Lisa Jacobson's Blog, page 4

4 Books That Will Make You Thirsty for God’s Word

Have you ever been thirsty?

You know, that all-consuming desire��when your lips get dry, your tongue grows��fuzzy, your throat becomes��scratchy, and your mind goes��about crazy with one thought: water!!

Maybe it was after an afternoon of��working in your garden under the scorching��summer sun. ��Perhaps it was after a long day of interactions and conversations at home or in the workplace.

There are many reasons that cause us intense thirst, but only one cure: water. Some say that a��cold glass of lemonade or a tall cup of sweet tea will satisfy. But the reality is that only water truly replenishes our body and quenches the need for hydration.

Sometimes our bodies are dehydrated and we don���t recognize or feel the symptoms. ��At those times it���s important to take supplements that will help us absorb the water we desperately need, and usually, they help us feel the thirst, as well.

I want to introduce you to four��books that will cause you to recognize your heart’s thirst for the Word of God.

“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.��

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How to Encourage Strong Sibling Relationships

It’s a familiar scene these days. One of my boys comes running into the room where I am, with the other hot on his heels yelling or threatening to throw something. Usually, there has been harsh words spoken, names called and feelings hurt. ��Honestly some days I just want to hide and not deal with it at all.

The truth is that my boys really love each other. But like most people who spend a lot of time together, they also know how to push each other’s buttons. As a family, we have committed to being best friends with our siblings but it does take lots of patience, grace, and training.

4��Ways to Encourage Siblings to be Best Friends

These days sibling rivalry is viewed at something to be expected. Like it’s not a big deal to have brothers and sisters going at each other all the time. I completely disagree and it breaks my heart to see siblings behave this way. Over the years I have tried to instill in my boys the importance of cherishing the relationship they have with each other.

Here are a few things that are working for us right now as the training continues:

No Fighting.

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How to Overcome Your Stress and Worry

I am super gifted at putting together to-do lists with 500 tasks on them.

I also am great at��feeling annoyed, frustrated and stressed when I don���t get them all check off by the end of the day.

This leads me down a bad path. First I feel overwhelmed and worry about how I am going to catch up on all the stuff I didn���t get done and then I dread how busy the��rest of my week is going to be. I am pretty sure I am not alone on this never ending merry-go-round.

Living this way is actually a real problem because in our stress and worry we are disobeying and distrusting God.

We Disobey God

God knows our frame. He made us and he understands how we function best. And so, in Matthew 6 Jesus tells us to not worry about tomorrow. ��There are a number of reasons why he tells us this, here are two.

First, we have not been given tomorrow. We only have today. Therefore we should focus on what we have and not on what we don���t have.

Secondly, ��we are not built to carry the load of two or more days at a time.

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How A Woman Can Have a Strong Faith

What does it mean to be a woman of strong faith? How can you get past hurt or disappointment? The stories of others can be a powerful testimony for us.

As little kids, we love stories. I���m getting ready to teach little kids about the Bible at church tomorrow night. I know that if I can start off with a rousing story from my own life, I���ll have those children in the palm of my hand. They���ll be leaning forward, wondering how my story is going to turn out.

But then we grow up, and we get all serious. That���s when we start stumbling in our faith and wondering why it���s so hard to believe in God.

Stories

Stories, I tell you. We never outgrow our need for a rousing story.

Jesus says to his followers:

Truly I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3 ESV)

Children say, ���Tell me a story!��� With their imaginations, they enter into the story and believe it is real.

So if you���re struggling with believing God is who he says he is and that he will do what he says he will do, I���ll say, Oh yeah?

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22 Marriage Tips Every Newlywed Wife Should Know

Going into marriage doesn’t always mean we know what to expect or how to handle conflicts we weren’t anticipating, or even avoiding unnecessary conflict. A few marriage tips can go a long way!

I couldn’t help loving the way he looked at her.

With so much admiration and tenderness in his eyes.

She was talking to me. But she was the only one he could see.

They hadn’t been married for very long, these two. Less than a year.

But, clearly, they were off to a great start.

And I don’t just mean they were starry-eyed for one another – although there was plenty of that going on – but how obvious it was that their two hearts were one. Close, kind, and passionate. Two lovers married for life.

Later, when there was a lull in the conversation, I casually asked how it was going.

You know, that whole first-year-of-marriage thing.

He seemed almost sheepish in his answer. “Yeah, I’m not sure. Everyone said it would be so hard and yet…it’s been rather wonderful.”

He said it as if it was something for which he should apologize.

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For My Daughter: A Good Man is Worth Waiting For

It’s not easy being young.

Especially when you’re a girl and eagerly looking forward to the upcoming Hoedown on Saturday night.

She had no trouble picking out a blouse or borrowing a cowboy hat from a friend.

But finding the perfect denim skirt? That was another matter.

Our daughter looked up at me with pleading eyes, “Please, Mama, can we go thrift shopping for a skirt? I have the outfit all pictured in my mind. Please….?”

Oh, how I wanted to help her out.

I mean, on the one hand, it wasn’t a big deal, right? Just another Saturday night event at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch.

The Ranch of Rescued Dreams.

But then again, it kinda is . . . when you’re a fun-loving, dreamy girl. And it’s not been so very long that I don’t remember what that’s like.

So I honestly wanted to do this for her. But I couldn’t.

My day was more-than-filled and I couldn’t see how to pull it off. I tried to soften the blow and let her down easy.

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5 Classic Novels That Set the Bar

Adults can still enjoy a great classic and learn from the characters by losing themselves in a story within a time and place far from here.

I am not one of those people who has read every classic ever written. I read slowly, so a thick, heady tome is a significant commitment for me. When I was young, my mother read many classics aloud to me. I still remember sitting on the rug, listening to Alice Through the Looking Glass, Black Beauty, and Tom Sawyer. As an adult, however, it’s easier to forget my novel on my bedside table for long periods of time as I run to and from work and try to maintain something resembling a social life.

This is why, when I choose a novel, I don’t do so willy-nilly. My time is precious and books are endless: I need only read the best. When I look for a new book (especially a new old book!), I try to find books with the same qualities I first fell in love with from the rug in my childhood home. Great characters you could root for, excellent writing, solid plot and something simmering below the surface that stirs up a mysterious desire for another chapter.

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How To Be the Friend You Need

Making friends and building strong relationships isn’t easy, but it isn’t impossible and there are some steps you can take today to make it a reality!

Knowing I���d be single parenting for a week, I planned my time quite intentionally.�� We had events to attend and work to get done, but I���m not used to parenting alone��and the void I noticed when my husband was gone, even as I went about my normal routine, was huge.�� The days seemed longer, lonelier, and even with four kids, quieter.

It was on one of those particularly long and quiet afternoons that a friend sent me a text, ���bring the kids and come over for dinner tonight!����� It was as if she knew. I didn���t have to say the words, but she knew.�� That is communion lived out; that is a beautiful friendship.

We ate and chatted over grilled cheese and tomato soup and I left with a heart even fuller than my stomach.�� Friendship has the ability to do that.

We were made for union and communion, to connect and relate, to thrive in intimacy.�� We were made to know and be known and friendships are a beautiful expression of that.��

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Missionary Biographies to Inspire and Challenge Your Faith

Reading missionary biographies can be life changing and really challenge us in our faith. I hope these stories can whet your appetite for a deeper faith.

I grew up surrounded with books about missions. The bookshelves were lined with stories of Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael, David Livingston, Eric Liddell, and more. It was clear by the message of these books, that sharing Jesus with all people, no matter the hardship, is a vital aspect of our Christian life.

The Brave Stories of Others

As I grew older, I hate to admit, but the stories stayed on the shelves. Until recently, I happened across Lords of the Earth by Don Richardson. Within a few pages, I couldn���t put the book down. These true stories of God working through people to triumph over evil became more exciting than any fiction book. Even though they often contain tragedy, the story doesn���t stop there.

I shared these books with some of my friends. When they returned them, I asked what they thought of the stories. We found ourselves in a discussion of what spiritual aspects we never had before. We talked about how God prepared people for His truth, how the wives of the missionaries trusted God with even their children���s safety and health, how faith in God trumps any fear, and more.

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Are You Growing Strong Inside?

Are you growing strong spiritually? What are some ways to ensure you’re exercising your spiritual muscles so you can become a godly woman of strength?

I can’t say exactly when it started.

But I’m pretty sure it began when I could no longer pick up our little girl. The one whose legs won’t work for her.

Especially as she’s not so little anymore. She’s nearly the same size as me.

So when she’s on the floor . . . but needs to be in her wheelchair . . . and I’m the only one home . . .

We had a definite dilemma.

And I have to tell you it troubled this mama’s heart. Something terrible.

My husband caught me standing over her one day with tears filling my eyes.

Being a let-me-fix-it kind of guy, he insisted, “Just let me pick her up. I’m strong enough to do the job.”

Now please understand that I was grateful for his offer. But it didn’t truly solve my problem because that man of mine isn’t always home.

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