ChristianMilitaryWives

Here's a note from our very own, Mrs. Jocelyn Green of  Faith Deployed  and who is also a Christian Military Wives Ministry Leader and the editor of our new magazine, Wives in Bloom:

Christian Military Wives, a branch of Christian Military Fellowship, is announcing a new online magazine: Wives in Bloom will launch on September 1!

I am serving as the editor of this new publication, but the success and value of Wives in Bloom depends on you. We want this to be the premier magazine for military wives who put their trust in Jesus(and for those who are seeking Jesus, too), and we need your help- your wit, wisdom and writing. Please consider writing for Wives in Bloom. Everything you need to know about writing and submitting is right here in these Writers Guidelines.

Two things I want to point out about the month of September:

1) I want to hear your 9-11 stories. Where were you on 9-11-01, and how has it affected your life since then?

2) On a MUCH lighter note, September is National Couponing Month! Please send in some articles about how to become a coupon queen! (Or something related to family budgets, frugal living, etc.)

Remember, the rules for submitting writing for the above two items are the same as for everything else. So please don’t just leave a comment here- follow the guidelines to submit. Thanks!

-Jocelyn Green
Jocelyn@christianmilitarywives.com

Last night at church, the speaker (Marco) talked about low self esteem.  He then showed a photo of himself wearing thick goggle like glasses (they almost looked military issued) and dawning a great part in his hair and explained that as a child he had very low self esteem.

In my younger years, I battled with low self esteem.  I never thought I looked good enough and I always doubted myself.  For instance, I thought it would be fun to try out for track... but, I didn't because I didn't think I would have been fast enough.  Or, what about the time I had a cute pair of jelly shoes (yeah, back in the 80s) but I chickened out of wearing them until other "cool" girls started wearing them.  The truth of the matter is, I shouldn't have worried about what other people thought... but, I did.  Who cares if I wouldn't have been the fastest runner on the team, or who would have really cared if I had worn those jelly shoes before they were really popular?

Worldly self esteem seems to revolve around posessions, finances, and accomplishments.  As Christians, our sence of being a good person should not depend on any of those things.  Our self worth and self esteem should reflect who we are in Christ and the wonderful talents God gives us.  We should not worry about what people say or do against us, as all that matters is our relationship with Christ.

Psalm 16:2 reminds us, “I said to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’”

Psalm 139:13-14 - For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

As military wives, it can be easy to fall into the trap of gossip which can create others to have low self esteem.  We need to steer far away from talking about others or even having inside thoughts of judging others.

Don't worry about what others think of you.  The only one that matters is our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Live for Him, strive to have a personal relationship with Him and everything else will fall into place.  You will feel complete and filled with His love - thus, overcoming feelings of insecurity.

PITTSBURGH, Pa.— Two books authored by Christian Military Wives’ online magazine editor Jocelyn Green were recently nominated for the 2010 Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) Award in the spiritual/religious category. The books are Faith Deployed: Daily Encouragement for Military Wives (Moody 2008), written with contributions from 14 other Christian military wives, and Battlefields & Blessings: Stories of Faith and Courage from the War in Iraq & Afghanistan (AMG Publishers 2009), co-authored with Jane Hampton Cook and John Croushorn.

Winners will be selected by a team of judges and announced on Veterans Radio Network (www.veteransradio.net) on July 31 at 9a.m. Eastern time. The awards ceremony will take place at the MWSA Conference in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Saturday, October 2, at 6p.m.

Jocelyn Green, the wife of a former Coast Guard officer, is an award-winning freelance writer. Her Web site for military wives, www.faithdeployed.com, won third place in a national contest held by the Evangelical Press Association in 2010. Jocelyn was contributing editor to Battlefields & Blessings: Stories of Faith and Courage from World War 2 (AMG Publishers 2009), which won the 2009 Silver Medal from MWSA.

Jocelyn writes for nonprofits, universities, corporations, and has had dozens of magazine articles published. Her writings also appear at Focus on the Family’s military marriage Web site, InternetCafeDevotions.com,

Lately, we have seen an influx of emails requesting prayer for military marriages to be restored. The war has played a big toll on straining marriages. Months and years at a distance from one you care for is demanding, let alone all of the other stresses that come with war. The loss of friends, questioning of life and watching as those you love who are hurting due to the side effects of combat.

I was just sitting here listening to the song, Cry Out To Jesus by Third Day.

For the marriage that's struggling just to hang on
They lost all of their faith and love
They've done all they can to make it right again
Still it's not enough

When your lonely (when you're lonely)
And it feels like the whole world is falling on you
You just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus
Cry to Jesus

The lyrics of this song are ring so true. When you are lonely and it feels like the world is falling on you… you just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus. How many times do you talk to friends and inform them about your marriage dilemma? It’s imperative to remember that God is your friend, He is there for you. He loves you, God delights in His children… you are Gods child. God wants to see you happy, He wants to see your marriage bloom. God should be your best friend, the one you always turn to.  Let Jesus be your best friend, He loves you unconditionally.

Instead of crying out to your friends about your marital problems… cry out to Jesus!  If you put God first in your marriage... the other things will eventually fall into place!

As I sit here, I have a million things that need to be done.  I need to go to the post office, I need to clean the house, I have paperwork that needs to be done… I, I, I…

It’s vital to ask yourself… where is God in my life today?

So often, we forget the most important things in life.  Here are a few imperative questions to ask yourself. 

-Have I prayed today?
-Have I read my Bible?
-Have I talked to loved ones and friends about Jesus today?
-What is my relationship with Christ like at this moment?

At the end of the day, or when all is said and done - the most important thing in life is not about the dishes being clean.  It's not about your husbands relationship with Christ or your friends relationship with Christ... it's about YOUR relationship with Christ.

I challenge you to commit to bettering your relationship with the Lord... you won't be sorry. :)

--

We have had quite a few wonderful military wives write to CMW asking how they can become a volunteer.

Teresa Henning, being the fabulous woman she is - helped to create an application process for our CMW volunteers.

CMW is in need of the following volunteers:

Small Group Ministry Leader - The small group leader for CMW needs to have a strong Christian background, she needs to be organized, goal oriented and self motivating.  The CMW small group leader has a very important job of "teaching our teachers" how to reach out to women in their community.  Small group leaders offer local/physical support in their cities and towns.  The Small Group Ministry Leader will encourage, uplift, and guide our small group leaders so that they may lead successful groups.  The Small Group Ministry Leader should have experience in Christian teaching... perhaps Sunday School teacher, small group leader at their home church, etc.

Forum Moderators - Forum moderators are needed, this is an online only position.  Moderators help make sure conversation is flowing between our members.  Must be a member of CMW for at least 6 months to apply.  No experience necessary. 

Welcoming Committee - Our CMW welcoming committee welcomes new members on our website by sending uplifting messages to their CMW profile page.  Must be a member of CMW for at least 6 months to apply. No experience necessary.

Praying For Your Husband Group Leader - An online group leader is needed for the Praying For Your Husband Group.  This group focuses on prayer, and how you as a wife can better pray for your husband.  The group leader should be willing to encourage wives to pray for their husbands, and should be involved in praying for (and encouraging others to pray for) the prayer requests posted in this group.  Group leader for this group can post Bible verses and words of wisdom to the women in this group. 

Prayer Warrior Group Leader - We are looking for someone who would like to host weekly prayer sessions on our talk radio program.  During the prayer sessions, we would like the host to pray for the prayer requests in our Prayer Warrior Group on CMW and our Facebook prayer requests.  You are encouraged to check out http://www.talkshoe.com to see how the talk radio programs work, as this is what CMW uses for our talk radio broadcasts.  During the weekly prayer time, we have volunteers who would join you on the show to pray.  Its such a blessing to actually HEAR someone praying for your prayer request out loud!

Fundraising - We are looking for one or more women to head up fundraising efforts for  Christian Military Wives.  All of our ministry leaders are 100% volunteers.  Fundraising efforts will allow us to continue our Operation Holiday Embrace program and as well as send free books and study materials to military wives world wide.  Experience in fundraising helpful, but not necessary.

If you are interested in filling out an application to volunteer with CMW, please email info@christianmilitarywives.com

CMF/CMW members are part of a worldwide prayer family. They submit prayer requests to the Home Office to be published in the monthly prayer reminder (Battle Plan) which is mailed to the entire fellowship so we can all pray for one another. We have prayer at the Home Office for more urgent or confidential requests. We also publish the Battle Plan electronically via E-mail for those who wish to receive the published requests daily. Any urgent or time-sensitive requests that we receive are also added to the Electronic Battle Plan (EBP) to enable our partners to pray immediately.  CMF members may send their prayer requests from a "Submit Prayer Request Page" under the members section.

CMW is a ministry of CMF.  If you have not joined CMF, please do so now so that you can take advantage of many wonderful benefits such as The Battle Plan, free study materials for military families and so much more.

Grief

Join CMW Talk Show Hostess, Claire Shackelford along with ministry leaders Teresa Henning and Patti Katter this Friday (June 25) evening at 9pm EST.  On our show we will talk all about grief.  It's a tough topic, but we all will go through it at one time or another.  We will talk about topics such as miscarriage, the loss of a loved one, friends and even our military family. 

CLICK HERE to check out our recorded podcasts and information on how you can listen and chat LIVE with other military wives this Friday evening at 9pm EST.

I've been a Christian for a long time.  Since I was a little girl, as a matter of fact.  I believe I was about 10 years old when I asked Jesus Christ to come into my heart.  I attended a small church in Flint, Michigan called Eastside Unity Missionary Baptist Church when Mrs. Verna Hemmingway lead me to the Lord while I was at a GMA meeting.  GMA stands for Girls Missionary Association.  I suppose, being a part of a group that used an acronym - I should have known then I would someday marry a fine military man. 

Through my life I have had my ups and downs when it comes to living a Godly life.  My teen years were quite challenging.  I've bumped my head a few times, but have dusted myself off - bit the bullet and continued trucking on for Christ.

I have experienced Gods love, wisdom and strength and at times and still pushed God away during certain trials in my life.  I know, I am not alone on this.  It's not easy to write and say I've messed up several times in my life.  I'm not proud of the fact that I have sinned in my life - but I am proud to say I am a sinner, saved by Gods grace.  If I had to save myself from going to Hell, it would be impossible. 

Is there something in your life that you need to work with? Is your relationship with God strained? I've been there.  Ever get angry? Cuss? Smoke? Hurt someone? You are not alone.

I'm sure you can think of a few things in your life that you've done wrong.  If you are like me, you may have a list of things to work on in your life.

While people may not forgive our sins all the time, our Lord is Holy.  He loves you no matter what.  Don't give up on trying to walk the Christian walk.  Hang in there... keep on going!

Here are a few verses to help you remember that the Lord forgives us as we are. 

Colossians 2:13-14  "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross."

1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Psalm 51:1 "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions."

Hebrews 10:17  "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more."

Daniel 9:9 says, "The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him."

Colossians 1:13-14  "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Psalm 103:12  "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

Don't let feelings of, "I'm not perfect..." hold you back from asking God for forgiveness and moving forward with your relationship with Christ.  God always loves us, forgives us and wants us to dust ourselves off, GET UP and keep on keeping on!