I started reading the book “The Virtuous Life of a Christ-Centered Wife” by Darlene Schacht last month and have been part of a weekly Facebook book club discussing the book.
You can find my original post here:
http://66.147.244.197/~empowfu5/2014/04/weeks-1-and-2-of-the-virtuous-life-of-a-christ-centered-wife-by-darlene-schacht-book-club-chapters-1-4.html
The author Darlene was so gracious to send me a copy of her book last month when she started the book club. I really wanted to be apart of the book club and didn’t want to get behind, but I didn’t have the money at the time to buy the book. 🙁 (we had just gotten a huge water bill and repair bill of a leaking underground yard pipe! and a medical bill of an ER visit)
I wanted to pay it forward so I purchased a copy of the E-book from amazon this past weekend so I could give it away to one on my blog readers!! 🙂 Even though we are on chapter 11 this week, I would love for one of you to win a copy of her book and join the book club with me!
Please enter the contest at the end of my post.
A winner will be drawn on Sunday and emailed once verification has been made of steps. (yes I will check to make sure you follow me or leave a blog post) 🙂
I will email you a code to purchase the book for free on Amazon.com
Schedule for week 3 and week 4:
March 24-29 discuss Chapter 5 and 6
March 31-April 5 discuss Chapter 7 and 8
Recap for week 3 and week 4:
Today’s Challenge: Rather than trying to fix your husband or solve his problems, try to be understanding with him. Try to listen to him and to empathize with his heart.
Some things that I underlined and liked in this chapter:
“If the conversation isn’t for the purpose of edification, correction or instruction we need to control our tongue to ensure that our conversation doesn’t dishonor our marriage or more importantly our walk with the Lord.” Isn’t that powerful??
“Practice bringing your thoughts into subjection before they roll off your tongue.”
Ch 6- An encouraging wife
Today’s Challenge: Examine the way that you relate to your husband. Do you give him your attention? Are you encouraging him? Are you communicating in love? Watch yourself over the next few days and consider what he might be seeing in you.
Some things that I underlined and liked in this chapter:
“Any mom who cares for a growing child knows the importance of praise in their children’s life. Not only does it help to build a healthy sense of self esteem, it also remind a child that he or she is loved. In the same way, any wife who cares for her husband will also know the importance of praise in a marriage. It’s vital to a growing relationship.” I felt like this sentence spoke to me… I praise my kids alot and I need to praise my husband more than what I do. I guess it didn’t occur to me that he would want the same praise as my kids.
She lists 5 benefits of praising your spouse which were very good!
Then she lists a few do’s and dont’s for every encouraging wife to keep in mind. This section was very powerful to me because they all applied to me, specifically two of them very strongly. It’s like she wrote this chapter for me!! What a wake up call!! This chapter so far has been the best one for me.
Today’s Challenge: Keep your thoughts in check this week by asking yourself: is this pleasing to God? If not, then practice changing those thought patterns immediately and flee from those things that are dragging you down.
Some things that I underlined and liked in this chapter:
“If we’re not reflecting the goodness of God, what message are we sending the world about who He is?”
“when something is pure, it’s free from toxins and contamination, just as our lives and our thoughts should be free from all that’s unholy.”
“a pure heart is one that is centered on Christ. She’s a woman who’s walking in love, forgiving as Christ forgave her. She exercises kind, compassionate love that’s seasoned with grace.”
Ch 8- A Loving Wife
Blog link discussion:
http://timewarpwife.com/?p=2736
Today’s Challenge: Love your husband, even and especially if you’re having a bad day.
Some things that I underlined and liked in this chapter:
“Without grace love becomes a barter system where we give as much as we’re given and forgive only when we’re forgiven.”
“Our responsibility is to keep our eyes on the Father and walk in His ways. You can’t fulfill your husband’s role in this marriage, but you can fulfill your own. You can’t force another person to be who you want him to be but you can affect his heart by the way that you live.” This passage was again very strong for me. Sometimes I get upset or resentful if I feel like I’m the only one trying to better myself or learn or progress in our marriage. I tend to compare what he’s done for me and what I’ve done for him. Often using the excuse, well he isn’t being nice to me, why should I be nice to him! umm hello??!! this is EXACTLY that this chapter and paragraph addressed!! So obviously that is something I also need to work on!!
————————————————————————————————————-
About the Book
The Virtuous Life of a Christ-Centered Wife is written in the format of an 18-part study for daily or weekly reflection. Not only is it a powerful tool for personal growth, it’s also an ideal study-guide for small groups!
Each lesson leads you through one virtue at a time, offering you applicable and inspiring ways for a wife to grow closer to God and her husband. The virtues discussed are these:
• Purity
• Self-control
• Love
• Diligence
• Patience
• Kindness
• Humility
• Faith
• Forgiveness
• Joy
• Passion
• Radiance
• Encouragement
• Balance
• Goodness
• Trust
• Courage
Virtue calls us to action. As we exercise each one, they bring our flesh in line with our Spirit.
It’s one thing to know what’s good, and it’s another to walk in obedience to the knowledge that we have received. Not always easy, but obedience to our faith is always worth the effort it takes!
Every lesson concludes with the S-O-A-P method of study, prompting you to dig deeper as follows:
S – Scripture: You’ll be provided with a portion of Scripture to meditate on.
O – Observation: This is a good chance to journal your thoughts. What are some personal observations? If you’re in a group study this might include some things you’d like to share with the others.
A – Application: How can you apply this to your life? Are there changes you’d like to make? Is God prompting you to focus on something?
P – Prayer: Each lesson includes a short prayer in hopes that you will invite God to play a vital role in this personal journey.
You can purchase the book here:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Fitness, Family & Book blogger. Certified Group Fitness Instructor, Active Aging and Silver Sneakers Coach. Walking Coach. Certified Nutrition Coach. Teaching fitness classes for all levels of fitness and ages since 2015. ✨Empower & Inspire✨
