{"id":9481,"date":"2013-02-17T00:01:27","date_gmt":"2013-02-17T05:01:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/?p=9481"},"modified":"2013-02-16T19:47:18","modified_gmt":"2013-02-17T00:47:18","slug":"lifes-healing-choices-chapter-7-maintaining-momentum-pgs-204-239","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/2013\/02\/17\/lifes-healing-choices-chapter-7-maintaining-momentum-pgs-204-239\/","title":{"rendered":"Life\u2019s Healing Choices: Chapter 7 – Maintaining Momentum (pp 204 – 239)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Choice 7: <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to KNOW God and His will for my life, and to gain the power to follow His will.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

John Baker introduces this next choice simply writing, \u201cIn the last six chapters, you\u2019ve been learning about coming out of the dark and exposing your problems to the light of God\u2019s love. At whatever level you\u2019ve been able to accomplish this, God has been healing the hurts, hang-ups, and habits that have messed up your life. Many of you are already experiencing some of the amazing changes in your life\u201d (page 206).<\/p>\n

Through the comments on our Facebook page, the changes are<\/em> happening in the lives of those who are sharing this journey. For some, the changes have been small; but for others it\u2019s been mind-blowing. It\u2019s not about comparing where you are with another person but on a personal focus on your growth. This will be an on-going process, not something we attain and stop doing. If you are not alert and intentional with your Christian walk, you can (and will) relapse into the old habits and thought patterns that brought you to this study in the first place. Obviously this is not our goal; but rather we hope to give helpful information to encourage you to maintain the momentum towards God\u00a0and His will for your life. Baker tells us to \u201cCelebrate any victory, no matter how small, and do it on a daily basis\u201d (pg 214).<\/p>\n

This week we\u2019ll discuss the causes of relapse, and how to prevent relapse by introducing NEW habits into your life. Unlike those we\u2019ve been shedding over the past 6 weeks, these habits are good for us and will only serve to strengthen and refine us even more as we draw closer to Him. By the week\u2019s end, we\u2019ll introduce \u201cpraying the Scriptures\u201d to bring encouragement to your prayer life.<\/p>\n

Seeing the choice for this week, I will be the first to admit that I know I should have a daily quiet time with God. He desires to spend time with me, to hear my voice speak to Him as if in conversation with an old friend, and He wants to bless me with His wisdom\u00a0and love. As a parent, I know how much I love to have time with my children, so I can only imagine how much He wants to spend time with me! But I\u2019m running ragged with a full time job, volunteer responsibilities, church activities, and of course, family obligations (aren\u2019t we all?).<\/p>\n

Every time I hear a message on having this quiet time, I immediately offer up the excuses—“I\u2019m too tired after work…I can\u2019t get up early because my body requires sleep…I\u2019m reading devotional emails so that\u2019s something…I listen to praise\u00a0and worship music at my desk so I\u2019m constantly ‘focusing’ on Him…I\u2019m reading this book or that book that talks about God\u00a0and\u00a0gives Scriptures…I take notes at church.”\u00a0 There\u2019s nothing inherently wrong with what I\u2019ve said, but it still doesn\u2019t address His desire to spend time with me—quality one-on-one time.<\/p>\n

Yes, I\u2019m tired after work; but He has promised to give me strength (Philippians 4:13). \u00a0Yes, getting up early is a challenge; but there\u2019s no better way to start your day (Psalms 59, 65, 90, and 92…just to name a few).<\/p>\n

\"Ps90_14\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While reading the devotionals and\u00a0books, taking notes during a sermon, or listening to music will reinforce the messages and keep our minds more focused on Him, these are not substitutions for personally reading His word and finding the applications for my life. \u00a0So the challenge for me this week is to put aside all of the plans to do it, and (like Nike) JUST DO IT! I\u2019m convicted by this week\u2019s choice and need to put my head-knowledge of knowing a lot about<\/em> God in to a solid heart-knowledge of truly knowing<\/em> God.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Reading Assignment for Week 7: Chapter 7 of Life\u2019s Healing Choices
\nMonday: Laurie will discuss Principle 7: Growth Choice
\nTuesday: Leslie will discuss the Causes of Relapse
\nWednesday: Kim will discuss Preventing Relapse
\nThursday: Amy will discuss Make The Choice
\nFriday: Laurie will bring it all back home with a recap of our week<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Music has always been an emotional connection for me (in good ways and bad). Christ speaks to me more through music than most other media. One song that\u2019s been a strong encouragement and reminder to me over the past couple of years is \u201cCaptivate Us<\/em>\u201d by Watermark. \u00a0I want to close out today with the link to the song. I\u2019d also like us to use the lyrics as\u00a0a prayer—to bring the encouragement and the desire to be captivated by God in the coming week. Read the lyrics, and then play the song. While it plays, close your eyes and use this as your prayer to draw closer to the Father who wants to spend time with you.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/youtu.be\/7JtXa9pBOHI<\/a><\/p>\n

Captivate Us – by Nockels, Nockels, & Hall<\/strong><\/p>\n

Your face is beautiful
\nAnd Your eyes are like the stars
\nYour gentle hands have healing
\nThere inside the scars
\nYour loving arms they draw me near
\nAnd Your smile it brings me peace
\nDraw me closer oh my Lord
\nDraw me closer Lord to Thee<\/p>\n

Captivate us, Lord Jesus
\nSet our eyes on You
\nDevastate us with Your presence
\nFalling down
\nAnd rushing river, draw us nearer
\nHoly fountain consume us with You
\nCaptivate us Lord Jesus, with You<\/p>\n

Your voice is powerful
\nAnd Your words are radiant bright
\nIn Your breath and shadow
\nI will come close and abide
\nYou whisper love and life divine
\nAnd Your fellowship is free
\nDraw me closer O my Lord
\nDraw me closer Lord to Thee<\/p>\n

Let everything be lost in the shadows
\nOf the light of Your face
\nLet every chain be broken from me
\nAs I\u2019m bound in Your grace
\nFor Your yoke is easy, Your burden is light
\nYou\u2019re full of wisdom, power and might
\nAnd every eye will see You<\/p>\n

Have a wonderful & blessed week!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

A wonderful pocket-sized (28 page) booklet that talks about our walk with Christ is \u201cMy Heart Christ\u2019s Home<\/em>.\u201d It\u2019s available HERE<\/a> \u00a0as a 5 pack for a small price. It speaks of allowing Christ into our home and how we care for Him as our invited guest. Does His presence require spring cleaning, or a light dusting? Do we lock doors to certain rooms, or give Him full access?<\/p>\n

_____________________________________
\nIf you would like to send Amy a private email in regards to this blog, please email her at: Amy@girlfriendscoffeehour.com<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Choice 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to KNOW God and His will for my life, and to gain the power to follow His will. John Baker introduces this next choice simply writing, \u201cIn the last six chapters, you\u2019ve been learning about coming out of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":9552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[22],"tags":[90,147,1795,425,570,608,762,1792,1793,1794,1135],"class_list":["post-9481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-victorious-healing","tag-amy-butterfield","tag-bible-study","tag-captivate-us","tag-girlfriends-coffee-hour","tag-john-baker","tag-lifes-healing-choices","tag-philippians-413","tag-psalm-90","tag-psalm-92","tag-watermark","tag-womens-bible-studies","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/013.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p39pHp-2sV","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9481"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9481\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9504,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9481\/revisions\/9504"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}