Thoughts on the Young Lady's Role....

...in church and in society.

Lately, I've been pondering something rather interesting. If college were not an option, and young ladies were at home, what would be their role in the church? In other words, what would position would they play traditionally?

I had a few ideas about this...

One, that they would be helping their parents with little ones and housework and so on.

Two, that they'd be helping young mothers in the church, both during the services (like in nursery) and at other times during the week. This is actually something that is really lacking in our culture... My mother was blessed to live where there were young ladies willing to help her out after she had us older children. One of the young ladies told mama that she had kind of felt like, why does she need so much help? Until after she had children of her own. Then she understood. :)

Anyway, in our church there are many young mothers, and I'm sure they would all appreciate a young lady coming to help them... unfortunately, while I have been able to help some mothers, (like the one whose house I went to nearly daily for around a month) I can't help all of them as well as I'd like. And... sadly, most of the other young ladies are busy with college and their jobs and so forth. So there is definitely a lack of help in that area.

Three, I thought they'd be teaching younger girls what they've learned. (like Bright lights)

And, four, learning from the older women in the church.

Well, those are some of my thoughts... what do you all think? Any more things to add? Take away?

The Amazing Women in My Life

I am incredibly blessed to have had the influence of many amazing ladies in my life. I have thought of this sort of post for a long time, and now that it's around (well, a bit after) Mother's Day, I thought it would be a good time to write about it.

Katrina

What blessed me most about Katrina was her very evident love for God. She had a wonderful way of praying... you could really tell she was talking to God, and that she really loved and knew Him. She told stories in such an interesting way. My brother Josiah always said that he liked it when she would do the "Devotion" part of our homeschool coop. She was also very fun-- she likes to play games and do crafts. They used to be neighbors, but moved away-- So that's why I talking in past tense... Right before they left, she had us girls over for a sleepover, and stayed up talking to Hannah and I. She told us very funny stories of when she was a girl. She is very humble! I also admired her for not complaining about her health. (She has hip problems.) Also, she had an amazing garden, with pretty much all the edible tropical plants that can grow here. Which is pretty amazing!

Jeanne

One of the things that stands out to me about her is that she listens really well. She always is interested in what you have to say and offers good advice if you need it, goes along with crazy ideas, is ready to "philosophize" with you about anything, and so on. Another thing that is really amazing about her is her faithfulness and love for her unsaved husband. This is a good problem, because when they were married, they were both unsaved. Now she is saved, and her husband is not. So prayers for him would be appreciated. She is curious, and willing to learn. She is a "technology mom". They have 6 children, from 20 to 6, whom she loves very much. She also has many, many animals in her house and on their other property. We're talking 3 dogs, 4 or more cats, tons of fish, a snake, bearded dragon, 6 cattle, 4 hives of bees, and I'm sure there's more. So that in and of it self is pretty amazing. :) Well, there's more I could say about her, but I have to stop sometime.

Carol

Just the fact that she is a Pastor's wife and mother of 8 children under 13 is enough to make me admire her! She is a very happy, friendly person who is easy to talk to and to like. Her love for the Lord and desire to serve Him are a real encouragement to me and I'm sure many others. She is also a great cook on top of all that. I really like her potato casserole, sloppy joes, and cheese bread. And the cookies. :) I also admire her hospitality and heart for families. And of course, there's so much more...

Yuko

Yuko, as you may have guessed, is from Japan. I admire her for her adapting to America, for her enthusiasm, her hospitality, her amazing cooking (sushi [no raw fish], miso soup, and much more!) her creativity, economy (when they were first married, she lived on popcorn for most of the day and made a nicer meal for her husband! She also washed clothes in the sink) and also for honoring her husband, who isn't the easiest person to honor.

Well, there are many more ladies who have impacted me... perhaps I will do a part two sometime. :) But I wanted to get this up, since I actually wrote it last year. I know, terrible. :P

Now that I'm Twenty...

... I have been looking back on my teen years. Mostly I like what I see, but I think--well, know--that I could have used them even better, and so I want to encourage other young people to do even more than I have done. I think the most important and helpful things that I have done with my teen years were developing useful skills (such as childcare, cleaning, sewing, and so on), reading life-changing (not fluff) books, growing closer to God, learning how to communicate well, developing good habits, (keeping my areas tidy, etc...) making a list of goals and things I wanted to learn and then doing them, starting and leading a Bright Lights group, and making and using the notebook that I blogged about here.

Things I would do differently... I would use time more wisely. I spent a lot of time sort of wandering around or reading books that didn't really count for much, instead of helping out or reading good books or playing with my siblings or things of that sort. I would spend more time praying and reading my Bible. I would be more respectful to my parents and more helpful and kind to my siblings. :) Things like that.

"Little things have big results sometimes." Willie Without, Margaret Moore

To say something you (hopefully) already know again... God's ways definitely work. And the world's are very painful and don't work. Fairly simple...My cousins have been kind enough to demonstrate this very plainly to us. *sad smile* Even though it sometimes seems like it's harder to follow God's ways, in the long run, they are "easier".

I would encourage those who are still in their teens to use these years to the fullest for the glory of God... they are a blessing and an exciting time if used rightly! :D

Do Hard Things!