Proverbs 31 Women of the Bible- part 5

Wow! This is the last installment of the Proverbs 31 Women in the Bible where the Old Testament is concerned! I've really grown in my faith while doing this series and the "Other Women of the Bible" series! So, let's look at some great role models of strong, Christan woman virtue.

Jehosheba: In 2 Kings 11 we meet this loving aunt. She risked her life to save her nephew from her mother. Then, she acted as his mother and raised him to know and worship God. He became a righteous and God-fearing king because of this!

Esther: Well, the whole book of Esther is about this young woman who was an orphan who became a Queen. With her trust in God, she saved her people from being completely wiped out! Her courage is outstanding and so inspirational!

The Psalms Girl: Okay, so I know most of the book of Psalms was written by David. But the book of Psalms has comforted me on a daily bases. Therefore, I like to believe there is a Psalms Girl in all of us. A girl who runs to God about everything and loves to praise Him!

Song of Songs Woman: The book of Song of Songs is a love story. We do not know the name of Solomon's bride in this book. I think she gives the best advice any girl can follow and that is to not be quick to wake up love. Take your time and let God pick the guy and fall in love with each other with Him as the center of the relationship!

I am in love with this series and I'm looking forward to getting into the New Testament soon. I hope y'all have enjoyed this too!

In the Eyes...of the One Who made You!

You are treasured

You are beautiful
In the eyes, in the eyes
Of the One who made you
You are perfect
You're worth more than you know
In the eyes, in the eyes
Of the One who made you 

 (1 Girl Nation  "In The Eyes")

I feel like I have nothing to write about. So, let's see where God leads this post!
I'll admit it, when this week started I had all of these great ideas for a blog post. Then six o'clock wake up calls, road construction, a messed up car, Moma hurting her back, and three college classes later, everything but these thoughts left my head. It has diffidently not been a dull first week of the new Fall Semester! So, here it is very late at night and I am just now writing a blog post.
Monday was the start of the early wake-up calls and the traffic due to road construction. It's my second year at a Community College and my first class is English. I enjoy this class because we write and read the whole time. My teacher is an older woman who, before teaching in college, taught in prisons. She is a kind lady who will really get you interested in the things you are reading and writing about.
My next class is public speaking and I love my teacher's fashion sense! I am terrified of public speaking and I do have social anxiety, but this teacher really tries to make the class fun and make all of us feel more comfortable. She'll tell us stories of her college classes and how she was terrified of public speaking too. This helps to calm my nervous some.
My last class is Developmental Psychology. My teacher is very soft spoken and laid back. I had her last semester for Introduction to Sociology. She comes up with these really creative activities for us to do and gives very thorough study guides and lectures. She is one teacher I never thought I would have before I started college. In High School, I had managed to convince myself I could never pass a psychology class. When I went to do some dull enrollment classes my Senior year, I was told Introduction to Psychology was one of the only classes I could take. Very reluctantly I took the class and fell in love with the subject! That was two and a half years ago and I still enjoy the subject!
I want to share some college knowledge that I wished someone had told me. First, even if you are going back to college for a second year and have your main supplies for school, do NOT wait until the day of classes to read the syllabi for your classes and see all the supplies you need that you didn't think of! This will help to take away a little of the stress of a new semester beginning. Second, if you have a lot of early morning classes don't try to take a night class also! I learned this the first day of classes and had to go drop my night math class! Third, I find Bible verses to go with the feelings I have towards a class and write them on sticky notes. Then, I tape those sticky notes on my books. being able to look down to those verses during class help me remember that God is right there with me!
I hope this post will be an encouragement to people who are experiencing college and any type of school. Thank you for caring about my thoughts and opinions to read what I write weekly!
God Bless,
Brandi; XOXO

Other Women of the Bible - part 4

The Medium of Endor: She was sinning by practicing witchcraft. She knew she was sinning because she wouldn't do what Saul asked until she knew she would not die. Her shock at seeing Samuel proves that, even though she was suppose to be someone who summoned the dead, she had never had something like that happen to her. We can learn two things from this unnamed woman. First, what sin and disobedience looks like and second, human kindness looks like. When Saul fell to the floor, she prepared the best food she had for him and got him to eat to regain his strength. (1 Samuel 28:3-25)
The Wise Woman of Tekoa: This woman used her acting skills to be very sneaky and dishonest. Joab had asked for her help in playing David's emotions over his son in the way Joab wanted them to go. See, David's son had in exile for three years because he killed his half-brother who raped Tamar (Other Women of the heBible-part 3). David was torn in two. He had a duty as king and a duty as a father that put him in a hard place. This woman went to David with a fake story about her two sons. According to her one son killed the other and was on the run so he wouldn't be killed. David caught on to her and realized that Joab was behind this, but her speech had worked and David's father side won out and his son got to return home. Joab did this because he wanted David's son to take the throne after David. The woman's part in this can teach us what it is like to have disrespect for our leaders and ourselves by telling lies. (2 Samuel 14:1-21)
Solomon's Pagan Wives: Okay, these women aren't talked about a lot in the Bible, but the actions they took had a lasting impact through the rest of the Bible. Solomon couldn't settle for one wife, so he had many. He took wives that believed in other gods. I think these wives were still exposed to the One True God but chose not to follow Him. What's the life lesson here? Even a small decision can have a lasting consequence.
Maakah: Not much is known about her besides that she is the mother of Abijah and grandmother of Asa. However, she did not follow God and her grandson removed her from the position of queen mother and burned her "repulsive images for the worship of Asherah" she had made. (1 Kings 15:13)
Jezebel: A Princess by birth. She married Ahab and became Queen of Israel (1 Kings 16:31). She demanded that her gods be considered as important as God, implying she knew the God of Israel is the True God, and she got her way. She was fortunate enough to have many miracles preformed in front of her by God (1 Kings 18:23-38). But, she chose to still not believe in Him. When her prophets were killed she promised to kill Elijah, God's prophet (1 Kings 19:1-2). She arranged a man named Nabath's death so her husband could have his vineyard (1 Kings 21:7-16)! She also used her power as Queen Mother, when her sons were Kings, for evil. Her own people ended up throwing her to a gruesome death (2 Kings 9:30-37)! I feel sorry for Jezebel, because she had so many opportunities to have a relationship with God. I think her love for power was to strong for her to give in to that kind of love though. It is possible that Jezebel is mentioned in the New Testament though. Revelation 2:20 says: "Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols." Jezebel did make a legacy for herself, but it wasn't a good one. So, think about this, what kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?
Athaliah: All that is said about her is that she was wicked and just wanted power. (2 Kings 11:1-3; 13-16)
The Adulteress Woman in Proverbs: She is unnamed, but she is the opposite of what the Proverbs 31 woman is. She tries to trick people and tempt them into sinning. (Proverbs)
Gomer: She is Hosea's wife. She was a known prostitute and she had no plans of changing. She was married to a man of God and she probably heard of God all the time. She missed out on more than one great relationship! (Hosea)