But what about you? What message has God given you through your mess? May this final week of the Messy Series encourage you to do the same thing Christy’s done: share your mess AND God’s message with others.

Your messy with a message sister,

Miss any episodes of The Messy Series?

Find out more about Laurie’s study, There is a Season,  and Beth Moore’s study, Breaking Free, recommended by Christy on today’s video.

Meet the newest member of the Ryan Family, kiddo #4, due 10.10.12.

Jason and I went it for our mid-pregnancy ultrasound last week and got a wonderful report from the doctor! Praise God, Baby looks safe, healthy, and full of testosterone! Yes, we’ll be adding another boy to our mix in October!

After having two miscarriages in the past, including a second-trimester miscarriage in 2010 when we lost our sweet son, Benjamin, we are always cautiously optimistic during this time. But, we’re trusting God to bring Baby safely into this world and allow his little life to glorify Him in whatever ways possible. And, to help us choose a name for the little guy. That’s a frequent topic of prayer lately too!

For the past four-and-a-half months, I’ve felt like I’ve been keeping a secret from you, Glo girls, so I’m so glad to finally be able to share our exciting news with you! Will you pray for our little one along with me? It would mean the world to me!

Q: Does anyone else have any baby news on the horizon? Let us know! Let’s pray for all of them!

Then, about a minute later, you feel the weight of life and realize it’s a lot harder than it looks. A little help would be nice after all.

That’s where our BFFs (biblical friends forever) come into play, and that’s what happened in our next biblical example of awesome friendship. Enter Moses, Aaron, and Hur.

When the Israelites fought the Amalekites in Exodus 17, Moses must have thought he had an easy job. All he had to do was hold his arms up and the Israelite army would win. Lower his arms, and the enemy would conquer them.

Have you ever tried to hold your arms up for any significant length of time? I’m pretty sure it can be categorized as torture. I can’t do it. Moses couldn’t do it. And my guess is that you can’t do it either. You need help. You need, like Moses did, someone to come alongside you and hold your hand.

¹² When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. ¹³ So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. (Exodus 17:12-13)

All Aaron and Hur did was support Moses. They steadied his arms when they were growing weary and encouraged him until the battle was over. Another beautiful picture of what friendship should look like. One friend holding the hand of the other through these rough waters called life.

How do your friendships measure up in this area? Do your friends encourage you to be a loving wife to your husband, a good parent to your kids, a trustworthy employee to your boss, a growing student of God’s Word? When life gets tough, do they party with you in the pit or do they pull you to the surface?

What do you do for them?

It is important that BFFs walk your walk and talk your talk, but if they don’t hold your hand and encourage you as well, the relationship may have a toxic element to it that needs to be addressed.

One of the best things about encouragement is that it’s contagious. Consider Moses and his little predicament again. Aaron and Hur encouraged Moses. Moses, in turn, encouraged Joshua with his arms raised high. Joshua encouraged the Israelite army. And the Israelite army defeated the Amalekites.

Like the domino effect in reverse.

Encouraging, isn’t it?

If you’d like to read more about encouragement, check out The Spiritual Art of Encouragement Part1 and Part 2.

Q: What do your friends do to hold your hand and encourage you?

Part 4 Next Tuesday: BFFs – Carry your mat.

I want to do God’s will. You want to do God’s will. And that’s good, right?

So then, why is doing God’s will so difficult at times?

The answer to that question, and the ugly, little secret we both know, is found in 1 Corinthians 16:9. See it right there in my Bible?

It says, “There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me” (1 Cor. 16:9 NLT).

In this passage, Paul bravely professes what we often prefer to keep secret:

Doing God’s will is difficult because it always invites and involves opposition. And none of us want to think about — much less talk about — that, do we?

So when we read a hard-to-hear passage like 1 Corinthians 16:9, we subconsciously stick our fingers in our ears and do the la-la-la-I-can’t-hear-you routine.

But the fact remains that doing God’s will has always been difficult, and it has always involved opposition.

It’s what Abel experienced from Cain.

It’s what David experienced from Saul.

It’s what Jeremiah and the prophets experienced from their own people.

It’s what Jesus experienced from the angry mob.

From the first pages of Genesis to the final chapters of Revelation, the overwhelming evidence clearly reveals that:

Even when God gives us a wide-open door.

Even when God calls us to a great work.

Even then, we will experience opposition.

It’s Monday, precious sister, and a week full of wide-open doors to do a great work for God are before you. You will have the blessing of sharing your faith, of standing up for the truth, and of being a light in the darkness. But these same blessed opportunities will also bring opposition.

So don’t stick your fingers in your ears. And don’t stick your head in the sand either. Instead, view opposition to God’s will for what it really is: proof indeed that you really are in God’s will. And in really good company, too.

Your sister who is praying for you this week,

OR

In reality, what we actually witness every night looks a little more like this:

A whole lot of chaos mixed with a little bit of sweetness!

Ever since our oldest son was about two, we’ve had a bedtime routine. It’s changed a bit over time, but here’s what it looks like now:

1. Bath / teeth / PJs / etc.
2. Read one book – kids’ choice
3. Read one section from our current devotional book (the boys each have one and we alternate between the two)
4. Prayer time (we lead, but make them pray out loud too)
5. I sing “Bushel and a Peck” as I tickle and hug each one. Some nights fast and silly, some times slow and soft.
6. Lights out

Now, the routine itself is not one I’m necessarily unhappy with. I like that bedtime is family time. I like that we read. I like that we incorporate the Bible and prayer. But…

Lately I’ve noticed that our routine has become a little too routine, if you know what I mean. The boys start playing during devotional time, pray for silly things instead of serious things, and generally “check out” when the important times come.

I can feel that we’re at a fork in the road. Either we’ll ignore this subtle attack against our sacred rituals with our kids and it will all slowly disappear altogether over time. Or, we’ll remain aware and proactive about being intentional about family and devotional time and hopefully continue to influence their little minds with more truth and memories.

So, I’d love to get your input!

If you have young children now, tell me what works for you! If your kids are older and on their own, tell me what used to work for you or what you wish you would have done differently!

• What does your bedtime routine look like?
• How do you successfully incorporate the Bible and prayer?
• How do you teach your children to pray real prayers rather than silly prayers?
• How do you keep your own prayers from being monotonous and routine?
• How/What do you pray for on a daily basis for your kids?
• Do you use any devotional books? If so, which ones do you (and the kids) like?
• Any other tips or input?!

I’m seriously awaiting your comments on this one! And, I have lots of friends with young kids as well, so I know they’ll all appreciate your wisdom and insight!

When it comes to our kids and influencing them spiritually, I know that even a mediocre routine is better than nothing. But I sure would love to move from mediocre to dynamic!

Stephanie . . .

My daughter by marriage

My holiday (and all-occasion) cooking cohort.

My friend to fellowship and talk, and talk, and talk with.

My precious grandchildren’s amazing mother.

My beloved son’s loving wife.

An “exceeding, abundantly beyond all that (I) could ever ask” (Eph. 3:19) for answer to prayer, Stephanie is the dearest, sweetest, smartest, fun-est, God-glorifying daughter-in-love anyone could ever ask for.

My life is so much sweeter, and our family is so much stronger all because of God’s exquisite, beautiful, 30-year-old masterpiece: Stephanie.

Happy birthday, Stephanie! 

Your grateful mother-in-law and your biggest fan . . .

I love you to pieces,

But just as important is that BFFs also talk your talk.

For this, we’re going to, once again, explore my favorite biblical heroine, Jephthah’s daughter. Or, more specifically, we’re going to look at her friends.

“But grant me this one request,” she said. “Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry.”  38 “You may go,” he said. And he let her go for two months. She and the girls went into the hills and wept because she would never marry.” (Judges 11:37-38)

In Judges 11, Jephthah’s daughter (JD for short) had “her girls.” These were the BFFs she went to when life was at its hardest. They walked her walk, but they also talked her talk because they were all single gals, just like her. Different translations of the verse describe the group as her companions, her fellows, her friends, or her dear girlfriends, but they all stem from the Hebrew word Re`ah which is specifically reserved for unmarried, female friendships. Friends who were in the same stage of life as JD.

So when I say that BFFs talk your talk, what I mean is that they are in the same stage of life as you. If you’re single, they’re single. If you’re a mom with young children, so are they. If you carry around photos of your grandchildren and complain about how complicated cell phones have become, they do too!

Now, it should be noted that this is not a spiritual concept; this is just logical.  It is a principle that works for the same reason that psychiatrists encourage support groups.  People need to develop relationships with others who are going through the same things they’re going through.

C.S. Lewis once said, “Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, ‘What! You, too? I thought I was the only one.’”

Let’s be honest, have you ever been around a group of new moms when they were talking about breast-feeding or potty training? Depending on your own stage of life, it can be the most liberating, encouraging conversation of the day, or it can be the most awkward and uncomfortable conversation of the day. You want, and need, friends who talk your talk.

Because your life may transition to the next stage according to a different time-table as your friend’s, it naturally follows that the dynamics of your friendship may evolve over time as well. I’m not suggesting at all that you sever ties with a friend just because she’s not in the same stage of life as you! I’m simple stressing the importance of adding to your circle of friends depending on where you are in life.

It can be a very sad day when you feel as if a friend has “moved on” without you. The girlfriend who used to share your frustrations about dating now doesn’t. The friend who used to have time for you is now distracted by her children. The friend who used to be so independent and carefree needs you more and more now that she’s a widow. These situations are real and they are tough, and sometimes, they are the beginning of a fizzling friendship. But I think if more people understood and accepted that friendships can, and will, ebb and flow over time, they wouldn’t take these changes in life stages so personally.

I have had great friendships that have not been strong enough to last through the transitions called life. But I have also had awesome friendships that have survived through every life stage since college. Those have been the friendships that have been strong enough to bend.

Q: Do you agree in the importance that BFFs talk your talk? Why or why not?

Part 3 Next Tuesday: BFFs – Hold your hand.

A new week filled with . . .

Blessings and challenges.

Ups and downs.

Questions and answers.

Laughter and tears.

This week, in every high and every low, may His words bring you comfort, confidence, and the calm assurance of His companionship:

Psalm 37:23-24 (NLT):     

²³ The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.

²⁴ Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.

God directs your steps.

God delights in every detail of your life.

God holds your hand; even when you stumble, He will not let you fall.

Rest in His promises.

Recognize His divine presence.

And remember, He holds your hand.

It’s Monday, precious sister, and because of Him, your week is already off to a great start!

Hand-in-hand with Him,

Loving and praying for you,

What steps have you taken to keep your messy past in the past? How has God graced you and given you a new start? Your comments are such a blessing!

Are you a working mom? Have no fear; you can find your paycheck here!

Happy Mother’s Day to all of our priceless, GLO-rious moms!