True Woman - the Beauty of Holiness

The Beauty of Holiness

Sometimes pressures come at you so fast it seems like you can’t think straight. Learn to develop a biblical, sound mind so that you can think clearly no matter what is happening around you.*

• You never get to the point where you don't need the grace of God to protect and safeguard your heart and keep you from sin.
• The real test of your purity is who you are when you get home and how you treat those around you.
• The goal of being pure of heart is not to make us look good. That's self-righteousness. The goal is to make God look good.

Listen to or read more from “The Beauty of Holiness”

Now I have to admit, the title of this day's devotional really appeals to me. :) The beauty of holiness. How many see holiness as a thing of beauty? Not too many I think....but mmmmm... to be seen as beautiful because of my holiness...isn't that something to aspire to?

wow....okay...it's hard to concentrate when Thomas the Train movie is playing in the background. But we'll keep trying.

In her devotion Nancy refers to some different scriptures:

Titus 2:3-5, 11-14

³ Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, ⁴and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, ⁵to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, ¹²training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, ¹³ waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, ¹⁴ who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Titus 1:15-16

¹⁵ To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. ¹⁶ They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

We are called to be pure, pious, submissive and keepers of our homes.

We are called to be more than what we were before we knew Christ.

To not to be slaves to sin, but to be a people earnestly desiring MORE than what the world offers to us. To love and serve in ways that please God not ourselves.

How does one live this out? For answers, Nancy turns to Psalm 101 which shows practical ways to living out what we believe.

A Psalm of David.

¹I will sing of steadfast love and justice;

to you, O LORD, I will make music.

actions: singing to God.

²I will ponder the way that is blameless.
Oh when will you come to me?
I will walk with integrity of heart
within my house;

Ponder: to meditate, to think about something more than yourself. To see what is blameless.
Choosing to walk with integrity.

³I will not set before my eyes
anything that is worthless.
I hate the work of those who fall away;
it shall not cling to me.

Watch what you watch. Do you engage the worthless? what type of books do you read, shows do you watch, people do you associate, activities that you are part of? do you watch these things carefully? Not saying you can't be involved with people who engage in worthless activities...if you don't, how might to draw them to Christ...but you don't need to engage in the worthless activities that they do.

⁴ A perverse heart shall be far from me;
I will know nothing of evil.

⁵Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly
I will destroy.
Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart
I will not endure.

Do you correct ungodly behaviour? do you call it for what it is? Do you do your best to stay away from evil actions?

⁶I will look with favor on the faithful in the land,
that they may dwell with me;
he who walks in the way that is blameless
shall minister to me.

Do you encourage your brothers and sisters in their walk with Christ?

⁷No one who practices deceit
shall dwell in my house;
no one who utters lies
shall continue before my eyes.

⁸ Morning by morning I will destroy
all the wicked in the land,
cutting off all the evildoers
from the city of the LORD.

Do you do your best to cut off the wicked from within your midst?

I look at this and I see church discipline at work too.

I look at this and I see moms guarding their households, protecting their children from those who would lead them astray.

I see constant vigilance.

Anyways, there is oodles more here but Now I have a preschooler demanding my attention and I just can't concentrate here anymore. talk and think more later.