Spending Time with Jesus | Part One

{Written by Johanna Rose}

There is just SO much to do!!! Throughout these past few months, these words have been a few of my closest companions. Life has been fraught with business, and I feel as if I am constantly being swept up into its currant, constantly being turned and tossed about, until I am utterly exhausted. Free time became a waning portion of my day, until I found myself nearly destitute of it altogether. Constantly encumbered with something or other to accomplish, finish, begin, or start again.

Rising out of bed, one foggy morning, I stumbled down the stairs and made myself a cup of tea. Meanwhile, exerting myself to awaken more fully before beginning my daily devotions. The kettle began to sing, and within moments I was sitting at the end of the kitchen table with my Bible opened, and a hot cup of steaming tea by my side. The clock swiftly struck 6:30 a.m.. I took up my cup of tea, and took a sip as I began my reading. 

However, my focus began to disseminate. Thoughts of how my day would go began to decrease my concentration on the word. Before long, I was looking out the window, trying to figure out how on earth I would get all my tasks done that day. There was so much to do ...

I looked at the clock, which had just struck 6:45. 

Slowly, but surely, temptations swirled within my head. If I got started now, then I could get a head-start on my day, and perhaps be able to have a little free time in the afternoon. I could just forgo my devotions ... just for today. It sounded so attractive. How lovely it would be to get everything done and have time to spare for projects of my own, such as :: the skirt I wanted to finish sewing, and that new recipe I wanted to try out, finish a post I had begun, etc, etc. 

Yet, something deep within my heart spoke. A voice that is only heard in those moments of silence. 

Saying ::

These words truly transfixed my heart. I realized that a battle had been going on within my soul. The worldly army struck with a deadly blow ... yet the army of Salvation let forth a call of truth. Slowly, the calls of worldly tasks began to fade. And I once again found peace in the presence of God.

Ladies, this is a battle that goes on within my heart nearly daily. My life as of late has been full of responsibilities, tasks, duties and chores, all of which tug at my concentration. It is at times likes these when I am tempted severely to give up my time with the Lord on the alter of getting more accomplished. 

Yet, is it truly worth it? 

Moments spent at the throne of grace will be the most valuable moments in your life. They are the moments when you truly find  comfort, peace, joy, and true, unconditional love at the feet of the Savior ... I firmly believe that the answer to the above question is no. Spending time with the Love of my life is the best use of my time. While there may be ten-thousand tasks awaiting me at the end of my hour spent with Him, I shall not give it up. He is more important to me. He is my rock. My strength. He is the Way the Truth and the Life. I shall praise Him always.

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; 

In the morning I will direct it to You ...

|Psalm 5:3|

The Lord put this on my heart today, because I believe that many of us struggle with the business of life. However, let me encourage you to never give up your time with Jesus. He will be your sustenance in such busy seasons. He is your strength. | Philippians 4:13 | Without Him, you can do nothing. | John 15:5 |

May the Lord Bless you Abundantly,

| Johanna Rose |

{NOTE :: Please take time to visit my new personal blog HERE.}

Recipes :: Pumpkin Treats

Don't you just love the baking that comes with the fall season? This is the time of year that we love to get out the spices and mix lots of fall treats for friends family! Our family makes lots of pumpkin treats during this time and I thought I'd share a few of our favorite recipes with you today! Please enjoy! ~Bethany

Fluffy Pumpkin Pie

• 3/4 cups honey
• 1/4 t. molasses
• 2 tsps. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground cloves
• 1 1/2 {12 oz. each} cans of evaporated milk
• 1 tsp. all spice
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 4 large eggs
• 3 c. pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• a pre-made, unbaked, pie crust

Mix all ingredients well using a hand blender or mixer. Arrange pie crust in pie pan; lightly fork bottom. Pour mixture into pie crust. Bake at 425 degrees for the first 15 minutes and then turn down temperature to 350 degrees and bake for another 45-60 minutes until knife inserted at the center comes out clean. You may want to add strips of foil around exposed edges of the crust about midway through baking so the crust doesn't burn. Enjoy! {Note: Originally published at Bundles of Blessing Blog HERE!}

Pumpkin Pie Bars

• 1 1/3 c. flour
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 3/4 c. sugar, divided
• 3/4 c. margarine or butter
• 1 c. quick oats
• 1/2 c. chopped nuts
• 1 pkg cream cheese
• 3 eggs
• 1 can of pumpkin
• 1 T. pumpkin pie spice

Mix flour, brown sugar and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Cut in butter. Stir in oats and nuts. Reserve 1 cup of the mix and press the rest into the bottom of a foil-lined and greased 9x13-inch pan. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Beat cream cheese, remaining 1/2 cup of the sugar, pumpkin and pie spice with electric mixer. Pour over crust. Sprinkle reserved mix on top. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread

• 1 c. pumpkin
• 1/2 c. oil or butter
• 1/2 c. honey
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 c. flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. nutmeg
• 1/3 c. water

Beat oil and honey. Add eggs and pumpkin. Add dry ingredients with water. Pour into greased load pan. Bake at 350 for 55 minutes. Enjoy! {Note: Originally published at my sweet friend Elizabeth's blog Joyful Jewels 4 Jesus HERE!}

Pumpkin Cookies With Frosting

For the Cookies:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 cup margarine or butter, softened
• 1 cup pumpkin puree or caned pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

For The Frosting:

• 3 tablespoons margarine or butter
• 1/ cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar

COOKIES: Beat sugar, brown sugar, and margarine until light and fluffy. Add pumpkin, vanilla and egg; blend well. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Drop by teaspoons onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Let cool and then frost with the following frosting.

FROSTING: To make frosting start by melting the butter and brown sugar in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook on medium heat for 1 minute or until slightly thickened. Let cool for 10 minutes and then add confectioners sugar and milk. Spread over cooled cookies and enjoy!

Pumpkin Cake Roll

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2/3 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl, beat eggs on high for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in white sugar until thick and lemon-colored. Add pumpkin and lemon juice. In another bowl combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg; fold into the pumpkin mixture. Grease a 15x10x1 inch baking pan; line with waxed paper. Grease and flour the paper. Spread batter into pan; sprinkle with walnuts. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Immediately turn out onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Peel off paper and roll cake up in the towel, starting with the short end. Cool. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, 1 cup confectioners' sugar, butter, and vanilla until fluffy. Carefully unroll the cake. Spread filling over cake to within 1 inch of edges. Roll up again. Cover and chill until serving. Dust with additional confectioners' sugar, if desired.

Pumpkin Molasses Cake

• 2 1/2 c. flour
• 1 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1 t. baking powder
• 3/4 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ginger
• 3/4 c. buttermilk or sour milk
• 1/2 c. shortening, margarine or butter, softened
• 1/2 c. pumpkin puree
• 1/4 c. molasses
• 1 t. finely shredded orange peel
• 2 eggs

In a bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger. Add buttermilk, shortening, pumpkin, molasses and orange peel. Beat with a electric mixer on low until combined. Beat on high for 2 minutes. Add eggs and beat for 2 minutes more. Pour into a greased 13x9x2-inch pan. B at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes our clean. Cool on wire wrack, serves 12. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Muffins

• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1 beaten egg
• 3/4 c. milk
• 1/4 c. oil
• 1 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ground nutmeg
• 1/8 t. ground cloves
• 1/2 c. pumpkin puree

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of the dough. Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl and pour into the well. Stir just until combined, while dough is still lumpy. Add remaining ingredients. Pour into baking cups or muffin tins that have been greased, full 3/4 full. Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie

• PIE: 1 16-once can of pumpkin
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ground ginger
• 1/2 t. ground nutmeg
• 3 eggs
• 1 5-once can {2/3 cup} evaporated milk
• 1/2 c. milk
• CRUST: 1 1/4 c. flour
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1/3 c. shortening or lard
• 3 -4 T. col water

Combine pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Add eggs. Beat lightly with a beater or fork. Gradually add evaporated milk and milk. mix well. Set aside. In another bowl mix the crust ingredients well. Press into a pie pan. Pour in filing. Cover the edges with  foil strips so they will not burn. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 25 minutes more or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool and serve with whipped cream. Serves 8.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 can pumpkin puree
• mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin-pie spice, and salt; set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg; beat until smooth. With mixer on low speed, alternately add flour mixture in two parts and pumpkin puree in one, beginning with and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined (do not over mix) Gently mix in chocolate chips ( add as few or as many as you like) Drop dough by heaping tablespoons onto two baking sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until puffed and edges are golden, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating sheets once during baking. Immediately transfer cookies to wire rack and cool completely. {Note: Originally published at Simple Delights blog HERE!}

October Giveaway :: Lovely Flower Headband

Greetings dear daughters of the King! We are so pleased that you choose to come by today and hope that you will enter this lovely giveaway we have planned or you all!

We are so blessed to be able to have the lovely Etsy shop Millie's Bowtique as a sponosr for this months giveaway! When we contacted this shop about possibly sponsoring our giveaway they were so sweet and allow us to give one of their lovely headbands away! This is the headband that we will be giving away this month:

How pretty!

How To Enter :: {Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry, or it won't count}

MANDATORY:: Post about Royal Daughters of the King on your blog, including the giveaway information. Please leave the link to your post in your comment.

• Read an article posted in the past at Royal Daughters of the King.
• Put our blog button on your blog sidebar.
• Spend a moment in prayer for our ministry.
• Share with us five or more things that your feel thankful for at the moment.
• Visit Millie's Bowtique and let us know your favorite item. 
• Heart Millie's Bowtique on Etsy {For those of you who have an Etsy account}
• Follow Royal Daughters of the King

Additional Information :: Please leave a way for us to contact you in each of your comments (blog address, email, etsy user name, etc). Giveaway ends at noon, on the 30th of October, and {Lord willingly} the winner will be announced the following day!

Blessings,

~Bethany Ann & Johanna Rose~
P.S. If you are looking for some other neat giveaways then check out Bethany's new blog called Giveaways of Blessing! She posts giveaways each week so check it out and see if there is one you'd like to enter! View Giveaways of Blessing HERE!

Learning from the Roses

{Written by Bethany Ann}

Marissa dug deep into the moist earth with her shovel in hand. She bent down among the grass to cradle her little rose bush which she was planning with hopes of getting a nice array of beautiful roses in every vibrant shape and color which would come from her hard work. This day was especially hot and muggy and she longed for a drink of cool water as she covered her little plant with the cool dirt, eager to think of what beauties may grow from the small little plant. Marissa Jo-Lynn was an average 12 year old girl living in southern California with her family of 9. Marissa was home schooled, and enjoyed her simple, yet full life living on a farm. Her favorite thing to do on her family farm was to do things with flowers. Whether planning them on a warm summer’s day or photographing them once their beauty was at the fullest- her favorite among them she did not know, but she did know that she deeply enjoyed being around flowers. She loved their pure crisp beauty and the lovely colors that they brought. She often thought of roses in particular as similar to Christianity, as when you are a new Christian, you are small and do not have much to offer-at least not yet. But once the plant is nurtured, loved, weeded out of sin, and then watered then the beauty of the rose shows itself forth.

She had learned many valuable and applicable lessons from the flowers during the countless hours she spent out in her peaceful garden, for those hours where her favorite among the day were she was able to get away from the noise and busyness of life and spend time with her Creator as she planned and nurtured her precious flowers.

Not to say that dear little Marissa was a perfect girl, for she wasn’t, she had her faults just like everyone other daughter of the King who was trying to do His will, and maybe even more than she knew. One of Marissa’s weaknesses was truly loving others, she found that she often had a prideful spirit and whenever she would think to do something nice for someone all that the following thought was always of what she could reap in reward for her good duty. Sometimes her thoughts of doing something nice for someone were out-due with the selfish thought of only gaining something in return. She did not like this which she so often found in herself because she wanted to be like her Creator, and her Savior never thought like she had been thinking lately!

As she tenderly watered her newly planted rose bush she thought of this certain weakness that she had had trouble overcoming lately. “Why is this so very hard?” she prayed to her Heavenly Father as she stopped her watering and looked up to the bright blue sky. “Why must I always think of only gaining something for my good works, for if I only have the thought to gain something then that is never a good deed at all!” she cried to herself. “Please show me a way to overcome this, Lord!” she said aloud as she raised herself from the cool earth and wiped her sweaty brow. As Marissa walked back to the house she thought of how she could possibly learn something from the roses that would help her with her problem. “Well” she thought to herself “Most of the time when I have a problem the best way to break that problem is to start at the root!” she exclaimed. “Humm,” she thought as she began to think. “The beginning of my pride would be when I think ‘I can mop the floor for Mother, won’t she be pleased! She has been needing to do this lately and now I can help her!’ but then the next thought is saying ‘oh… if I do a super job then maybe Mother will allow me to have that reading time back which I lost this morning because of my deceitful attitude! This is a great idea!’ ” She continued to think about it as she stepped inside the house for dinner.

The next day was overcast and lovely weather to check on her roses as it would not be very hot. As Marissa grabbed her shoes and Bible she started out the door for her little rose garden. Last night all through dinner she thought of how she could overcome her bad habit of only wanting things in return for doing good things, rather than just doing something for the glory of God and to help her mother. As she got to her roses she watered them and looked to see how they were doing. “You will be so lovely in a few months!” she told her flowers. After she had watered her flowers she went and sat at her favorite bench right beside her roses. This was her favorite place to meditate on God’s Word and to pray, and today she was eager to dive deep into the Holy Word of God to see what He had to say about loving others. As she made herself comfortable she opened her Bible at random, she started to read John 13:34 which said “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” She paused and thought about what the verse had said. ‘If this verse says to love others as Jesus has loved us then I think this means that I should love others just as Jesus did!” she thought excitedly. “But how can I love others as Jesus did? I know” she thought “if I need to love others as Jesus loves me then I need to look at Jesus life, and to study what He did, that way I’ll know what to follow!” she told herself. She flipped over to the beginning of the book of Luke and began to read of Jesus’ miracles, she studied how He treated others, even the lowliest of people; she studied how He loves everyone unconditionally- no matter what they had done earlier in their life. She started to realize that Jesus loved everyone and that He never, not even once loved anyone to get anything in return, in fact He even loved and felt pity for those who crucified Him! As the minutes passed, Marissa gained much knowledge and finally she prayed to God to help her and to give her opportunities to show unconditional love to others each and every day.

This was a new discovery that Marissa made that day by her lovely roses. But the time quickly passed, and before Marissa knew it her sister called to her from the house that Mother has requested that she come and help prepare the lunch for her family. Marissa quickly got her Bible and went inside, eager to take this opportunity to show love to her mother without wanting anything in return.

This was the start of a new phase of life for Marissa. That day she continued to show love to her mother by mopping, dusting and even bathing the dogs-all out of her love for her mother. Every day Marissa went out to her little garden and sat on the little bench and read and studied her Bible. Marissa grew very wise and her faith increased greatly from these precious hours which she spent with her Lord.

A few months later Marissa went outside by her garden as she usually did. But when she got there she was amazed! What were once her tiny little plants were not fully grown and so very beautiful, now were more beautiful than any other flower Marissa had ever grown. You see, with each hour she spent with her Lord, her flowers grew, but not only the flowers in her garden, but also the flower of her heart! As she sat on her bench in amazement of her beautiful flowers she thought of how her last few months of spending time with Jesus were similar to those flowers. She also began to realize how much she had grown in her faith during those precious hours spent with her Lord! At the beginning of her communion with the Lord her faith was like the tiny flowers-delicate, small and very fertile and ready to grow. Now that she had “watered” the garden of her heart by spending time meditating on the Lord it was fully grown and in it’s full beauty! Now that she had “weeded” out the bad things in her life by the conviction of the Holy Spirit she was clean and pure, just like the sweet roses. As Marissa sat there she pondered over how much her attitude had changed, once she started spending more and more time with the Lord she had little by little learned to let go of her selfish desires. Now she could (and often found herself wanting to) offer to help her community, Church friends and family and no longer felt like she wanted anything in return. As she sat there, she though of how happy she was that she had spent her time in such a wise way! “Thank you Lord for answering my hearts cry! Please teach me more! Thank you for your love and please help me follow in your footsteps!” she prayed as she walked back inside.

Dear Sisters in the Lord,

The reason why I wrote this story is to give you a picture of a great way to learn to unselfishly help and love others. Did you notice that the reason why Marissa was able to increase her faith and how her flowers grew, both came from study with the Lord, or in other words nurturing her heart’s (and garden’s) flowers! If you would like to learn more about how to truly love others unconditionally then I highly suggest that you study the life of Jesus Christ. All the Gospels are great and I encourage you to read each of them! Even though they might seem like they have the same records they really do not! Plus when you read all the Gospels instead of just one you get a much wider detail about the events and can remember them better because you’ve read them before from the previous book.

Happy Studying!

Bethany Ann

September Celebration :: Giveaway Winners!

Greetings, Dear Royal Sisters! We are very excited to share with you the winners of our big September celebration giveaway fest!!

But before we announce the winners, we would like to give a big thanks to all the lovely shops who sponsored our giveaways and made it possible! Thank you all so much! May God bless you and your shops!

We would also like to thank all those entered in this big giveaway post! Your giveaway entries kept us smiling and happy and gave us a brighter day! :D

~*~

And now, after a prayer and a random.org drawing we have some winners! :D So here they are!

The winner of the rose ring {of the winner color choice} sponsored by Silver Lotus Designs is:

SEVEN SISTERS!!! of Seven Sisters Blog

Congratulations! If you would go HERE and choose the rose ring you would like and then contact us HERE with your first and last name as well as your mailing address, and email address, then we will get your ring to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

The winner of the pair of earrings {of the winners choice!} from Cloud Nine Designz is:

MISS MEGHAN!!!

Congratulations! If you would go to her shop HERE and choose which pair of earrings you would like and then contact us HERE with the name of the earrings, your first and last name as well as your mailing address, and email address and we will get your earrings to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

The winner of the clutch of the winners choice sponsored by Brighter Day is:

MISS HALEY!!! See profile here to make sure it's the right Haley since there were several that entered. :D

Congratulations! If you would go HERE and choose which clutch you would like and then email us HERE with the name of the clutch as well as your first and last name as well as your mailing address, and email address then we will get your clutch to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

The winner of this lovely stationary sponsored by Writings by Bluebirds is:

MISS ALLI!!!

Congratulations! Please contact us through our contact page HERE with your first and last name as well as your mailing address, email address and we will get your stationary to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

The winner of the devotional The Younger Women Also sponsored by Priceless Jewels Ministries is: MISS CHRISTA MORIAH!!!

Congratulations! Please contact us through our contact page HERE with your first and last name as well as your mailing address, email address and we will get your devotional to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

The winner of the one year subscription to For Such A Time As This Magazine sponsored by For Such A Time As This Press is:

MISS EMILY RUTH!!!

Congratulations! Please contact us through our contact page HERE with your first and last name as well as your mailing address, email address and we will get your magazine subscription to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

And last but not least, the winner of the lovely tea cup candle sponsored by Roses and Teacups is:

MISS HAYDEN!!!

Congratulations! Please contact us through our contact page HERE with your first and last name as well as your mailing address, email address and we will get your candle to you ASAP! :D Please enjoy your prize!

~*~

And for those who did not win, be sure and keep your eye open for our October giveaway which will be posted the first Wednesday in October! We also would encourage you to check out our Monthly Program, as our new October program is up!

May the Lord bless you all!

Blessings,

Bethany Ann & Johanna Rose

Royal Council :: Friendship

Most girls today are very lax about who they allow to be close friends in their lives and those whom they allow to influence them. It's hard to know what kinds of people are true godly influences and those that aren't, and how do you know the difference? In this Royal Council post we would like to share with you things that have been on our heart about choosing our friends wisely. May it be a blessing to you as well as an encouragement as you live for the Lord!
~Bethany Ann & Johanna Rose~

{Due to Internet problems, Miss Johanna was not able to write a response for this months Royal Council but plans on being back very soon! In the mean time I have some guest responces that were originaly published in my former magazine Hearts for God so please enjoy those! ~Bethany}

Miss Bethany Ann ::

Lately I've been learning a lot on the true meaning of the importance of wisely choosing friends and companions. I always knew it was important, but once I saw the effects first-hand I realized just how important this subject is and how lightly it is glossed over now days. Michelle Duggar once said that her Grandma Duggar always told her this wise saying "Show me your friends, and I'll show you your future". {Proverbs 12:26} It's true! Who we spend time with is what we will become. And if our main goal is to know the Lord as our number one best friend then this should be true. We can tell if it is true by how we act, because if we truly want to be like Jesus then we will spend time with Him and thus be like Him in our maners.

The Bible, especially the book of Proverbs has a lot to say about friendships and how they should be, as well as much on the greatest example of a good friend, Jesus! When thinking on the subject of friendships I believe that we first must realize and state that our number one best friend EVER should be the Lord. For He will never leave us and has proven His love for us by giving His own life for us on the cross. Now that is what only a  best friend would do! John 15:13 tells us that "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."

But how do we know if this person is the right kind of friend or not? Sometimes its hard to determine that so I'd suggest asking your parents for their advice. Here are some questions to ask yourself about that friend to see if she is the right kind that will encourage you in your walk with Christ like all good friends!

• Does this friend encourage me in my walk with the Lord?
• Does this friend encourage me to keep secrets that aren't good? Does she keep good secrets? {Proverbs 11:13}
• Does this friend regularly read her Bible, pray and memorize Scripture?
• Does this friend gossip?
• Does this friend use only good words to edify others or does she use filthy language?
• Does this girl truly love the Lord? Could you tell by her everyday actions?
• Does this friend encourage me to go against my parents will and do wrong things?
• Is my friend always there for me when I need her? {Proverbs 17:17}
• Does my friend try to encourage others in everything she does to glorify the Lord?
• How doesn my friend respond to tough situations? {Proverbs 22:24-25}

This is also a good list of things to do as well as not to do in order to be a good friend! {Proverbs 27:17} Sometimes I'm so caught up in finding a good friend that I forget to be one myself! Its helpful to think of traits that I'd like in a friend and then apply them to my own life in order to be a good friend. Always remember to look to the Lord for a perfect emaple of a great friend!

Are you currently seeking a good friend and feeling left out since you don't have one? Then look to the Lord! He so dearly wants to be your closest friend and should be! "There is a firend that sticks closer than a brother." ~Proverbs 18:24 Look to Jesus and spend time with Him for He loves you!

So now towards the subject of being a good friend, how are we able to do this? I've often failed at being a true godly friend and have made mistakes like all people have. But the great thing is that a true friend will always forgive you when this happens and will encourage you to do what it right! The best kind of friend is one that is an encourager so here are some ideas on ways to be a great friend and be an encourager:

• Send your friend a little gift every now and then reminding her that you are thinking about her!
• Pray for your friend regulary. Ask for any specific prayer requests to make it personal.
• Encourage your friend with Bible verses at the enof letters email, etc with appropriate verses that go with their current situation in life.
• Always be there for your friend and let her know that if she ever needs anything to just ask!

Next month I plan on writing an article on encouraging pen-pals in detail so be looking for that!

May God bless you as you choose godly friends, make godly friends and be a godly friend!
Blessings,

Bethany Ann

A true friend shares freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all things  patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably. ~William Penn

Miss Madilyn Gail ::

Friendship is a very beautiful thing; the love of a friend is very special. I don’t even know where to start. I have so many friends, and even though I have known some longer than others, I can’t choose a favorite, and I shouldn’t need to. God puts every friend on our lives for a reason, not so we can choose one alone. When God sent the animals into the ark, he did it two by two, we are not meant to live life alone. Your best friend should always be the Lord. God wants you to put him first in your life. “A friend loves at all times.”  Any true friend will always stand by you, and if you are a true friend, you will do the same. “A despairing man should have the devotion of his friends.”  The Bible says to stand up for what’s right, stand up for your friends, help them through their struggle’s with the help of our Heavenly Father. If your friends see your loyalty, then they will put more of their trust into you. So go out there and help somebody, I challenge you, today, to do something nice for someone else. Many people talk of doing good, but then they never do it, like my friend says, live out loud!!! :D

- Madi

 {Originaly published in Bethany's former magazine Hearts for God in the Friendship issue}

 Miss Mary ::

Why is it such a big deal who we hang out with? You may wonder when your parents or some one you know tells you to be careful who you are with. Well, sisters, let me tell you that this is an important issue! It has been on my heart lately, as I have been learning more and more about how important it is that we are with the right group of friends!

First I want to say one thing: if we want good friends, we should first of all try to be good friends ourselves! Remember, we are princesses’, daughters of the King! Isn’t it exciting to think that God if our Father?! But it also means that people are watching our every action. As girls, we love to talk with our friends - but are the words we say edifying others, or bringing them down? Now I want to share with you something that has happened in my own life. I know a lot of unbelievers, and while they are sweet, kind people, I know that they are not the people I can be close friends with. Our friend’s influence who we become and we do not want to fallow in the worlds footsteps!

I was talking to these girls, who were not Christians, and I found that their conversations were not edifying to well - anyone. One girl complained about her parents, two other girls were gossiping about a girl at their school, and the other two were talking about a girl who had disobeyed her parents and started dating.

In contrast, a few days later at church I thought again about the conversation among the unbelievers as I listened to the other girls’ talking. We talked about God, we encouraged one another, and we talked over possible ministry opportunities, as well as having a lot of fun!

Which would you rather be? The people we are with share our thoughts, words, and actions. Would you rather be a gossip or encourager? Would you rather be with people who build you up and challenge you to grow closer to God, or be with people who are continually tearing others down?

Someone because you believe that it is not God’s will, it will always be better in the end!

I like to put it this way: the results will be bitter sweet. Maybe we will be lonely for a time, but God is always with us, and loneliness helps us grow closer to God. When we follow, we know he has a special reward for us in store. Thus, the bitter will not be wholly bitter - but the sweet will he wholly sweet!

~Mary

{Originaly published in Bethany's former magazine Hearts for God in the Friendship issue}

Miss Abigial ::Greetings everyone in the name of our Lord Jesus! I am going to write about friendship in this brief article and I hope it’ll be a blessing to all who read it.

Friendship - how cherished that word is! How we all long for true godly friends that will be with you in any situation or will help you with any need you have. It could be a phone call to ask for a loan or just a call to say hello just to let that friend know how much you care of them. Or it could be a short note to encourage your friend with Scriptures or a note to say you’re praying and thinking of them. There are so many things I’m thankful for with my friends. I have “met” many people who wish to be my friends but to say it honestly and as kindly as I can, they did not have the loyalty to be a true friend to me. I believe I am a loyal friend and I try to help my friends in any way I can when they are in need, whether it’s physical or spiritual. A friend to me is someone who is there when you need to talk and tell them all your problems and in return you listen to them as well. My friends are Christians which is such a blessing as well. I have received much spiritual encouragement from my friends which I have needed in times past.

All I wish to say is - be a loyal friend. If you can’t be a loyal friend then don’t try to be a friend at all. Loyal friends want loyal friends in return - not wishy-washy friends who are never there when they are in need. Our Lord is faithful to us, so let us follow His example in our lives and be faithful to our family and friends, not just sometimes, but always.

Lord, I do thank you for the few loyal godly friends I do have and I pray you’ll bless them. Please help other people that want to be loyal to their friends as well. In Jesus’ name, amen.

God bless everyone & remember to be faithful to your friends always!

A friend loveth at all times…Proverbs 17:17

Love in Jesus,

Abigail

{Originaly published in Bethany's former magazine Hearts for God in the Friendship issue}

Miss Havilah Worden ::

Most of us know people that we consider friends – but how many of them are true friends? Do you have a friend that “sticks closer than a brother” (see Proverbs 18:24b)? Are you that kind of friend to others?

Friendship is a gift and a responsibility. It is something we have to work on, and something we are able to reap from. Oswald Chambers wrote, “Friendship... means identity in thought and heart and spirit.”

True friendship is not an emotion, preference, or feeling. It is giving of oneself to another person. Friendship, in essence, is love.

God, as the Creator and Giver of friendship, set the perfect example of true friendship. In the Old Testament, it is said that God spoke to Moses as a man speaks to his friend. Moses is called the friend of God. (See Exodus 33:11.) God was like a Counselor or Confidante for Moses. He supported Moses and stood beside him. At times the children of Israel were angry with Moses, and several times they wanted to kill him. Even Moses’ own brother Aaron didn’t always support him. But God was always there for him, always standing by him, always encouraging him.

Through His relationship with Moses, God gave us an example of true friendship. And more importantly, He illustrated the personal relationship that He desires to have with us.

Usually when we think of friendship, we think of love. This makes perfect sense because true friendship cannot exist apart from love. But what exactly is love?

In his best-selling book My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers wrote, “Love is the outpouring of one personality in fellowship with another personality.” This means spending time with those you love, but especially getting to know them and letting yourself be known to them. Nearly everyone has different sides or aspects to their personality. Your true friends will know your “other side”, and you will know theirs.

Fellowship is important, but true love and friendship go deeper. Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” Jesus demonstrated this love by giving His life on the cross. Now that’s true friendship! Just as Jesus selflessly laid down his life for His friends, a true friend will be willing to give her time, talents, abilities, possessions, dreams, and even her life for her friend. As Christians, we have that kind of Friend in Jesus. Are we willing to be that kind of friend to others?

In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul defines and describes true love. This passage also seems to describe a true friend.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.... And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the 23 greatest of these is love.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 13.

{Originaly published in Bethany's former magazine Hearts for God in the Friendship issue}

The Importance of Limiting Computer Time

{Written by Bethany Ann}

What has the Lord been teaching me lately? It can all be summed up in 3 simple words: limiting computer time. You might think this an odd subject for an article, and I did too at first but when I started to think of it, limiting computer time can be very important in a Christian girl’s life!

Lately I've been spending a lot of time on the computer. My Mom has always told me of the importance of limiting screen time, but I never truly realized the desperate importance of it until a few days back.

My computer time is limited to one hour a day. This is the necessary time to work on RDOTK things as well as manage and keep up my two other blogs {our family blog HERE and my new giveaway blog HERE}. But I found myself often going to my blog list of updates before the articles I was supposed to write. I seemed to enter all the giveaways before I did that product review post. And though I'm not saying that giveaways and following blogs on wrong, I am saying that there needs to be a set balance-and if you don't set that balance it will set you!

I soon realized many things that changed when I was on the computer, one of which is that when you are on the compeer, it's like you in your own little "bubble" as my Mom calls it. Basically, you shut yourself down to other humans and focus on only yourself. I found that when I can on the computer, whenever a sibling came asking how to spell a word I was not as eager to answer and sometimes ignored them without knowing it since I was so caught up in getting that giveaway entry up that I "blocked" them out. Although, this isn't always a bad thing, {for when writing an article I must be able to concentrate :D} but we must be careful not to let it get a firm hold of us. So many times I found myself more irritable when I was in front of the screen than when I wasn't on the computer. I wondered why and realized that when I'm in front of the computer, I can do anything I want {within reason of course}. If I want to enter a giveaway, I can. If I want to read a blog, it’s only a click away. So I'm used to getting what I wanted. So when I had little siblings playing nosily in the background it irritated me and frustrated me because I wasn't getting what I wanted.

Please understand that I am not saying that computers are bad, because they are wonderful resources given to us and with them we can do a lot of good-but also a lot of harm.   But like with all things there must be moderation. And I believe that America has gone over that boundary-by a lot!

I remember once going to a restaurant with my family, and as we sat down to dinner I noticed that there was a family sitting a few tables away. I instantly recognized that both parents were on their i-phones and that the other family member was eating alone. They hardly said anything the whole time they ate and were constantly glued to the screen. I thought later how sad this is that families can't even eat together because they do not have enough self-control to set the phone down during family events.

Think about this: I calculated that if I have an hour of computer time every day then that totals to 365 hours a year. This equals to 15 whole days a year! In 60 years that adds up to 900 days! This is time you could have spent reading, spending time with family or with the Lord - but no we chose to spend it in solitude and to zone yourself out of the real world for a time. So often I find myself saying "Oh it'll only be a minute, I just need to check my email" but it ends up being so much more time since there is that email that I won a giveaway and then I have to go to their blog to give them my information and then they say to go enter this other giveaway...see were I'm going? I once had someone tell me that once they got on the computer after they put their kids to bed, and all the sudden they noticed that the sun was coming up! They had spent the whole night on the computer and didn't even realize it!

There have been times were I have gotten on the computer before doing my devotions. This is wrong! When I do this I am setting the computer as an idol because it is more important to me than spending time with God - because I value it more than the Lord. This is sad! I have since them purposed to never get on the computer before I do my devotions as a way of showing the Lord that I value it more than anything on the computer.

So dear Daughter of the King, are you feeling like the Lord is nudging at your heart and telling you to spend less time on the computer and more time with Him? Sometimes it's hard and required to stop following so many blogs, not enter as many giveaways, do less blog posts, get away from the Facebook page, and chose to do the important things first. I would like to challenge each of you to spend less time on the computer this week. Please do it for the Lord and for your family. Use that time to memorize Scripture, read a good book or spend time with your family. Right now chose the amount of time you will allow yourself to spend on the computer each day and pray that the Lord would help you to keep that resolution for one week. At first it may sound horrid and impossible, but remember that with the Lord all things ARE possible! :D Plus, wouldn't you rather that at the end of your life that instead of a total of 900 days spent on the computer it only be more like 100 days and that the other 800 were spent doing something productive such as spending time with the Lord and doing something of eternal value? For when we see Jesus on Judgment day the amount of days spent on the computer will mean nothing to Him - what He is interested in is how much time we spent getting to know Him better.

Have God bless you dear sisters!

Blessings,

Bethany Ann

{P.S. For those of you who haven't yet heard, I just opened a giveaway blog called Giveaways of Blessing! I plan on posting frequent giveaways and product reviews and currently I have two giveaways going on! One for some lovely tea-time cards and one for a lovely sewing e-pattern for a adorable purse of the winners choice. Check those out over HERE! ~Bethany}