Discovering Treasures...A Godly Woman is Creative

Our God is the most creative being ever! He created the moon, stars, sun, plants, animals, us! He paints beautiful sunsets every day! He shaped the mountains to stick out in the sky! He creates new hearts in us...sinners! He is definitely creative! Heather S. led our devotional tonight and reminded us that God is the original masterpiece of everything! He gave us Jesus, yet Jesus was before even the created. God is AWESOME!

Proverbs 31:24 "She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes." This woman was creative. She used the creativity that God gave her to benefit her family. God has made all of us creative as well. Tonight, we spent some time using that creativity by creating scrapbook pages. Felica helped us bring out that creativity by sharing her supplies, ideas, and techniques with us! If any of you are interested in scrapbooking...see Felica!

We started the night by sharing why we chose the pictures we did to scrapbook. Can you figure out who brought pictures of their kids???? Can you guess who brought engagement pictures to put in their scrapbook????? Can you figure out who brought vacation pictures???

It was a fun night that gave us an opportunity to see how we can book together memories in a unique way. Maybe scrapbooking is not your thing, but God did make you creative, so ask Him to show you your creativeness and use it to glorify Him!


Felica showing Felicia how to layout her pictures!
All of us working diligently to show off our creativity!

Discovering Treasures...A Godly Woman is Elegant

What a beautiful blessing of a night! God was so go to us to give us the beautiful evening to fellowship! Twenty-Four of us gathered tonight to learn that a Godly woman is Elegant! Yes, we made the evening elegant and dressed up, but that is not what makes us elegant Godly woman! Proverbs 31:22, "She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple." Felicia led the devotional and pointed out that the excellent woman was elegant in her home and in her person. Felicia read a story that told about visiting someone's home and God being in everything in that home, whether it was the color of the wall, the decorations, the people. The presence of God was there. That is how we make our homes elegant...not by the materialistic things that are in them, but God who is in them. Also, our appearance should be elegant. Not all the time. The Proverbs 31 woman spent her day being busy...she bought a field, planted a vineyard, helped the poor, sewed, made meals, etc...not every minute was she dressed elegantly, but when the time came, her appearance reflected elegance...fine linen and purple. Felicia reminded us that we don't have to be perfect...wear the right things or have a home made for HGTV, but we do need to have God written on every aspect of our life!

For those who could not make it, we missed you! It was an awesome time to get to know some new ladies, fellowship with old friends, and be in God's beauty. We started the evening by finding someone who had the same as you....Did you know that both Rhonda and Leta get up at 3:3o am!!!!! Did you know that Juanita & JeriAnn (that's me:) do not have middle names. Did you know that Julie and Sue are the same age. Did you know that Heather and Leanne have the same number in their family (yes, they are in the same family:). After the devotional from Felicia, we then had some great food! Thanks to those who brought food...Hannah, Glenda, Rhonda, Julie & Felicia. Special thanks to Julie H. and Amber who did an awesome job decorating their tables. It was so much fun to be dressed up and to sit down to fine china! What an awesome night! Glad you could make it!!! Thanks to those who cleaned up! That, too, was a blessing!

What a beautiful group of women!!!!

Everyone enjoying the beautiful evening!

Yes, those bouquets are corn tassels:)



"Tea time" table arranged Julie H.
"Paris" Table set up by Amber!

Our next PEARLS is Tuesday, September 2! Be watching for details!!!!!

Discovering Treasures...A Godly Woman is Kind

Tonight was a night full of laughter & learning. It was a great night, but unfortunately, I forgot the camera. Oops!
We began the night with an ice breaker from Felicia that questioned our ability to accomplish tasks. She asked us things like...
1. Have you ever locked yourself out of your house?
2. Have you ever gone to the store and did not have any money with you?
3. Have you ever left the iron on?
4. Have you ever fallen up the stairs?

There were a lot more, but if I start giving all the details of PEARLS in this blog then there would be no need to come to PEARLS, and we WANT everyone there!!!!! Anyway, it was pretty fun to see who struggles with remembering things and who doesn't. We determined that the younger ones had a much better memory or just had not experienced all of life's blunders, yet!

Amber led the devotional & practical lesson for the night. She shared about Proverbs 31:20, " She opens her hand to the poor and extends her hands to the needy." It is easy to use one hand to get money out to share with the poor or even to use one hand to pull food out of the cupboard, but it takes two hands to show kindness when dealing with children, loved ones, and those hurting. It is important to show both kind of kindness, but when you use two hands then you are really focused on being kind to the person you are helping. Some days it is hard to be kind...what are some ways that you can show kindness to others today? Galatians 5:22 says, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self-control."

Amber then talked about being kind to yourself by taking care of your body. She gave us a health quiz to see how much we knew and then gave us some pointers in how to take care of our bodies.

Did you know that the leading cause of death in women over 40 is heart disease? Did you know that some of the signs of a heart attack are different in women. Women tend to have a pain in their back or stomach...like indigestion. They also could have shortness of breath, sweating, & tingling. Did you know the three biggest cancers in women are breast, lung & colon. If you have had a family member with breast cancer, smoke, or are over the age of 40 then you are at a great risk for breast cancer. Did you know that you should do a self-breast exam every month. If you are premenopausal then it should be done about a week after the start of your cycle. If you are post menopausal then pick a day (5) and do it the same day every month. You self exam should take about 5 minutes and should be done in the shower. It is important to take care of yourself and the body that God gave you! Know the facts and stay healthy. If you have any questions, I'm sure Amber would be willing to answer them.

Our next PEARLS is going to be August 5 and it will be about a Godly woman being Elegant.
We are going to have a Garden Party!!! More details to come! Save the date!

Also, the PEARLS annual retreat is set for Friday, October 3 & Saturday, October 4! Mark those dates on your calendar!!!!

Discovering Treasure! A Godly Woman is...Persistent

What a great night! We gathered tonight to put together care packages for the missionaries that we support! These people have so little and we have so much! Thank you, ladies, for giving of your selves, your time, and your resources to bless those who are doing God's work.

We started the night by pulling something out of Felicia's grab bag! In this bag, she had items from different countries. Each lady was to say what she thought the item was and how it was used to serve God. Some of the items were money, candlesticks, chopsticks, dolls, shawls, bowls, and a musical instrument made from some type of hoof (we debated if they were sheep hooves, or deer or pig...either way it was quite interesting). How these items were used to serve God ranged from hospitality to buying bibles to making music.

We then had a devotional on being persistent. The question was asked...what are some of the activities that you do at night? Are you using your time wisely? Elizabeth George defines being persistent as being able to discover & use more hours in our day by utilizing the hours of our night to benefit more people. Some definitions given by our ladies included "being on a mission", "working hard", "being determined". The Proverbs 31 woman was persistent. She planted a vineyard, made clothing, cooked meals, cared for children...the list goes on and on. She was not idle and what she did blessed others. Another definitions of persistence is "having the same goal over and over". Our goal is to share Christ! No matter how you use your time, it should be to glorify God! We should be persistent in sharing His love and blessing others!

That was our goal for the night...to bless those who are serving Him! We took time to talk about and pray for the following missionaries.

James ~ Gospel Harvesters ~ India
James was just here visiting. He helps to run an orphanage, a Bible College for men wanting to become Pastors, and he arranges the meetings when groups come over to minister to the people. Please pray for endurance for James as he travels a lot. Pray for the Bible College especially for books for their library, and pray for the children who have lost their parents. We were able to box up 2 boxes of clothes and blankets to send to India! http://www.gospelharvint.org/



The Wild Family ~ New Tribes Mission ~ Papua
The Wild Family (they have 4 young boys) minister to the Wano tribe. Where they live, everything must be flown in by helicopter. It is very primitive...in the jungle! Their mission is to translate the Bible into the Wano language. Pray for their safety, pray that the Wano people will be open to the gospel, and pray for the boys as they live and learn over there. They did not desire much...just chocolate, seasoning packets, and Jeff's sermons (I think to scare off the snakes:)!!!!! Their parents will be visiting this summer, so they will deliver the box! http://www.ntm.org/pray/




Jamie ~ Lakeshore
Jamie headed to Lakeshore 2 years ago and has not returned! She loves it down there and loves the people! She is in charge of the volunteers that come through to help rebuild Lakeshore! Summer is especially busy for her! She will have contact with hundreds of volunteers! This is an awesome opportunity for the church to reach their community! Pray that the people's hearts will be open. Pray that Jamie will have strength for the long hours. Also pray for the completion of her house (is it really big enough to call a house?). We sent Jamie some homemade goodies, chocolate, and soup mixes. She might have more needs when her house is finished.


Brad & Joy ~ Church! ~ Brooklyn
Brad & Joy and their girls moved to Brooklyn to start a church! New York is full of people especially people who do not know Christ! Church! and its coffee shop, Postmark, has a desire to reach people for Christ! They want to love their neighbors just like Christ commanded! They have numerous opportunities to do that....through the regulars at the coffee shop, through ministering at street fairs, through kids clubs and camps, and through just loving the person who lives right next door! Pray for opportunities to share Christ's love, pray for the hearts of the people to be broken & open for Christ, pray for strength & endurance as they attempt to reach people through their activities. We were able to send homemade goodies for their fellowship time and stickers for the story time that they host at Postmark. http://www.churchofparkslope.org/




Finally, we wrote encouragement notes to all the missionaries!

Thank you to all who contributed your time, effort, and supplies! My prayer is that you were blessed as you blessed others! These people gave up their nice homes to live in smaller quarters, luxuries like restaurants, and just being close to family. We have so much...you don't have to be a missionary in another country....use what God has given you and reach others for Him in your own backyard!

Our next gathering is Tuesday, July 1! More details will follow!

Discovering Treasures...A Godly woman is Thrifty

What a beautiful day God gave us! The temperature was great, the day was sunny and the breeze was nice! Isn't spring wonderful! It is a time of new life and growth! Maybe the Proverbs 31 woman was enjoying the same type of day when she purchased a field and planted a vineyard!
Proverbs 31:16 was our verse for yesterday's PEARLS. "She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard." This woman was thrifty. She thought about her purchase and then she used what she made to plant a vineyard to either provide for her family or to make more income.
We spent a great couple hours in Mary's beautiful home (thanks so much Mary for going out of your comfort zone to have us!) having great fellowship and being encouraged by Tina who led the devotional and gave tips on how to be thrifty. We began the evening with a game of "Who is thrifty". The idea was to have the most pennies when the game was over. You received a penny if you were thrifty, but had to give one up if you were not thrifty. There were questions asked like...
1. Do you reuse cool whip or sour cream type containers.
2. Do you hang clothes out on the line.
3. Do you pick up pennies off of the ground.
4. Do you wash your clothes in cold water.

Mary ended up with the most pennies and Tina was the second Thriftiest person! It was fun, but it also was a good reminder of ways that we can be thrifty in a day in age when everything is costing more!

Tina then led us in a devotional about how being thrifty is one way that God prunes us. One of the scriptures that she used was John 15:1-12. Since the Proverbs woman was thrifty and planted a vineyard, this passage was appropriate because it talks about Jesus being the vine and we are the branches who need to bear fruit for Him. As we bear fruit, we still need to be pruned in order to bear much fruit. Struggles and circumstances in our life will prune us. Learning how to be a godly woman who is thrifty is one way that God might prune us. As good stewards of what God has blessed us with, we should be thrifty.
Tina shared the story of Charles Spurgeon's wife. She was pruned by God when she came down with a serious illness. No longer able to really leave her home, she still was determined to be used by God no matter what her circumstance. She had been saving money here and there and was able to purchase 100 copies of her husband's book and place it in the hands of pastors who could not afford it and therefore they were able to better serve God through Spurgeon's teaching. Each time she saved, it wasn't much, but it added up to a lot in the end...100 books and probably a lot of lost souls being saved more than you could count.
So the true lesson of the night was that it is important to be thrifty, but it is more important to use the circumstances that God puts us through (learning to live on a budget) to be pruned and used by Him.
Tina did a great job sharing and I'm sure I still left out some key points that she made. Feel free to ask her about what she shared.

After the devotional, Tina shared some tips of how she is learning to be thrifty and led us in discussing how the rest of us are thrifty. Here are a few of the tips that were mentioned.

1. Buy in bulk. Ex. Tina buys a bag of wheat and then grinds her own to make all of her baked goods from scratch. This is much cheaper and healthier. (she did add that true junk food like brownies should not be healthy!)

2. Shop thrift stores or garage sales.

3. When you want something new...repaint it! Bev has repainted her canisters 3 or 4 times. She also repaints lamps. This way she gets something new without it costing a lot of money.

4. Garden to have your own vegetables.

5. Buy clothes at the end of the season for the next year.

6. Once a month grocery shop and meal plan.

7. Keep track of your expenses.

8. Wash plastic Ziploc bags and reuse them.

9. Buy generic diapers (Csilla said that target brand are great!)

10. Use old Christmas cards as the name tags on the next year's presents.

There were many more ideas. As prices start to soar, it is really important to count every penny and do the best you can to make ends meet. Being thrifty is just one way to help your family do a better job of being good stewards of what God has given you.


Our next gathering is June 3 and will be held at the church. We will be doing a service project and reaching out to the missionaries that our church supports. Please be looking for more information! I'll let you know the details as soon as they are all worked out!

Discovering Treasures...A Godly Woman is Enterprising

Proverbs 31:14 "She is like the merchant ships bringing her food from afar."

We had a great gathering tonight at Karen's house! I did forget the camera, though, so no pictures of our April Fools Spaghetti that Csilla made! It was excellent! We had a time of prayer tonight...praying for specific needs of the women of our church. Please continue to pray for:

Felica N.'s Mom's Boyfriend's Dad and the critical condition he is in. Also pray for Felica as she desires to be with her Mom during this time.

Mary continues to have headaches. Pray for strength and wisdom for the doctors as to what to do to help her.

Joy is a strength for her family during this trying time. Pray that God will continue to give her strength and wisdom.

Kathleen's family!

Karen then led us in a devotional about being an enterprising woman. The Proverbs 31 woman lived in a different era than we do, but it still applies to us and the way we should provide for our family. She made clothing for her family...we need to provide clothing maybe not the most expensive, but still provide it. She planted a garden...that would help to cut grocery costs. She got up early...a lot can be accomplished when no one else is awake. We, as women need to be able to be creative to provide for our families. The definition for enterprising is showing initiative and willingness to undertake new projects. In what ways can you be creative to benefit your family?

We then took time to share what each of us does for a "living" and any creative ways that we can help to provide for our family. Some shared about preparing the supper meal early in the morning. You could also monthly meal plan or make extras and freeze to use when you need a quick meal. Coupons can always be cut out, too. Working from home whether it is babysitting or selling a product can also benefit your family. The Bible teaches us in Titus 2 that our most important role after serving God is to love our husbands and children and to be busy at home. So whether you work from your home or outside of it...remember to prioritize your time so that you care for your family first!

We have a lot of different ladies who have different occupations. Try to get to know someone new this week and find out what they do as a job or how they are creative in providing for their family!

Next gathering is May 6th! Hope to see everyone there!

Discovering Treasure...A Godly woman is GOOD

This month at PEARLS we focused on discovering the treasure of being a GOOD woman. Proverbs 31:12 "She brings him good not harm all the days of her life." Julie led us through a devotional of serving which is exactly what we did. Tonight was to be a service night and we chose to serve Kathleen by cleaning her apartment! I'm pretty sure that her apartment has never been cleaned so quickly and with so much laughter! I heard Julie scream once as Mary accidentally sprayed her with the shower. I'm surprised Mary didn't spray anyone else since four women were in the bathroom at one time! We were able to help Kathleen by cleaning her bird cage, cleaning out the refrigerator, cleaning the bathroom, dusting, vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping her floor.

After all of our hard work, we enjoyed bunny food (Easter is in March this year)...celery, carrot juice, and of course carrot cake:) Thank you to all who provided goodies!

While we rested from our work and enjoyed our food, Julie shared some scriptures with us about the importance of being a good woman who serves those around her. She started off asking the question "What keeps us from serving?" Most of us answered our own selfish desires or wanting to use our precious time for our own use. Then Julie brought out truth in scripture of why we shouldn't let our selfish desires keep us from serving others. Matthew 20:26-28 says, "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant" and Matthew 25:35-40, "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, Lord when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you? The King will reply, I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." Good truth to hear!

Finally, Julie asked as about our gifts that we can use to serve others. What are your gifts and how can you use them to serve your family, church, and community this week? Be challenged, ladies! God has called us to serve...will you?

Tina dusting! Cleaning up the kitchen was done by Felica, Csilla, & Felicia.

Cleaning out the fridge! Cleaning the bathroom and birdcage done by Lori, Mary, Rhonda & Julie. Glenda dusting (last picture).

Our next gathering will be Tuesday, April 1 (no this is not a joke) at Karen's house! More details to follow!