Money

*for women only*

Led by Wendie Beddingfield

Completely customized for the women at New Hope and our community, this study of God's word delves into the different aspects of earning, spending, saving, and attitudes toward this powerful tool God has given us. During the ten weeks of this course, you will not only discover freedom through what God's word says about handling money and possessions but also receive hands-on instruction in applying this knowledge to your daily life.

With understanding taken from the Bible as well as authors like Randy Alcorn, Howard Dayton, Larry Burkett, and Dave Ramsey, Wendie Beddingfield will cover a variety of subjects and focus directly on how God intends women to view and use money. Each week will introduce a new facet of application:

God's job vs. My job, Giving, Work, Spending, Debt, Saving, Honesty, Counsel, Teaching our children, and Investing & Eternal Perspective

Much like a Home Team, you will experience small group discussion, praise and worship, but you will also hear teaching each week on the various topics as well as first-hand testimonies of God's glory and special helps for application. Additional recommended reading is strongly encouraged to enhance understanding and application.

Materials for recommended reading: The Treasure Principle by Randy Alcorn, Your Money Counts by Howard Dayton, The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, Money, Possessions & Eternity by Randy Alcorn

**In joining this study, you will in no way be required to reveal any of your financial details with either the leader or the members of the group. Confidentiality is mandatory for all members.

Thursdays from 10:00AM to 11:30AM

starting January 22, 2009

Sign up in the lobby at New Hope Jan. 4 and Jan. 11

All classes will be held in the Zone at New Hope. Cost is $3.00 per person. Optional study materials may be purchased in addition to the basic course cost. See order form for more details.

Childcare provided by reservation & requested donation of $2 per child per week.

Money Problems

In the Christian community we find lots of people who have found victory in many areas like overcoming alcoholism, drug addictions, pornography, infidelity, etc. Many Christians still struggle with these problems, but not every Christian has ever had them. Some have never touched beer or wine or even thought about having an extra-marital affair. However, I see that it is true that the majority of us, both Christians and non-believers have had some kind of problem with money.

I've found that I seem to run in to tons of people who are currently struggling with money issues--being overdrawn, being deep in debt, wanting to give but not having the funds, unable to afford groceries or their mortgage/rent/electricity bill and more. We all have money, or need money or want more of it regardless of how much we have. We can't live in this society without money--it's just not possible.

Now money is different than credit. Contrary to popular belief, you can operate in this society without using credit cards or getting huge loans for cars and homes. I'm not saying that it's all that easy to do, but it can be done, and when we think about how many problems the mortgage loan industry is in (and we're in because of it), not to mention the credit card industry's death grip on many of us---it would seem worth it to stay away from the trap of easy money with credit and "no money down" financing.

Sometimes even people like me, who have found victory in the area of finances, particularly deep credit card debt, still find ourselves being tempted and giving in to using those stupid plastic cards to get what we want without waiting for the money to be there. Yes, I screw up, a lot. But because I know where it will end up if I don't confess my mistakes and ask for forgiveness from God-- I get back on the road to waiting on God's provision and determine to use more self-control by the power of the Holy Spirit. I hate the consequences of screwing up, and I absolutely love the freedom of not having to make payments every month for something that I've already thrown out or digested (if you know what I mean) or at the very least is worth much less than what I financed it for.

"Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender." Proverbs 22:7

Christ said he came to set the captives free--we can't be free if we're offering ourselves as servants to the credit card or finance companies. "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."
Galatians 5:1

We all have to use money, but it's how we use it and how we perceive it (is it our security or our tool?) that makes the difference.

Faithfulness

So, hey, I am in the middle of a very cool Bible study by Beth Moore, and this week's lesson is concerning Faithfulness as an aspect of the fruit of the Spirit.

I'm ALSO working on developing a study on finances, geared toward women only, and this week, I'm working on what it means to be a faithful steward or manager of God's money and "stuff." I've done this thing before, and I know what it means to be a faithful steward--but now it just means so much more! For some reason, I just didn't put together "faithful" and "faithfulness" when it comes to the Holy Spirit and all that history lesson from Hebrews 11 and the long list of faithful people from the OT.

Even with finances, we're called to have faith especially when we can't see what God's going to do or even what the final result is of our saving, spending, giving, etc. We're to listen to God and move forward despite our blind-spot and be faithful with what he's given us and what he's given us to do.

I can only be truly faithful if I have the Holy Spirit within me, allowing Him to reign in my life and show the fruit that He brings forth.

Cool stuff.

Now, if only I can keep this one down to 30 minutes when I teach it in the Spring! :) That's for another lesson--the one on self-control.

First Anniversary

This day marks the one year anniversary of my diagnosis of choriocarcinoma and the day the whirlwind of testing led to the whirlwind of learning about and acquiring the medications to be taken at home and the chemo drugs I would be given in the office, the out-patient surgery to implant a medi-port, and the beginning of chemo the very next week.

This day is a GOOD day because that's no longer a part of me. Yes, I still have the scar; yes, I still am left in a different state than where I was one year ago; yes, I still have the medi-port; and yes, I still blame my forgetfulness on "chemo brain." But that's not who I am.

This is a GOOD day because I AM ALIVE! I am able to spend this day with my family and friends. I am ABLE to look back and see what Great things the Lord has done in me and through me. I am ABLE to look forward to days ahead in which God will use what I have experienced to encourage and comfort others facing life-threatening illness---and even more!

"This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalm 118:24

Read the whole psalm here... I SO relate to what he's saying. "I will not die; instead, I will live
to tell what the Lord has done."

I turned 34 yesterday. The time I spent in chemo is a little blip on the screen of a long life. My life here on earth is a blip on the screen of eternity--thankfully, it's only the beginning!

Want to know some more great news??? We paid off all our medical bills on Friday-- just before this anniversary!!! God is SOOO Good!!!

Let us be thankful for this day, for the Lord made it! Let us be joyful and be glad in it, too!! You're alive, and God still wants to use you!!

Psalm 118

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.

2 Let all Israel repeat:
“His faithful love endures forever.”
3 Let Aaron’s descendants, the priests, repeat:
“His faithful love endures forever.”
4 Let all who fear the Lord repeat:
“His faithful love endures forever.”

5 In my distress I prayed to the Lord,
and the Lord answered me and set me free.
6 The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?
7 Yes, the Lord is for me; he will help me.
I will look in triumph at those who hate me.
8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in people.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.

10 Though hostile nations surrounded me,
I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
11 Yes, they surrounded and attacked me,
but I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
12 They swarmed around me like bees;
they blazed against me like a crackling fire.
But I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
13 My enemies did their best to kill me,
but the Lord rescued me.
14 The Lord is my strength and my song;
he has given me victory.
15 Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly.
The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!
16 The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph.
The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!
17 I will not die; instead, I will live
to tell what the Lord has done.
18 The Lord has punished me severely,
but he did not let me die.

19 Open for me the gates where the righteous enter,
and I will go in and thank the Lord.
20 These gates lead to the presence of the Lord,
and the godly enter there.
21 I thank you for answering my prayer
and giving me victory!

22 The stone that the builders rejected
has now become the cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord’s doing,
and it is wonderful to see.
24 This is the day the Lord has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Please, Lord, please save us.
Please, Lord, please give us success.
26 Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
27 The Lord is God, shining upon us.
Take the sacrifice and bind it with cords on the altar.
28 You are my God, and I will praise you!
You are my God, and I will exalt you!

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.

Prayer Relationships

These past few weeks have been an awesome time for me personally, and it has all come from my time in prayer. Not just by myself, mind you, but of course that is part of it. I've found, through our Women of Hope leaders, two especially dear friends and several others that I love tremendously, and over the last several weeks we have gathered together to pray in large and in small groups. Why do I forget so easily how incredibly wonderful it is to have someone to pray with you on a regular basis? --Not just about things going on in our personal lives but for a purpose other than ourselves.

I remember a dear friend of mine, and unlikely friend I would say (probably 30 years my senior), who encouraged me to lead the women's ministry at New Life Bible Fellowship years ago, before Jacob was born. She committed to join me in prayer weekly as we waited on God for the time I was to step up and continued through the time that she was living in south Dallas. Let me say that I was really not all that interested in having a prayer partner, but I felt like it was something I was supposed to do. There were many days when I would ask God to give me a break and let me do what I wanted to do instead of meeting for prayer, and on occasion he said "ok," but many times he didn't. Want to know why she was such a good friend? Because she prayed with me. She shared her life with me--the good and the bad. She prayed FOR me, too. She knew God and spent time with Him and I could hear it in her prayers when we were together, and I learned so much from her and grew closer to God during that time in my life. It's not anything aside from that really. We didn't go out and do things together; we didn't help each other out all that much; and we didn't have all that much in common except a love for God our husbands and children and the women in our community.

She is what I want to be. I want to be the one who really wants to get together to pray and hold others accountable to do the same--just by being there, praying together, praying for them and their concerns as well as for a greater purpose beyond ourselves.

I feel so close to these ladies that I meet with now because of this prayer time with them--even in such a short time we have known one another. We don't spend hours and hours praying--just about an hour each time we meet. We laugh together, we struggle together, we cry together, and we stand in awe together--before, during and after prayer to our Father.

This understanding of relationships, these special relationships, has got me thinking about my relationships with my children and my husband as well as what things would be like in our church body if more people gathered specifically to pray.....

looks like I need to pray some more.....but that's a GOOD thing! :)

Moments with Kate

Here's one example of a moment with my almost 12-year old daughter:

Yesterday I was talking with a friend, and Kate asked me how I knew this friend. So I explained to her that she used to live close to us and how we met. My friend, in turn, told Kate that she knew who Kate was only because she looks so much like me.

I can tell you this, Kate does not like it when people tell her that we look so much alike!

Kate then explains to my friend that she's going to go Emo and dye her hair black with a red streak or two.

check it out here if you aren't sure what Emo is----
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emo_(slang)

I proceeded to tell her that I thought it would be cool to dye my hair black too, like hers, if she did it. Oh, the eye-rolling!!! It was great! I really think I will do it if she dyes hers.

Women of Faith

Friday night, I was at the Women of Faith conference here in Dallas at the AA Center with a group of women from New Hope Church. Nicole Johnson got up there to do another dramatic presentation centered around moms and portraying our lives like a three-ring circus. I'm still trying to process some of it because I know it hit me pretty hard, emotionally. I wish someone had it on utube or something like that so I could post it here, but it was exceptional, spoken directly, so I thought, to me.

I found this one online that I had seen at a previous WOF conference, and I wanted to share it for any mom/grandmother out there who might be feeling a little invisible or unnoticed.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YU0aNAHXP0

First Day of School

I SO forgot to take pictures!

I got three children in the car (Jacob, Becca and Nate) to leave for school at 7:00AM this morning!!! Their backpacks, school supplies (since they were forgotten at meet-the-teacher night while I was at Women of Faith), lunch boxes, and each child fully clothed including shoes made it into the van, but unfortunately the camera did not--and I wasn't going back.


***I would talk about the parking lot issues here, but that will have to be another time. ;) We were lucky to be able to get out of the car where we parked--lucky to get OUT of the parking lot altogether!***


Everyone was so excited to go back to school--even Nate brought his lunch box into the elementary school as I took Jacob and Becca to their new classes. Jacob is in the 3rd grade this year and Becca is starting Kindergarten and is probably one of the oldest in her class since I held her back last year. Once the Kindergarten parent orientation (boohoo/yahoo) was over, I drove Nate over to his new class at Mothers Day Out. He REALLY wanted to go back to his old class with Mrs. Waffa and was quite disappointed when I reminded him that he would be in Miss Stacy's class because he was a "big boy" now (you have to be potty-trained to go to Miss Stacy's class). After a big hug from Mrs. Waffa, he walked in with a little pout on his lips into his new class room but was soon engrossed in the little green tractor and farm set on the floor. He hardly said good-bye! He's just going on Mondays this semester because of the new Thursday Bible study that will be starting in September.


Kate, the luckiest 11 year old around (here), didn't have to be at school until 8:15AM, so Gabriel drove her over and dropped her off for school sometime around 7:45AM or 8AM.


It has been several months since I've had an entire day all to myself. The Lord is good! :) I/they made it!

Beth Moore Bible study

Hi ladies!

I just wanted to send out a quick invitation to each of you who live nearby for a women's Bible study starting in September. I will be facilitating it with several small group leaders for the small group discussion time.

Details:

What: Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore
(topic--fruits of the Spirit)

Where: New Hope Church, Wylie, TX

When: Thursdays at 9:30AM to 11:30AM starting 9/11/08

Who: Any woman in Wylie or surrounding area who would like to attend is welcome

Cost: Workbooks are $15.00 Other: We are offering child care by reservation (small donation requested)

If you know you would like to participate, please let me know so that I can reserve a workbook (and child care if needed) for you! Also, feel free to shoot me any questions or comments you might have--would love to hear from you! My e-mail is wendie@teuton.org.

Many blessings,

Wendie

Becca's birthday party

Happy Birthday, Becca!
Our little Becca has now turned 6! She thought she didn't actually become 6 until she had her party, so now she REALLY is SIX!



Nate couldn't wait for the cake and of course he had to help Becca open all her wonderful gifts. :)












Here, Becca and her friends are playing animal charades. What was Becca? A Lizard!




I would have thought Jacob would have been able to get the topping on the ice cream cone better than the smaller children, but I think he got it on George's nose instead! Jacob also helped us out by being our party DJ for all our fun children's songs.


Kate helped out so much even though she wanted to be a "party pooper." She had some not-so-flattering pictures from the party that I thought probably shouldn't appear for just anyone to see, so I'm adding a pic I took of her last Friday.


I'm really happy Becca had a good time, and I think her friends did, too, but I'm glad to be able to rest up a bit before Nate's 4th birthday comes along!

I hate "diets"

After gaining way too much weight following my chemotherapy and hysterectomy and after some wonderful encouragement from our pastor on self-discipline, I've finally committed to start the South Beach diet again. Gabriel has thankfully decided to join me.

Personally, I hate "diets," restrictions on "what" you can eat, counting calories, fat grams, etc, etc. However, I do see that I need more self-discipline, I need to eat more healthy foods, and if someone has come up with a plan I can adopt for myself and my family that will help me to develop good, healthy habits and help me to lose weight, I'm going to use that plan.

But...I still hate diets.

Stress or Relief?

Okay, I cry when I'm stressed.

So I went to my oncologist (gynecologic oncologist to be specific) this morning expecting the wait to be horrendous as usual on Mondays, and I was not disappointed. Almost two hours later, two hours of reading through boring magazines in a room full of women either worrying they have cancer, dealing with the treatments or waiting impatiently to check to make sure they don't have a recurrence, the nurse finally calls my name.

Then, what do you know, my blood pressure was way up--go figure! And, the nurse gave me a look when I gave her a description of some pain I had been having--like, wow, this could be a totally new cancer! My mind started to go places it hadn't been since October when I was first diagnosed. "Lord, please let it be nothing!" I was going over in my mind. Just the stress of waiting in the "waiting room" for the doctor to do a quick once-over brought me to the point of tears even before he entered the room, but I so graciously staved them off. So, when it came to the exam and the questions, I couldn't stop them anymore--even when the doctor said, "well, I think you're cured---let's just chalk this one up as cured," it seemed that it really didn't matter. (Well, for me, I KNEW I was already cured, but it still didn't keep the nerves from tying themselves up in knots...or...could it have possibly have been tears of relief? No, not tears of relief, but tears TO relieve. However, there is a certain relief when you get through the doctor's appointment and there is no new list of things to test for or have treatment for--I won't deny that!

For those of you keeping up with my progress: I've been through 6 months of having an HCG level of <2, so I don't have to get another blood test until August! Hooray!

And...I'm starting to get used to the hair. Maybe one of these days I'll post a new picture so that you can recognize me. ;)

Recognition

Have you ever just wanted to go through life without anyone recognizing you?

There have been many times I have, but I'm done with that now. No one ever recognizes me anymore, so I'm getting used to it, but I'm also hoping it will be less and less of an issue.

I just put my photo on the profile. I don't have too many pictures of myself, but my sweet husband did get a couple pics before my hair fell out during my chemotherapy this past fall. It came out by the handfuls, but I had A LOT of hair, so it took a while for it to be noticeable. When there were too many large bare spots, I bought a wig and scarves, and I had my hairdresser shave it all off for me. That was the beginning. Very few people recognized me with the new do (the wig), and even fewer with the scarves. When they began to recognize me wearing scarves more of the time, it actually became time for me to go without because my hair had begun to fill in once the chemo was completed. It's been two months now that I have ditched the scarves and the wig, but I can still walk by friends and acquaintances without them even knowing it was me who said "hi" to them.

I am EXTREMELY thankful for those friends who call me by name to show me that they know who I am. There are many of you out there, and I want you to know that you are very much appreciated, but I'd like to encourage you to remember to say the person's name as you talk with them...giving them the recognition and honor to show you care. They may not have the same issues I'm writing of here, but just as you are impressed with someone you hardly know remembering your name, they will be just as delighted to know that you cared enough to remember their name and say it aloud.

Right to choose...

I'm not generally one to enter political conversations if I can get away with it, but I've been thinking on this for a while now.

I have heard from many sources in our "circle of influence"--many of whom are Bible-believing Christians like myself--that they have already decided to vote for Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton or have spouted the idea that we (the collective church body in the US) should vote for the "best man" for the job rather than our "favorite theologian." Makes sense if you just look at it as a "J.O.B."

However, one of the lasting legacies a president of the United States has is the appointment of justices to the Supreme Court. And many of the decisions made by the Supreme Court have a lasting effect on this country, our rights and freedoms, that if left in the hands of a select group of adults who promote the killing of little babies in the womb for convenience of the mother and abhor the idea of capital punishment of serial killers, our political leaders then are presented with a steep, uphill battle to correct those decisions.

Also, these democratic "best men" hold fast to the idea that the government owes the people a hand-out in a vast array of areas of life that make the people of this country angry when they don't receive these various benefits. These "best men" make the citizens believe they must look to the government to solve their problems than to depend on our most generous God or even to work hard to earn food to put on their tables.

I just can't in good conscience vote for a candidate that holds fast to any of these ideas--even if my only other choice is "my favorite theologian."

Thoughts on children....

This morning I had planned to meet up with a friend to talk about how my husband and I have raised our children. She loves the fact that our youngest two were so well behaved for her that she, I suppose, thinks we've figured out the secret to raising wonderful kids. LOL! (Little does she know!) :)

Anyway, here's where some of the application comes in, our youngest has not been feeling extremely well as of late (tummy trouble). So, in watching him this morning as I was getting the children ready for mother's day out, I decided I would take him with me instead and then bring him home afterward. However, this morning was also "Muffins With Mom" day at MDO, and my 5-year old daughter was going to attend MDO, so I thought, "okay, bananas only for Nate, and he should be okay if we only go for a little while." Well, we got through breakfast and I left with Nate to go to Starbucks to meet up with my friend--with a mini-stop at the grocery store for the BRAT foods he needed to keep his little tummy nourished, but calm.

The grocery store trip went well, but we walk into Starbucks and almost immediately, Nate shows obvious signs of losing his bananas (if you know what I mean), so we take off even though my friend had not arrived yet. And wouldn't you know it, we (my husband and I) don't carry cell phones so I went straight home to call her and let her know we'd have to reschedule. On the way back, I was listening a radio broadcast where the speaker was talking about how children are God's gift to us as parents. Just a wonderful reminder when our plans get changed because of one of these little "gifts."

Nathaniel (his name means gift from God, BTW) is fine. I think he really appreciates that he is home today without all the movin' and groovin'.

One of the things you learn as a parent is to take the signs and adjust your schedule, your priorities, and/or sometimes your attitude. Sometimes we're called to adjust THEIR attitude instead! But, we're always to remember that they are indeed God's GIFT to us and not a burden. Just as my dh is blogging on marriage and how tough it can be, raising children is no "walk in the park." No, you don't get days off (except on rare occasions), and you have to be on your toes to be ready to adjust to schedules, illnesses, attitudes, and responsibilities without placing blame or stressing out--it just comes with the territory!