Follow Him or Them?

It is important that women have right priorities, putting their husbands and families before leisure and other people, striving to have a regular time w/ God every day (and talk and listen to Him all day), being involved in ministry and caring for others. But these priorities won't, I believe, act themselves out in the same way for every woman, in every family. Nor do I think they should be burdensome. If you have a dynamic relationship w/ God, He gives you His love for others, for Himself and for the dear ones He's placed in your life--your family, Christian friends, and others you come into contact w/. Yes, many times, we need to ask God to give us this love or more of it and some people are more difficult to love than others. But God does answer prayer. As we move ourselves to do what He asks, He often moves us to enjoy doing it. I believe God uses each of us, as we are, w/ various strengths and weaknesses, to serve Him in unique ways, through art or music, through keeping lovely, loving (not extravagant) homes, through enjoying happy games w/ our kids, through studying and learning. I think that we sell short our Creator when we strive to copy another's life. There's often huge frustration in this effort. For no matter how good the other person's life may be, the life God has given you is the one He wants you to have, not another person's. He wants you to be the best unique you you can be. Following Christ, loving Him supremely, is the simple, yet complex goal, that does, to some extent, simply result in other things falling into place. Knowing Him personally and experiencing His work in your life results in His creating something beautiful and special out of you. We only follow others in joining them in following Him, following them in pursuing God. While they may share helpful ways in which God has helped them apply His truth in their lives, He may not have exactly the same thing in mind for us. As we follow God in the same way, I believe we'll come to know what it is He has for specifically for us to do. This is the beauty of a faith that is real and that isn't a list of rules, but a relationship.