Sit Still My Daughter Summer 2021 Issue

r e t h Sit Still my Daug

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 1

Summer 2021

learning to be still in a noisy world

I said “no” twice

saying no to the good and waiting on God’s best

He took my Shame away

Hope for Tomorrow

Crash of the Dragonfly

2 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 3

4 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Cover photo by : @jewelliaphotography

Editorial Team Caroline Fike

Media Sources Adobe Stock Pexels Pixabay

Our mission is to help women discover who they are in Christ and the difference we can make when we simply allow God to work within us.

This requires that we have a relationship with Him and we nurture our relationship by seeking Him, and we seek Him in the quiet place.

In a world that is so fast-paced, where every moment something seems to be vying for our attention, it can be difficult to be still, but it is needful that we still our souls.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 5

From her desk “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1

A new season is here and one of the more popular ones at that, especially with the children who love the school-free days.

Warm sunshine, abundant produce, and extra daylight to enjoy those outdoor activities like baseball make this a pleasant season.

Of course, as much as we enjoy Summer, it, like all the others, will have an end but this is what makes it more precious and even valuable because it is not infinite. Each day must be treasured and soaked in before it disappears forever.

There is also an assurance that comes from knowing a season is not indefinite. We are glad that the rain doesn’t last forever, or that the wind doesn’t blow every day. While each is a necessary part of life meant to work together to bring something to completion, it is wonderful to know that the individual elements only have a short life span.

In the same way we are reminded that each season in life has a beginning and an end. While we enjoy those days of sunshine and laughter, wishing that we could hold on to them a little longer we are grateful that the sorrow and pain have an end. God knew that and gave us hope.

“Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. For his anger endureth

but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Psalm 30:4-5 I am grateful for this verse and the many others found in God’s Word that remind me of the wonderful hope that is mine. Often in moments of deep pain and overwhelming discouragement it is easy to forget that truth, making ourselves vulnerable to Satan’s lies.

The flood of negative emotions is too much for my soul to handle which is why it is essential for me to take them to God, to lay them down at His feet. In those seasons of tears and doubt He gently, softly whispers reminders of His great love and assures me that this is only a season, one that will end. He tells me that each season is necessary, to form me into His glorious image because no season, however trying, is ever wasted.

My God is a God of purpose and He is always good, meaning that I can trust Him with my whole heart. The best thing I can do is sit still as His daughter and dwell on the precious promises He has given to me.

May I encourage you, my friend, to sit still in those seasons of difficulty, trusting the heart of your Heavenly Father and remember that this season too will pass? Treasure the beautiful moments and draw strength from the knowledge that the challenging days are not forever but each have a purpose for today that we will one day comprehend when we stand before the throne of the One who loves us with an everlasting love.

Sarah Schurman Editor

6 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Inspiration

Table of

8 Eve - Hope for Tomorrow

She received the first curse but also was the first recipient of hope.

40 Crash of the Dragonfly

Her worst nightmare had come true but even in disaster God is still sovereign.

74 Let's Get Moving

Summertime is the perfect opportunity to enjoy some fun, healthy activities with your children and keep them moving.

56 Knowing God

Why is it so vital that we take the time to know God?

86 Life In Focus

After growing a successful photography career, Christy now wants to pass on her passion to the next generation.

20 I said “No” twice

Sometimes it takes more courage to say no to good things in order to wait on the best. For Julie, that meant saying no to two men.

106 He took my Shame Away

She thought she had it all yet her heart yearned for more, she never thought she would find it at church.

In the Home 82 Wedding Floral Tips

Wedding florist, Anna Nicholson, shares a few helpful tips for brides.

52 Garden Party Summer Tablescape

Grace in my Space Sarah Symonds shares how to create a beautiful tablescape suitable for any gathering.

34 Summertime Delights

Ready to enjoy the best this warm season has to offer? Get started with these amazing recipes by Cook 2 Flourish.

Contents

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 7

For the Moms

98 Go with God - A Guide to get Moving Postpartum Life is busy but children take it to a whole new level, Eliza shares helpful tips to encourage and keep you going in this new season.

Of Interest 72 Mind, and Soul

Read a few tips that can help your well-being.

112 Your Quiet Time

A few tools that can help your quiet time plus a three month Bible reading plan.

96 5 Simple Ways to Meditate on God's Word Learn a few helpful tips to help you meditate more.

70 Rahab's Rope There is no way to truly understand the horrors endured by the women rescued from sex trafficking, but one ministry strives to give them a fresh start and a lot of love.

8 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 9

Joys of Summertime

by Elaine Knotts

It’s summertime, the grass so green, The butterflies and birds are adding To the beauty of the scenery.

The flowers that were planted earlier have grown, as they gently blow in the breeze.

Their colors are so vibrant and their fragrance, how it does please.

The sounds of kids playing in the neighborhood, is music to my ears.

Ballgames, bike rides, and at night, Catching lightning bugs, is such a delight.

Each season supplies such joy, Which the Lord reveals in so many ways.

From the beauty of the flowers to the sound of Birds that sing so cheerfully in the morning, To start us on our way.

10 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

hope for tomorrow

by Sarah Schurman Have you ever done something so bad that you felt

you could never move past it or ever seek forgiveness?

Is there something in your past that you believe is so unforgivable you are afraid to share it with others for fear of being turned away? Does the weight of shame from your previous choices hold you back from your potential today? If so, you are not alone and you are not the first; that title goes to a woman named Eve.

Hers is a story that is relatable in so many ways. She was created in a perfect world yet succumbed to temptation and did her best to fix her mistakes but only succeeded in making it worse and tried to hide from God because we fear His disappointment and rejection. Sound familiar? We all have been in a similar predicament at one point in our life, but not only is Eve’s story relatable, it is also filled with redemption, something that is as much offered to us as it was at the beginning of time.

Before we really begin to unpack her story, let’s lay a foundation first.

God formed man in His image, both male and female were created in His image but it was not generic. Sometimes we forget that God endowed each gender with qualities and characteristics that are unique to their own gender. Man represents God’s strength; he reflects a God who protects. Woman represents God’s gentleness, and His mercy. We reflect

this to the world, together as man and woman we represent a clear image to the world. Think about that for a moment, men and women have a distinct role in displaying the complete image of God. This is why the gender issue is so important because the more we drift away from God’s original purpose the more distorted His image becomes to those around us. It is vital that we embrace who we are created to be because those who are lost need to see God, the whole, complete image of who He truly is and that is only accomplished when men and women live as they were formed by God.

As women, we also represent something else that is special about our God, He is a relational God, a God who pursues and wants to be pursued. As women we want to be pursued by a man, not the other way around. We want a man to seek us out, to learn about us and invest time in us. Our God is the same, for He desires us to seek Him.

“Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart” Jeremiah 29:12-13

We were given this desire to be pursued so that we can share it with the world, so that the world

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 11

Hers is a story that is relatable in so many ways. She was created in a perfect world yet succumbed to temptation and did her best to fix her mistakes but only succeeded in making it worse and tried to hide from God because we fear His disappointment and rejection. Sound familiar?

12 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

would know that our God wants to be found by His creation. We possess something that the world desperately needs and Satan surely does not want us to share it. He will do everything he can to hinder us, including filling our heads with untruths just like he did with Eve.

He tempted her in the garden and made her discontent with perfection, that is mind blowing and scary at the same time. He is an adversary that should never be underestimated. He was powerful enough to persuade a woman who lived in a perfect world to want more and he has only had more time to perfect his tactics. He caused her to believe that God was holding out on her; sadly, she felt it necessary to take matters into her own hands which would only make things worse. Too late she realized her mistake and her consequential nakedness, making a feeble attempt to cover her sin with large fig leaves sewn together. Hear-

ing God’s voice coming toward them in the garden, both Eve and her husband Adam quickly shielded themselves in the leafy foliage.

This is an interesting and revealing part of the story as we read the persistence of God. He called for them and did not leave until they came out in the open. He knew where they were and why they were hidden but He refused to leave them there, He pursued them for several reasons. The first being that what had transpired needed to be dealt with and second, He loved them too much to ignore them in their now sinful state.

Though sin would now separate them from the presence of God, it could never separate them from His love. What a beautiful reminder this is to us: our God loves us too much to leave us behind so, instead He relentlessly pursues us desiring to restore our

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 13 broken relationship. Our rebellious choice to sin hurts and grieves His holy heart, and we know that He is disappointed in us, which often leads us to withdraw from Him.

all mankind could receive the forgiveness that restores them into the presence of God, a God who is actively pursuing His creation. She who had given into temptation was promised a way of redemption.

But our loving God actively pursues us, desiring only to offer us forgiveness if we confess our sins, a forgiveness that can restore us to full fellowship with Him. No amount of scars, wounds, or flaws can deter His pursuit or hinder His cleansing forgiveness. We are too valuable to be cast aside. Will there be consequences for our actions? Yes, just as it was for Adam and Eve, but we will never be able to deal with them or face them properly until we have come clean and made our heart right with the Lord.

There is something else that is thought-provoking about Eve’s story and that is her name. It was not given to her until after the fall. On the outside of the Garden of Eden, as the two sinners face a whole new way of life, Adam gives her the name Eve meaning mother of all living, a name representative of who she would become.

For this first couple, their fellowship would be forever altered, they would witness the consequences of their actions on the entire world. Animals turned on each other, the earth no longer willingly gave of her fruit but required man to work hard for it, and man would turn on their own kind, something they would witness first hand between two of their children.

For Eve, this must have been especially hard because she was reminded of her disobedience daily, yet even in this God was gracious by extending her hope. The day she and her husband were handed their judgement she was given something special, a promise of hope. Someday, through a woman, God would send His son to earth, born of a virgin, so that

Names are powerful and have meaning, so much so, that there are numerous times God changed the names of certain individuals in the Bible. Abram became Abraham, Jacob became Israel and Sarai became Sarah and, remember, we will also receive a new name in heaven. This name tells others what type of person we were on earth, another reminder that our

14 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 time on earth is merely preparation for eternity and what we do with it matters.

Do you feel as if you have ruined your chances? Do you believe that you can never be used again?

Satan wants you to believe you have, but not God. The story of Eve is proof of that for everyone who has a past. She would forever bear the sorrow of a lost yesterday as she watched the consequences of sin unfold on the earth but God in His great mercy allowed her to have a vital part in bringing about mankind’s hope

for tomorrow, in His Son Jesus Christ.

Even though we have made so many mistakes and failed so often, God is never done with us, He never quits but is always in an endless pursuit of us.

No matter what we have done with our life, no matter how great our failure, He always has a plan, He always has something for us to do, something that no one else can do. He has given each of us hope for tomorrow through the power of redemption to all who believe in His Son Jesus Christ.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 15

In the cool of the day she sat quietly gathering her thoughts wistfully she remembers when this was her favorite time of day It was when God Himself would come and walk with her and her husband.

Shame clouds her countenance as she relives how her pride and lust for more than God’s will brought her world crumbling down at her feet.

Yet a smile slowly sweeps across her face as she recalls something else received on that fateful day.

A promise that one of her kind would bear the Savior of the world.

Through Him that old serpent Satan would be forever conquered.

Just as Eve was given hope for tomorrow, I too have been given the same promise.

Christ now lives in me and it is in Him that all my hope rests and all my tomorrows are settled.

16 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 17

18 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

There is no portion of our time that is our time, and the rest God’s; there is no portion of money that is our money, and the rest God’s money. It is all His; He made it all, gives it all, and He has simply trusted it to us for His service.

Monod There is a transcendent power in example.

We reform others unconsciously, when we walk uprightly.

Mad. Swetchine Avoid popularity; it has many snares, and no real benefit.

Penn

The Sabbath is God’s special present to the workingman, and one of its chief objects is to prolong his life, and preserve efficient his working tone.

The savings bank of human existence is the weekly Sabbath.

Blaikie

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 19

Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Houses had thatched roofs, thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice and bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip off the roof. Hence the saying, “it’s raining cats and dogs.”.

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while.

Hence the rhyme, “Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old".

20 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine:” Prov. 17:22

author unknown You are going to love this, especially all those who bake for church events.

So, being inventive, she looked around the house for something to build up the center of the cake.

Alice Grayson was to bake a cake for the Baptisit Church Ladies’ Group in Tuscaloosa, but forgot to do it until the last minute.

Alice found it in the bathroom - a roll of toilet paper.

She plunked it in and covered it with icing.

She remembered the morning of the bake sale and after rummaging through cabinets, found an angel food cake mix and quickly made it while drying her hair, dressing and helping her son pack for Scout camp.

Not only did the finished product look beautiful, it looked perfect.

When Alice took the cake from the oven, the center had dropped flat and the cake was horribly disfigured.

Before she left the house to drop the cake by the church and head for work, Alice woke her daughter Amanda and gave her some money and specific instructions to be at the bake sale the moment it opened at 9:30 and buy the cake and bring it home.

She thought, “Oh dear, there is not time to bake another cake.”

When Amanda arrived at the sale, she found the attractive, perfect cake had already been sold.

This cake was important to Alice because she did so want to fit in at her new church and in her new community of friends.

She grabbed her cell phone and called her mom.

Alice was horrified - she was beside herself. Everyone

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 21 would know! What would they think?

in question was presented for dessert!

She would be ostracized, talked about, and ridiculed!

All night, Alice lay awake in bed thinking about people pointing fingers at her and talking about her behind her back.

Alice felt the blood drain from her body when she saw the cake! She started out of her chair to tell the hostess all about it, but before she could get to her feet, the Mayor’s wife said, “What a beautiful cake!”

The next day, Alice promised herself she would try not to think about the cake and would attend the fancy luncheon/bridal shower at the home of a fellow church member and try to have a good time.

Alice still stunned, sat back in her chair when she heard the hostess (who was a prominent church member) say, “Thank you, I baked it myself.”

Alice did not want to attend because the hostess was a snob who more than once had looked down her nose at Alice because she was a single parent and not from the founding families of Tuscaloosa but, having already RSVP’d, she couldn’t think of a believable excuse to stay home.

The meal was elegant, the company was definelty upper crust old South and to Alice’s horror, the cake

Alice smiled and thought to herself, “God is good.”

22 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 23

From Miss to Mrs

Through 2019, I had a verse card with a paraphrased version of that verse stuck to my closet door. Hanging there for a while, I usually forgot Once upon a (recent) time, that verse had been nigh on about it, but one day I remember noticing it and, in to discouraging ... a moment of pride, thinking how untrue it seemed.

“Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”

Psalm 37:4

As I was growing up, my mom would quote Psalm 37:4 just about any time I wanted something: a scooter, a best friend, anything. I learned that if God wanted me to have my desire, He’d give it to me in His time. But MY job was to delight in Him first.

“Serving the LORD is the greatest adventure of your life,” Mom told me. I didn’t really know what that meant for me as a little girl, but I never forgot what she said, and it created a desire to pursue God’s will for my life. I wanted adventure.

If God promises to bless those who want His will, why hasn’t He given me MY greatest desire: a husband? I know I’m not perfect. I’ve had plenty of spiritual temper tantrums (like the one I was having right then). “But Lord, everyone else is married or engaged or with someone (so I’d convinced myself ).

Why won’t You let me have a man? What could You possibly want me to do as a single person for the rest of my life??”

24 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

My “greatest” opportunity for love was gone. I had survived Bible college without a Mrs. degree. Freshman year, I was pumped.

This was it. I was going to meet some handsome young preacher, and we would ride off into the sunset living happily ever after. I snicker about it now. Here’s how my college years flew by: • Freshmen year: Wonderful college experience. Guys galore. No boyfriend.

• Sophomore year: Best roommates in the world. A boyfriend for the summer. Not the one.

• Junior year: Great spiritual growth. Harder classes. No boyfriend.

• Senior year: Student teaching in the spring.

Graduated. Short relationship in the summer.

No Mrs. degree. No prospects at 22.

Practically an old maid, right? (I’m still laughing...)

I started using my college degree and taught upper elementary grades at a Christian school. God was still at work (as He always is)

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 25

behind the scenes. After two and a half years of teaching, I receive a text from a guy I had talked with a few years back but hadn’t been interested in then. My nerves tingled. This could actually turn into something. I’d seen many older relationships become Mr. Right! Maybe this was it!

We talked for a few months, soon became girlfriend and boyfriend, and even progressed to engagement. But something was off, and I knew it. I didn’t have God’s peace. My fiancé was a great guy, but I couldn’t shake the thought that he wasn’t for me. Of course, being a very attached girl (was I the only one who hung onto a relationship just to have a relationship?), I didn’t want to let go.

I wanted to be married so badly, I was almost willing to marry the wrong guy. Praise the LORD, God stopped me. It was hard to let go of my marriage dreams. I suffered hurt for months after. But it was worth letting go––100%.

GIRLS, DON’T DO IT! No matter how desperate you feel. Whether or not God has someone out there for you, marrying the wrong guy will NOT suddenly turn him into a prince.

Left: enjoying one of my adventures overseas, this was in Portugal. Above right: my roommates in college, we are still friends today. Right: enjoying serving the Lord by singing in a church service.

26 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Left: celebrating my friend’s graduation. Above: visiting the Great Wall of China. Right: dressing up for my students.

Marriage doesn’t magically change your feelings or hesitations about someone. Even if you make it all the way to your wedding day, don’t marry someone you KNOW isn’t right for you––period!

I had another short relationship about a year later. God was still at work, using this one to help me take a stronger stand for Him. It was even harder to let go of this relationship, but I knew if God had someone for me, my knight in shining armor had to be so much better than anyone I’d ever dated.

Summer 2019 through the New Year of 2020, I had a few prospects, which was more than I’d had since college. And almost as soon as I started talking to each of them, God removed my peace. I felt hurt.

I was so tired of a broken heart. My desire for someone had only strengthened since college. But God used my despair to bring me to the point where I could finally say, “I’m surrendered to be single for the rest of my life.” Sure, I still teared up over it. I still held onto hope. But, as of January 2020, I finally

settled in my heart that whatever God had planned, it was going to be okay. His will is always best. And I was determined to be all right with that.

February 2020. One of my brothers went soul winning one night and met a sweet, Godly couple who told him they met on a Christian dating site.

So, my brother suggested I do the same. I had been dead set against the whole online thing for years. I had even recently told someone that I would NEVER sign up because of all the weird stories I’d heard. But something about his suggestion grabbed me. I asked a few Godly friends about it, and they all said the same thing. Why not try it? Okay, I will...with cautiously optimistic expectations.

BUT GOD. God had different expectations.

About a day and a half after making a profile, a cute homeschooler sent me a smile. I had already made a mental note that I would appreciate a guy who listed out specific standards in his own life (music in particular).

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 27

28 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

So, when I read this homeschooler’s profile description and the specific things he listed in it, I cried. Tears––of––joy. My dream man actually existed: a servant-hearted young man sold out to God in every way. It didn’t take us long to recognize we were the ones for whom each of us (and countless others who knew us) had been praying! God had prepared us both for our meeting, and we knew almost instantly that He had a future for us.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 29

Our first date is something I will forever cherish. While teaching preschool that February, my pastor declared a day off from school for cleaning classrooms due to sickness. Charles wanted to meet me in person as soon as possible so we planned for him, his parents, and his sister to visit me. Talk about nerves!

The morning of, not only was the weather beautiful and my heart light, I knew that today was going to be a very memorable one. Charles turned out to be the most handsome young man I had ever dated, and my future family came early to help me clean my classroom and helped with a coworker’s next door! We ended the day at Hershey’s Chocolate World where he gave me my first “kisses” in a little box.

Chocolate and coffee flavor, to be exact.

Top left: We have the same taste in footware!

Second left: Enjoying a beautiful day together.

Bottom left: one of our many video dates.

Bottom right: the day we were officially engaged.

Right: our posed engagement picture since Charles proposed via video on my birthday.

Upper right: admiring my ring and recalling God’s faithfulness.

30 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Soon, phone calls and Google Duo became our best friends. With the pandemic in full swing and a distance of 2 1/2 hours away from each other, we had to rely on technology. But we managed. In fact, he proposed on video chat! On my birthday! We staged another proposal in person at a nearby park, but I’ll never forget the birthday proposal.

On July 27, 2020, God gave me my heart's greatest desire. I couldn't believe it was me getting married this time, not someone else! Was it worth saying no to those other guys? YES!! I will forever treasure our wedding day, and Charles has been the most caring, loving husband for whom I could ever ask! Looking back now, I can see how much the Lord protected me from a life of heartache. I'm glad He taught me that the adventures I had as a single woman were all part of my story, too. Life doesn't start at marriage. It happens all along the way.

I say all this to encourage you, dear reader!

God ALWAYS means what He says. The thought of Psalm 37:4 continues with verse 5: “Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”

Do God’s will for your life in the small things (Bible reading, prayer, gospel witness, church attendance, etc.) and your desires will become HIS desires.

God will fulfill them in His time, and His plans are never interrupted (even by a pandemic). Ladies, He works down to the smallest detail. God will guide you through, He’s STILL on the throne, and He is STILL at work! And to all you singles out there, I’ve been there. I know the struggle. But surrender and God’s choice are WORTH THE WAIT!

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 31

Beautiful moments from our special day, one that God had been preparing for a long time.

32 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 33

34 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

35 Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 33

For the children I asked God how I could teach my young daughters the value of their purity, how I could begin in their early years to stress the importance and beauty of saving themselves for marriage. This is God's poignant answer. My prayer is that this simple story will fulfill the same purpose for many other loving parents.

~Jennie Bishop, author

For the young girls Quest for Love by Elisabeth Elliott is an incredible book filled with story after story of God's faithfulness and the reward for every girl who waits on Him to bring her her spouse. Your young person will be encouraged and strengthened in her resovle to wait on God and His perfect timing. *book not pictured ~a reader

For you Nancy Leigh DeMoss has an incredible way of stirring the heart of the believer, reminding them of what is truly important, their walk with the Lord. In her book, "A Place of Quiet Rest" she skillfully guides readers into spending time with God daily. ~a reader

For inspiration Read the incredible story of Elisabeth Elliot, from her humble beginnings to meeting her husband, to becoming a widow. This is the authorzied biography filled with candid interviews with her family and friends.

SO worth the read. ~a reader

36 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 37

by Robin Cook

Cook 2 Flourish

Summer produce is so refreshing- the bright colors and juicy flavors are just what our bodies need in this warm season! Here are some simple summer recipes for you to enjoy at backyard barbecues, farm fresh fiestas, or when you have oodles of zucchini to use! Follow me on IG for more fun recipes @ cook2flourish

38 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Serves 1-2 2 cups spiralized cucumber or zucchini 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, regular or herb infused 1/8- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, to taste Real® salt, to taste Pepper, to taste ¼ cup torn or sliced basil leaves ¼ cup cherry tomatoes, halved or diced heirloom tomatoes ¼ cup kohlrabi, shredded (optional) 1 Tablespoon green onion, thinly sliced OR sliced olives (optional) Directions: 1. Simply add the ingredients in order to the bowl and toss. Add extra basil for a garnish, and tailor the flavor to your liking.

Makes approximately 1 1/2 cups ¼ cup onion, chopped 2 garlic cloves, halved 1 ½ cups organic tomato, diced ½ cup fresh organic cilantro, loosely packed 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1 teaspoon ground cumin ½-1 teaspoon REAL® sea salt, to taste 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lime juice, optional ½ cup diced fresh ripe organic peach 2-3 Tablespoons coconut sugar, monk fruit OR raw honey Directions: 1. Place the onion and garlic in food processor and pulse ten times.

2. Add in the tomatoes, cilantro, cayenne, cumin, sea salt and lime juice (if desired), peach and sweetener.

3. Pulse until desired consistency is reached.

Refrigerate or serve immediately.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 39

Makes approximately 1 cup

2 cups fresh cilantro or mixture of greens (pea shoots, radish greens, cilantro, parsley) 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 Tablespoon fresh garlic 1 Tablespoon onion ½ teaspoon REAL® sea salt ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 Tablespoon Lemon juice 2 Tablespoons key lime white wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar) ¾ cup organic extra virgin olive oil Directions: 1. Pulse the herbs and spices until finely minced/chopped in a food processor.

2. Add in the liquids and pulse until the desired consistency. It is like pesto or an herbed oil dipping sauce.

This is a flavorful condiment for baked chicken, wild salmon, steak, spaghetti squash, roasted vegetables, and more!

Makes 1/3 cup 1 ½ Tablespoon smoked paprika ½ Tablespoon ground cumin ½ Tablespoon garlic powder 1 Tablespoon coconut sugar 1 teaspoon onion granules ½ teaspoon ground coriander ½ teaspoon REAL® sea salt Dash cinnamon Directions: 1) Combine all the spices together in a bowl and stir well. Pour into a spice container. (Use organic spices if possible.)

40 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 41

42 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

above: the crashed plane. left: mountain airstrip right: the jungle terrain

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 43

From the mission field

By Carolyn Searls A sweet fragrance from large white flowers was in the air, and coconut palms stood poised in their own quiet beauty. My heart flooded with gratitude that God had led us to the beautiful island of Palawan in the Philippines.

As I looked out an open window of our thatched roof and woven bamboo home, I realized we were engulfed in a tropical paradise. An airstrip of plush green grass lined the length of the property with banana trees along a section of it. My peaceful reflections were suddenly interrupted by the boisterous sound of the Super Cub’s

engine. My jungle pilot husband, Rick, was prepared for takeoff and his voice came over the short-wave radio. “618 departing flight base.”

I pressed the button of the handheld microphone. “Roger, 618 departing flight-base.” Navigating his flights from the ground, I enjoyed seeing the airplane rise in the bright blue skies. I often watched until it disappeared into the forest covered mountains.

The flight today was to a tribal village that required he land the plane on the side of a mountain, then taxi uphill to a flat section. I waited by the radio while I homeschooled our two boys and kept an eye on our baby daughter.

As usual, Rick reported to me when safely on the ground. I relaxed and continued with school. Little did I know that this flight would seriously change our lives.

With supplies delivered, Rick reported, “On

44 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Nine and a half hours after Rick had left that morning, I heard a passenger jeep speed onto the flight base.

I watched Rick hop off the jeep on one foot and limp up the worn porch steps with a twisted ankle and holes in his jeans revealing burned knees.

The bloody, dirt-covered cloth he held against his face had stopped the blood loss.

departure to base.”

“Roger, on departure to base,” I transmitted. I easily pictured the plane rolling down the grass runway to gain airspeed, expecting to hear him report in a couple minutes, that he was airborne. But several minutes passed with no word from him. Feeling bewildered from no call, I tried to reach him on our only means of communication, the radio.

“618, come in.”

Silence.

The silence shot terror through me. Had he crashed on takeoff? Surely not. We’re in God’s will, doing what He called us to do.

so alone. My thoughts raced. Did the children lose their father? Do I have a future with my husband? I had to remain calm by God’s grace.

I tried again and again to reach Rick, only to be met with a silence so palpable that I felt it. Five hours passed, and still no word, so I switched radio channels to call the mountain village. No one should be in the hut where it sat, but to my amazement, a lady answered.

“Carolyn, dragonfly (the name they called the plane) crashed on takeoff. It frightened the tribe, but none were hurt.”

I braced myself to hear what she’d tell me about my husband.

A ten-minute flight turned into thirty minutes, “Please pray for Rick. He’s losing a lot of blood. Tribal and then an hour. My eyes searched the sky for the plane. warriors hiked out of the dense forest with him to lead The tranquil scene outside made me want to wake up him to the lowlands.” the universe and plead, How can you be so still when my husband is missing?

He’s alive! But how much blood was he losing?

The rugged mountain paths were a jungle, full of gullies

I remained outwardly calm for our young chiland shallow rivers. dren’s sake, but my insides churned with anxiety. I felt Nine and a half hours after Rick had left that morning,

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 45

left: a family picture with our three children. above: our Nipa home. right: our son Brad and his parrot, Juicy Fruit.

I heard a passenger jeep speed onto the flight base.

I watched Rick hop off the jeep on one foot and limp up the worn porch steps with a twisted ankle and holes in his jeans revealing burned knees. The bloody, dirt-covered cloth he held against his face had stopped the blood loss.

The children and I stood speechless. We desperately wanted to embrace him, but hugs had to wait. He was still in survival mode. Bent over and breathless, he said, “Carolyn, I need you to take me to the doctor.

The doctor in the small town told Rick to get upstairs to the operating room. We didn’t think he could climb the tall stairs. With one arm around my shoulder, Rick conquered one stair at a time. He stretched out on the operating table, a plywood board on four posts.

The sun had set and in the darkness without electricity, the doctor stitched closed the gash on Rick’s face while holding a flash light with his mouth to see by.

Once home and beat down with exhaustion, we col-

lapsed onto our foam pad bed, so welcoming and restful.

I gratefully sunk into sleep next to him, comforted by his presence.

We wakened the next morning to the familiar sound of roosters’ crows and parrots’ squawks. My ears perked up to the beloved sound of his voice as Rick began to talk about the crash.

“I missed seeing a rut on the grass strip when I did the precheck of the runway. While on takeoff, the front wheel hit it and tipped the I heard the wings cut plane forward. The propel- through the tree’s ler struck the ground and branches as pieces of bent it. Without a functional propeller, I couldn’t shattered windshield get enough airspeed to get came at me.

46 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

“Things became serenely quiet and I thought I was going to be with the Lord. But when my body felt the plane slam against the side of the mountain, I realized I’d survived and struggled to get out of the plane”

above: more photos of the crashed plane. right: a mountain view. far right: sample of the dirt road my husband traveled.

Next page: the town we visited today and what it used to be. My husband and I today.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 47 airborne.”

“Couldn’t you stop?” I responded.

“No. With boulders on my left, tribal people on my right, and not enough runway ahead, I flew off a 200foot cliff and hoped wind would get underneath the wings and glide the plane to the beach. But a large tree loomed in front of me. I couldn’t get above it or around it without airspeed, so I lifted the plane’s nose to avoid a direct hit.”

“How terrifying.” “I heard the wings cut through the tree’s branches as pieces of shattered windshield came at me.”

It’s a miracle he survived. The plane was being torn apart.

“Things became serenely quiet and I thought I was going to be with the Lord. But when my body felt the plane slam against the side of the mountain, I realized I’d survived and struggled to get out of the plane.

“Why did you struggle?” I asked.

“A broken wing blocked the door, but the opening from the shattered windshield allowed me to crawl out onto the hot engine.”

“Is that how your knees got burned?” I could almost feel

the heat.

“Probably. I scrambled to get down because fuel leaked on the engine.”

“It could’ve exploded!” I shuddered.

“Warriors began to run towards the plane and I had to yell for them to stay back.”

“Did they?”

“Yes. They guided me to the lowlands, and left me alone in a backwoods village with five huts. Not one person was home, but a new, blue Kawasaki motorcycle leaned against one of the huts.”

I couldn’t believe a new motorcycle was in a remote village. I’d never seen a new one in our area.

“As I walked towards the cycle, a lone man appeared from behind the hut and offered me a ride. We headed down the narrow dirt road with rocks and dirt flying behind us. The path became slippery from light rains. He drove so fast that we had two motorcycle wrecks.

“You had two motorcycle wrecks after the plane crash!” I was appalled!

“I did. We rolled in the dirt one direction and the cycle in the other. A jeep came towards us none too soon and

48 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 49 brought me the rest of the way home.”

“How is the man and his motorcycle?” I replied.

“The man seemed good, but his new motorcycle was destroyed. I’ll probably need to buy him a new one. The muffler was torn off and the handlebars bent sideways.

No doubt the man will come to the base to ask for money.” “That’s the custom. I want to thank him for helping you.”

His glory.

God’s ways are not our ways.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts,” (Isaiah 55:9 KJV).

The mystery of the missing man and his motorcycle has never been solved. Both disappeared just as mysteriously as they’d appeared on that fateful day forty-one

As I look back, I marvel at God’s sustaining grace years ago. for me and the children during those long hours when life stood still. I know now that at the same time, God, in his abundant mercy and grace, was providing all that was necessary for Rick to come back to us alive.

Weeks passed with no sign of the stranger who drove the new blue motorcycle. Rick searched for him in town Get your own copy and back at the remote village several times but when he asked the villagers about the man with the new blue of “The Crash of the cycle, they didn’t know him and simply responded, “Sir, Dragonfly” to learn there’s never been a man with a new blue motorcycle in more about this our village.” incredible family Who was the man that offered Rick a ride that day? Had and the lessons God God sent an angel to deliver Rick? taught them on the

The Crash of the Dragonfly began an amazing adventure with God. What we looked at with dread, dis- mission field by appointment, and even failure, became the catalyst God going to Amazon or used to reveal His power and love. Unbelievable trials visiting followed as we continued in the Lord’s service, but they www.carolynsearls.com gave birth to unimaginable blessings, and new lives for

I marvel at God’s sustaining grace for me and the children during those long hours when life stood still.

50 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 51

52 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

A professor stood before his philosophy class with

some items in front of him. When the class began, he picked up a very large and empty industrial sized plastic mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full.

They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into a jar. He shook the jar gently. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full, and they agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “yes”.

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 53 under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand.

The students laughed!

“Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups.

Take your spouse out to dinner.”

“Now,” said the professor as the laughter subsided. “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things—your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions—and if everything else was lost, and only “Play another 18. they remained, your life would still be full.”

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.”

“The pebbles are the other things that matter like your work, your house, and your car.”

“Take care of the golf balls first—the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

“The sand is everything else…the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no One of the students raised her hand and inquired what room for the pebbles or the golf balls.” the coffee represented. The professor smiled.

“The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are most important to you.”

“I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”

54 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

a simple garden party summer tablescape that is effortless and beautiful

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 55

by Sarah Symonds Grace in my Space

Are you looking for a themed summer tablescape idea?

I’m always an easy-going hostess but I love a simple and sweet theme. So, today I’m sharing a simple garden party summer tablescape that is effortless and beautiful. Does it make me a bad design blogger to admit that I rarely do tablescapes in real life? I’d like to think it just makes me honest. I always adore beautiful tablescapes that are elaborate, full and intricate. However, when it comes to real life I just don’t want the hassle.

Could I pull it off? Yes, for an extra special event, I could pull on my big girl pants and dive into the depths of tablescaping (probably not a word…but you get the picture). On the other hand, I can also be completely satisfied with an extremely simple and sweet garden party summer tablescape.

And I think that’s where I’ve landed in my design journey. Just being ok with being the simple girl who enjoys soft linens, fresh flowers, and dirty terra cotta.

There is so much beauty to behold in the simplicity of an intricate basket tray, the aged patina of ironstone and the etching of antique brass.

56 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 TABLESCAPE HOW-TO

So, now that I’ve convinced myself that tablescapes don’t need to be elaborate to be beautiful, I wanted to share a few simple tips for how I pulled this one together.

my snowball arrangement while the terra cotta pots are stacked precariously on top of each other. {Tip: I layered smaller terra cotta pots inside the bottom one so the top ones don’t fall in. Dirt also does the trick.} CONSIDER CONVENIENCE

ADD OUTDOOR ELEMENTS

Next, I added a beautiful, but casual, basket tray to hold plates and napkins so that it can be easily

Obviously, the theme is a nod toward a garden moved to wherever the food is placed. Most of my party with the aged terra cotta, fresh flowers, and brass parties end up being buffet or potluck style so I want planters. But I also wanted to have a slight picnic to keep the running back and forth down to a minifeeling to it. mum.

KEEP IT CASUAL

And that’s it! A simple, sweet, truly effortless garden party summer tablescape. One that I can pick

One of the easiest ways to make a tablescape up and put everything away in minutes. But, also feel more causal is to use linens that aren’t properly small enough that I can keep it out and enjoy it on a placed. This table cloth is actually gigantic! I’ve simply daily basis if I wanted to. folded it into quarters and draped it at an angle for a more backyard party feel.

I hope that this idea helps prove that living and designing in

I also used layering to make this simple grace doesn’t have to be complitablescape more casual. The ironstone platters elevate cated or pricey.

there is beauty in simplicity

I hope this article on creating a beautiful garden tablescape has been helpful to you! I’d love for you to join my blogging community for daily newsletters, freebies, DIY guides, and exclusive discounts! And join me daily on Instagram as we build a community of haven makers! ~Sarah Symonds www.graceinmyspace.com

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 57

58 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

God

by Amy Johnson

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 59

Knowing God? How in the world can anyone adequately speak on a

topic so vast?! And yet, what subject could be more important or more glorious for us to consider? Perhaps it will help if we break it down into three basic questions: • Why is “Knowing God” important?

• What does “Knowing God” mean?

• How can I enter into “Knowing God?

But before we even answer those questions, I want to give you a word to remember: INVITATION.

Everything in the Creation around you, everything in the Word

60 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 of God from beginning to end, and every circumstance of your own life, whether good or bad, is an INVITATION from the heart of God for YOU to seek Him and know Him.

This is personal. This is GOD calling YOU. Think about how God established this world. We are born craving intimacy. We long for closeness with our parents. As we grow, we long to be pursued by Prince Charming and to live “happily ever after” with him.

We long to have children, to love and to nurture.

Make no mistake, we are made in the image of God; these very longings for love and relationship that we find in our hearts are really the call of God upon us.

He is personal. He is love. He invites us to know Him in a deeply personal, intimate way.

The very creation invites us to know Him. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork. An honest study of creation and science is meant to lead us to worship the Creator. Everywhere we look, God is revealing Himself and inviting us to know Him.

The Word of God encompasses the entirety of human history from beginning to end, and EVERY PART of it is an invitation from God Himself for us to know Him, and to choose our stance of heart toward Him. Those are carefully chosen words: “Choose our stance of heart toward Him.” The very fact that we have a Bible in our hands is proof that God has given mankind the capacity to CHOOSE. (Forget the age-old debate between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility: the Bible teaches both, and we must be content with mystery. We may rest in God’s sovereign love and power, and we must also choose our response to Him.) But I do not merely say we must choose a “right response”, but a STANCE of HEART. A “stance” is not merely an act, but a deliberately chosen posture. It’s an attitude towards something. It will be expressed in action, but it is deeper than action.

In light of all that God reveals about Himself in His Word, what stance of heart must we choose?

HUMILITY, SURRENDER, and FAITH. It is only when we choose THIS stance of heart that we will truly enter into the knowledge of God.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 61

This subject of knowing God––of hearing and responding to His personal invitation to know Him–– is deeply meaningful to me, because I have experienced the difference between knowing a lot ABOUT God and actually knowing HIM. I responded to the Gospel and prayed to “ask Jesus into my heart” when I was six years old, several years before my parents even came to Him for salvation. I was very aware that the Lord had heard my prayer and received me - after all, Jesus said, “Suffer the little children to come to Me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of Heaven.” However, once my parents did come to Christ and I began to receive good Bible teaching on a daily basis, my spiritual pride seemed to grow in proportion to my knowledge. I was the “good girl”. I embraced truth, stood up for what was right, shared the Gospel with my friends, memorized the most verses in Vacation Bible School, and enjoyed the praises of my teachers and youth group leaders at church. I was honestly very full of myself without even realizing it. I knew a lot about God, but it felt like He was a distant overlord that I was constantly attempting to please and impress. I did not live with a moment-by-moment awareness of His personal Presence or favor. I didn’t really “know” Him.

Thankfully, God doesn’t leave us where we are! When I was fourteen, my parents brought us to a summer conference at the Evangelical Institute in Greenville, South Carolina. And even though we had been attending good churches for several years, I had never before been in meetings like those conference meetings. The Presence of God was powerful, and the Lord Jesus was obviously a living reality in the lives of the men who spoke. I recognized that this was an experience that I didn’t have, and I longed to have it. I became hungry and thirsty for God. When we returned home, I found a book in my parents’ room and felt compelled to pick it up and read: it was The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer.

God used that book to speak powerfully to my heart and change my life forever. I drank in every chapter as cold water to a thirsty soul. Three points that especially impacted me were these:

God is a PERSON: as such He can be KNOWN, and He WANTS to be known by us.

The biggest enemy to really knowing God is the self-life, and the self-life can take on a religious form and seem to thrive at the very altar of God. This

broke me completely. I saw how full of spiritual pride and arrogance I had been, and I cried out to Jesus to save me from ME––not just from my “sins”, plural, but from WHO I WAS––because I could not break those chains of pride on my own.

If I find in my heart the hunger and thirst to know God, it’s because HE PUT IT THERE FIRST. He is CALLING. He is INVITING. If we hunger, we may take heart! It is God’s doing, and He is more than willing to answer our cries to know Him.

It was the beginning of a whole new day for me. I began to experience what Jesus meant when He said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (Jn.10:27) The Word of God came to life. No longer did my “Christian life” consist of trying to excel within a system of conduct––it was now a vibrant walk with a living Lord.

If YOU find yourself hungry and thirsty to know God, then take heart, because this can be the beginning of a new day for you too.

So now let’s go back and answer our three questions: WHY IS “KNOWING GOD” IMPORTANT?

First of all, “Knowing God” is important because the Lord Jesus Himself equates it with LIFE. He declared, “I came that they might have LIFE, and

62 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

miserable? It’s because, while most of the rest of mankind is working, longing, dreaming, and scrambling toward the day when they can gain or achieve certain things, the people that actually GET there, and reach the top, discover it’s EMPTY after all. LIFE wasn’t actually there. And so, they resort to drugs, or they try to embrace a cause to find meaning, or they try yet another marriage, or they take their own life, because they sought LIFE in the things of this world and then found that it wasn’t there.

We have to be careful here, because I’m guessing that most of my readers have probably decided already that fame and have it more abundantly,” (Jn.10:10), then he defined it, “And THIS IS LIFE ETERNAL, that they might KNOW THEE, the only true God, fortune and wealth and prestige are probably not real life, but we have a very clever enemy. and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.” (Jn.17:3) He’s a defeated foe, but he is a clever one, and

Real life is knowing God. This is not just “I’m going to heav- he will do anything to keep you from focusing your heart and life on REALLY knowen when I die”, but LIFE, as we were created to LIVE it, in a daily, ing God. So, if you won’t fall for the trap of vibrant, personal relationship with God our Creator. worldly things, then he will try to get you to

We’re born seeking LIFE, are we not? The world tries to offer focus yourself on trying to find life in GOOD things. (“If I could only find the right husit to us in many things: “You haven’t LIVED until you’ve experienced this––or achieved THAT––gained this wealth––achieved that band––or if my husband would only do this award––purchased this product––realized your personal goals––then or that differently––or if my kids behaved better––or if I could just find the right church–– you’ll have LIFE.” But it’s all vain promises and lies. or if I could just lose some weight––or if my

Why do you think so many people with wealth and fame are ministry were more fruitful––”, et cetera.)

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 63

Those are all GOOD things, but they are not the source of LIFE. Just think–– the Pharisees even sought for LIFE in a system of outward obedience to Scripture, and Jesus actually rebuked them: “You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of ME, and you were unwilling to come to ME, that you may have life.” (Jn.5:39,40) Real LIFE is found in knowing GOD through the Person of Jesus Christ.

for two years before she passed away. She had led a very full, unique and profitable life, filled with good character and kindness while running a congressional office on Capitol Hill. She didn’t retire until her mid-eighties, because she did her job so well, and everyone around her benefited from her competency and kindness. We took her into our home in her mid-nineties, once she was no longer able to care for herself. The last thing she said to me, as the visiting hospice nurses moved her from her chair to her bed for the last time, was simply this: “I can’t believe it.”

Why is knowing God important? Because knowing God is LIFE. Here’s another reason why knowing God is important:

It was a powerful moment. I looked in her

No matter how long we live, we are all headed eyes and knew exactly what she was saying. Ninety-six for the day we meet God face to face. years––where did it go? She knew it was her time to depart. She wasn’t afraid, but she was incredulous. It

“Prepare to meet thy God,” declared the proph- went by so fast. et Amos (4:12). “Beginning at the end” is what I call this concept. We cannot live THIS day well, or this

Recently my family has been impacted by this season of life well, until we have settled everything in lesson in an even more poignant way. If you had told relation to THAT day. me three months ago today that I would be writing this article as a widow, I would not have believed you.

We took care of my grandmother in our home My husband and I had a beautiful marriage for thir-

64 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 ty-one years, crowned by the gift of eleven wonderful children. I did not expect to lose Dan so quickly or so soon, but two months ago the Lord called him Home. From his diagnosis to his death was a mere eighteen days. Thankfully, Dan had lived his whole life with the purpose of knowing God and making Him known. He was ready, even if the timing was unexpected.

We are all headed for our inevitable meeting with God. In that day, many things won’t matter.

Some things will. That’s why learning to KNOW HIM now is so very important! God is our desti-

nation. We want to be ready to greet Him as our loving, familiar Father.

WHAT DOES “KNOWING GOD” MEAN?

We often use the words “coming to know the Lord” in terms of salvation, being “born again” into the family of God. Of course, that is the starting point. One cannot truly KNOW God without taking that first step. But when I speak of “Knowing God”, I am talking about the relationship which follows after that. The apostle Paul expressed the driving passion of his life, “That I may KNOW HIM.” (Phil.3:10) Didn’t he already know the Lord? Of course, he did! But to know Him better, with increasing experience and intimacy, was the constant pursuit of his life.

Not every child of God experiences Him in the same way. Think of the disciples of Jesus. There was a group of seventy who went out on a mission for Him (Luke 10:1-22). There were twelve who traveled and lived with Him for three years (Mark 3:14 - chosen to “be with Him”). Among the twelve, there were three (Peter, James and John) who had privileged access with Him into situations the others did not experience (such as in Matthew 17:1). We call them the “inner circle”.

And even among the three, there was one (John) called the “beloved disciple” who leaned his head on Jesus’ breast at the Last Supper and asked Him a question on behalf of the others (John 13:23-26).

Even among true disciples there are differing experiences of God. When we see these things in Scripture, it is God’s INVITATION to our hearts. It is meant to make us hungry and thirsty to really KNOW HIM with increasing experience and intimacy. Do you long to be in Christ’s “inner circle”? Do you long to be very close to Him like John?

It IS possible, and He is calling you to it, because HE longs for YOU even more than YOU long for HIM! Will you respond?

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 65

Have you ever considered the possibility that EVERY circumstance of your life is really the call of God for you to know Him? That you can bring everything to His feet and ask Him to make Himself known to you in the midst of it? Of course, the happy circumstances show us one side of His goodness, but in every other circumstance of difficulty, we may actually come to know God in ways that we cannot even know Him in Heaven! Here we may know Him as our comfort in sorrow, our refuge in grief, our strength in weakness, our wisdom in perplexity, our victory in battle, our provision for every need. In Heaven there will be no sorrow or grief or battle or need at all. Obviously, to depart and be with Christ will be a far better experience, but understanding this thought,

that we can come to know Him NOW in ways we will not need Him there, can put exuberance back into our daily life. What specific trial or heartache do you face right now? Bring it to God, and let Him turn it around in your mind: it is your invitation and opportunity to KNOW HIM. HOW CAN I ENTER INTO KNOWING GOD?

Any meaningful relationship takes TIME. We get to know someone by spending time alone with them. We cannot overstate the vital importance of spending quiet time alone with God. I know this can be challenging in our fast-paced world, but the truth remains, we WILL take time for what is vitally

66 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 important to us. If we truly WANT it, we will find a way. Believe me, as a mom-of-many, there have been seasons in my life when I wondered how this could happen on any given day. But I learned to ASK HIM for it, even if it looked impossible. It’s amazing to see how He answers that prayer. Remember, He does promise, “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full”! (Jn. 16:24)

And what do we DO when we get alone with God? The WORD OF GOD and PRAYER are the means by which we come to know Him. But this is not meant to be a “checklist” –– “I have to make sure I read my chapter and go through my prayer list for today”. No. You open the Word of God because in it, HE IS SPEAKING, and you long to know what He has to say to you today. Your prayers are your personal response to what He has said.

As you come to the Word of God and prayer, understand this: He reveals Himself most directly in the Person of Jesus Christ, so look long at HIM.

Read John 14:9, 2 Corinthians 4:6, and Matthew 11:27, 28. You will come to this conclusion: You come to know God by looking long at Jesus!

Here’s a practical suggestion. Get a fresh notebook and start reading through the Gospels. In every passage, ask yourself, “what do I learn of GOD in the face of Jesus Christ?” Write down what you see. Then consider, “In light of who He is, what stance of heart will I choose toward Him today?”

(You will see over and over again, the proper stance of heart is humility, surrender and faith.)

Talk to God about what He showed you in His Word. Take time to let it sink in.

Worship Him. Be still.

This brings us right back to that word: INVITATION. If you hunger and thirst to know God, then COME to Him and tell Him so. “Come” is an invitation

word. It is repeated in the Bible 2,078 times! Jesus spoke it often. The very final chapter of the Bible repeats it over and over, concluding its entire message with the invitation to “Come”.

An invitation expects a response. Our level of response often depends upon how important we consider the invitation to be. To my shame, I have had many invitations to birthday parties, showers, and other events that have ended up in a pile on my bedside table and I have forgotten about them. But there are some invitations you never ignore! In 1981, because of my grandmother’s position on Capitol Hill, our whole family was invited to attend the

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 67

inauguration ceremony of Ronald Reagan, and my grandparents were invited to attend the inaugural ball!

Now when you receive an invitation like THAT, you clear your calendar, cancel all other plans, and make everything else in your life subservient to that event, because the invitation was from the President of the United States. It’s an honor. It’s meaningful. It’s a priority.

Of course, we went to that inauguration, and my grandparents went to the ball! But the thing is––that day came and went in 1981––and in the long run, that was merely the President of the United States. What WE have in our hands is an invitation from the GOD WHO MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH. What will we do with it? Will we humble ourselves before Him in surrender and faith? Will we seek Him above all else?

If the Lord would part the heavens just a little bit right now, and we could actually see into the Presence of God, we would not think twice about taking a stance of humility and surrender and faith toward Him. He is worthy, and He is wonderful. We would marvel that He invites us to KNOW HIM intimately, and we would gladly COME.

If you are willing to COME, and you sincerely want to KNOW GOD, then you have a wonderful promise from the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself: “The one who comes to Me, I will in no wise cast out.” (Jn.6:37)

Believe Him, He cannot lie. If you come, you will be joyfully received, and He will answer your prayer.

68 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 69

70 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 71

A moment in Psalms

Have you ever paused to wonder if God ever thinks of you? Do you sometimes feel as if He must surely be so busy as to overlook you in the rush? After, there are literally billions of needy human beings occupying this earth. How thankful we can be that verses 17 and 18 of Psalm 139 give us answers that forever dispel these doubts!

17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

There is such great comfort in these verses, not only because they tell us we are on God’s mind but they also demonstrate just how earnestly He does think of us.

The Psalmist realized that, if he simply wanted to take the time to count how often God thought about him, it was an incalculable number. Now, that’s a lot!

Purposeful thoughts require determined effort on the part of the thinker. These verses indicate that Someone took the time to think about us, to dwell on us personally. How often a soul has been lifted by the simple words, “I was thinking of you today.” Isn’t it a delight just to know we are remembered as more than just a fleeting notion? The beauty of the Psalmist’s words indicating God thinks about us and not just at random, should surely comfort us. His thoughts toward each of us are more than the sand, a number far beyond our comprehension! The sand is an element that we could never number, though we employed the world’s most powerful quantum computer!

So, my friend, the next time you feel forgotten or forsaken, remember this sweet assurance from the Word of God: you are thought of beyond measure by the One who loves you with an everlasting love, by the One who walks with you through every valley. His thoughts to you are precious and without number.

72 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

She reacheth forth her hands to the needy ...

"We believe nothing happens in our lives by chance and timing is God-appointed. As God was opening my eyes to the women in crisis in India, I was also taking an Old Testament Bible class and was studying the story of Rahab the prostitute found in the book of Joshua. The rope in the story represents Rahab's rescue both physically and spiritually, and there is a high probability that Rahab made the rope herself.

Our hope is that, just as the rope that Rahab made represents her rescue, the skills taught to the women at our women's centers will represent their physical and spiritual rescue as well. It seemed fitting for Rahab's Rope to be our name."

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 73

The Biblical character, Rahab, is first introduced in Joshua chapter two and then re-appears in Joshua chapter six, verses seventeen through nineteen.

The mission of Rahab's Rope is to give hope and opportunity to women and girls that are at risk or have been forced into the commercial sex trade of India.

We provide a safe and loving environment that will enable them to grow and develop both physically and spiritually.

Our vision is to see lives transformed by God's love in action. We reveal His love in a way that an individual can see, understand, and respond to in faith.

God allows us to facilitate the process by which each woman in our care is first provided for emotionally, There is no way to be 100% certain that Ra- physically, and spiritually, then provided with basic hab made the rope that would later represent education and training in vocational skills and eventually enabled to re-enter her community in a positive her physical and spiritual rescue. However, we are told in the story that Rahab hides two and contributing way. We equip each woman to reach spies under a flax plant. The finer parts of flax out to her community and create a current of positive were used to make linens and the rest to make change. rope. Considering Rahab had enough flax to cover and hide two men leads us to conclude that she owned the flax to make something including rope.

To learn more about this amazing ministry visit: www.rahabsrope.com

74 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Your Mind...

Thy word have I hid in mine heart... Psalm 119:11

What we choose to memorize is ours forever, no one can ever take it away. To hid God's Word in our hearts ensures that we have access to His truth whenever we need it.

Over the course of the next three months try to memorize the verses on the left. We will only be able to defeat our enemy by holding fast to the truths found in the Word of God about our God. In moments of temptation, the Holy Spirit will bring the verses we need to mind that will aid us in being victorious. staying ed help his e n u o y if gt try usin k c a r t n o g app! amazin

Psalm 1:1-3 1. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

3. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 75

& Your Soul

Be still, and know that I am God... Psalm 46:10

• create a to-do list: this helps clear the mind of all the tasks that can pile up and ease the stress of having to remember it all. Doing it right before bed lets you go to sleep knowing everything you need to do is written down.

• listen to your favorite praise song: music has the ability to lift the spirit especially songs that remind us of the promises of God and His goodness.

Play it in the car or while enjoying your favorite beverage.

• write a note to a friend: sometimes when we take a moment for someone

else our own cares and worries disappear. Taking the time to complement or thank a friend for their friendship and impact in your life can remind us just how blessed we are to have them. Plus they will receive a blessing too when they receive your note.

• take a break and go outside: nature with it's beautiful, calming color palette can aid in relaxing the mind and body as soon as you step outside. Going for a short walk around your neighborhood is a great way to burn off those stress hormones and refresh your soul.

76 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

helping our kids stay healthy this Summer

by Jenn Mair

Did you know…...?

“About one-third of American children ages 10 to 17 are overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and fewer than 25% of children get the recommended 60 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per day recommended by the American Medical Association,” According to ACE Fitness.

A report by the World Health Organization states “80 percent of children between the ages of 11 and 17 aren’t physically active enough.”

Here are a few reasons why today’s children are not physically active: • Possible lack of funding in schools for PE. • Life in an urban area where caregivers fail to create time in their busy schedule to find an outdoor space or playground for children to play.

• Sedentary lifestyle which includes watching tv, social media and video games.

Why is physical exercise important for children? Here are 10 reasons from ACE Fitness.

1. Children who are active 60 minutes per day demonstrate lower rates of obesity.

2. Greater rates of activity in children have been associated with higher test scores in reading and math.

3. Physical (body) and cognitive (brain) development go hand-in-hand. While this continues for life, this relationship is most critical at a young age. When kids are active, their brain develops, allowing for new types of activity.

4. Play-based activity that requires a high degree of sensory input (sight, sound, touch, etc.) helps develop a broad array of skills that make physical activity more enjoyable later in life.

5. Frequent physical activity has been associated with improved behavior in the classroom and beyond.

Frequent exercise decreases symptoms of depression and anxiety in children.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 77

78 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

6. It appears that active children are more likely to become active adults.

7. Aerobic activity has been shown to increase the size of essential brain structures and number of neural connections.

8. Frequent activities requiring a high degree of balance and coordination have been associated with improved emotional response.

9. Frequent exercise decreases symptoms of depression and anxiety in children.

10. Regular exercise with children promotes self-efficacy with regard to health and self-image.

Children, ages 6-17, need at least one hour of moderate-to-vigorous activity daily. As a mother of four, I know it is easier to turn on the tv, hand them an iPad or video game for me to have peace and quiet.

If I am not careful, electronics can be my “babysitter” and my children are not getting the required physical exercise they need. I have noticed the improvement in my children’s health and well-being when they are

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 79

Children, ages 6-17, need at least one hour of moderate -to-vigorous activity daily.

getting the exercise they need. This doesn't mean you need to sign your children up for a group fitness class at a local gym. Get creative and think of ways to get your kids moving.

Here are a few ways to sneak in physical exercise with your children.

Jumping on the trampoline.

Did you know? A 10-minute trampoline session can burn the same amount of fat as a 30-minute run.

That’s up to 1,000 calories an hour! If you do not have a trampoline, no worries, check to see if your area has an indoor trampoline park.

80 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Walking.

During quarantine, our family went on a lot of walks. This is a great opportunity to spend quality time with your family. Make it fun by going on an outdoor scavenger hunt.

For more scavenger hunt printables, please checkout Pinterest for ideas.

Drumstick workout.

Kids love when I teach drumsticks.

This is a fun, cardio workout with many benefits. Here are a few: fine motor skills, coordination, reflexes, cross lateral movement, bilateral movement, spatial awareness, eye-hand coordination, unilateral movement and cognitive association. For a drumstick workout for kids, please check out our Whole Fitness YouTube channel.

Have a glow in the dark stick person dance party! This is one of our family’s favorite activities. It’s cheap and will have you and your family laughing!

Tape glow sticks on your arms, legs and core to make your own “stick person.”

Turn off the lights, hit the music and be prepared to laugh. For more ideas on how to create your glow in the dark stick person, make sure you checkout Pinterest.

Spell Your Name Workout To begin, get out a dry erase board and have your child spell out his or her full name. For each letter of the name, there will be an assigned exercise to go along with it. Each name will count as a complete set. At the end of each name take a 60-second break.

Creating a daily routine for kids to receive physical exercise will create a habit that

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 81

will last a lifetime.

One of my children enjoying some fun exercise with me. below: this precious little boy is following along with one of our YouTube workouts for children and used wooden swords for drumsticks.

It’s so important to the overall health and wellness of our kids to be physically active. Creating a daily routine for kids to receive physical exercise will create a habit that will last a lifetime.

Choose an activity from above and get moving!

Jenn is the founder of Whole Fitness, a community dedicated to helping people stay fit, mind, body, and soul. Visit their website: www.wholefitsc.com or visit them in Greer, SC.

82 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 83

84 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

by Anna Greene Nicholson

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 8385

While fruits and vegetables are food for the body, flowers are food for the soul. Their stunning colors, shapes, and aromas can bring a smile and soothe anyone no matter how difficult a day. They add beauty and elegance to any place making them the perfect addition to any function but especially weddings.

As a florist I am around flowers all day long, all year long but I must admit that I love spring and summer flowers the most. They are so bright and vibrant! From the tall to the small the florals bring it all! Let's also not forget that it is the most popular season to get married! Here are a couple of tips for brides looking to tie the knot next Spring or Summer.

• During the warmer weather months, I like to purchase my florals from a locally-grown farm. There’s nothing like using ranunculus or dahlias that are locally sourced and basically in your own backyard. Keep that in mind next time you’re at your local farmers markets or know of a floral farm near you. The florals are fresher and haven’t been flown in from out of the country.

• If you like a wild flower style or even a boho style, I’d recommend using farm fresh flowers. The variety is vast, you’re supporting local farmers, and you get such great quality. No matter how you look at it, it is a win-win situation.

• And one last tip, pick what you love because this is meant to be a special day right down to the finer details like your bouquet.

I love being a florist, bringing joy to people one arrangement at a time, but one of my favorite moments is seeing the bride walking down the aisle with a face that is beaming carrying her bouquet preparing to start a new chapter of her life.

86 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 87

88 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 89

by Christy Snow

90 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 about photography, and with that came a burden to use it to glorify the Lord.

After this eye opening experience in Haiti I was an intern from 2010 to 2011 then I decided to attend the Academy of Arts. When I graduated, I became head photographer for two years before venturing out into the world of entrepreneurship with my own photography business.

While I was thrilled to launch C. Lyn Creations there was a part of me that was nerve racking after all, I was being commissioned to capture my clients most precious moments that would become memories and they were counting on me.

Thankfully I was able to put my fears aside and applied myself diligently to continue learning and growing in my God-given talents.

When God gives you opportunities and talents, look

for the way you can use that for the furtherance of His Kingdom.

I was always interested in cameras and taking pictures but never was given an opportunity since digital cameras were expensive as they were just becoming a big thing. That all changed when I went on a missions trip to Haiti in 2010 where Dr. Anne Livingston, leader of the medical ministry I was a part of, encouraged me to capture our time there. On that trip the Lord gave me a strong desire to learn more

Today I have had the privilege to take countless pictures that represent life’s most precious events including weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, and everything in between.

When I started my business full time I made a choice to always use my photography for the Lord, I wanted to give back to Him what He has blessed me with and minister to others. It has been amazing to see the Lord opening doors for both me and my husband, who works with me, to use media to assist

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 91

92 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 different ministries and missionaries by coming alongside them.

In 2019 my husband and I had an incredible opportunity to travel to Argentina and Peru to work with some missionary families. We worked with the Greenwoods, the Fitzgeralds, and the Deightons, filming and photographing their unique ministries where they serve. It was amazing to see up close and personal how God was working through these families and to have a small part in it.

Sadly we ended up not being able to travel in 2020 because of Covid-19, but our good God already made a way for us to still be a blessing to one of His workers. Emily Snodgrass, a missionary in Peru, was coming home on furlough and needed someone to put together an updated presentation video. She wanted to show her supporting churches all that had taken place since her last visit to the states. We were

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 93 able to work with her in putting together a video that she could take with her while she visited each church.

my teachers at the Academy of Arts, gave me a boost in confidence which was just what I needed!

I have learned so much over these last few years and now wish to go beyond helping missionaries and ministries by mentoring others. My desire is to spend some time with individuals who wish to learn more about photography and potentially turning it into a business. To me, mentoring means someone coming alongside in a certain subject and guiding them in a hands on manner. I was blessed to have several in my life, people who invested themselves into me and brought out my best. Ben Maciejack, one of

Another special person from the Academy is Dr. Nicky Chavers. He would spend so much time sitting with me, looking through the composition of the many pictures I had taken to see which ones could be used as promotional photos for the website, brochures and such. His influence and instructions in that area really helped me in my own business later as I looked at what made photos emotional keepsakes. This is why I want to mentor others, to pay it forward. I already know I don’t have all the answers

Previous page: me and my husband doing what we love and a little peek behind the scenes.

94 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 95 for every person, but I love to share what I know with those who are where I was.

I am now offering a mentorship program and am excited to see what the Lord does through it.

I look back over the past 11 years and see the hand of God very visibly, directing and guiding my steps. I will be the first to say that it has not always been easy and sometimes the path was not vividly clear. I struggled to see where I would fit into God’s plan, I doubted myself over and over again. My choice of where to attend college was another big question, I knew I wanted to pursue my gifts in photography but wasn’t sure where. But God. He had it all planned and orchestrated. He guided me through it all.

I am so amazed and humbled to see where the path has led. What started out as a hobby has now turned into a business with multiple ministry opportunities tied to it. I would never have imagined running the business side of things honestly, but God has given me the wisdom and skill I needed to do all that was required.

As I continue on my journey of this never ending learning of my craft, I am grateful that I have never lost my burden and desire to glorify the Lord. C. Lyn Creations continues to donate money or time to different ministries as the opportunities arise. It doesn't always mean traveling to a different country, but when the Lord opens the doors we give what we can when we can from the bounty that the Lord gives to my business.

Follow Christy on IG @c.lyncreations or visit her website clyncreations.com to see all of her incredible work.

96 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 97

98 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

5 Simple Ways to Meditate on God’s Word By Rebecca Hastings

in a notebook or journal is a great way to spend a few more minutes letting God’s Word penetrate your soul!)

-Bible reading plan: There are great reading plans that guide you through a book of the Bible, a topic, or even the whole Bible. I am currently using The Bible Recap which I love.

Other favorites include IF and She Reads Truth.

For a long time, I thought I needed to wake up with the sun when the rest of my family was comfortably asleep, sit in a special chair (probably facing a window so I could see the sunrise) and hold my worn Bible in my lap as I met with God each day. The problem: I really like sleep. I couldn’t seem to do the early mornings with God so, I figured I was just getting an “F” on my report card for Morning Meditation with Him. The good news is, there is no report card. Also, there’s no wrong time to be with God. Here are 5 simple ways to incorporate more of God’s Word in your day: -Verse of the Day: This is one of my favorite ways to incorporate scripture into my day. With a simple app like YouVersion, you can read a verse each day right from your phone. (Bonus tip: writing the verse out

-Devotionals: Often focused on a specific topic, devotionals go a bit deeper to offer insight on the topic and suggestions on how to apply God’s Word. Worthy: Believe Who God Says You Are is a 21-day devotional helping you walk in confidence with God. -Worship: Playing worship music that declares God’s truth and promises is always a great way for me to connect with Him, especially when I’m busy or struggling. Find music that speaks truth and hit play. It’s so simple!

-Social Media: There are so many great ways to be encouraged on social media! Be intentional about following accounts that highlight God’s Word. It’s a great blessing when we are scrolling online to be encountering truth along the way.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 99

Finding ways to spend time in His Word as we go about our day, helps us stay connected to God in all we do.

God’s Word is living and active, just like us.

Finding ways to spend time in His Word as we go about our day, helps us stay connected to God in all we do. I would love to send you three short meditations to help you connect to God’s Word this week.

My latest book, Daily Meditations for Christians offers you a full year of quotes, reflections and scriptures just like these. Sign up here for your free mediations now!

Rebecca Hastings believes in finding extraordinary grace in ordinary life. As a writer and speaker, Rebecca encourages people to look beyond Sunday morning to discover faith every day. She has been featured in publications such as The Washington Post, (in)courage, and Relevant Magazine, and her books are available on Amazon. Connect with her at RebeccaHastings.net!

100 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

by Eliza Cait, DPT We’ve all been there. It feels like the world is racing

around us and there’s never enough time for everything on our to-do lists. But add in a new baby (or young kids in general!), and things can feel even more overwhelming. Sometimes the idea of just taking a shower can seem impossible, let alone fitting in time to help our bodies heal and get stronger or even set our minds on things above (Col 3:2).

And yet both of these things are so important. As Christians, we know spiritual health is the cornerstone of our lives. Our relationship with Jesus is the most important thing we will ever experience as it echoes into eternity. However, we also know our bodies help us accomplish the good works He has set before us (Eph 2:10). As such, we need to pay attention to the many aspects of our well-being––in this case, body and soul.

There are so many ways people attempt to blend these two ideas, i.e. of filling some of our Aside from physical spiritual and physical needs simultaneously strength, we know (for example, yoga). But our spirits long for too often these attempts either leave us wanting in the presence of God. terms of our faith or they aren’t what we need postpartum. Women come into my physical therapy clinic far too often with injuries or complaints that have not been helped or even made

worse by their typical workout programs.

One woman, in particular, paid over $100 for a program she bought online that made her symptoms of pressure in her pelvic floor worse. When she came to see me, we had to undo some of the poor habits she had picked up from this misplaced series of exercises.

She was so grateful to have hope that her body could perform all the things she needed and wanted to be able to do.

Because of situations like this, women often don’t know who to turn to when they need assistance.

They live with pain (commonly in the low back, neck, hips, or ankles), discomfort, or embarrassment with problems such as incontinence that are treatable if only they had the right help. And while one article can’t solve all these problems, I aim to help set you on a course for healing too.

But aside from physical strength, we know our spirits long for the presence of God. This is the true source of our healing. So, I’ve paired each of these exercises with a verse upon which to meditate while performing the movement. In this way, we can enjoy the fruits of our labor in more ways than one.

GETTING STARTED

This series of exercises is meant to address many of the areas of weakness and stiffness women

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 101

102 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021 experience postpartum (and frankly, most other times as well!) and you can start as early as 3 weeks postpartum if you feel comfortable and have a thumbs-up from your healthcare provider. [Stop exercise if you start to feel overly tired, experience, pain, leaking, or any bleeding]

These moves help strengthen the legs - especially the glutes, core, and arms, as well as helping with stiffness in the hips and upper back. They can all be performed in less than 20 minutes. And they’re easy enough on your body to be performed daily if your energy levels, soreness, and schedule permits. If it’s a challenge for you to get motivated, try telling yourself that you only have to move for 1 minute. Oftentimes, getting started is the hardest part so if we make our goal something almost comically easy, we’re more likely to do it. You might find once you get going, doing another exercise isn’t as hard as you thought. But if all you have time for is 1 minute, then great! Applaud yourself for following through on that amount of exercise. After all, that was your goal! Achieving even a small goal helps create a positive feedback loop for us so we’re more likely to try again in the future.

Besides time constraints, another reason keeping us from moving is thinking we need to change into workout gear. If putting on your leggings (although many of us are already wearing them, let’s be honest!) helps get you in the right frame of mind to move, then go for it. But these exercises can be performed in almost anything.

I’ve done them in jeans or slacks while showing them to my clients at work, so I know from personal experience!

Now that we’ve readied ourselves, here’s how to proceed with the following movements. Start this (and any exercise program) with the connection breath. You’ll then use this breathwork throughout the exercises to help your core and pelvic floor remain connected with the rest of your body by inhaling during the easy part and exhaling on the difficult part of the movement.

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 103 HOW TO PERFORM

When you’re first learning the exercises, start by reading the description of the movement and getting a basic idea of how to perform the exercise. Next read the verse paired with the movement. Meditate on the verse as you perform the exercise. Perform each exercise for 10-15 reps, resting briefly as needed between exercises.

Repeat 1-2 times through.

1. Connection Breath This helps you connect your breath to your pelvic floor and core to help support you throughout your movements. It’s a good one to start with no matter what exercise program you’re doing.

Get in a comfortable position. I like to start on my back with my knees bent but sitting or lying on your side or belly are okay too. Breathe in, sending the air all the way down to the pelvic floor allowing the muscles to expand and relax. On the exhale, draw the pelvic floor gently upwards as you send out the breath.

Repeat 10-15x.

VERSE: Job 33:4 “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.” - As you breathe, thank God for giving you your breath and life.

Upper left: exercise 1 Lower left: exercise 2 Right: exercise 3

2. ½ Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch Place one foot in front of you with your knee bent while kneeling on the other leg. Gently start to tuck your tailbone until you feel a stretch in the leg you’re kneeling on. You may also reach the arm on the same side of the kneeling leg up and over to get a deeper stretch. Hold 30 seconds.

3. Bodyweight Squat Stand with your feet hip-width apart or a little wider, with toes straight ahead or pointing slightly out. Bend your knees, sending your butt back like you’re sitting in a chair, keeping your back straight. Go down as far as it feels comfortable. Inhale as you go down, and exhale as you rise. Repeat 10-15x.

VERSE: Psalm 95:6 “Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!” - As you stretch, meditate on the idea that He is worthy of all our praise and worship.

VERSE: Rom 15:2 “Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.” - As you move up and down in your movement, thank God for the people He’s allowed you to build up. Pray for them. And ask God to bring people into your life who will build you up, as well.

104 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Exercise 4 4. Glute Bridge Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Inhale and then as you exhale, press your feet into the ground, lifting your pelvis into the air. Try to create a straight line from the tops of your knees to your shoulders. Inhale at the top. Exhale as you slowly lower to the ground and repeat 10-15x.

VERSE: 1 Tim 2:5 “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” - Praise God for the gift of reconciliation in Jesus, that He is the bridge that allows us into eternal relationship with our Heavenly Father. Confess your need for him and ask Him to give you a greater understanding of the beauty of His work done for you.

Exercise 5 10-15x on each side.

VERSE: Luke 10:19-20 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” - Rejoice and gives thanks that God is our provider and protector and He has written our names in the book of life.

6. Bird Dog Start on your hands and knees with your wrists under your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Inhale and then as you exhale, reach one arm out in front of you and the leg on the opposite side out behind you. Switch and perform on the other side. Alternate between the sides as you count reps. As you perform this movement, think about keeping your back level and without allowing your back to overly arch. If this is too challenging, try performing with only the arms or only the legs. Perform 10-15x on each side.

5. Open Books Lie on your side (either one, you’ll repeat on the other side) with your knees pulled up towards your chest and your arms stretched out in front of you. You may want a pillow under your head. Inhale to prepare, then exhale and reach your top arm up and towards the floor behind you. Inhale feeling the stretch in VERSE: John 1:8 your mid back and the front of your chest. Exhale and “He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the bring your arm back to the starting position. Repeat light.” - As you perform this movement, ask that God

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 105

would use you as a person who points others to the light of Jesus and His gospel.

Exercise 6

7. Clamshell Lie on your side with your knees bent, feet stacked. Without allowing your pelvis or torso to twist or rock, lift your top knee up while allowing your feet to stay touching.

Exhale as you lift the leg and inhale as you lower back to the starting position. Perform 10-15x on each side.

VERSE: Matthew 13:45-46 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” - Ask God to give you a heart that values His kingdom above all else, including our attempts to rule our lives and set up our own kingdoms.

Exercise 7

106 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

My daughter Katie and son-in-law have been married almost eleven years. We have been asking God to provide a baby for them to adopt. Praise the Lord in December they received a call. They have adopted their precious boy, Nathan! Because I myself have been adopted when I was only one month old, this is truly special to see God give a Christian family an opportunity to make a difference in the life of a child.

Leslie Hollandsworth

I love how God answers the little things in my life such as: • new ministry opportunities • the church being revitalized and renewed.

• providing a quick retreat with my husband.

Marianne Barnett

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 107

108 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

by Debbie Keever I am a 43-year-old wife and mother. I have a husband with a good job, two small boys, a grown daughter, a comfortable home, three automobiles in the driveway, a camper in the yard, an outside dog, and a poodle in the house. But it was not always this way.

during the invitation and speaking to the preacher. I remember crying but nothing of what was said. I was baptized in that Baptist church in Blacksburg, S.C. and continued going to church until I moved to Shelby with my grandparents just before I turned thirteen.

I went off and on with my cousins until I was old

I came from a poor family with an alcoholic enough to say I didn’t want to go anymore, at about father and a mother who abused sleeping pills and age fifteen. I had never liked wearing a dress anyway pain medication. We moved from one rented house or and wanted to sleep late on weekends. I always told mobile home to another and my brother and I were anyone who asked me to go that you don’t have to go pretty much raised by our grandparents. One thing to church to be a Christian.

I can say about my parents is that they made sure we were in church on Sundays and Wednesdays. Occa I became pregnant and married at age sevsionally they went with us but mostly we went alone enteen to my teenage sweetheart, who later began to or with Nanny. drink and smoke pot a lot. That marriage lasted about six years. Then, as a single parent, I had to move back

At age eleven, I remember walking the aisle home to my parents’ house every time I got into

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 109

Left: my family and I Below: when I was a little girl. Right: me and my daughter.

financial trouble, which was often.

“religious” cousin who would turn that boombox in the master bathroom to a gospel station with some local singers and choir singing and preaching. It got on my nerves sooooo bad! Every time she left the room I either changed the station or turned it off. It was so BORING and half those singers didn’t sing very well.

During those years I had a five-year live-in relationship with an alcoholic. I worked several different, low-paying jobs because I was unskilled. My parents helped me off and on with babysitting during their sober times so I could work to clothe and feed us. I struggled to pay day care at other times. It’s really I met a man at work and a few months later I tough being a single mom. moved him in with us. We married the next year and it lasted a total of seventeen months. Another failed

As my daughter was growing into her teen relationship. During that marriage, however, I was years, I finally landed a job with decent pay and good invited over and over again to church with a friend benefits and began rebuilding my credit. It took five who just wouldn’t take no for an answer. I went on a years but we finally bought a half acre lot and built a Wednesday night (because I worked weekends) and small house that we designed. The next year we added I remember how comforting it felt to sit there in an in-ground pool. We had it made. By then I was church, just like when I was a little girl. working a weekend shift and getting all the overtime I wanted. I was also cleaning some houses, so the bills The preacher began to preach after some good were paid and I could go out to eat or partying when I singing and it sure was different from the “Mother wanted to.

Goose Nursery Rhyme” Bible stories I remembered from childhood. He had captured my interest. I heard

I remember cleaning my first house with a enough to make me want to return the next Wednes-

110 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

day and the next. On that third visit he preached about being saved and how you can know you are, about the changes in your life saying, “You better have more of a testimony than just saying you got wet and were placed on the role of a church.”

Now he had my full attention. After years of telling people “I was saved and baptized when I was eleven,” suddenly I wasn’t sure anymore. I rationalized how I was a good girl, compared to my friends, who partied more and had one-night stands. I had “livein”, serious relationships. I didn’t steal or tell lies and hadn’t killed anyone. I was a hard worker, raising my daughter practically by myself, and was doing the best I could.

As the invitation began and I was still rationalizing how good of a girl I was, the preacher asked if there was anyone not sure they were saved? As my hand went up, my heart broke and I began squalling. I stood there on the back row with my heart pounding, wanting to turn loose as the preacher asked

another time for the unsaved to come forward. It was like the Holy Spirit tapped me on the shoulder and said, “You may think you’re a good girl, but you’re a good girl going to hell.” I realized for the first time that I was a sinner.

Society had made my sins o.k. Everyone did what I did and it was accepted behavior. But I failed when I saw myself by God’s standard. I came out from that pew and believe I was saved the minute I admitted I was unsaved and needed a Savior to keep me from going to hell, and actually took that first step out.

I saw and really believed why Jesus died. It became personal. He died for me––my sin. Though all these words were not formed in my head at the time,

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 111 Far left: my husband and I left: my two sons. lower left: they just keep growing! the Holy Spirit was communicating with my heart and my heart with Him. I don’t remember who prayed with me or what was said––just begging God not to let me go to hell. I left that service telling my family that I rededicated my life to the Lord. I suppose now that it was pride or the fact that I was raised Baptist, who believe once saved, always saved, and I was still trying to hold on to that altar visit at age eleven. It took less than three weeks to realize something inside me was SO different.

I WANTED to go to church. I ordered tapes of sermons I missed while I worked. I was listening to, and LOVING gospel music. I listened to teaching and preaching on a Christian radio station. I wanted to talk about my church experiences and sermons that I heard. I tried to tell my friends about my salvation but it seemed the words wouldn’t come out right. I didn’t fully understand it myself, just that I thought about different things now and really enjoyed it!

I was then able to say that I was saved that night... truly reborn in Christ. I realized I couldn’t rededicate a life that had never been dedicated in the first place. I’d had an emotional experience in the altar as a child and used that as a security blanket all my life – until the Lord jerked it out from under me on November 4, 1998.

I am so thankful He saw fit to come after me. I went to church not looking for anything but came away with everything. I thought I had it all but didn’t see the void until God filled it within me. I can’t say life has been easy since then, but I can say everything in life makes more sense now.

It’s amazing to me that everything I could possibly go through is addressed in the Bible. The answers are there in God’s Word. I am still not perfect. I fail God daily and life is full of stresses, but I have found my Lord to be faithful to help me and guide me. All I have to do is ask from the heart and allow Him to lead!

Would you like to trust Jesus Christ today?

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” ~Ephesians 2:8-9

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” ~ROMANS 3:23

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ~ROMANS 6:23

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” ~ROMANS 5:8

“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” ~ROMANS 10:9-10

112 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 113

114 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Have a plan: Choose a book of the Bible to read through rather than simpy opening to a random passage.

Ask questions: Not familiar with the word? Look it up in the dictionary or in a Strong's concordance

Be teachable: Come to God's Word expecting to learn something, be ready to act on what you read.

Looking for a Bible reading plan? Use this three month plan with a theme that is unique for the month. Graphics provided by Have Faith Studio

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 115

J U N E

R E A D I N G

1. Ephesians 2:8-9

16. 2 Corinthians 12:9

2. Philemon 1:25

17. Romans 6:14

3. Romans 5:15

18. Ephesians 1:6

4. Acts 20:24

19. 2 Timothy 4:22

5. Hebrews 4:16

20. 1 Peter 5:10

6. Isaiah 30:18

21. Romans 5:2

7. Philippians 4:23

22. Titus 2:11-14

8. Numbers 6:24-26

23. Luke 2:40

9. Psalm 23:6

24. Acts 20:32

10. Psalm 103:8

25. Matthew 6:14

11. Revelation 22:21

26. 1 Peter 1:13

12. 2 Timothy 2:1

27. 2 Corinthians 13:14

13. Galatians 2:21

28. 2 Peter 3:18

14. Romans 16:20

29. Romans 11:6

15. Acts 15:11

30. John 1:16-17

P L A N

For it is by grace you have been saved,

—

it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. ~Ephesians 2:8-9

READING THE BIBLE WITH A RENEWED SPIRIT WWW.SITSTILLMYDAUGHTER.COM

116 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

FRUIT OF THE

J U L Y

is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

R E A D I N G

P L A N

1. Galatians 5:22-26

16. Philippians 4:7

2. 1 John 4:16

17. 2 Timothy 1:7

3. Titus 3:2

18. Ephesians 5:8-9

4. Ephesians 3:16-17

19. Hebrews 10:23

5. Galatians 6:1-5

20. Colossians 3:12

6. James 3:17-18

21. Romans 13:10

7. Romans 5:1 8. 1 John 5:2-3 9. Colossians 1:9-11 10. 2 Peter 1:5-9 11. Matthew 7:15-20

let us keep in step with the Spirit. us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." ~Galatians 5:22-26

12. Nehemiah 8:10 13. Romans 8:5-6 14. Hebrews 12:11 15. 2 Corinthians 6:6-7

22. James 1:2 23. Titus 1:7-8 24. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 25. 1 Corinthians 13:13 26. Romans 15:13 27. Proverbs 25:28 28. Romans 12:1-2 29. Ephesians 4:1-3 30. 2 Corinthians 3:17 31. John 14:27

READING THE BIBLE WITH A RENEWED SPIRIT WWW.SITSTILLMYDAUGHTER.COM

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 117

WALK IN THE

A U G U S T

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said,

R E A D I N G 1. John 8:12

16. Isaiah 60:1

2. Acts 13:47

17. Matthew 5:13-16

3. Matthew 4:16

18. 2 Corinthians 4:6

4. Genesis 1:3-5

19. 1 Peter 2:9

5. John 1:5 6. 1 John 2:8-10 7. Psalm 18:28 8. Luke 11:34-36

Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” ~John 8:12

P L A N

9. John 3:19-21 10. Psalm 27:1

20. John 9:5 21. Psalm 139:11-12 22. Philippians 2:14-15 23. Micah 7:8 24. Romans 13:12-14 25. Psalm 119:105 26. Matthew 6:22

11. Revelation 21:23

27. 1 John 1:5-7

12. Acts 26:18

28. Proverbs 4:18

13. John 12:35-37

29. Ephesians 5:13-14

14. Habakkuk 3:4

30. Psalm 19:8

15. James 1:17

31. Ecclesiastes 2:13

READING THE BIBLE WITH A RENEWED SPIRIT WWW.SITSTILLMYDAUGHTER.COM

118 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

We offer various pottery home decor items, mugs, plates, bowls, pottery planters that include live plants, and more! We have a hand poured candle line that are made in small batches, and are given the care and attention needed to achieve a great aromatic experience for you.

We believe in handmade with love!

Our 6 oz candles have a 22+ hour burn time, and our 8 oz candles have a 30+

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 119

120 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

In the next issue ...

. The Spanish Bride: a beautiful story of how God brought two people together from

across the sea.

. The Naomi Syndrome: Do you believe God is good to you or just others? . Lessons from Lebanon: a missionary wife shares what she learned while overseas and much more ...

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 121

122 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | Sit still my daughter 123

There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.

Jane Austen

124 Sit still my daughter | Summer 2021

PLANT SEEDS OF GRATITUDE EVERY DAY

a pocket full of PLANT SEEDS OF GRATITUDE EVERY DAY

52 scripture card deck with a pocket plastic carrying case. full of

Tuck in your Bible as a bookmark Leave a card on the table for your server after a delicious meal Share with your Bible study group Offer encouragement to awith sister, 52 scripture card deck mother, friend, or daughter plastic carrying case.

Surprise a co-worker with a card left on her desk Tuck in your Bible as a bookmark Share your faith with everyone Leave a card on the table for your you meet server after a delicious meal Use as daily devotional cards to Share with your Bible study group study each verse Offer encouragement to a sister, mother, friend, or daughter Surprise a co-worker with a card left on her desk Share your faith with everyone you meet Use as daily devotional cards to study each verse

etsy.com/shop/HaveFaithStudioShop

etsy.com/shop/HaveFaithStudioShop