Week 3 : Expect Great Things from a Great God

Parents... your daughters are amazing!! I was blown away by their responses to the exercise "this is who I desire to become, according to the Gospel." God is doing a mighty work in each of their lives and I am humbled so deeply at the fact I get to see His growth come to fruition in their hearts. If you helped guide them through scripture in order to complete the homework, thank you!! I encourage you to sit with them throughout the semester and discuss whether or not they are seeking and achieving the goals they have set to become more like Christ.

We discussed the contrast between our perception of ourselves vs. God's perception of ourselves, and how our perception of ourselves should be replaced by how God views us... as a Princess of the King, a lady who is cherished and adored by our Savior. 

This concept is merely impossible for me to wrap my head around every day, so I can only imagine their little cabezas were pretty baffled as well! It's a lot to take in. :)

I gave them each a magnet with our class info and the verse Psalm 139:13-14. This is a reminder to each student that God created her inmost being, knitted her intricately in her mother's womb, that she is fearfully and wonderfully made... and for that (among many other reasons), we should be confident in who He has created us to be and to PRAISE HIM!

At some point in the class, we began talking about purity. This was totally not in the plans for class, but when the Holy Spirit leads, you gotta follow His direction!!

I didn't go in depth for this conversation, as the girls range from ages 12 to 17 years old, but we did talk briefly about dating (don't date anyone you can't see yourself marrying one day) as well as praying for their future husbands. As the Lord has done a miraculous work in my life through praying for my husband (years and years before knowing who he would be), I get super excited about speaking to young ladies about the importance of praying for their future husbands and setting the non-negotiables prior to dating. The girls seemed to be pretty pumped about a few of the ways I prepared for my future husband, so we will be tweaking the syllabus a little and spend one class session on the topic of: Praying and Waiting for My Future Husband. 

In class this week, the girls filled out "My Lifetime List" (a similar idea to a bucket list). I made one of these in high school and have completed almost everything on the list - thanks to opportunities the Lord has opened to me... and to my parents for giving me a "Travel Jar" to save my pennies after I told them I had put traveling to Australia on my list. The purpose of this exercise is for the girls to DREAM BIG!! Set goals that seem unattainable and watch God unfold them if they are seeking His will. 

Parents, I encourage you to go through the lists your daughters came up with and discuss ways they can reach those goals... even if that means giving them a "Vacation Jar" to save their pennies for that big trip to Hawaii, Japan or tour around Europe they're wanting to venture on. Find creative ways to challenge them in reaching for those goals. Once again, the Lord humbled me in a mighty way when I saw students writing, "Go on a mission trip" or "Serve somebody". Your daughters are precious. Take comfort in knowing God is using you, parents, in a mighty way!!

Final Note: I will not be teaching for the next four weeks. If you need me, I will still be fully accessible (via phone or email). The wonderful Mrs. Amy Miller will be taking over! Thank you, Amy!!