• 
  Righteous Toothpaste

  Dear Righteous Toothpaste,
  
  Isaiah 50:4 “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned.”
  
  When someone shares a need with you and all you want is to respond in wisdom and grace, remember this verse. God will give you the words to say, if you pray and ask him for them. The Holy Spirit will guide our words, so that they can be an encouragement to those that need them.
  
  Proverbs 15:4 “A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.”
  
  I am reminded of back when I was in youth group on Wednesday nights. There was one particular evening that I remember very vividly. There were two teens kneeling on the floor, with a mat laid in front of them and two tubes of toothpaste in their hands. They were given 5 seconds to get all the toothpaste out of the tube and onto the mat in front of them. Let me tell you, that room was full of screams of support and cheering for a winner as that toothpaste came flying out of those little holes on the ends. Before you knew it, the timer had ended and the two tubes were empty.
  
  Then the group leader gave a second challenge and set 30 seconds on the timer, but this time the two teens had to get all the toothpaste back into the tubes without cutting them. Meaning they had to work that toothpaste back in through the little holes it had came out of. When that timer started, they used all their effort to get that toothpaste to go back inside, but only ended up with a mess all over their hands and the mat when the alarm sounded as the 30 seconds finished. Disappointed, the two teens started cleaning off their hands as the rest of us went back to our seats which had been quickly forgotten at the beginning of the exercise. Everyone quiet once more, the group leader picked up the practically empty toothpaste tubes and held them up for all to see. He said “These tubes represent each of you, the holes on the ends are your mouths and the paste is the words that leave them. What we say comes out easily, but taking it back is almost impossible. We need to be aware of what we are allowing to come out of our mouths before we say anything we may regret and can’t take back.”
  
  Just as that group leader explained with such a simple but effective picture, we need to make sure that our words are guided by the wisdom and grace of God. We don’t want to accidently be stuck with toothpaste all over our hands that we wish we could put back into the tube. Hurtful words spoken have consequences that sometimes can never be fully erased. They cause emotions, distress, and pain that you may never be able to remedy. That is why God tells us be aware of what we are putting in our minds so that what comes out of our mouths lines up with Christ.
  
  Let’s use our words to be an encouragement rather than a disappointment.
  
                                                                                  Signing off,
                                                                                  Tami 

• 
  Putting into Practice

  Dear Putting into Practice,
  
  Almost as dangerous as neglecting the Word of God, is the habit of taking it in but not putting it into practice. Jesus clearly says in his word that we are to take what we learn and share it with the world.
  
  2 Timothy 2:2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.
  
  Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
  
  Impression without expression can lead to depression. (That is one of the reasons that I write these posts. Coming from a small church in rural MN, there isn’t a lot of opportunity to share everything that God is teaching me. But he has opened up this means for me to share what I have learned with others like you.)
  
  Do you keep taking in, at church or in your personal devotions, and yet never give it out to others? We need to share with them what God has laid on our hearts, so that they too can learn and grow in their faith. What God is teaching you, may be exactly what someone needs to hear today, but if you don’t share it, then how can they be blessed or helped.
  
  A Christian that is learning and growing in their faith will get excited and they should want to share that joy with others. Take advantage of this time in your life when you can be involved in teaching without so many encumbrances. The future may hold more distractions that will continue to keep you from being able to share with others as often as you may desire.
  
  Don’t let your future (your dreams or hopes) keep you from enjoying the present, because the present determines your future, especially when it comes to serving God.
  
  Tell someone this week something that God is teaching you at church or in your personal study. Believe me it will feel amazing and you can say that you obeyed God in sharing His wonderful blessings with others. Try it.
  
                                                                                                                                Signing off,
                                                                                                                                Tami 

• 
  What is Diligence

  Dear What is Diligence,
  
  I want to start this letter by asking you, what distracts you in life? It could be anything: a movie, the boy you like who lives two houses down the road, social media, or simply your own thoughts. Whatever it is, does it distract you to the point where you don’t think about God?
  
  1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
  
  Being undistracted means being able to concentrate FULLY on something.
  
  Watching a movie once in a while is not bad. Wondering about a future relationship is not bad, when guided by God. And thinking is something that you have to do simply to function, but remember what or how are you thinking is important.
  
  Now, what about unrelenting? which means not yielding in strength, severity, or determination.
  
  Are you making sure that you are not being distracted from God in an unrelenting way? This is being diligent in your personal walk with the Lord in all that you do. As a lady looking to serve God diligently, you need to embody (fully commit to live) these two facets of the word diligence – undistracted and unrelenting.
  
  Does 1 Corinthians 15:58 describe your attitude and approach to using your free time for Jesus? Diligence affects every aspect of our service and ministry for the Lord.
  
  All those possible distractions are not bad things, but they can become a hindrance to your spiritual life if not kept in their correct place. You have to determine how diligent – undistracted and unrelenting – you want to be for Christ in your personal life. I can’t make that choice for you. Think about it, pray about it, and maybe seek council from someone with more experience if you need guidance.
  
  It will be worth every missed movie, possible relationship, or think session.
  
                                                                              Signing off,
                                                                              Tami

• 
  One Day is Today

  Dear One Day is Today,
  
  So, excluding a relationship, is there any other dreams you have for yourself? Like maybe going on a missions trip your church is hosting, going to a specific college, starting a new ministry at church, or maybe learning a new hobby? Any of these are possible at any point in life, but… they would be so much easier while you are unmarried or don’t have kids to watch over.
  
  Singleness is an inevitable condition. So why not use that time to fulfill some of your other dreams wholeheartedly rather than wasting your time waiting for a relationship.
  
  I can’t tell you how many nights I wasted watching chick flicks and dramas wishing that the main girl was me and I was ending up with the handsome lead male character. I didn’t realize until it was too late the amount of priceless free time I wasted.
  
  Too many young women waist valuable years as they wait for “life to begin” at the start of a relationship. This is not to say that a woman can’t pursue her other dreams after she is married, but she will have a much higher price to pay and often the pursued dream turns into a nightmare!
  
  If you love serving Jesus, please don’t waste your free time or consider yourself too unhappy to help anyone else. Thinking that way is the start of self-centeredness which will rob you of the joy of serving. Satan wants nothing more than you to continue dreaming about how “one day” you will get involved in ministry. He likes to distract young women, and men, from making lasting investments in themselves during their singleness.
  
  Look for the opportunities that God is placing in front of you today, like that missions trip you have been wanting to take or that hobby that looks like fun. Learn today how to use your free time for what Jesus wants rather than wasting your time on what may come “one day.”
  
  As a married woman, I regret missing so many great opportunities as a single, which I now have no time to pursue. I wish I had someone to encourage and show me how to use my single time wisely.
  
  Don’t wait for “one day”, make it today to start your life.
  
                                                                              Until next time,
                                                                              Tami 

• 
  Abundant Life

  Dear Abundant Life,
  
  Have you ever walked into a single person’s apartment and wonder where the furniture was? Or maybe see the lack of kitchenware? Or possibly wonder why they had no pictures on their walls? Or my favorite, think to yourself, “Did they just move in?” because it doesn’t even look like someone was living there?
  
  These are all things that single girls, and guys, can do when they don’t invest in themselves. There are many reasons why young people allow themselves to live this way, but a big one, especially for single women, is because they can’t imagine satisfaction in life without being married. They are so caught up in the lack of a boyfriend or girlfriend that they forget to enjoy the simple pleasures in life now. Their dream chests remain closed and China never gets used because they believe they must be saved for the day she can share them with her true love.
  
  No! We can enjoy them now. Don’t make minimal investment in what you hope is a temporary condition, but rather find satisfaction in where you are right now.
  
  Life is satisfying only when we diligently serve the Lord, no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in right now. God wants us to invest in ourselves as singles and live a full life. Not surviving on paper plates and plasticware. He wants you to find those things that will not only bring you joy when you are married, but that you can also use and enjoy as a single. So take out that china that was handed down to you by your mother or grandmother, buy that chair you have been eyeing every time you go to the store, and actually live in your apartment, by hanging up some pictures and cooking in your own kitchen.
  
  John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
  
  The only one that is stealing from your life’s happiness is you. Abundant life is not only for married women. It is for you as a single as well.
  
  What is a way today that you can start living a more abundant life for yourself?
  
                                                                                 Until next time,
                                                                                 Tami 

Dear Young Lady,

         There will be times that you will not like what I have to say or what God desires for your life, but… All I ask is that you wait a day or two before reacting. Pray about it and maybe talk to someone you trust who is a sound spiritual leader. I am not going to pretend that I have all the answers because I don’t. All I can do is show you how, with God’s help, I got through a time in my life that could have been the most discouraging and confusing.

         To start off these letters, I am going to give you 10 points that we will discuss and hopefully learn to become a godly woman. These points are the key to finding success in every area of our young Christian lives.

         Don’t try to understand right away what each of these means. They may sound straightforward, but we are going to really dig in and find out some amazing truths that will forever guide your life if you let them.

         Again I am so excited that you chose to join me on this new adventure.

                                                                                             Signing off,
                                                                                             Tami