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Soul Spa |
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Monday, January 22, 2007 |
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Blog of the Palm Valley Women's Ministry |
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Love Them Like Jesus |
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By Soul Spa on
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
There are many times that I feel helpless. A friend or loved one is going through a difficult time and I long to find the perfect words to say or the perfect scripture to quote. It is at those times that my memory and natural tendency to be talkative completely fail me.
I have a dear friend that has been struggling for the last 5 years with numerous problems both marital and financial. I am the one friend that she has turned to during these times and the only one that has stuck by her. Fortunately she has a strong relationship with God and the support of family.
We have had thousands of conversations in those years and when they turn to the difficulties she is facing I try my best to offer godly advice, encouragement and, of course, lots of prayer. But I still feel helpless. This is compounded by the fact that she lives on the other side of the U.S. and we only see each o ...
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Beth Moore Conference Tickets |
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By Soul Spa on
Friday, July 06, 2007
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Noted speaker and author Beth Moore is coming to the Glendale Arena for a conference on Friday, November 16th from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. We're gathering a group of ladies to go and we'd love to have you join us. Beth will teach on walking out your faith in a message titled “From the Pages to the Pavement”.
Tickets are $50. You can register and pay online or at the resource table on the patio during the weekend.
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God's Love is All I Need |
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By Soul Spa on
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
Two weekend's ago at our women's retreat we heard from our beloved Beth Moore on the subject of "Loving Well". She of course said it much more eloquently, and in much more detail, but the bottom line of our weekend was that we need to live, and love, out of the overflow of God's love for us.
God is love. He loves us completely and unconditionally and we need to accept, and truly dwell in that love before we will be able to love others. Loving others is the second greatest commandment and really a measure of our spiritual maturity. (Mark 12:28-31)
Some probably have a really hard time just accepting the fact that God loves us unconditionally but I think I have a pretty good grasp on that.
But what does i ...
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Summer Reading Groups |
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By Soul Spa on
Friday, June 15, 2007
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Looking for a good new book to read? Sign up for one of the women's Summer Reading Groups.
Pick a book from the list below (or all 3), purchase a copy online or a local retailer, read it and then come to the group night ready to talk about what you learned and fellowship with other women.
“The Velveteen Mommy” by Jenn Doucette
Modeling her book after the beloved children’s classic “The Velveteen Rabbit” and injecting liberal doses of humor, Jenn asserts that becoming real hurts. She weaves in gentle Biblical encouragement to remind moms to hang in there – that God is with them in the midst of mommyhood pain! God doesn’t minimize our struggles, she writes, but uses the pain of mothe ...
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If God wills it, rely on it! |
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By Soul Spa on
Thursday, May 31, 2007
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by Jennifer Sloniger
Romans 8: 28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
This verse is so important to me. I don't know about you, but I need this verse! Sometimes I tend to bypass such a small sentence when reading scripture and forget that when it comes to God's Word every line, every word has deep meaning and is living breathing truth. Every word is a God-breathed gift to us!
Everything that exists is from God. It's all for His purpose. Sometimes I forget that. Sometimes I begin to operate less like I believe God has everything under His dominion and more like He's an absent minded professor just letting me run wild (and off into a ditch).
Our God is a God of great purpose. He is NOT ever into wasting ...
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Lessons From Daniel 2 - Part 2 |
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By Soul Spa on
Thursday, April 26, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
So, to continue with our 3 friends and the fiery furnace…
Daniel 3: 25 says that King Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
The only thing that God allowed to be touched by the fire was the ropes that bound the men. Sometimes we are so bound by the sin in our lives that God allows us to go through a fiery trial so that we can be freed from that long term bondage.
When the men came out, “They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.”
Nine years ago my husband’s grandparents house burned down. There was not much l ...
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Lessons from Daniel |
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By Soul Spa on
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
Lessons from Daniel Chapter 2 – Pt 1
If you grew up in church, you are probably very familiar with the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the fiery furnace. There were tons on interesting points Beth made in the study, but the biggest area was in relating the story to our own personal “fiery trials”. She outlined 3 scenarios.
Scenario A: We can be delivered from the fire. Dividend? Our faith is built. (Although sometimes we later forget and tend to chalk the deliverance up to luck or coincidence.)
Scenario B: We can be delivered through the fire. Dividend? Our faith is refined.
(NOTE: We will never escape trials entirely)
Jn 11:4 (Lazarus death) When he heard this, Je ...
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In the Face of Tragedy |
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By Soul Spa on
Thursday, April 19, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
So many emotions have been present this week as I have watched the tragedy at Virginia Tech unfold – horror, helplessness, sadness. If I let myself, the despair of living in such a world can often overwhelm me. Last night I was reading a news story that listed each of the victims and told a little bit about them. One in particular really touched me.
Lauren McCain, 20, of Hampton, Va., an undergraduate majoring in international studies.
On her MySpace page, McCain listed “the love of my life” as Jesus Christ. Her family said McCain became a Christian some time ago.
“Her life since that time has been filled with His love that continued to overflow to touch everyone who knew her,” the family said in a statement.
"Lauren had s ...
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Learning to Know Him |
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By Soul Spa on
Monday, April 16, 2007
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By Karina Yandell
Can anyone out there relate? While preparing to speak to a MOPS group last week on the topic of “This Season of Our Lives,” I came across the following excerpt from some journaling I did when my own children were preschoolers:
I have a three-year old daughter and a nineteen-month old son, and I have finally reached the point where I can shower in the morning without keeping my children corralled in the bathroom with me. As I’m certain other mothers can understand, reaching this point has given me an incredible sense of freedom. No longer do I have to shower in a frenzied rush, wondering about whom is getting into what, why there is so much crying and yelling going on, or – even worse – why it is so quiet.
When I entered into motherhood, no one told me I would have to give up that wonderful, stan ...
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Parent's Prayer Program |
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By Soul Spa on
Friday, April 13, 2007
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by Julie Gumm
Like all moms, I’ve prayed daily for my children since they were born. It was the usual stuff – keep them safe, let them grow up to love Jesus, etc. Then one day an article in the Focus on the Family magazine changed the way I pray for my children.
Written by Bob Hostetler, the Parent’s Prayer Program lays out a way for us to pray that our children will develop strong Christian morals and the fruits of the spirit. Use these prayers during your quiet time or throughout the day. You may even want to include them when saying bedtime prayers with your child so that he/she can hear the character traits that God desires in them.
1 salvation "Lord, let salvation spring up within my children, that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesu ...
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