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The Wives of Excellence Newsletter?„? |
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Brought to you by... |
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We're taking Homemaking to a "Higher" level! |
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Published on the first of every month
ISSN # 1550-1698 |
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05/01/2005 |
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Volume 4, Issue 5 |
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Visit us on the web Christian-Homemaking.com |
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Inside This Issue |
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From Martha's Home to Your's |
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A Note From Martha... |
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Devotional |
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Bringing Up Generation Next |
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What We're Reading This Month |
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A Purse-driven Life |
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Recipes |
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Fresh Strawberries |
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What's New at Christian-Homemaking.com |
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Read the latest articles on our web site... |
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Web Poll |
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On a scale of 1 to 5 (with five being great) how would you rate your organizational skills as a home manager? |
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Martha Recommends... |
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Moms for Christ |
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Want to sign up for the Wives of Excellence Newsletter?
Go to our
Newsletter Management
page.
NOTE: To stop your subscription or to read the archives,
please see the subsciption management box at the end of this newsletter. |
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From Martha's Home to Your's |
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Greetings in Christ:
It has been another crazy month in our household. For those of you who were subscribers last year you will remember that we had some issues with our house that caused us to take the builder of our home to court. We didn??™t want to do this but it was our last resort.
I am please to say that they settled out of court and we are now able to make the needed repairs. We were eager to get started so last month I began interviewing contractors. I am sure that I will have my work cut out for me in coordinating and following up on all the work but I am so glad to get things fixed that I don??™t mind it one bit.
We also celebrated my son??™s fifth birthday. I did make the Spiderman cake and I think it turned out very well. I did not have enough time
to put pictures and directions up on the web site but I will have them ready for you next month. If you need them sooner please email me.
This month's devotional is a replay from a past issue. I have had several requests for help with teaching and training children in the Lord so I reworked a previous article and added a few new things. I hope you enjoy it. It is called ???Bringing Up Generation Next???.
As I promised last month I am giving away three copies of my friend Grace Fox??™s new book "10-Minute Time Outs for Busy Women".
The envelope please. And the winners are...
Navymomdeb, TheJobFamily and Eboneyedk8
Congratulations! I will be contacting each of you for your mailing address.
Warm wishes for every mom to have a Happy Mother??™s Day. I hope you have
a wonderful day and that your family expresses their appreciation for all you do for them.
Have a terrific May. Until next time...
Love and Blessings,
Martha Matthews, Executive Director
Christian Homemaking |
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"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." |
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Write to Martha here. |
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Pass it on...
Please share this newsletter with a friend or family member by forwarding it to them. They'll appreciate the thought. |
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Stayin Home and Lovin It! |
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Stayin Home and Lovin It! is an amazing team that is dedicated to helping people find the quality of life that they are looking for. We believe in working from the comfort of our homes and enjoying the important things in our lives. No large investment. No selling, stocking or delivering products. No pressuring people. No complicated paperwork. No collecting money or placing orders for people. NO RISK!!
http://www.northerndreamcatcher.com email address: stayinhomejen@hotmail.com |
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Balancing the roles of wife, mother and woman is rarely easy. |
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???Smell the Coffee and the Cookies Too!??? is a FREE monthly ezine for moms who want encouragement and coaching on living peaceful, balanced, and fulfilling lives. Lori Radun, writer and publisher of this ezine, is a Christian mom and Certified Life Coach for moms. To subscribe to her ezine or learn more about how coaching can change your life, go to http://www.true2youlifecoaching.com. |
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Devotional |
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Bringing Up Generation Next
Ephesians 6:4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (NIV)
When I was a young child, my parents sent me to Sunday school every week. They did not attend church, read the Bible or pray, but they wanted me to have what my dad referred to as "a good, moral upbringing". Because of the lack of spiritual guidance in our home, eventually I didn't want anything to do with God. By the time I was an adult, all I wanted was to satisfy my own selfish desires. It was painfully obvious that attending Sunday school once a week had not inspired me to thirst for a relationship with God.
As the scripture above points out, it is our God-given responsibility
as parents to bring up our children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. The question is how do we do that?
If you have a spouse who is willing to be involved in the spiritual upbringing of your children, that is a blessing. If you have an unbelieving spouse or are a single parent, take heart. You can still have a big impact on your children's hearts. Here are some actions you can take to get things started in the right direction.
1. Set an Example
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ???Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.??? (NIV)
It starts with us. If we love the LORD will all our heart, mind, soul and strength, He will be an active part of our daily lives.
He will be important to our children because He is important to us.
How is your spiritual walk impacting your children? Do your children see your relationship with God in action every day? Do your children see you studying and applying the Bible to your life? Do they hear you praying? Do they see you serving others? Do they witness you trusting in God through difficult situations? Is your love for others evident? Children will emulate what their parents model for them. If you walk the walk they will desire to follow the example you set.
2. Make God an Active Part of Your Child's Life
Deuteronomy 6:6-9 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along
the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (NIV)
Talking about God
Do you talk with your children about God on a daily basis? God is as real to our children as we make Him. Tell your children how God is working in your life. Point out how He is working in their lives. Use everyday situations as teaching tools.
Talking to God
Pray with them everyday. Teach them to pour their heart out to God (Psalm 62:8). Teach them to confess their sin to God (Psalm 32:5). Teach them to be thankful in prayer (Philippians 4:6). Teach them to praise God in prayer (Psalm 18:2-4).
4. Use the Bible
Family Devotionals
Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. (NASB)
Have weekly family devotionals. Choose a subject to discuss each week that is relevant to your family's needs. Remember, this is your opportunity to build a spiritual family. Make the most of this family worship time.
Plan your lesson in advance. Make it fun and inspiring.
After the Bible study have a time of questions and answers. Use the Bible and a Bible dictionary (with Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic definitions) to help answer their questions. Looking up the original meaning of a word or phrase in the Bible will help you keep things doctrinally sound.
Quiet Times
As your children get older, encourage them to have their own Quiet Times with God. Teach them how to do this by sharing your Quiet Times with them. Read the Bible together and then discuss it. Tell them what you got out of it and let them share what they got out of it. Show them how to look up scriptures in a concordance. Then close out with a prayer. You might even ask them to say a pray as well.
Memorizing Scripture
Psalm 119:11 ???I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.??? (NIV)
When we commit scripture to memory it becomes part of us; ???hidden??™ in our heart. This is how we equip ourselves for the spiritual battles that come our way. You can prepare your children for the spiritual battles that they face by helping them hide God??™s word in their hearts.
One way you can help your children learn memory verses is to have them write them out and look up the definitions of any words they are unsure of. Then they can memorize the scripture by repeating it out loud or writing it down several times.
One thing we have done in the children??™s ministry class that my husband and I teach is to write out each word from the passage
on individual three by five cards. We then scramble the cards and have they children put them back in the right order with the book, chapter and verse references at the end.
5. Apply the Word of God to Their Hearts
Proverbs 6:23 ???For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life??¦??? (NIV)
When they are old enough, say five or six, you can share specific passages with them when they are struggling in a particular area of their character. By applying the Word of God to their hearts you help them to respect God's Word and to learn that His Word has relevant meaning for our lives today.
6. Love Them Unconditionally
Proverbs 19: 22a ???What a man desires is unfailing love??¦???(NIV)
Everyone
desires unfailing love. It's the kind of love that never gives up on someone. It is a love that is unconditional. That's what we look to God for and what our children look to us for.
Show your unconditional love for your children. Love them even though they don't always do or act the way they should. That doesn't mean you accept wrong behavior. It simply means that you show them your love even though they are not perfect. This is the best way to teach them about God; by imitating God's unfailing love.
7. Pray for Them
1 John 5:14 ???This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us???. (NIV)
Another important thing you can do is to pray for your children to have a heart for God. It is God??™s will
that everyone should come to know him. When we pray for our children??™s heart to long for a relationship with God, He will hear our prayer.
These are just a few of the ways that you can help your children learn about God. Even if you haven't done any of theses things before, it is never too late to start.
???Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.??? Matthew 19:14 (NIV)
What we do does matter. What we don't do, matters even more. |
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Would you would like to help support the Christian Homemaking ministry? |
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If you would like to help support this ministry please visit the link below to find out more information.
Support Christian Homemaking |
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What We're Reading This Month |
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"A Purse-driven Life"
by Anita Renfroe
You??™ve heard of the Purpose Driven Life. Well now there's the Purse-driven Life! Christian humorist Anita Renfroe takes an estrogen-driven look at a woman's middle: mid-section, mid-life, mid-kids, mid-crazy.
It isn't about finding the deeper meaning of life; it's more about shifting your perspective just enough to locate the deep humor and joy waiting to be uncovered in everyday life.
Get a copy for yourself and one for a friend who could use a good laugh. She'll love you for it!
To pick up your copy of this book visit: A
Purse-driven Life |
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Get inspired and motivated. Share what you know and get the answers you need
Christian Homemaking Discussion Group
Christian Homemaking Forums |
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Recipes |
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Fresh Strawberries
By Sheri Allen
Spring has arrived, bringing with it the sweet start of strawberry season. Strawberries, the first fruit to ripen in spring, are enjoyed all over the world, with native forms growing on every continent except Africa and Australia. Families in 94% of American households eat strawberries, which were selected as the favorite fruit by more than half of all 7 to 9 year olds.
In addition to being delicious, strawberries are very nutritious. Ancient Romans prized strawberries for their medicinal value, believing the berries alleviated symptoms of melancholy, fainting, inflammation, fevers, throat infections, kidney stones, halitosis, attacks of gout and diseases of the blood, liver and spleen. In fact, strawberries are very high
in vitamin C, containing more vitamin C than a medium orange. Vitamin C helps your body heal, resist infections and maintain healthy bones, gums and teeth. Strawberries are also high in antioxidants and fiber, as well as a source of iron, calcium, folate and vitamin A.
Whether you buy your strawberries from a local farmer's market or the nearest chain grocery store, take time to select the sweetest, ripest berries. Look for bright red berries with fresh green caps. Make sure there are no signs of mold growth in the package; if one berry has mold, then you can be sure mold spores have spread throughout the entire package. One-and-a-half pounds of strawberries equals one quart, which will give you about four cups of sliced strawberries.
As soon as you get home with your strawberries,
put them in a shallow container, cover them loosely with plastic wrap and store them in the coldest part of your refrigerator for two to three days at most. Do not wash the berries until you are ready to use them. To wash your strawberries, put them in a colander and rinse them under cold running water. Then, just remove the green caps with a paring knife or the tip of a vegetable peeler. Now, you're ready to eat your strawberries or use them in your favorite recipe.
FABULOUS STRAWBERRY MUFFINS
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup melted butter
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
Preheat oven to 400?°F. Spray muffin
tin with nonstick cooking spray or line muffin cups with paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir until all ingredients are well blended.
In another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, butter, eggs and vanilla. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, pour liquid mixture in and add the strawberries. Using a large spoon, gently fold ingredients just until moist. Do not over mix.
Spoon the batter evenly into 12 muffin cups. Bake 20 to 25 minutes.
Makes 12 muffins
FRESH STRAWBERRY PIE
1 9-inch pastry shell, baked
4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp butter
1 cup whipped topping
Arrange
2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled side down, in cooled baked pastry shell. Make a sauce with the remaining 2 cups of strawberries: chop berries and heat them in a saucepan with sugar, water, cornstarch and salt. Remove from heat when thickened and stir in butter. Wait for the sauce to cool and pour it over the strawberries in pastry shell.
Chill for several hours.
When you're ready to serve, pipe, spoon or spread the whipped topping on top of the pie.
Makes 1 pie
TROPICAL STRAWBERRY PIE
8 oz. pkg. of cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
8 oz. can of crushed pineapple, undrained
1 cup grated coconut
8 oz. carton whipped topping, thawed
1 9-inch pastry shell, baked
With an electric mixer, cream together softened cream cheese and sugar
for 3 or 4 minutes on high speed. Stir the crushed pineapple and coconut into the cream cheese mixture and mix well. Carefully fold in half of the whipped topping until well-blended. Reserve remaining whipped topping for garnish. Spread the filling in baked pastry crust and chill for several hours.
When you're ready to serve, pipe, spoon or spread the whipped topping on top of the pie.
Makes 1 pie
Of course, these three recipes aren't the only way to enjoy fresh strawberries. They are delicious in smoothies, cakes, crisps, sauces, salads and so much more, including just washed and hulled. So go ahead, celebrate the arrival of spring and give your immune system a big boost. Savor the sweet taste of nutritious strawberries.
About the author
Sherri Allen
is the editor of an award-winning website devoted to topics such as family, food, garden, home and money. For free articles, information, tips, recipes, reviews and coloring pages, visit http://www.SherriAllen.com/ |
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Be a good steward of your time and money |
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Protect your family from harmful household products! Willing to try quality products for your home that are safer, environmentally friendly, and more cost-effective? Contact me for more information because you deserve to know! Visit my website http://www.AtHomeWellness.com or email me
AtHomeWellness@hotmail.com No financial risk involved. |
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Get Your Family's Budget Under Control for Good |
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Get your finances under control once and for all with the BudgetMap system.
It is so easy to use. No complicated software. Keep track of any type of transaction. See how your budget is doing at a glance. Finally you can get a handle on your spending!
Compare it with any other budgeting system. You??™ll be impressed!
BudgetMap |
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What's New at Christian-Homemaking.com |
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These articles and many others are accessible from our web site at
Christian-Homemaking.com
See what's new on the web site...
- Smart, Organized Shopping
- Bargain Hunting Strategies
- The 'Envelope System' In a Cashless Society
- Helping Your Kid??™s Grow a Garden
- A Quick Guide to Patio Surfaces
- How to Water Your Houseplants Wisely
- Make Your Own Greeting Cards
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Web Poll |
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Last Month??™s Poll Results
How often do you clean the inside of your vehicle?
Once a week (19) 17%
Once a month (9) 8%
As needed (40) 37%
When it gets so bad we can't stand it (41) 38%
109 total votes since 04/01/05
This Month's Web Poll
On a scale of 1 to 5 (with five being great) how would you rate your organizational skills as a home manager?
Sound off here: Web Poll |
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Martha Recommends... |
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Moms for Christ
The Moms for Christ mission is to support moms in providing a positive Christian environment for children of all ages. Moms for Christ knows the importance of applying biblical principles to promote the welfare of the family. Moms for Christ places value on the importance of building up the children of today to make a positive impact on future generations. This begins by supplying today's mothers with the resources necessary to provide a nurturing, faith-building home for their children.
http://momsforchrist.org/ |
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Reprint Information
Copies of this newsletter may be forwarded to non-subscribers, without alteration. Subscribers may keep copies of the information in this newsletter for their own personal use but under no circumstances is it to be used commercially. If you would like to use one of our articles please contact us
This newsletter may not be reproduced in part or as a whole without prior permission from
Christian-Homemaking.com?„?. |
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Find out how
Christian-Homemaking Advertising |
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Paid Advertising Disclaimer
Martha Matthews, The Wives of Excellence newsletter and Christian-Homemaking.com do not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any of the advertisements above or the quality of any products, information, or other materials displayed, purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an offer in connection with any ad. We encourage you to do your own due diligence before purchasing any product. |
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Subscription Management
To start or stop your subscription to Wives of Excellence, go to
Newsletter Management
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Your name and email address will always remain confidential. It will never be used for any purpose other than delivery of this newsletter, web site updates, event information and special communication from our Executive Director, Martha Matthews. |
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