I am enjoying this book and reading through it with Betty and all the wonderful ladies joining us. This week we are sharing our thoughts on chapter 2 of Passionate Housewives, Desperate for God entitled You Mean It’s Not All About Me?
Chapter two made many points that resonated with me, including this statement on page 11:
We, that is, Christians as a whole, spend far more time reading self-help books and listening to motivational speakers than we do reading God’s Word or praying and making our requests known to Him.
I wish I could say this has never been the case for me but I would be lying. I have frequently become caught up in a book or theory and failed to take it back to the Word to measure it’s validity. Always, always (including with the book we are currently reading) confirm with God that what you think and read about something are in accordance with His Word and His will. 
The second part of the chapter regarding Desperately Seeking “Me Time” had me a bit irritated. The author makes the connection that because the Scriptures teach that God supplies all our needs (Philippians 4:19), feeling the need to take care of ourselves as women is unnecessary.
While I certainly agree that self-love can be taken way to far and become an idol, I fundamentally disagree with the fact that needing a break, getting a pedicure or whatever soothes your soul is selfish or sinful. This book comes across as legalistic at times and I hope that, because it does have a strong and important message, doesn’t turn anyone off from gleaning the useful parts.
A section in chapter 2 that I agreed with was the Dying to Live section. On page 21 the sentence “Biblical motherhood means sacrafice, selfless love, and faithful dedication”. I would even add that Biblical love entails all of those things as well. And, then I loved this section (even wrote Amen! next to it in my book):
It means loving God more than we love our children- and consequently, He will equip us to truly love them and prepare us to serve them through Christ our Lord. It means impacting future generations by our faithfulness now.
I don’t know about you but that is convicting to me as a mother. Children are not always easy to love (trust me, I have teenagers). The strength and ability to love them is supernatural and comes from Christ. That is so comforting to me. I don’t have to be enough, Him through me is enough. He will equip us to be the best moms we can be and just the right moms for the children He has entrusted us with.
This week be reading Chapter 3- Embracing Your Sacred Calling. I look forward to sharing my thoughts and hearing yours!
