Did you notice?

News & Announcements
Jun 152009

Did you notice that the PWOC International website and blog were down this afternoon? At the time of this post, most of the site is back up but parts are still down.

I suspect many of you wonder how the internet actually works. Very simply, the internet is a network of computers around the world. When you enter a web address like www.pwoc.org, the address actually points to a hard drive somewhere, a super hard drive with massive storage capabilities. All of this technology depends on one simple constant…electricity! Today, our server experienced a power failure. Simply put, blackout. Not good.

The servers have been restored, however, and with no data loss, Praise the Lord! God is Good.

Thank you for checking us out on the web and for your continued support! By the way, have you subscribed to the blog feed yet? Click the ‘Subscribe’ button at the top right and subscribe today!

Posted by Tracy Hathaway at 8:49 pm Tagged with: , , ,

From Anger to Ogre

Devotions
Jun 152009

“… the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” James 1:20

James 1:20 has long been a most needed memory verse for me. I even personalize it by putting my name in the place of “man”. As of late, however, perhaps writing out the verse on another sticky note stuck in my kitchen is in order. My mouth has been popping out angry words right and left. Again.

Case in point, my man calls me on the way home from work to tells me that he’s stopping by Wal-Mart. Instead of words of excitement that he’s coming home early on a Friday, out pop angry words about why he’s got to go pick up somebody else’s stuff. Icky sticky angry words snapped in an even uglier tone.

Oh, but Girlie, the story gets better. To my outburst, my husband calmly replied, “Look, Chris. I was calling you to see if you needed me to pick you up something while I’m here at Wal-Mart.” Ouch!! Not only had I exploded in anger over something very stupid but I exploded in anger while my hubby was thinking of MY needs.

Now, since God’s word is true, I knew that out of the abundance of my angry heart, my mouth had spoken angry words. “Well this is just great, God. What do I do about all this anger in my heart? I don’t even know what I’m mad about!” I utter desperately to Jesus. I asked Jesus to show me my heart. I was fully expecting Him to answer my prayer and to reveal the root of all that anger bubbling forth from my heart. Instead, God surprised me by giving me an unusual visual aid from James 1:20 to combat my angry heart.

With my sticky note of James 1:20 stuck newly in place, I knew I needed the truth of that verse stuck in my heart as well as on my kitchen cabinet. So, I dug deeper into the word with my trusty online Strong’s concordance. And there, to my surprise, was God’s surprise for me! The Hebrew word for anger in James 1:20 is spelled orge. An immediate pictured popped into my “mother-of-a-9-year-old-boy” head of our English word OGRE. Hebrew: Orge. English: Ogre. See the resemblance?

So, the word picture for what my anger looks like to people was born. I quickly realized that the angry ogre in me was devouring the poor unsuspecting people around me just as easily as the fictitious ogre tore about the people it ate.

What about you, Friend? Do you have an angry ogre hiding inside? If so, what triggers your ogre to come out and devour the people around you? Would you join me in using James 1:20 to remind us what God says is true? Perhaps writing the verse on a sticky note could help you too. My new one reads:

“The OGRE of Christina does not produce the righteousness of God.”

Used by permission.

Posted by Christina McClure at 2:00 am Tagged with: , ,

The in between time.....

Friday Fruit, News & Announcements
Jun 122009

I went for coffee with my PWOC sisters last night, and had such a blessed time of fun and fellowship.  As we all sat and talked about life, family, and friends, PWOC came up in conversation.  This was not a big suprise, since we all attend and enjoy our PWOC mornings greatly.  Our chapter has been taking a little break before we start up our summer sessions in a few weeks and were so glad we had this time to come together in the in between time, to relax and get to know each other better.  It was great!

I then started to ponder.  I wonder what the other PWOC’s are doing in this in between time?  So, please let me know what you are doing to stay connected over the summer months with your sisters.  It would be fun to get some ideas from each other, don’t you think?

So, what are your in between time activities? Let me know.

Posted by Blog Manager at 2:00 am Tagged with: , ,

Europe's ATC

News & Announcements
Jun 102009

Did you attend Europe’s ATC?  Wasn’t it WILD?  If so and you have pictures, please send them to Vickie Cox, Europe Region President.

Posted by Blog Manager at 2:00 am Tagged with: ,

We need you!!

News & Announcements, Uncategorized
Jun 102009

We would really like to hear from you about what is happening at your local PWOC.  If you have pictures, information, or special event recaps (past or present) on the fun and exciting things going on with you we would love to have you submit it for this blog.

We also would love your input on what is going on during the summers at your installation.  How did your WILD training go, new board installation, summer studies available, etc.   We look forward to hearing from you, so bring it on ladies!!

You can submit any information you have to the Blog Manager

Posted by Blog Manager at 2:00 am Tagged with: ,

Divine Partnership for Life

Devotions
Jun 082009

judy-nayChange – nobody likes it except a baby with a dirty diaper. In the military change is a frequent part of life. Do you deal with it at some times with peace and calmness and then at others with anxiety, worry, and panic? Why is it that we end up dealing with change in either of these extremes?

As we grow up we are often told that we are children of God but this is not true. We are by nature children of judgment and wrath, until we receive Jesus into our hearts, and are placed in Christ by faith. God gives us the gift of righteousness that is not our own. This righteousness encompasses all the deeply obedient deeds that Jesus did while on this earth. When God looks at us we are no longer condemned/guilty but forgiven and accepted as righteous as Christ is righteous. The consequence of this justification is adoption. We are adopted into the family of God. In Luke 11, when Jesus is asked how we should pray, He said to pray “Our Father who art in heaven… Until Jesus came, “Father” was never used in Jewish prayers to refer to God.

As Christians, we can have an orphan mindset or a son/daughter mindset. A daughter lives in partnership with the Heavenly Father: She is empowered by the Holy Spirit as she seeks God’s will; She sees her sin/failure living under the banner of Christ’s righteousness and not her own; She trusts in the Spirit’s ability to change her and others; She knows forgiveness, and God’s complete acceptance of her, regardless of whether she succeeds or fails in her daily endeavors to live a life pleasing to the Lord.

An orphan mindset is the opposite of all of these: being self reliant; doing life in her own strength; not looking to Lord for guidance or strength; unforgiven and unaccepted. We as believers can fluctuate between these two mindsets, but as we grow and mature in Christ, the mindset of a daughter of the King of King and Lord of Lords prevails. So, as we go through our days twists and turns appear that bring us to the end of ourselves and our abilities, do what you do in partnership with your Heavenly Father. You will be pleasantly surprised at how the Holy Spirit can empower you to bear forth love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and self control – and thank Jesus because He made all this possible through His life, death, resurrection and ascension.

Used by permission.

Posted by Judy Nay at 2:00 am Tagged with: , , , ,

Prayer Points for June 7th - 13th

Prayer Points
Jun 062009

Prayer Points for June 7th -13th   

 

Dear Abba (Precious Father),

 

School is out!  We rejoice and celebrate a wonderful academic year.  Thank you for public school teachers, home school teachers and all those who help us to train and our children. We rejoice in our victories in learning and diligence.  We also confidently bring our failures to you for healing, forgiveness and restoration.  Lord, give us grace to teach our children and any other children around us about You!  We don’t hide your goodness, but unveil the true You for our children to see! 

 

Psalm 78:4 (NASB)

4We will not conceal God’s wisdom and secrets from our children,
         But we tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD,
         About His strength and His wondrous works that He has done.

 

Posted by Dawn Kennedy at 12:00 pm Tagged with: , , ,

Where do our Monday devotionals come from? Pt. II

Devotions, Who are we
Jun 042009

judy-nayJudy Nay is an Army spouse currently living at Fort Irwin, California with her husband (chaplain) Bob and three children, Ruth, Joshua, and Rachel.  She has been involved in PWOC since 1995.  Judy enjoys music, discipling women and children through Bible studies, Sunday school, and enjoying God’s creation through outdoor adventures.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Judy Nay at 12:00 pm Tagged with: , ,

Arise and Fly!

President's Pen
Jun 012009

Brenda Marlin, PWOCI President

“See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.” (Song of Songs 2:11-13 NIV)

I’ve seen butterflies everywhere lately. Have you seen them too? Butterflies and flowers are on clothing, shoes, scarves, advertisements, cookies, wall paper, and many other objects this season. Friends have called and emailed me with butterfly sightings on items ranging from Starbucks coffee cups to their children’s school curriculum. I was even served butterfly crackers on a recent flight to Korea! It’s as if butterflies have exploded everywhere!

I’ve noticed something else too. In my travels throughout the regions of PWOC, I’ve seen a common theme—an increased hunger for the Lord to arise—a desire for more of God. My awareness of the butterfly imagery and theobserved theme of increased hunger for Him began to merge in a message for hope for all of us.

The following Scriptures came to mind. The first one is the Song of Songs text above. It’s a beautiful description of the awakening love between Christ and His church, His belovedbride. But the Lord also reminded me of another truth:

…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (1 Corinthians 5:17 NIV)

I love how the Lord sets the stage for us to be reminded of how special we are to Him and what He wants to do for us. A butterfly symbolizes new life, butterfliesnew beginnings, freedom in Christ and the fulfillment of destiny and purpose. I also love how the butterfly emerges after a cold winter season. They, along with the beautiful flowers, signify that spring is here. The new has come.

I could go in a myriad of teaching directions with this beautiful imagery, and you’ll probably hear more of them in the future. But the message I want you to focus on in this moment is this encouraging truth. You have a unique purpose in life. You are His beloved. You are a beautiful creation in Him.

Loving His Spring Time,

Brenda Marlin
President, PWOC International

Posted by Brenda Marlin at 8:49 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Would you go to bed with dirty feet?

Devotions
Jun 012009

andreaplotner_may09“Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Matthew 6:11-13)

It’s baseball season, and while my oldest son practices, my other two boys play in a powdery red dirt pile. Yesterday they buried themselves up to the neck, like you do at the beach in summer, and I wouldn’t even let them into the house until their feet were clean. There’s a reason children get baths before bedtime: they’re filthy! Cleansing goes beyond a nicety to a daily necessity in our house.

Cleansing should be a daily necessity in my walk with God as well. Though I would never go to bed with dirty feet, many days I go to bed with unconfessed sin.  Matthew 6, an excerpt from the Lord’s Prayer above, indicates clearly that coming clean with God – in forgiveness and repentance – should be a natural part of my everyday life. Why? One reason given in verse 13 above is our protection.

Ephesians 6:14 tells us to stand firm with our breastplate of righteousness in place. When I am daily receiving God’s forgiveness, and extending it to others who have offended me, I become right with God anew. This is no small thing because a breastplate covers my vital organs – my heart, my lungs -and protects my life!

So, in the same way we wouldn’t go to bed with dirty feet, let’s remember to go to bed with hearts clean before God as well. I can’t help but picture a freshly washed little boy kneeling by his bed, clean in every way – an old fashioned image with a message for today. May I be like a little child in this way, too, daily receiving my Heavenly Father’s cleansing and protection.

Questions to ponder or journal: Am I meeting with God in focused, daily prayer? In my prayers, am I confessing my sins and extending forgiveness to others? Am I holding any grudges? Am I relying on God for every kind of provision (daily bread), or am I walking in my own strength? Check out Hebrews 10:22.

Posted by Laura Miller at 2:00 am Tagged with: , , ,
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