As stated before, my one word this year has been JOY. One book that has been very helpful to me is Secrets of a Happy Heart by Debi Pryde. Debi Pryde is a very successful biblical counselor and she truly is a woman who knows God’s Word.
In her book, Mrs. Pryde has a wonderful checklist of many things that helps us be joyful Christian woman. I wish I could share with you her list… but you will just have to purchase the book 🙂
There are many different heart attitudes and actions we can cultivate in order to become more joyful. They take work and discipline on our part, but God will supply the mercy and grace we need! Take a look at the following questions and take time to consider your own heart and life.
- Am I seeking God on a daily basis?
- Do I desire godly wisdom instead of worldly wisdom?
- Do I exercise self-control in my personal life, thoughts, and actions?
- Am I cultivating a heart of purity?
- Do I work hard and avoid laziness?
- Do I love and care for children?
- Do I exhort others?
- Do I cheerfully obey those in authority over me?
- Do I love and respect my family members?
- Do I add life and joy to my home?
- Am I busy preparing to be a wife, mother, and homemaker if that is God’s will for my life?
After typing these questions I am thinking: “Wow! That’s a lot to work on!” Hopefully, after reading these questions you and I won’t feel discouraged but instead, motivated to rise to the call of joyful Christian womanhood.
{Take Time to Consider} Are you a joyful Christian woman? Which of the above areas do you need to work on the most? What can you do today to grow in these areas?
{I Would Love to Know} Do the above questions discourage or motivate you?
Update: in my original post I shared a large portion of Debi Pryde’s “Joyful Christian Womanhood Inventory Sheet.” However, due to poor research on my part, the list had to be removed because of copyright restrictions. In it’s place, the list above is 100% my own but was inspired by Debi Pryde’s checklist.
Oh that list really motivated me!! 🙂 And I really felt cheerful when I saw the grin of the coffee!! 🙂
That’s great… I hope it can motivate all of us young women who read it! I feel the same way 😉 coffee always makes me grin 🙂
I’d say the list both motivated and discouraged me 🙂 This would be a great checklist to print and have up in my room for a reminder.
I can definitely relate… I find it motivating because I want to “rise to the challenge.” However when I see the areas that I struggle in, it makes me cringe. Thank you for being honest and sharing! 🙂
Great List! Have any Bible verses you recommend to go with this?
Great question! Some verses that come to my mind would be Philippians 1:10-11; 2:13-15, and Colossians 1:10-11. Here are just some of the verses Debi Pryde gives for the corresponding topics…
Wisdom: Proverbs 2:1-12 and Psalm 63
Discretion: Proverbs 4:23 and Romans 13:14
Chaste: 2 Corinthians 10:5 and 1 Timothy 2:9-10
Let me know if this helps! I can share plenty more with you if you would like! 🙂
I’d say I have to work on all of those points to some degree! Whilst it is very encouraging and inspiring, I too find it discouraging. But, I think this can be a good thing for me. I find that I need God to open my eyes to how far I am from perfect and what I can change in my life and that’s when I deliberately change in those areas, you know? I can sometimes be so caught up in God’s goodness and all the wonderful things He gives, which is great, but I guess we need a balance of joy in God, and awareness of what we need to change. Am I making sense? XD
Hi Sarah, what you said makes complete sense! Yes, I think we need a healthy balance of recognizing that true lasting joy comes from God but we also have to do our part as well. Thank you so much for sharing and commenting… I love hearing from you!