FEATURE
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EXPLORE T AND FIND
WOMEN'S FRONT
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THE WORLD YOURSELF
TLINE MAGAZINE
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER
from the editor
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Summer Breeze normal to cover the months of August holidays always give and September. us a chance to switch off and Our filled with reboot. It's been a beautiful stories. fantastic summer Our cover story, with high shared by Winne temperatures and Andango captures beautiful clear days. the hearts of many .. Most of us have a beautiful article spent days lounging about overcoming in the sun and the loss of a baby on taking in the page.. awesomeness of summer. The feature this month is on Whether you have worship art by Heidi travelled or not this Ngai. Find her summer, we hope amazing work on that you have had a page 26. chance to switch off and reboot. If you are going through a process in We have chosen to life, read Thea release the summer Loewen's piece issue a bit later than about the process
Summer
she has been through in her marriage. No matter where yo find yourself in life, you have the power to find your inner strength and growl. You are strong, bold and worthy of your calling, Circumstances might scream otherwise, but with wit and charm, you will reboot and find yourself. Own your space, your moment and your time. Have a great breeze of a summer!
Mucha Editor
.
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GLORY
HIS WONDERS ARE AMAZNG
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B L
f ...
W O M E N ' S F R O N T L I N E M A G A Z I N E
W W W . W O M E N S F R O N T L I N E M A G A Z I N E . C O M
IN THIS ISSUE
August /September2018 4 Summer Breeze 8 In this issue 10 Advertise with us 34 You don't have to save the world Shana Strange 54 Reclaiming You Mary Eisenacher 60 How to thrive during a devastating setback
Contributing Writers FIT & HAPPY Winnie Andango By TAVIA Barnes
Shana Strange
THENgai LOSS OF A Heidi BABY By Winnie Andango Thalea Loewen
HOW THRIVE TaviaTO Barnes DURING A DEVASTATING Mary SETBACK Eisenacher Alice Mills
Alice Mills Www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
CONTENTS Women's Frontline Magazine
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Cover Story The loss of a baby Winnie Andango
26 Worship Art Heidi Ngai
My Life's process Thalea Loewen
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12 www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
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DO YOU WANT TO GET EXPOSURE? ADVERTISE WITH US
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Contact us Womensfrontline@gmail.com www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
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Are you having your alone time? Are you too busy being a wife, mom, friend, sister or partner that you barely have time to yourself? When was the last time you spent time to catch up with ''you?'' We would like to hear from you. Tell us how you spend time with your bestfriend...you!
Are you embracing changes in your life? Since life is a process, we will all encounter changes and crossroads. How are you dealing with this? Some changes are very difficult to deal with, but in time you will learn to embrace them in a positive healthy way. Start by accepting that it is what it is.
Are you sharing your gifts with the world?
Send your comments and requests
You have a gift that the world needs to know about, but are you afraid to let it out of the bag? Well, its time to let it out and let it spread. There is no greater joy than receiving feedback that your gift has helped someone along the way. So get it out there and let God do the rest. www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
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D O I N G
Women's Frontline magazine
YOU WILL NEVER SEE THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN UNLESS YOU CLIMB IT
L I F E
YOUR WAY the art of living
GREAT THINGS AWAIT YOU AS YOU STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
#MOTIVATIONAL
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You are not alone
by Winnie Andango
THE LOSS OF A BABY Stay in touch with the author www.unleashedheart.com
how my life has been changed 9 years on...
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Cover Story The 4th of August would have been our daughter Neema Hope’s 9th birthday. As a Mum who likes to bake for our kids’ birthdays, I can’t help but wonder whether she would have liked a chocolate or vanilla sponge cake, and what her favourite icing would have been. Such thoughts still bring tears to my eyes, but I always want her memory to bring good not sadness. So I’m writing with the hope that I can help others who may be going through a tough time.
This is what I would like you to take away from this post; You are not alone Your life matters You can get through this I’m also in the process of writing a memoir of our journey from Neema’s diagnoses of Hypoplastic heart syndrome at 20 weeks pregnancy and how we found hope. You can read an excerpt from my book here. So how has my life been changed by the loss? www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
the loss of a baby..
1) We are human and we sometimes get overwhelmed. We can often get caught up living up to other people’s expectations. While grieving for our baby, people would come up with what they thought were comforting phrases. One of the phrases I heard quite often was; ‘you are so strong!’ Although their intentions were good, I wonder what they would have said had they been able to see what was going on within me. www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
The fears, hurt, anger, worry, and doubt that I was quietly battling with. . Being told you’re strong or you’re coping well can create a wrong expectation. We might feel under pressure to hide our hurt and begin to wear a mask to give the impression that we are okay.
In time, the mask works, and those around us believe we are okay that we are not in need of continued support. So, yes, it’s good to be positive but keep it real with those who love and care about you. Don’t’ sit in the dark Allow light to break through your darkness. Darkness will always seek to invade and overwhelm us, you don’t even have to face loss or illness for darkness to invade your life.
It has a habit of sneaking into our minds and whispering lies to us. We become fearful, desperate and ashamed of being perceived as weak. When you find yourself faced with darkness, seek to bring in light. Take the first step by speaking about your struggles with the right people – ‘a problem shared is a problem half solved.’
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The loss of a baby...
Speaking about our struggles is what exposes the darkness. It’s the first step towards our healing and with the right support, darkness loses its hold on us. ‘the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.’ I might shed a few more tears this week but I plan to keep the light shining. www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
I remind myself that Neema Hope’s memory should be one that brings grace and hope just like her beautiful name. 2) I’m moved by other people’s struggles It’s not that I didn’t care before but there has been a greater need to connect with people and to see beyond the wall we often put up. I now understand that when we receive help and comfort in our difficulty it’s not just for us, God has other people in mind too. As Paul says in the Bible;
‘the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.’ 2 Cor 1:3-5 Sharing any wisdom, truth, and hope by writing blog posts or books or by speaking, brings a sense of fulfilling a divine purpose. I feel that I’m making Neema’s short life count.
3) I have found a new urgency for fulfilling my life’s purpose.
We often forget that life here on earth is just but for a short time, it’s not forever. I only had a short time to hold my baby in my arms. I would have liked to be the one who decided how long that should last, but it wasn’t up to me. That thought alone should give us a sense of urgency in how we live our life.
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The thought of becoming a writer/author was triggered by our baby’s short life. During the experience, I was helped by other people’s stories and I felt that I should do the same. So, publishing my book Kick start your purposeful Living brought me a great sense of fulfilment.
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4) I’m certain that there is a God and He cares about us If you’ve ever been through an extremely difficult experience, you will know that the very foundation of who you are is shaken.
You question everything; your values, beliefs as well as your own ability to endure. Of course, I believed in God before the ordeal, yet I found myself questioning the goodness of God. It’s difficult to reconcile the thought of a loving God and immense suffering or tragedy
WOMEN'S FRONTLINE MAGAZINE
As I dug deep and reexamine my core beliefs I began to uncover truths which became my tangible evidence of God and His supreme divinity. I received a deep conviction about God’s love that goes beyond what He can do for us. This didn’t come easy, it came after overcoming a fierce battle of the mind. But as the storm raged God’s love was unveiled, the anchor that kept us from being swept up and dragged under by the currents. It may sound like a cliché but true to His word ‘He never leaves us.’
Thank you for reading, if you need support please get help. I would also like to hear your thoughts or experience with loss. For help with Bereavement: Cruse Bereavement https://www.cruse.org.uk / Little Hearts Matter https://www.lhm.org.uk/
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HO PE WOMEN'S FRONTLINE MAGAZINE www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
WOMEN'S FRONTLINE MAGAZINE
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"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge." Psalm 19:1-2
Women's Frontline Magazine would like to introduce an amazing worship artist. Make sure to visit her website for more inspiring prophetic art where you can buy her art in print form. Ever since encountering the love of God as a student at Arizona State University, Heidi Ngai knew her art and passion for seeing the beauty all around us would never be the same. After graduating with a degree in fine arts, with an emphasis in painting, she asked the Lord what she should do with her ability to apply a brush to a canvas. To her surprise He seemed to be leading her to simply paint during the worship at her church and trust that He would do the rest. Through that simple step of obedience, God has taken her on an adventure she would have never imagined, painting the beauty of His purposes and heart often through symbolic paintings done during times of worship. Not only have many of her paintings spoken directly to the hearts of the recipients of her work, but she has also been given the gift of inspiring others to hear from God and create their own visual worship to the Lord through art workshops she began teaching in 2009. Since that time, testimony after testimony has revealed the impact of what God can do
Here are some of her inspiring art...next page
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Positioned for Glory
WOMEN'S FRONTLINE MAGAZINE Positioned for glory Can you feel the breeze as I am drawing back the arrow right next to your cheek? Get ready to take flight! II Samuel 5:22-25, "As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army." So David did as the Lord commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer."
feature
WORSHIP ART BY HEIDI NGAI
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What is Prophetic Art? Prophetic art is a work of art which reveals the Father's heart, His thoughts and intent, prophecies, strategies and timetable. It comes with form, line, texture, colors, symbols to enter through the human eyes and senses to lodge like an arrow into the hearts and spirit of men. There is a difference between biblical art and prophetic art. Biblical art, in a general sense, depict stories and people from the Bible. These art pieces are beautiful and inspirational. They bring understanding, appreciation and remembrance for what God did in biblical times for the purpose of bringing our hearts closer to Him. In contrast, prophetic art is God giving us a now word. He is communicating now. He is sending a visual "speech" which must be responded to now. Thus it comes with a sense of immediacy and urgency and timing. Usually it comes in through the eyes and hits the heart. - Jean Shen
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Poised
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Drink Offering Sword of the Spirit
Sword of the spirit ''To stand firm against the enemy, take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." Ephesians 6:17
BUY YOUR PRINTÂ AT ( https://www.heidingai.com/
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Bursting into bloom
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Watching
YOU WILL KNOW THEM BY TH GRAPES FROM THORNBUSHE
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& Praying
HEIR FRUITS. DO MEN GATHER ES OR FIGS FROM THISTLES?
BY SHANA STRANGE
Women's Frontline Magazine
http://shanastrange.net/
YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAVE THE WORLD Do you ever feel like you are drowning? Not in a literal ocean, but maybe an ocean of laundry, to-do lists, errands, obligations and just plain old life?? And if just one more requests is made of you, you might sink to to the bottom of the abyss to never return?? ''I do.''
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Just this morning I could feel the water starting to rush over my head and the tide getting stronger. On my to do list today: SAVE THE WORLD!!! That’s what it feels like anyway. I know it was only some things like: go to the gym, pray, read my bible, ask God to not let me drown, pick up groceries so we don’t starve to death, call and schedule an appointment for my tight neck, '' which is a result of my stress induced life, answer emails, and for the love of all that’s holy somehow manage to actually go to work at some point, start dinner in the crockpot before I leave, write a blog, throw up some
inspirational quote in hopes of it actually landing on a poor, desperate soul that’s more overwhelmed than I am, prepare for my music students coming today, work on my goals to continue growing my business……. YES….save the world! Isn’t that what I’m trying to do??? Maybe not the whole world but at least my little corner of it anyway. Are you trying to do it too? It sounds good, like the right thing to do.
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Maybe it’s because we can’t save the world.
Then why do we feel so overwhelmed before we’re even out the gate??? I can’t even save a struggling houseplant. I always kill the poor things. Why do we put this pressure on ourselves to be perfect?? Did God really ask that of us?? As I exhaled a ragged breath in between tasks, I felt the Lord speak Isaiah 26:3, You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
Yes, perfect peace….that’s what we need. It’s what we crave in this chaotic, crazy world we live in. We just need perfect peace, calm in the chaos, stillness in the storm. And we can have it. Here’s the catch though: we have to learn to fix our minds on God. His unshakability; His power; His immovability; His nearness. How do we do that- fix our minds??
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We have to be intentional. Meaning, when we really want to just jump out of bed and start on our tasks, we forego that anxious feeling and choose to sit in God’s presence instead. We are waiting for Him, calmly, knowing He will come. He will come like the spring rains. He will come like that first light of dawn, breaking the blackness. up and If we show wait for Him, He will make an appearance.
We don’t have to save the world, we just need to meet with the one who can. It’s called prioritizing. Putting God first- seeking Him before everything else that clamors for our attention. It can be a real struggle for us task oriented folks that thrive with to-do lists and deadlines. Hello I’m Martha, nice to meet ya! My favorite things are colored pens, highlighters and little flowered journals where I write down all of the things that I need to do! www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
Is your name Martha too???
Don’t get me wrong, without Martha stuff wouldn’t get done. Or would it? Martha’s always think if they don’t do it, it won’t get done. That might be true, but in the grand scheme of things who really cares?? What’s more important, having a spotless house or having an encounter with God?
Maybe, just maybe, if we put our time with God first, He would give us specific directions on what is most important that day and give us the strength to get it done. Oh I’m preaching to the choir here, so I’m gonna go ahead and AMEN myself!! That’s right! Preach it girl! Yes!
Checking everything off of your to-do list or peace and joy??
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Hallelujah!!
I can hear the applause of countless scores of overwhelmed, disheveled moms of pre-schoolers,
professional 8-5ers and gray haired grandmas taking care of precious grand babies for their working children. I’m just gonna pat you on the back and hand you an imaginary gourmet cupcake with sprinkles and cream cheese icing. You aren’t bad…..God’s not disappointed in you. You are a great mom, great wife and an amazing friend. You just need to know that.
We are all going to be okay. We just need to stop trying to save the world and grab a hold of Jesus. Let Him save the world through our surrendered lives. Let Him call the shots. We don’t have to be in charge here! Thank God for that!
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THE NAME OF THE LORD IS A STRONG TOWER Women's Frontline magazine
BY THALEA LOEWEN
MY LIFE IN PROCESS https://12things.blog/
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is a student in life and in school, she plans to become a counselor/family mediator. She has a desire to grow and to share God's heart. Every day she learns more, she knows less; one day, she hopes to learn so much that she knows almost nothing at all. Her blog is 12 Things.
MY LIFE IN PROCESS He has been un-learning the dangerous principles he was taught by many within the church. And slowly, he has been changing the way he treats me. It takes years, a lifetime of beliefs, to develop these behaviors. And it will take years to deconstruct them. It's slow and it's painful, as change sometimes is. But as equal partners, we finally have hope moving forward. My husband and I were married in 2012. We've been separated three times since then. As of February, this last stretch will
My husband and I have spent the last year in group programs and individual counselling which teaches what healthy relationships actually look like, what mutual submission looks like. He has been learning that I am his equal.
have been 13 months. That's a long time apart, and it needed to happen. Years ago, a seed was planted in both my husband and me. This seed was the idea that husbands lead, get the final say, and have authority over their wives. It was planted by the church and watered for years, through sermons and Sunday school and youth groups, until it sprouted and grew into a set of deeply rooted beliefs and behaviors that tangled and choked our marriage.
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Because my husband grew up believing that he would have authority over his wife, he acted like it. He treated me like a child and called me "defiant" when I pushed back. His behaviors were abusive, but he was never taught that they were abusive or told that I was his equal. He was taught to treat me like a pretty ornament, showering me with gifts and compliments. He was taught that he was to love me and I was to respect him in return.
His behaviors were abusive, but Because I grew up hearing the Orci varius natoque penatibus magnis from dis he was never taught that they sameetthings the church, I felt parturient were abusive or told that lorem I wasipsum like I couldn't breathe. What was his equal. He was taught to treat I supposed to do? WAS I just me like a pretty ornament, being defiant? Orci varius natoque penatibus et magnis dis showering me with gifts and parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. compliments. He was taught that My mom was independent and my Sed condimentum sit amet quam ut faucibus. had gumption. I don't he was toAliquam love me and I dolor was eu to sapien grandma malesuada mollis, I ever completely understood vel dapibus augue lobortis. Vivamusthink aliquam respect him in return.
Kuisque arcubi Nam semper sit
ante id pharetra dignissim. Nam dui the est, implications of the husband scelerisque volutpat rhoncus ut, tempus ege. being in charge because the women
But what I actually needed was support and encouragement and independence. I needed to be a person who developed to my fullest potential as a human being. I needed respect.
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in my life had such strong minds of their own. But here I was, expected to fill a role I hadn't prepared myself for..
Last February, my husband and I went on a marriage cruise put on by a Christian organization. It was eyeopening, and not in a great way. On this cruise, I listened to a lineup of talks about how making it "just one more year" in marriage is what matters. I wondered, at what point has the church made marriage into an idol? I heard speakers talk or shout about the importance of hierarchy in marriage. One of them even said that his wife was not allowed to leave him, and he would follow her if she did.
I wondered, how many women in the audience were afraid of their husbands? While on a tour bus, I watched a man physically wrestle his wife's cell phone out of her hands while she cried out in pain.
The founder of the organization and his wife sat less than 10 feet away. They whispered and turned their heads, ignoring the situation. When we got off the bus, they rushed back onto the ship, leaving the couple behind I slipped that woman a note while her husband wasn't looking. Even today I wonder if I should have done more. The following night, this founder got up and told the men, "One day, you will present your wives to God and say 'here she is Lord, without spot or blemish'." At that point, I had more questions than answers. I still have questions. How is it that a man is the one who presents his wife to God when Christ is the one who causes us, by His blood alone, to be without spot or blemish? If a man has authority over his wife, what does he have the power to do if she resists? www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
MY LIFE IN PROCESS In order for authority to exist, there needs to be something to enforce, and a righteous mechanism to enforce it. What is a husband's righteous mechanism for enforcement? What does this authority allow the husband to decide? Does he get to choose what his wife wears? What they will eat? Which articles she reads online? How she chooses to study the Bible, and when? Can he dictate the convictions of her heart? Can anyone dictate the convictions of another person's heart? "Equal in value, different in roles"
woman's role seem to change. This is a phrase I hear often in the church. It's almost like a mantra to some. And since it's partially true, it's slippery and hard to deconstruct. We all have different gifts. In that sense, we can fill roles that fit with our own strengths. But this statement is about men and women. It is saying that men have one role ("leader") and women have one role ("supporter"). Where it gets muddled is in what this all means and how it actually makes sense. Because depending on who one speaks to within the church, the confines of a
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The only constant in the hierarchal school of thought is this: Women are on the bottom.
From what I have seen, in these circles, a woman's situation or role is dependant on which husband she ends up with. If he allows her to fly free and pursue her dreams, great! If not, she's left to pray harder and submit more, hoping that God or her own obedience will soften him somehow.
The idea that people think a man and woman can be given the same spiritual gifts, but have different limitations on those gifts based on their body parts, with the idea that they're still somehow equal in value is beyond me.
The idea that anyone can compare a marriage, and the intimacy that comes with it, with a corporation or with the military, makes no sense.
journey in equality, I've been drawn to James 3:17: Here's the thing: my goal is not to fight. It feels like so many of us are in fights. Deep lines have been drawn in the Christian sand. There are believers on both sides of this thing, glaring and shouting at one another.
It isn't smug and it doesn't try to get the last word online. It doesn't dehumanize those who disagree. The wisdom from Heaven looks to find a compassionate understanding. We'll never have all the answers.
More knowledge often only leads to more questions. But we need to be kinder, more gentle, and We have become so yielding to one concerned with right- another through ness, that we these conversations. sometimes - I sometimes - forget that loving people comes first.
Equality adjusts "Equal in value, different in roles" and makes it what it We as Christians should be, what God often forget that the says we are: wisdom from Heaven isn't proud. It doesn't EQUAL IN VALUE. stomp around in Period. indignation, or use the Bible as a I would like to add weapon. that throughout my
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FIT & HAPPY
We begin the New Year with a resolution to eat better, exercise more and lose weight. cheerleader? First we must change our mind set, one go missed day at the shopping and buy the gym is not a failure. workout attire, join a We have all the When we miss a gym and vow to stop excuses, we work a workout fit in eating badly and start lot, we are tired, eating healthy costs a elsewhere. eating and drinking lot more, we have things that we children and it's too Start parking further normally would hard. from the door at the never ingest. store. Our family won't Several weeks later change like the foods, Take the stairs at and life is moving work, or during your faster and faster and we don't have time for meal prep..... break at work, walk we haven't been to there are so many for 15min. the gym. more. But none of those excuses help us Housework is a We stop doing meal get to our goal! workout, put on ankle preps and begin to weights while grab food though the So what do we do, cleaning. while drive through. how do we get back watching TV, during on that path of commercials, walk or Donuts are our healthy living and jog in place. breakfast and that 5lbs we lost become a stay on it and become our own 10lb gain. We begin
We
BY TAVIA BARNES #MOTIVATIONDAILY
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to go back to our old habits and we feel like failures.
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fit & happy
There are many ways to fit in 30 minutes a day to your regular routine and not feel like you have failed. Every day that you are moving around you are winning!! Another thing is drink more water, leave a bottle by your bed side and drink it first thing in the morning. I know it's room temperature and it doesn't taste good. The benefits are amazing, it's help you keep hydrated all day.
When making food the door. choices, chose more fruits and vegetables One mistake is not a and lean meats. failure, you always have the chance to Cut out the start over. So your carbohydrates in goal is to be happy everything. even if you ate one cookie...it's just one I didn't say stop cookie! eating them, just reduce your intake Celebrate your small of them. accomplishments and don't highlight So double on your your failures. vegetable servings, snack on fruits and Use every vegetables. opportunity to take care of yourself. It will be hard at first but it will soon Weight loss doesn't become a habit. happen over night! Take the stairs and park further from
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summer Inspiration All things yummy > www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
I have been reclaimed from the enemy “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)
THE BLOOD
IT WASHES AS W www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
D OF JESUS
WHITE AS SNOW
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YOU reclaimingÂ
by mary eisenacher www.callofthewildmin.org https://www.callofthewildmin.org/
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I am praising God for new vision for this season. He is unwrapping much for His people who are pressing into The Throne of God. He will not leave us defenseless or without vision if we seek His will for our lives.
W
e have just come out of a season of self-examination. That is not unusual for this time of the year, especially if you know the format of the Hebrew calendar and God’s designs for each season. We all have a special mix of giftings that the Lord has placed within us. To stay true to His blueprint becomes a challenge at times. We have to know who we are in Christ and what He has called us to do. We wear many hats depending on location. Recently - with my intercessory prayer hat on I found myself in one of
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those challenging positions under leadership. I found myself with no words to pray out loud. I was praying in the spirit when God began to give me a vision.
The vision that I got in this prayer meeting was for me only. I was not released to share it with the group or pray into it. It is so important that we pay attention to what fits in with the flow of the Holy Spirit.
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What the Lord was giving me had nothing to do with what they were praying, except on a grander scale. It was not appropriate to share or pray.
we show respect and honor to those in authority.
There was no opening. But, the Lord told me it is appropriate for this month through Women’s Frontline Magazine.
How about you?
My experience was to solidify a position of being humble and obedient while under another leader’s authority. And, I am glad that I was able to do so. Listening and discerning are important if we are to enjoy relationships with others. In so doing,
I believe we even get tested on this! I want to pass the test!
The vision I had was of fires blazing and other fires waning and almost going out. I kept seeing these fires over and over. I wondered why there were so many, and what was the effect on them. So in my mind’s eye, I began to understand what Holy Spirit was showing me. The fires represented
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different groups of people who had grown close together in prayer. Some people call them different tribes. I’ve heard leaders talk about their tribes – those they minister with and trust to do so. If you are not part of their tribe, you cannot expect to be close to them or join them in ministry. You need an invitation. A minister I met recently (when presented with examples of difficulty with people) continued to say the phrase
“It’s just human nature.”
That phrase has come back to remembrance over and over this week.
Whether it is right or wrong to have a tribe, I do know that those with like-ideas or revelation that is similar will gravitate toward each other. Now, the problem comes with competition. That is something I have been witnessing for years. It comes through a disguise such as I can preach or pray better than you. We have many who are frustrated by the confines of their positions and take the stance that they must perform and fill in all of the time with their own revelation and agenda.
The Lord showed me that when the competition gets too great - when criticism takes over toward other tribes, when there is an abuse of authority or the reverse showing lack of respect for authority, or when prayers are unscriptural – the fire will wane.Â
This pushes others out of the circle and they may leave in defeat.
So, what about the fires?
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Reclaiming you BY
MARY
EISENACHER
When a tribe stays in and of itself and does not reach out – the fire will wane.
clash, battle, match . . . has to end.
When love for Jesus is not the primary heart encompass – the path gets dark, and the fire wanes.
Instead we have to begin to look for a spirit of cooperation and friendship that wants the best for others.
So how does The Church get delivered from competition? Well, we look to the opposite of this spirit and call forth the better.
This rivalry, race, struggle, opposition, war, antagonism, contest, fight,
We must learn to walk in love. It is not enough to gather with the likeminded ones. We must reach out to others who are different – or should I say who appear to be different. Instead of being the loud one who takes over every conversation, we must be willing to listen also. When others begin to criticize, we must shut that down and not be their buddy
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and allow them to continue on and on. We are to prefer one another in love. Be it all, that could mean tough love as well.
Safe boundaries are in order for our welfare, but that should not mean that we cannot ever open the gate to new people when the Lord prompts our heart. We cannot be so hard-hearted that we cannot embrace those who have experienced Passover, but not Pentecost or Tabernacles . . . or those who don’t have conviction yet of sinful life patterns.
Jeremiah 29:11-14 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into
exile.”
To me, “Reclaiming You” can be identified as allowing God to continue to mold and shape you into His divine image. I do not know about you, but God continues to show me to not try to prove myself or who I am. But, I certainly want all to know who The Great I AM is and how He will stretch you and expand your knowledge of Him. The “You” is the one and only Christ in me the hope of glory.
Join me in reclaiming your “You.” Let the Father take you back to your spiritual Eden where all your known sins are confessed and forgiven, where there is healing and deliverance, and where you have been rescued from your worldly self and are able to look to the Lord for fresh vision and Holy Fire.
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BY ALICE MILLS
How to thrive during a devastating setback
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I think there ought to be setback alerts just like there are weather alerts. That way I could prepare myself, maybe ward off the worst. But wishful thinking and trying to predict the future don’t help with coping during a setback, particularly one that touches major areas of your life. Articles and studies dealing with stress and the consequences it can have on our minds and bodies abound in the media. Apparently coping with stress well is an important life skill if you want to live past fifty.
however, God gives us some ideas as to gaining coping skills. I have received a number of setbacks in my life. My first marriage to a man with Narcissistic Personality Disorder set me back over a decade. I have endured chronic pain and periods of ill health.
Job understood setbacks. Moses, too, had some dreadful ones as did many others in the Bible. I think Job had it the worst, though. He didn’t bring it on himself and he lost everything a human can possibly lose.
Financial loss has hit more than once. Personal losses within the family are piled high in the memories of both my husband and me. But mine is not a tale of woe and despair. Each setback made me wiser and humbler, I suppose that is why his story is careful to listen to what my own told in the Bible. In this world, a heart is telling me and to the Holy new and awful setback could be Spirit, who shares His wisdom. just around the corner. The Bible And I have more compassion for doesn’t pretend that everything is those who suffer setbacks of their going to be great. Fortunately, own.
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BY ALICE MILLS
Surviving a setback is a matter of being truthful with oneself and with others. The beauty of a setback is that if you allow God to transform you in it, you find yourself more courageous than before, less fearful of the things life or the enemy throws your way.
moment, one at a time, we can reduce the discomfort. If we let our minds run wild with regrets and fears about what may happen, we only add to our agony. Check out your body, emotions, and circumstances as they come. Are you safe? Do you have what you need right now? Do people care about you? Choose Strategies for facing your setback: to live in that reality instead of fantasy ones in which you are Accept the reality of what has bankrupt or alone. happened. Reframe your story. Take the hit. Denial prolongs the inevitable. Every good story has conflict. But Grieve and wallow a bit. By facing whether you make it through this the enormity of what just setback is to some degree happened, you can actually determined by how you see the shorten the period of agony. plot of your life. Are you on an Numbing yourself just prolongs adventure or are you a victim the recovery process. Simply thrown about by your acknowledging and allowing the circumstances. situation to be what it is will move you past it much faster than How you tell yourself your story if you run. greatly determines your outlook on life. In the Bible, there is always a third day. Everything Live in the moment. looks bleak until that third day dawns. Then Jesus is risen, the Much of our emotional pain enemy is humiliated, and Israel comes from brooding over the comes out of exile. past or casting our thoughts into the future. If we stay in each
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Understand your territory. Do you understand what it is you can control over versus what you can’t? Make sure you do not take credit for disasters outside of your control. Job lost it all, but not through his own actions. Through no action of our own, bad things can happen. And even if we do share blame in our private disasters, remember we, as Christians, are not condemned.
occasional night off of grief. When in some of my worst times of my life, I made a cup of my favorite tea and buried myself in a book I had already read a dozen times, I gave my mind and body a rest. Worship music or working in the garden or whatever refreshes you alleviates the constant pressure of what happened. Surrender.
Job surrendered. God never Look right in front of you. answered Job’s angry question directly. You might not get one In as much pain as you might be either. But the act of surrendering in, getting out of bed and doing my life to God increases my what little you can do boosts your capacity to cope. Once I discovered mood. Sometimes the most my boss in a grievous wrong. The powerful act of spiritual warfare I stress was enormous. When I do is get out of bed and doing my surrendered the outcome to Him little chores around the house. and the justice as I saw it, He let Each little act declares hope! Don’t me know that the pain I was minimize your small disciplines as suffering was because I had pointless. Each small obeyed Him. The stress was a accomplishment is your light result of doing the right thing at flickering in the darkness. great personal cost. He put me Take a break from your setback. there because He wanted to purify Unrelenting misery is dangerous that situation. to our health, both mental and physical. As little as you might feel like having fun, give yourself an www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com www.womensfrontlinemagazine.com
by Alice Mills
My error lay in the belief that if I feel pain, something is wrong. Not necessarily. Remember we are in a war when we become Christians. A powerful evil is loose in this world. Our call is to follow Christ right into the thick of battle. While victory is guaranteed, sometimes we have to take some bruising hits.
In the end, everybody suffers. But you can choose to make your suffering a part of a saga that ends well. We get to choose if we grow or not. Our calling as overcomers is one that is tested. Remember that the next time something devastating occurs. Remember Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednigo.
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They were forced into that fiery furnace, but when they got in there, God Himself met them there and kept them from injury. We may lose our homes, our health, and our jobs while we are here in this fiery furnace called Earth, but the Lover of our souls will not let us suffer real harm in the one area that matters. Our spirits, filled by His Holy Spirit, can transcend any setback, with peace, faith, hope, and love.
DREAMS WILL SET YOUR BRAIN IN MOTION TO LIVE YOUR LIFE TO THE FULLEST. MUCHA LUNDING
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