Investing In Eternal Treasures

Calling All Gossips

When my children were young we lived amongst a lot of families where we women were all having children or raising children. In the era before every household had 2 cars, we walked our older children to kindergarten or school together, pushing our young ones in prams or strollers. In fact, we called ourselves the “Pram Brigade!”We looked forward to coming together twice a day to swap mothering tips, discuss household management, recipes and childbearing. High up on this list too were infant welfare visits, vaccinations and Baby’s latest milestone. This was the highlight of our day. And it was good.But as often happens when women meet together regularly, a gradual overlapping of the boundaries of friendship and discretion slowly overtook us. A few mothers started gossiping about a neighbour who was not with us on a particular morning. Each woman tried to outdo the previous gossiper with another tidbit of “news” until the poor woman who was the unwilling topic of conversation had been badmouthed into a corner from which there was no escape.

I too was guilty of listening, for the morsels of gossip were indeed interesting- I let them slide down my throat easily, relishing the details which seemed to whet our appetites for more. By the time we reached the kindergarten, this woman’s housekeeping ability, mothering, integrity, morality and even marriage had come under some very expert dissection. We had not only gone through her home and family but had even figuratively been so bold as to enter the marital bed, discussing things that were a matter only between our friend and her husband.

Suddenly by lunchtime, my absent friend of the morning had become a stranger- a sad figure who obviously had no redeeming points in her life and who was in fact, a person to avoid like the plague. Furthermore, I was suffering from a bad case of indigestion, with the morsels of gossip stuck in my chest accompanied by a vague sense of sadness and guilt. Not yet a Christian, I never thought to pray, but a sense of injustice towards my friend who was the victim of a character assassination was developing, and I found myself grieving for her and our lost friendship.

Women can be the cattiest creatures alive. Just a few words can set a bushfire blazing with horrendous results. For the friend who was the victim of this gossiping session, obviously felt something was different the next morning when she took her children to school with us. And there was indeed something different. A bushfire had erupted and there was no putting out its flames!

Each of us had suffered not only a bad case of indigestion overnight, mulling over lumps of gossip, but those things which were shared had managed to force a wedge between us and this woman. We felt such guilt that we felt uncomfortable with her and she could sense this. Some women tried to compensate by being over friendly and we all came across as false. Gradually to the increased discomfort of our maligned friend, we became less verbiose, and our wicked loose tongues at last ran out of things to say.

So when at the end of the week our friend announced she was taking her husband to work each morning and then driving the children to school, we all felt that now familiar pang of guilt and regret. We all knew we did not deserve to call ourselves her friend after that morning. And we never did recover her friendship.

The Morning Of The Gossip heralded the demise of other close friendships too. For each of us in our hearts knew that when women start gossiping you could very well be the next object of interest. Gradually the morning conversations became more formal, with no one ready to be open about anything that was precious to us. Our sense of camaraderie slowly evaporated. And the walks seemed to take forever.

30 years down the track, a lot of water has passed under the bridge. I have become a Christian and have learnt the Truth- that God hates gossip and maligning another person. I have repented and try hard not to gossip or listen to it. Whenever I think of my former friend, I wonder where she is and how she is. I wonder how her children turned out and if her marriage survived. I wonder if she overcame her weaknesses and if she regained her health.

And I pray for her. I pray that she reached out to God and found Him. I pray that she has found some true friends that have come alongside her and really supported her. I pray for my other former friends too, that they may have not only taken some antacid for their indigestion that day, but realised the cause of it. I pray that God has taken each one of us through this sad time and taught us the lesson of a loose tongue. And I pray that He in His mercy, stamped out the fire we created and sheltered that needy woman from its flames.

I pray that God will see my tears as I write this: tears of sorrow and warning for those of us compelled to speak things of others that we should not. Let my tears help put out the fires of yesterday and bring healing to my friend.

© Glenys Robyn Hicks

James 3:1-6 My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same [is] a perfect man, [and] able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. Behold also the ships, which though [they be] so great, and [are] driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned abouth with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue [is] a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

Are You A Good Thing For Your Husband?

In the book of Proverbs, it says that whoever finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favour of the Lord. I find as I read the scriptures, that the calling of being a wife is always held in esteem- and here we find a wife being called good and that her husband is actually blessed and obtains the Lord’s favour by finding her.

It never ceases to thrill me, being a wife. I love having a husband to look after and a home to keep. I cannot tell you how lonely and lost I felt in the four years between my sad divorce and subsequent remarriage. I would cry to the LORD and pray that He would bless me with a loving husband.

When finally He did bless me with Chris, I was delighted to return to wifely things. I learnt how wonderful it is to be married to someone who treated me as he himself would like to be treated. So I believe, whoever finds a husband finds a good thing, too- and obtains favour of the Lord.

To be a good thing that blesses your husband means in this context, to be a godly, loving wife. Someone whom your husband can trust implicitly with his inner secrets, doubts and ideas and dreams- to the keeping of the home, the help with budgeting and the companionship. But most importantly with the upbringing of his children.

Any woman can be a wife- it takes a woman who sees the beauty of that calling to be a good one. If she is- she has God’s promise that her husband will be blessed and will obtain favour of the LORD

Are you a good thing for your husband?

Blessings,

Glenys

” Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord.” Proverbs 18:22

A Little Time To Slumber

A little time to slumber

All my days spent in the sun,

My idle hands were folded,

My daily chores not done.

I wasn’t at all rebellious,

As into the sky I’d gaze,

I just left my daily duties

As in the sun I bathed.

I read my book for hours,

Dishes soaking in the sink,

The meat still in the freezer

For I didn’t stop to think

What I needed for dinner,

It lay frozen in a lump;

I’d serve meat of something,

Be it chops or steak or rump.

Just a minute of my surfing

Turned to hours of my day,

As I sat online chatting

To people far away.

Imagine then my panic

As at last I looked around,

To see the clock now telling

My man was homeward bound.

What a rush of my adrenaline,

Making me quickly scamper

To launder clothes still waiting

In the dirty laundry hamper.

The bed was pulled up in a hurry,

The dishes washed and left to dry,

As I boiled up some veggies

And set the meat to fry.

Which would likely take forever

For it hadn’t completely thawed

And I so wanted dinner ready

As soon as my man hit the door.

I felt so really guilty as I served our dinner late,

That I decided my many forums

Would henceforth have to wait.

© Glenys Robyn Hicks

“Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep; so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man” Proverbs 24:34

The Proverbs Woman Challenge

Most every year, at the T2CHK Message Board, we have a dress challenge where we try to wear dresses or skirts every day for a week just to see what differences it makes in our attitudes and day to day work. We don’t promote dress wearing here as godly or ungodly, we simply offered the challenge as an exercise in personal development. Continuing on with ways to improve ourselves and the way we serve our Lord and families, I have another challenge for our board members and you too…

This year I am offering a Challenge but with a twist………
I will be offering a Habits of a Proverbs Woman Challenge beginning March 12.

Here’s how it works. I am challenging all the ladies who read here to join me every morning for 2 weeks in getting ourselves put together physically, mentally and spiritually so that we can be armed to face the day doing and feeling our very best.
And I am challenging us all to seek God for these 2 weeks and ask Him to point out areas in our lives that need His touch. Finally, I am challenging us all to search out ways to improve the way we manage at least one area of our homes and implement the changes needed to improve.

Bascially, the challenge can be stated like this:
Get Up, Get Going
Seek God
Make Good Changes

To participate all you need to do is work daily on the goals and read the daily devotionals and encouragements here at T2CHK. You can also join the message board and chime in on the daily thread. Here are our goals for the Proverbs Woman Challenge….

1) To get up at a reasonably early hour to start our day. This will be different for everyone. You may find that you really do need to sleep in til 10, especially if you are up late with a child or work. Only you know how long you really need, and we’re not checking on you. To participate you have to be acountable to yourself in this.

2)To have our personal grooming done and clothes for the day on before the family rises.

3) To meet with the Lord and pray, worship and read His Word. To seek His face about how we are living and serving Him.[/i]

4) To find a method or way to better manage [i]at least one aspect[/i] of our homes OR lives and to begin to implement it.

I encourage you to find a friend and work on this together or join us at the T2CHK Message Board for more encouragement and help. You can also check in with me personally and let me know how its going for you.  sylvia t2chk org.