Category Archives: The Loft

Strong Women – The LOFT

Mentors.

Graphic by Kerry Messer  
The Loft: A weekly Hangout and Link Up for Christian bloggersThis week’s subject at the LOFT. Mentors mentoring. It’s a holy calling. Perhaps mentoring looks a little different than it did a few decades ago.  Perhaps we are modeling different skills than we once did. But I am hoping the values are the same.

Likewise, tell the older women to behave the way people leading a holy life should. They shouldn’t be slanderers or slaves to excessive drinking. They should teach what is good, thus training the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to take good care of their homes and submit to their husbands. In this way, God’s message will not be brought into disgrace.  [source]

My Little Girl’s Face Book cover pic is a reflection of her mentoring, the mentoring she has received and the mentoring she gives. In a Biblical frame, which is the frame she intends, it is excellent. It reads this way: Strong women. May we know them. May we raise them. May we be them.
(She captured it from All Inspired Boutique

Perhaps you have guessed, Little Girl has a flavoring of feminism.  It’s bolder than mine. Were it not so that her strong woman covering is rooted in Scripture, I’d worry; but Little Girl has learned to own her weaknesses and to take them to the ONE in Whom there is no weakness. I hope she learned that from me. :)

Many women of her generation are not keepers at home; all the more reason for us to mentor them to be keepers of their homes. To help them be strong women active in their homes, even if someone else runs the vacuum and scrubs the toilet, strong godly women purpose themselves to keep their homes clean of filth. They need us older women to model how. I hope I have and I hope we all keeping doing so. Here’s how.

Ephesians 5  (KJV)

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.

But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;

Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

The giving of thanks.

So simple. To know strong godly women, raise strong godly women and be strong godly women we just need a thankful heart given voice with thankful words, helping hands and steady feet – this is the best filth chaser I know!

Lets mentor!

Until Next Time ~ ~ ~ Kathie

Praying ‘n’ The Loft

House of Prayer. That’s what JESUS said the Temple (for us Church) was to be. He was quoting from Isaiah 56:7.

Isaiah 56:7 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

I will bring them to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

House of Prayer. A place where people gather and pray. Together. But you know what? We are the CHURCH. So any two or more can gather anywhere in HIS NAME and HE will be present with them. HE said so. See Matthew 18:20. (HE is present when even one prays :) but for the purposes of this piece, I am speaking of a gathering of at least one more.)

The Loft: A weekly Hangout and Link Up for Christian bloggersGraphic by Kerry Messer 

Today’s LOFT subject is prayer.
A matter of thought that has been rolling around in my heart/mind for a few years as the MAIN practice that would change the world, beginning with our Local Congregations of The Body of Christ – The Church.
Real prayer. I mean gathering for the expressed and practiced purpose of praying. Aloud. Together. For the Church. For the Lost. For the Nation. For the World. For one another.

Many Churches still have Prayer Meeting on Wednesday night. I attended one last night. We gathered, we fellow-shipped, we shared prayer requests, a prayer was offered, the Pastor spoke, another prayer was offered, we fellow-shipped a little more and we went home. I am grateful for those prayer meetings, but such prayer meetings will not change a local assembly of believers, or a community, or city, or state, nation or world. It will take more.

I was privileged about a decade and half ago to be a part of a very special group of prayer-s. It was a season of struggle and deep sorrow for me and yet then and now a most treasured juncture. Memories to this day are precious and honored.  We were 20 to 25 strong, gathering each Sunday evening. We fellow-shipped (for an hour or so) at various homes over a meal, sometimes a big spread, other times just sandwiches, chips and dessert; and then we prayed. Individually all around the room, one after the other we poured out our hearts before GOD and each other. It was a safe group. A group GOD had called together. To my knowledge there was nary a betrayal of confidence, even to this day.  We’d meet around 5:00 in the early evening and reluctantly break to go home around 9:00 that night.

Those prayer gatherings, that communion, that power in prayer I have not known in recent years — but I want to. I believe it is the answer to our ails. I believe if we are to see revival; if we are to see an awakening in the Christian Church it will take praying together all over Christendom.

 And so it is for this I pray. Sometimes in my ‘war room’, sometimes written in my prayer journal, sometimes on this computer screen, sometimes walking about, sometimes with others, praying for more others to join in. 

Until Next Time ~ ~ ~ Kathie

Being Me – Blogging?

The Loft. I’m late getting here. I am often late for many things and places. Oh well. Better late than never. Right?

 (Graphic by Kerry Messer)the-loft

Why do I blog?

There was a time I blogged much more than now. See my earlier post about blogging.

I still want to influence for good. My most fulfilling pleasure is still sharing THE WORD with others. And I do. Albeit, not as much here as in an earlier season of being me. The desire to get back to it is still present but alas the dedication continues lacking. But I’m here today. :)  And yet shortly I will be off and running – oh that needs to be literally but that may not happen either. You see my beloved hubby is retired! Six Saturdays week! We love it and we have been spending them fast and furiously – here and there, mostly with family and sometimes we get to squeeze in some friends. Truthfully, I don’t know what’s ahead for us, for me with blogging or etc. but it will be good cause DADDY GOD is good!

13 Here is the final conclusion, now that you have heard everything: fear God, and keep his mitzvot; this is what being human is all about. [source]

Well, time to get moving. We are forging :) for oranges today. USA oranges. Not so easy to find these days here in Lower Alabama. 

Blessings Sweet Friends 

Until Next Time ~ ~ ~ Kathie

Everyday, Every Day

“Sacred, everyday moments of life.”  (Day Twelve, Page 59; A Grandmother’s Prayers by Kay Swatkowski)

Strikes me today; so I’m writing! :)

What is sacred about an everyday Wednesday? Or Tuesday? Or Friday for that matter?

Wow! Let us carefully examine these definitions of sacred.
What if we considered:
1. This day as exclusively devoted to Jesus?
2. This day to be worthy to be regarded with reverence?  See Psalm 118:24 24 This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
3. This day as having been declared holy by The LORD Himself – what if we agreed with Him and so embraced it – this ordinary (holy, sacred) Wednesday?
4. This day devoted exclusively to pleasing Him with our conduct and activities? Like riding our bikes? And looking for Him in everything as we go! :)
5. This day we respected theses 24 hours and used them wisely? See Ephesians 5:16  16 Use your time well, for these are evil days.
6. This day is related to worship just as much as Sunday? Just as much as Sunday, we dedicate this day to worshiping Jesus in everyday things we do today?
What if?
What if this everyday, ordinary Wednesday was sacred ?
But it is!
It really is!
Oh I hope I remember this when this post is sent and I am on my way into this everyday sacred Wednesday or  Thursday, Friday . . . 
Until next time ~ ~ ~ Kathie

The Loft: A weekly Hangout and Link Up for Christian bloggers
Graphic by Kerry Messer