30 Day Gentleness Challenge

I love my blog.  I get to pick and choose what I share and pretend that I have it all together all the time.  HA!  Well, for those of you who know me personally, you know that is not the case.  One such thing that I love to hide is my temper.  It is unnerving how quickly I can lose my cool when my children don't listen or when plans get off track.  Everyone always says, "oh! that is normal - you are normal."  Well, God didn't make me to be normal.  He made me to be HIS child and to model his behavior - most especially to those I love the most.......the very ones who I have no problem hiding my temper.

This past year I joined my local Bible Study International.  We met every Wednesday from September through the first week of May for an indepth study on the life of Moses.  Though I gave my life over to the Lord several years ago, this focus truly helped me hone in on how to study the Bible and apply its lessons to my life.  I also made some very dear friends who have encouraged me and helped to truly, once and for all, turn over my demons and heartbreak over to the Lord.  While that was such a blessing, it filled me with anxiety because I was fearful that left to my own devices, I would break my faithful routine of reading the Word once our study was over.

After a couple of weeks of prayer, I finally asked the Lord to reveal to me an area of my life where I needed His guidance.  Not more than an hour after this prayer I found myself snipping at my children for tattletaleing.  It was clear, I needed to learn to be more patient, gentle and loving.  The very next week I ran across Galatians 5:22, which talks of the Fruit of the Spirit being:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.  SMACK - there it was, right upside the head, everything I was lacking in modeling God to my children.  I knew there must be a better way.  It couldn't be "normal" to lose my temper with my children for simply doing what children do - test boundaries.  And so, after some research, God blessed me by letting me find the 30 Day Gentleness Challenge via Women Living Well.

I shared my idea with a few friends and was encouraged to start a small group.  I hosted our first gathering today and we are all prepared to start reading through Proverbs on June 1st.  I hope this post will encourage you to find a summer Bible Study group or even just a gathering of friends to meet with on a regular basis to give you a much needed release from the pressures of family life.  Even in the best of circumstances, there will always be stresses and it is important to find a healthy balance.  My preference is in the shelter of God's word.  I hope you'll join me.  I'll be posting my journey here and would love to have you come along.

xoxo,
TSS