, Bible in lap—bowing his head.

I walk by and smile. Thank you, God.

Jesus is his Alpha.

I go to work. My husband—he works from home.

Throughout our day, Jesus is our Alpha.

As our day nears its end, we lock all the doors and climb into bed.

I open my Bible. He opens his.

We each read a chapter.

Our Jesus, Omega—our end He is.

We lay face to face and discuss what we’ve read.

We pray for the day, say, “I love you.” We kiss.

Alpha, Omega—Jesus is.

Although this year ends, another begins.

My prayer, my heart: Jesus, please stay

Our Alpha, Omega.

Amen and Amen.

Daphne Tarango

Daphne’s post today is part of Mentoring Moment’2012 theme called Jesus Is. Feel free to share via email, Facebook, or Twitter.

Mom’s Love Rub Giveaway

Jan — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:00:30 +0000

I think about love every day….how much I love my family, how I love the life I’ve been given, and how much I love the Lord.

Love is important to me and with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I get excited about another chance to express my affection to those around me. It may sound silly and childlike, but I enjoy showing genuine love to others. I think of it as a special delivery directly from God through me. I also feel like loving others helps to define me as a person who loves God and obeys his commands.

John 13:34-35 New International Version (NIV) ³⁴ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

This year we’d like to help you feel the love and share some too. We’re offering two packages of sweet treats (no calories to guilt over!) to two winners. We want you to feel pampered and cherished and we want you to have the joy of sharing with a friend as well!

One winner will receive:

Strawberries and Champagne soap made from high-quality ingredients which will leave you feeling clean and fresh
Vanilla-Mint Dead Sea salt foot scrub made with ultra-fine salt from the Dead Sea, jojoba oil and jojoba oil beads, sweet almond oil, vitamin E, and essential oils. Use this after you’ve bathed by rubbing gently on your skin, rinse the salt from your feet, and pat dry. The oils will soak into your skin, maintaining a silky smooth layer and your feet feel wonderful for hours. (Is this not perfect for the dry winter season?)
Speaking of bathing, have you ever wished for a bath to make Cleopatra proud? Use Goat’s Milk Lavender Bath Tea bags to transform your bath into a therapeutic experience that will leave your skin with a healthy glow and lovely lavender scent.
Two 2 ounce jars of Mom’s Love Rub, a super-moisturizing ointment. First made to use on boo-boos, Mom’s Love Rub is great for bee stings, bug bites, kitchen burns, dry or chapped skin, and soothing massages. Created with primo oils, herbs, and beeswax, it works great for all types of skin conditions. You’ll receive two of these so you’re able to keep one for yourself and give the other one to someone YOU love. Spread a little love….

The other winner will receive:

Three fun Minty-Mocha Conversation Heart soaps…..please don’t eat them, though you’ll be tempted to. They’re so cute! Share a smile by your sink with a little love message.
Vanilla-Mint Dead Sea salt foot scrub made with ultra-fine salt from the Dead Sea, jojoba oil and jojoba oil beads, sweet almond oil, vitamin E, and essential oils. Use this after you’ve bathed by rubbing gently on your skin, rinse the salt from your feet, and pat dry. The oils will soak into your skin, maintaining a silky smooth layer and your feet feel wonderful for hours. (Is this not perfect for the dry winter season?)
Two 2 ounce jars of Mom’s Love Rub, a super-moisturizing ointment. First made to use on boo-boos, Mom’s Love Rub is great for bee stings, bug bites, kitchen burns, dry or chapped skin, and soothing massages. Created with primo oils, herbs, and beeswax, it works great for all types of skin conditions. You’ll receive two of these so you’re able to keep one for yourself and give the other one to someone YOU love. Spread a little love….

To enter the drawings for these two beautiful baskets, simply do the following for a total of 3 entries per person. Be sure and let us know which entries you made. Giveaway period is from Friday, January 27, 2012 until Friday, February 3, 2012. Two winners will be chosen using And the Winner Is by random selection. Winners will be notified on Saturday, February 4, 2012. Winners will have three business days to respond.

* Leave a comment on this post sharing a loving Valentine’s Day memory or something you are planning for this year.

* Visit Mom’s Love Rub (visit her on Facebook and Twitter too!)

* Share this giveaway with your family and friends! Choose at least one method: forwarding this email, share on Facebook, share on Twitter.

AKA the creator of Mom’s Love Rub and other fine products. Visit her at MomsLoveRub.com.