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I remember as a little girl growing up in Wisconsin, the snow days like the one Priscilla talked about in this part of our study today. Of course we had a lot more snow days than Dallas would have had. We wished for them so we could get out of school and go sledding or ice skating. Snow days here were not a day of being stuck in the house with nothing to do. All the kids in the neighborhood would gather and have a great time in the snow.

Our dilemma would have been the stormy days when the electricity would go off and we were forced to a day of solitude indoors with no radio or TV. I hated those days then, but now I love them! A chance to get caught up on reading a good book or just meeting with God for some quiet time.

Isn’t it humbling to know that we have a God who wants to meet with us? The God of the universe, the creator of everything desires my presence with Him! Out of the hustle and bustle of our world our Father wants us to know that he desires to be with us and spend time together.

That’s why I love this “14 challenge” that Priscilla has given us. Our world today is so pushy and intrusive. With all the internet, cell phones and television we can’t live without, sometimes it’s overwhelming. Society tells us that we have to constantly be busy achieving and going to the next level to accomplish all-even if it takes 7 days a week! To teach our children that we need this 14 minutes of carved out, purposely planned time with God is a gift to them. Teaching them how to listen and pray and hear from God helps them know how to plan for the day and for life.

My husband recently remodeled our bedroom and added a balcony on to the back. I have always tried to find a quiet place and time everyday to meet with God and during nice weather days, that balcony is where I meet with God. It’s a tangible place I can go to and know it will be quiet and peaceful.

My children have always known that Mom has a quiet time everyday. They are grown and gone and have their own lives now but I pray that I have instilled in them the pursuant of peace, a sabbath rest from which to draw on for the day.
May I suggest some  practical tips you could use to make your “Sabbath Rest” a success?

* Decide during the day what time can be easily set aside for this. Whether it’s morning, nap time, or evening when everyone is quiet. Whether you have to get up earlier or stay up a little later.

* Find a peaceful spot so that you are not distracted by anything around you.

* Turn off all phones, TV and radio, so you are not distracted by them. It won’t hurt for this small amount of time and it says you’re serious about taking the time to meet with God.

* Set everything out the night before, if possible, so that when you are ready it’s all there and you don’t have to go hunting for it.

* Go in with an attitude of prayer and be ready to let God speak to you.

Now that you have done all this in preparedness, purpose to take time everyday-it will change your life!!! If it’s 14 minutes or half an hour, you will not regret it. In fact you will look forward to it and God will meet with you. You will find that “Sabbath Rest” we all need on a daily basis!

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Let’s pray: God we want to meet with you. Help us make it a priority in our lives. Help us carve out time to make this happen-even if it’s only a few minutes a day. so that we can teach our children and be an example to them of this important time. teaching them that it is necessary to be able to live grounded in You. Thank you so much  that you desire time with us. In Jesus name Amen
Your assignment:Share in the comment section below, how you do or will carve out that necessary Sabbath rest time with God. Be honest and share and be creative too, sometimes we need to be creative to make it happen!

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Donna lives in Southeast WI, with her awesome husband Ronald.  Together they have 3 children and 2 grandchildren.  She went to school in the Brodhead WI area, and met her husband in the 5th grade!  He told her years later that when he first met her, he knew he was going to marry her!!  How sweet!!

Donna attends Rock Assembly of God, where she is active in coffee ministry, Worship team and heads up their Women’s Ministry, as well.

She loves to read, sing and listen to some talk radio.

She became a born again Christian when she was 12, but didn’t really get discipled until she had been married for 2 years. Then she and her husband both gave their lives to Christ and they’ve never looked back.

We are so blessed to have Donna on our Leadership Team.  She is such an encourager, and a joy to be around!

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Reminder… on October 1st, we will begin our brand new Online Bible Study, entitled “Winning Him Without Words” by Lynn Donovan and Dineen Miller.  If you are in an unequally spiritual marriage, you won’t want to miss this study!!

To sign up for this study, please send an email to: Womens@GirlfriendsCoffeeHour.com and we will send you all the details you need to get started!

Now jump on over to our Facebook Group for the daily activity!! If you do not yet belong to this group, and would like to, send us an email atGirlfriendsCoffeeHour@gmail.com with FB GROUP in the subject line, and we’ll be glad to add you!