Post by JCsMomma on Jul 25, 2005 7:01:32 GMT -5
As a young woman and before I became a Christian, I embraced three philosophies of life. One was the feminist belief that my identity was caught up in my education and career. A second was "eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow you may die." A third came from the George Burns movie, "Oh, God!" In the movie, George Burns (playing God) said, Jesus is my son, Mohammed is my son, and Buddha is my son." I thought, "That's it! This makes sense to me. There are many ways to God, and it does not matter what you believe as long as you are sincere."
Believing my identity to be found in education and career, I pursued both with a passion. It did not matter how much I attained through education, I desired more knowledge and more credentials. My nursing career culminated in a teaching position at a local college. My goals were to head the nursing department in a prestigious university and to write a critical care textbook. My standards were high and I would have graduated only the students who were bright and at the top of their field.
The "eat, drink, and be merry" philosophy speaks for itself. I drank and partied hard. I was determined to have fun at any cost. It was supremely important to me to be happy. Needless to say, drinking occasionally got me into trouble and it is a wonder I was not killed in an automobile wreck. Whereas my feminist "identity" philosophy looked to the future for esteem and accomplishment, this "eat, drink, and be merry" philosophy lloked only at the moment with little or no thought for tomorrow.
My third philosophy of life was consistently expressed through membership in a church that was full of people who thought that everyone was a Christian regardless of their beliefs just as long as they were sincere. I was told, "God loves everyone, the Bible is full of myths, and who are we to judge?" That suited me fine, because I certainly did not want anybody judging me.
To my great surprise, these three philosophies did not bring me the satisfaction and happiness I desired. Instead, they brought me heartache, confusion, and desperation to find answers. The answers, however, only came through reading God's Word and praying. One day when I was thirty-one years old, God (in spite of no goodness of my own) drew me to Himself, came into my life, saved my soul, forgave my sins, and gave me a new and different philosophy of life.
My new philosophy is Christian. I now passionately believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to God the Father and that my purpose in life and greatest joy is to serve Him and glorify Him. As I "delight myself in the Lord," God gives me the "desires of my heart" (Psalm 37:4). Desires which, by the way, He places there. For example, I remember once praying (because I was afraid I would revert back to my old lifestyle) that God would give me a love for His Word so that no matter how much I learned or knew I would never be satisfied. Even today after over eighteen years, my God-given desire to know and obey God's Word has not diminished.
**My new desires include ways to please and serve God. God's instructions on how a Christian woman can please and serve Him are written out clearly in Titus 2:3-5.
Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips, nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be dishonored.
At the time I discovered this passage, I was not exactly an "oldre woman." But I knew I had so far to go that by the time I learned and applied what I needed, I would be in the "older woman" category. That is what has happened. Though I still have far to go, GOd is maturing me in three areas: doctrine, character, and ministry for Him.
Because of what God has done and is doing in my life and because of the instructions in Titus 2:3-5, I now have a desire to teach and encourage younger Christian women. That's why I have written this book - to biblically instruct you how, with God's help, you can become a Titus 2 Woman who, in turn, teaches and encourages the younger women. To accompliah my purpose, I have devided the book into four parts:
*When I Disciple a Younger Woman
*How Does a Titus 2 Woman Act?
*What Does a Titus 2 WOman Teach?
*Why Should a Titus 2 Woman Teach?
In the next chapter, I explain three areas in my own life in which God first worked so that now I can begin to teach and encourage other women. The three areas were (and still are) doctrine, character, and ministry.
(Chapter 1 questions will be posted tomorrow!!!)
Believing my identity to be found in education and career, I pursued both with a passion. It did not matter how much I attained through education, I desired more knowledge and more credentials. My nursing career culminated in a teaching position at a local college. My goals were to head the nursing department in a prestigious university and to write a critical care textbook. My standards were high and I would have graduated only the students who were bright and at the top of their field.
The "eat, drink, and be merry" philosophy speaks for itself. I drank and partied hard. I was determined to have fun at any cost. It was supremely important to me to be happy. Needless to say, drinking occasionally got me into trouble and it is a wonder I was not killed in an automobile wreck. Whereas my feminist "identity" philosophy looked to the future for esteem and accomplishment, this "eat, drink, and be merry" philosophy lloked only at the moment with little or no thought for tomorrow.
My third philosophy of life was consistently expressed through membership in a church that was full of people who thought that everyone was a Christian regardless of their beliefs just as long as they were sincere. I was told, "God loves everyone, the Bible is full of myths, and who are we to judge?" That suited me fine, because I certainly did not want anybody judging me.
To my great surprise, these three philosophies did not bring me the satisfaction and happiness I desired. Instead, they brought me heartache, confusion, and desperation to find answers. The answers, however, only came through reading God's Word and praying. One day when I was thirty-one years old, God (in spite of no goodness of my own) drew me to Himself, came into my life, saved my soul, forgave my sins, and gave me a new and different philosophy of life.
My new philosophy is Christian. I now passionately believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to God the Father and that my purpose in life and greatest joy is to serve Him and glorify Him. As I "delight myself in the Lord," God gives me the "desires of my heart" (Psalm 37:4). Desires which, by the way, He places there. For example, I remember once praying (because I was afraid I would revert back to my old lifestyle) that God would give me a love for His Word so that no matter how much I learned or knew I would never be satisfied. Even today after over eighteen years, my God-given desire to know and obey God's Word has not diminished.
**My new desires include ways to please and serve God. God's instructions on how a Christian woman can please and serve Him are written out clearly in Titus 2:3-5.
Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips, nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be dishonored.
At the time I discovered this passage, I was not exactly an "oldre woman." But I knew I had so far to go that by the time I learned and applied what I needed, I would be in the "older woman" category. That is what has happened. Though I still have far to go, GOd is maturing me in three areas: doctrine, character, and ministry for Him.
Because of what God has done and is doing in my life and because of the instructions in Titus 2:3-5, I now have a desire to teach and encourage younger Christian women. That's why I have written this book - to biblically instruct you how, with God's help, you can become a Titus 2 Woman who, in turn, teaches and encourages the younger women. To accompliah my purpose, I have devided the book into four parts:
*When I Disciple a Younger Woman
*How Does a Titus 2 Woman Act?
*What Does a Titus 2 WOman Teach?
*Why Should a Titus 2 Woman Teach?
In the next chapter, I explain three areas in my own life in which God first worked so that now I can begin to teach and encourage other women. The three areas were (and still are) doctrine, character, and ministry.
(Chapter 1 questions will be posted tomorrow!!!)
There are several ?'s at the end of each chapter for us to answer and discuss.. So whatever you feel led to do is fine.