{"id":174,"date":"2014-03-26T15:27:09","date_gmt":"2014-03-26T15:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/joyindestructible\/?p=174"},"modified":"2014-03-26T15:27:09","modified_gmt":"2014-03-26T15:27:09","slug":"two-things-that-shape-my-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/joyindestructible\/2014\/03\/26\/two-things-that-shape-my-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Things That Shape My Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I\u2019m sitting in front of my computer, snuggled up with a cup of tea, twiddling my thumbs, staring at a blank screen. My fingers have typed out a sentence, only to delete it a few moments later. You have officially been welcomed to my new site<\/a><\/strong><\/span>, but the looming question is What to write next?\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I decided that I would share two things that shape how I live my life. Obviously there are a lot more than two things that shape me, but I thought I\u2019d start off with two of the most prominent!<\/p>\n

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The book of Phillippians has challenged, encouraged and grown me through the valleys and mountains of my life. The words joy<\/em> and rejoice<\/em> are used 16 times in the book. One of the ways that I seek to live is in the most joyful manner possible. Let me be clear, joy<\/em> and happiness <\/em>are not the same thing. Happiness can ebb and flow based on people, circumstances, and different situations. Joy transcends the world, and is firmly rooted in Christ. My aim is to seriously<\/strong> pursue joy in the face of Jesus Christ.<\/strong><\/em>
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One of the ways that I seek joy is by constantly meditating on Philippians 1:21<\/span><\/h2>\n

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This life on earth is Christ.<\/span><\/h1>\n

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It\u2019s all about Christ<\/strong>. <\/span><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s all for Christ<\/strong>. <\/span><\/h2>\n

Christ is my Savior<\/strong>. <\/span><\/h2>\n

Christ is my Redeemer<\/strong>. <\/span><\/h2>\n

Christ is my joy.<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Dying, as a Christian is considered gain<\/em>, because we are finally united fully with Christ. No longer will there be early temptation and tensions, but we will be glorified and with our Beloved forever.<\/p>\n

When I can focus on the fact that this world is all about Christ, and when I take my final breath, it will be gain, my heart overflows with joy<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

Next\u2026<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

A woman by the name of Elizabeth Elliot has impacted my life by her books, teaching and Godly example. She is one of the saints that I\u2019m excited to meet in heaven. I\u2019ll hug her neck and tell her how grateful I am for her life and for following hard after Christ and leaving an example for me to follow.<\/p>\n

The quote below is one of my favorites!<\/span><\/h2>\n

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In a world where women are demanding to be treated as equal in every area of life, and feminism is raging everywhere you turn, I think it is vital to accurately represent what a Christian woman<\/em> <\/strong>should look like.<\/span><\/p>\n

Often times, a women\u2019s femininity is downplayed as much as possible in the search for equality. Men and women are created equal, but different. As a woman who follows Christ, I want to seek to honor the Lord with my femininity. The fact that I am a woman is to be celebrated and a sweet privilege to enjoy. Being a woman is not a chance for me to exploit myself or to demean myself. Rather\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

My Christian womanhood is a chance to honor the Lord. <\/span><\/h2>\n

I seek to be a different<\/strong> <\/em>kind of woman.<\/span><\/h3>\n

I seek to be a Godly<\/strong> <\/em>woman.<\/span><\/h3>\n

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Hopefully those two things give you a little more insight into who I am and who I try to be.<\/span><\/h3>\n

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I\u2019m sitting in front of my computer, snuggled up with a cup of tea, twiddling my thumbs, staring at a blank screen. My fingers have typed out a sentence, only to delete it a few moments later. You have officially been welcomed to my new site, but the looming question is What to write next?\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2105,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[21,25,26,36,59,81],"class_list":["post-174","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spiritual","tag-bible","tag-christ","tag-christian","tag-elizabeth-elliot","tag-philippians","tag-women"],"yoast_head":"\nTwo Things That Shape My Life<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I'm sitting in front of my computer, snuggled up with a cup of tea, twiddling my thumbs, staring at a blank screen. 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