Hospitality is: The divine enablement to
share with others
our home, our lives, our personal space and resources without communicating a need for performance or an expectation of return.
It is in the context of hospitality that discipling happens best. In a hospitable place guests can get a taste of what a Christian family is all about. It is in the context of hospitality that visitors can come to appreciate the unconditional love of God for them in Jesus Christ, modeled through us by sharing our lives, homes, personal space and resources without a demand for performance or expectation of return. People gifted with hospitality can leave an indelible mark in the lives of others whom God brings at just the right time.
"Love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another..."
- I Peter 4:8
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| S O U L
PONDERINGS
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The will of God never
takes you to a place where
the grace of God cannot protect you.
-Nubia Blogspot
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| R E S T |  | Come to Me by Aaron Shust [played at our Welcome Gatherings for Bible Study this week]
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P R E P A R E D
| "A heart prepared from rest is at peace in the midst of unrest and upheaval. It is attentive to the presence of God and others even in the welter of much coming and going, rising and falling. It is still and knows God even when mountains fall into the sea."
[Excerpt, M.Buchanan,
The Rest of God] | |
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Hearth & Home October Girls Night Out
 October 27th - 7pmJoin us in our mini workshops that will teach you invaluable skills for your home.
First, get your home clean in 20 minutes! Next, prepare a beautiful edible centerpiece. Finally, learn how to make your home a welcome placefor visitors.
Come and join us for a night of home warming tips and treasures, friendship and fun.
ALL women are welcome!
No need to RSVP
At the home of Debbie Falcone1610 Bane Way, West Chester610.692.4359 |
 The Garden Post is designed to share news, connections and information specifically for women, offer spiritual encouragement and insight, and provide resources for wise living.I welcome the opportunity to connect with you and want to hear from you. Give me a call or email me any time... a difficult question, spiritual concern, fresh idea or suggestion, perhaps a great book to recommend or insight to ponder... anything at all, I'd love to connect.
Louann Rodgers 610.431.0300x109 LKRodgers@comcast.net
Women's Ministry, Christ Community Church www.RootedToGrow.com
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We began a new year of Bible study this week, and stepped out together to pursue rest. Purposeful stillness and intentional rest where we find space for an inner conversation with God. 
Mark Buchanan in his book The Rest of God, says it this way... "Rest is a noun and a verb. It is time on a calendar and a disposition of the heart. Sabbath brings rest. Without rest, we miss the rest of God: the rest he invites us to enter more fully so that we might know him more deeply. Some knowing is never pursued, only received. And for that, you need to be still - stillness that imparts the rest of the things of God's nature and presence we miss in our busyness."
God's Word tells us in Matthew, "Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble, and you will have rest for your soul." (Matt 11:29)
Our hearts and souls were designed for a pattern of rest that is sober, intentional and satisfying. Yet we live in a world of frenzy and chaos. Rest is the opposite of what the world calls us to, and it is the first thing that God calls us to.
In pursuing rest we will find more of the God who designed us for a pattern of rest... more of Himself, more of His Truth, more of His presence in our lives.
Let's be women who are equipped for the things that life will bring, not because we are studied and well organized... but because we have found rest in a source greater that we can understand.
Our spirits long for it, we know we need it... so let's together seek REST.
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Women's Bible Study Meets Weekly
ALL women are welcome!Meeting Tuesdays - Wednesdays - ThursdaysChildcare is available. ~ Download study descriptions (flyer)
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C O N T E N T M E NT in each S E A S O N
"Be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." So we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear..."
Hebrews 13:5-6
It was spring but it was summer I wanted; The warm days and the great outdoors.It was summer but it was fall I wanted; The colorful leaves and the cool dry air.It was fall but it was winter I wanted; The beautiful snow and the joy of the holiday season.It was now winter but it was spring I wanted; The warmth and the blossoming of nature.I was a child but it was adulthood I wanted; The freedom and the respect.I was twenty but it was thirty I wanted; To be mature and sophisticated.I was middle-aged but it was twenty I wanted; The youth and the free spirit.I was retired but it was middle-age that I wanted; The presence of mind without limitations.My life was over but I never got what I wanted.
- Source: Linda Dillow, "Calm My Anxious Heart"
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WATER
1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.
2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.
3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down metabolism as much as 3%.
4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.
5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.
6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day
could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.
7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzz short-term memory,
trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon
cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and
one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.
 "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God."(Psalm 42:1-2a).
"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink." (John 7:37)
"God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water."
(Psalm 63:1)
"I spread out my hands to You; my soul longs for You like a thirsty land." (Psalm 143:6)
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When You Thought I Wasn't Looking
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my
first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately
wanted to paint another one.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a
stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
to animals.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my
favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little
things can be the special things in life.
When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a
prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always
talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a
meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
learned that we all have to help take care of each other.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care
of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have
to take care of what we are given.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you
handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't
feel good, and I learned that I would have to be
responsible when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come
from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things
hurt, but it's all right to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you
cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.
When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of
life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
productive person when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and
wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when
you thought I wasn't looking'
Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, neighbor, teacher, friend)
influences the life of a child.
How will you touch the life of someone today?
Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly.
Leave the rest to God. |
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