Young Wife's Guide

A big part of my family’s life for the past 3 1/2 years has been blogging. I started out with a small personal blog where I wrote about my new husband and our plans for the weekend. But I soon fell in love with blogging and knew I wanted to take it to the next level.

So I launched Young Wife’s Guide in February 2012, A Biblical Marriage in October 2012, and have a NEW blog coming this summer {Sh…it’s still a secret but we will share more information soon!}!

Blogging has been an incredible blessing to our family. I have met so many amazing ladies and made some real friends I talk to on a daily basis. It has been a source of inspiration to me as a homemaker, encouraged me to learn new things, and has even helped to bring in an income to our family.

Image courtesy of [stockimages] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net 

*Note: This is a sponsored post brought to you by Blogelina and happily shared by me! All opinions are 100% my own and I’m so excited to share this class opportunity with you!…Keep reading to see how awesome this opportunity is*

Take a FREE Blogging Class

If you are interested in blogging then I am SO excited to share this great opportunity from Blogelina to take a free blogging class for beginners! In this 4 week class, Blogelina will cover everything you need to know including:

• How to Get Your Blog Started on the Right Foot
• Questions to ask as you begin blogging
• How to Choose a Web Host for Your Blog
• Why Your Blog Design is So Important
• 9 Different Ways to Easily Monetize Your Blog
• How to Draw Visitors to Your Blog
• A 60 page class manual
• And one FREE year of web hosting {$84 value}!!

This really is an awesome deal. I wish I could have taken this free class when I first started out. And I am going to go through this course too…there are always new things you can learn!

How It Works

When you sign up for this FREE 4 week class, you will get instant access to the 60 page class manual, lots of resources, and directions for claiming your FREE year of web hosting!

Then in June, you will “meet” once a week for class and learn how to become a profitable blogger! And if you can’t actually make it at the meeting time {like I can’t} then each session’s notes will be emailed to you along with the presentation.

Sign up for a FREE 4 week blogging class and get a 60 page manual and a free year of web hosting! Sign up HERE! 

The wide world of blogging can seem to confusing!  It’s hard to know where to start. But Blogelina is offering this great opportunity to learn how to start your blog off right, take it to the next level, and network with other bloggers {which is a huge opportunity}!!

Plus I’ll be taking the class so we can meet in class and chat :) You can sign up HERE for the class that starts in June!

*Disclosure: This is a sponsored post brought to you by Bloelina. All opinions are 100% mine and I’m really excited to share this class opportunity with you!*

As the weather warms up, the jackets come off and the itty bitty shorts come out. Sometimes it’s understandable. In 100 degree weather no one wants to be wearing turtle necks and long pants.

But modesty is still just as important during summer. So how do you dress modestly, stay cool, and also still be cute? Here are some tips I’ve learned through the years for dressing modestly during summer as well as some of my favorite places to shop!

How To Dress Modestly During Summer

Here are  few practical tips to help you dress modestly this summer. Summer modesty guidelines and practice will look differently in each household. So talk to your husband or father about how they can help you dress modestly this summer because gals – sometimes it’s hard!

1) Find Some Good Shorts

Good shorts are essential to me during Summer because other than Church I pretty much live in shorts!! I don’t want to be legalistic {or impost legalistic standards upon you}, so each household needs to decide what their standard is. Personally I have just drawn the line at knee length {you can read more about my personal modesty guidelines}.

According to The Modesty Survey, 64.5% of men said “It is immodest for a girl to expose her legs up to mid-thigh.” This means that over half of the men around us struggle when we expose our legs at mid thigh. This has convicted me that for the sake of not causing my brothers in Christ to stumble {1 Corinthians 8:13}, that I will simply wear knee length shorts…there’s really no harm in that small sacrifice! {Again I am just sharing what I personally feel convicted about}.

Hubby and I at Pearl Harbor on our Honeymoon

2) Find a Good Swim Suit

Ack! Finding a modest bathing suit is essential to summertime but it.is.so.hard.to.do! I will suggest a few swim suit companies below but ultimately, just be wise, discerning, and prayerful when picking out a suit…and get a man’s opinion on it before you take the tags off {such as your husband or father}!!

3) Make Wise Choices

Really the summer is the perfect excuse to “forget” about modesty for a few months and wear what is hip, cool, and not care. But be set apart this summer girls. Be bold for Christ and show the world that there is something different about you! Don’t give in to the temptation to look trendy at the sake of glorifying God with your body {1 Corinthians 6:19}

I urge you to spend some time in prayer and discussion with your husbands {or fathers if you are unmarried} and really dig into what Scripture has to say on modesty. Think about what is really at the HEART of modesty and pray that God molds you into a beautiful modest woman. I urge you to dive into The Modesty Survey and find out what over 1600 Christian men think about modesty {find out more information about the survey here}

Modest Summer Fashion Guide

Are you on the hunt for modest clothing this summer? I actually find most of my modest clothing cheap in normal stores and thrift shops, but certain things like modest cami’s and bathing suits I get online.

1) Apricot Apparel

I have tried every cami under the sun and they all are either to low to begin with or by the end of the day they droop down. But my hands down favorite cami I have ever found is from Apricot Apparel. I stumbled upon their site onr day and now my sister’s and I do a new order from them each season! On my next order I intent to try some of their other laying shirts too!

The cami is my very best friend. A whole new world of cute shirts opens up to you when you can add a camisole to your outfit! Suddenly dresses and shirts that were highly immodest become the perfect summer modest outfit!

A favorite dress that would be too low cut without my favorite Apricot Apparel cami!

2) Mod Bod

My sister’s have a few of their layering shirts that I would love to get but my favorite thing from them is their perfect tank!  I wear it under shirts and it’s the perfect thing to wear under most dresses! I have it in white, black, pink, and brown.

3) Lime Ricki

For the past several years, Lime Ricki has been my go to place to buy bathing suits! My sister’s and I were actually able to find bathing suits that were high enough and not too expensive! Yay!

While it seems that a few of their swim suits this year might be a little too low cut for me, I’m actually thrilled with this year’s line up of suits!! I’m having a hard time deciding what to order. I really like the Coral Zulu, Cinch-Neck Hibiscus, One Shoulder Mini Dot, and Ruffle Hibiscus {I think this is my favorite but I’m debating whether it will be modest enough :\}. And I of course pair these tops with long shorts or skorts.

My Sister’s and I in Lime Ricki Bathing Suits

4) Mikarose

I love Mikarose clothing!! They have so many adorable shirts and dresses that really are modest! I love that most of their clothing doesn’t require a cami – they are truly modest! And their quality is really high, I can tell the clothing will last for a long time {that’s really important when spending money on modest clothing}! This lace shirt I got last year is actually on clearance right now. I’m really in love with this Julia dress right now…it would be perfect for this summer ;)

5) DownEast Basics

I think I start drooling every time their catalog comes in the mail. I think their dresses are my favorite thing – especially this honeydew dress! Many of their tops seem very modest also although I only own 2 of their dresses and a jacket. I actually did a review of one of their dresses last year! Mind you….I was 21 weeks pregnant with twins in this photo – so not my best photo LOL!

6) Divinita Sole

I think Divinita Sole might just be among my favorite modest swim suits I’ve ever seen! But I haven’t actually tried them yet. It seems that you have to buy the top and and bottom together and since I cover the bottoms with shorts anyway, I don’t need matching bottoms. So I have yet to try them out although I’m thinking about calling them to see if I can purchase just the top :) They have some really super cute and modest swimsuit tops!!

7) Novae Clothing

I have always loved Novae clothing but haven’t ordered from them…yet! I love their dresses especially and just about died when I found this skirt…actually it’s a skirt and dress EXTENDER! I HATE when you find a super cute dress or skirt and it’s too short :( But this dress extender is brilliant. It’s super cute and could make so many dresses and skirts an option! I really need one!!

These are just some of my favorite modest clothing companies! But I’m always on the hunt for more. Do you know of any?

This post is part of my series on The Joy of Hospitality: Practicing the Biblical art of serving others! You can follow along and read all posts in the series HERE.

Photo by khrawlings

Any discussion of Biblical hospitality, must first naturally start with the Bible. Yesterday we dove into the Old Testament to find out what it has to say on hospitality and now today we will find out how the early Church in the New Testament practiced and modeled hospitality.

While Biblical hospitality is not a high priority for most modern western churches, it was vital to the growth, stability, and daily life if the early Church!

“Hospitality is becoming an almost forgotten Christian virtue in our style of life today, particularly in big cities with their rampant crime on the streets, their locked-in apartments and all their affluent, urban and bourgeois devices which attempt to create privacy in our homes and our lives. In the New Testament, however, hospitality was a distinctive mark of Christians and Christian communities.” ~ Hospitality Commands, pg 6

Hospitality in the New Testament

The Greek word for hospitality that is used in the New Testament is philoxenia which literally means “Love for Strangers“. Each time we are commanded to practice hospitality, God is literally commanding us to have and show love for others!

Love is a central theme of the Bible. We are to Love God {Deuteronomy 10:12}, Love our neighbors {Luke 10:27}, and Love strangers {Philippians 2:3-4}. And at the root of hospitality is love. By practicing hospitality we are showing love for those in God’s Church, love for strangers, neighbors, and unbelievers, and most of all, love for God by obeying his commands.

“The Christian practice of hospitality was not viewed simply as a means of overcoming a practical problem. Theological statements by different authors in the New Testament show that it was frequently viewed as the concrete expression of Christian love.” ~ Hospitality Commands, pg 16

Serving those in the Church

We have a clear call from Paul to serve those within our Church and practice hospitality.

“Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” ~ Romans 12:13

Practically, this serving and contributing to the needs of the saints can take on many different forms. It can mean bringing a meal to a family who just had a baby. It can mean inviting new people at Church to your home for dinner. It can mean donating money and time to the Church’s emergency fund. Later in this series we will get into practical ways we can serve through hospitality.

Serving Unbelievers & Strangers

While one component of hospitality is serving those in the Church, another aspect is serving unbelievers and strangers! As Abraham found out, you should never neglect to show hospitality because you never know who you are serving! Here is a clear command to practice hospitality to strangers

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” ~ Hebrews 13:2

Image courtesy of [digidreamgrafix] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net 

Serve Without Complaining

God surly knows our hearts! He wants us to serve Him with joy and humility. He is not merely concerned with our external actions but also the state of our hearts. He knows that we can tend to act selfishly or serve while complaining. So he issued this command:

“Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.” ~ 1 Peter 4:9

We must be careful to not complain when extending hospitality when you think about the cost of food and extending hospitality, when a guest is late or doesn’t show up, or when hospitality isn’t extended back to you like you think it should! 

The Early Church

As we see, God commanded that the New Testament believers practice hospitality. This was not just a “gift” for certain people to use. He expected each church and each believer to live it out. The famous church historian, Adolf Harnack, wrote:

“During the early centuries of Christianity it was the Roman church more than any other which was distinguished by the generosity with which it practiced this virtue [hospitality]…A living interest in the collective church of Christ throbbed with peculiar vigor throughout the Roman church…and the practice of hospitality was one of its manifestations.” ~ Hospitality Commands, pg 7

The early Church took those commandments to heart and really lived it out! But somewhere along the line -amidst smart phones and cable TV – we became a reclusive and private society. Amidst affluence and abundance we  became prideful about our homes and let our fear of man {and man’s judgement on our houses, decor, & food} override our Biblical command to practice hospitality.

In Our Own Lives

So how can we take this principle of hospitality that we see practiced in the New Testament and apply it to our own lives in a culture so far removed of that of the early Church? By focusing on brotherly, Christian love. When we have and show love to those around us – we are extending Biblical Hospitality.

“Hospitality is a practical way to love others. Therefore, a person practicing Biblical hospitality should also be a loving person. This element separates Biblical hospitality from social entertaining or even distinguishes between the hospitality of a believer and an unbeliever. Believers can uniquely display God’s love as they extend hospitality. Entertaining focuses on having a beautiful table decor or preparing gourmet food. Biblical hospitality is a demonstration of love. Food and other elements are merely tools used to express our love for people. Our motivation for being hospitable women is a response to God’s work in our lives. Hospitality is one way we can tangibly demonstrate our love for God.” ~ Practicing Hospitality, Pg 50

For Further Study

The Bible has much more to say on the subject of hospitality then I could ever hope to cover! I highly recommend these two books to help you on your journey towards Biblical hospitality: Hospitality Commands by Alexander Strauch and Practicing Hospitality by Pat Ennis & Lisa Tatlock.

Read more in this series:

• Biblical Hospitality Defined: The Art of Serving Others
• Hospitality Through the Bible: Old Testament
• Hospitality Through the Bible: New Testament {You are here}
• More to come! See all posts in the Joy of Hospitality series HERE!

This post is part of my series on The Joy of Hospitality: Practicing the Biblical art of serving others! You can follow along and read all posts in the series HERE.

Photo from Elin B

Hospitality is a very foreign concept in our modern North American society. We are exchanging deep conversations for 140 character tweets. Conversations are becoming more shallow and we are becoming increasingly individualistic.

The days of sitting on the porch with iced tea and good conversation has been replaced with watching TV and frittering away hours on Facebook. I am no stranger to technology {and think it can be very helpful and useful for many things} but our modern society has shied away from opening our homes to serve those around us. 

It wasn’t like this in the Ancient Near Eastern culture of the Old Testament. Hospitality was woven into the fabric of that society. It was a common and expected part of Jewish living and was an important part of serving in the Old Testament.

Hospitality in the Old Testament

The Old Testament culture is very different from ours. As people traveled through the land {and often through very dry desert areas} there were no McDonald’s or Starbuck’s to stop at when they got tired or thirsty.

When their feet were caked with mud and dried dust, they had no where to turn expect to houses they passed. Travelers often relied on the kindness of strangers for survival and they took the call of serving strangers seriously!

“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” ~ Leviticus 19:33–34

In no uncertain terms, God commanded the Israelite’s to care for and love the strangers and travelers among them! Maybe they didn’t understand why God would issue this strong calling but all they knew was that God commanded it…and they should obey!

“For the people of God in the Old Testament the duty of hospitality came right from the center of who God was. I am the Lord your God who made a home for you and brought you there with all my might and all my soul. Therefore, you shall love the stranger as yourself. You shall be holy as I am holy (Leviticus 19:1). Your values shall mirror my values.” ~ Strategic Hospitality from Desiring God Blog

Learning From the Father of Our Faith

Abraham, the man called righteous because of his faith {James 2:23}, was a great example of hospitality that we can follow! Often the focus of this scene from Genesis 18:1-16 is that of Sarah who is promised to bear a son. While that is a profitable teaching from this passage, something else is illustrated as well: Abraham’s willing and eager heart to extend hospitality to these three men {who turn out to be angels & the Lord}.

*Note: I recently heard a fantastic sermon on this scene that really describes Abraham’s willingness to serve. I highly recommend you listen to it as Pastor Phil Layton can describe it much more effectively than I can. You can here the message HERE {and in fact, he is currently going through a fantastic series on Genesis right now}.*

A few things to notice from this passage:

Abraham Ran

“When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth” ~ Genesis 18:2b

This was an unusual thing for a middle eastern man of that time. He “girded his loins” and RAN to greet these strangers approaching their homestead. Abraham and Sarah were old by this point and in fact Sarah was past menopause. It’s would have been very unusual to see an old grey haired man pull up his robe and literally run to greet strangers on the road – but that is exactly what Abraham did! He was eager to share hospitality with these strangers!

Abraham Called Them Lord

Calling someone Lord was a sign of respect. Abraham was a wealthy man and yet he called himself a servant to these strangers and ran to wash their feet – a humbling act of service! To wash someone’s feet was to make yourself lower in status to that person {which is one reason it was so shocking that Jesus would wash the apostles feet {John 13:1-17}.

“O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree” ~ Genesis 18:3-4

Photo by paukrus

Abraham’s Hospitality Was Generous

“And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them.” ~Genesis 18:6-8

Originally, Abraham simply promised them a little water for their feet and some rest in the shade {Genesis 18:3-4}. But instead he was incredibly generous and treated these strangers as if they were kings!

Abraham rushed to Sarah and asked her to get out the fine flour and make enough fine cake to feed a dozen men let alone 3. He took their prized fattened calf and made a meal that was fit for a special occasion and not fitting for 3 travelers simply passing by.

But Abraham was generous with his time, energy, and possessions and together Abraham and Sarah showered love and affection on these strangers! Of course we find out later that these men were in fact Angels and one was even Christ Himself {Genesis 18:1,10 – the term LORD used in these verses is the highly personal name of God Himself – Yahweh – unlike the generic term “lord” that is used in verse 3 which simply signifies a higher position in society}. That is why the New Testament commands:

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” ~ Hebrews 13:2

In Our Own Lives

So how does the Old Testament pattern of hospitality affect our own lives? The Old Testament’s emphasis on hospitality and having a serving heart spill over in the New Testament and the early church’s emphasis on hospitality {but come back tomorrow for a discussion of hospitality in the New Testament}. But it also teaches us a powerful lesson:

“We look back and remember that we owe our life to an act of God’s hospitality. We were once strangers and aliens in the Egypt of sin and death. But God came to us in the Passover of his Son’s cross (1 Corinthians 5:7) and made us alive (Ephesians 2:5) and brought us out through the Red Sea of conversion.” ~ Strategic Hospitality from Desiring God Blog

God remains the same throughout history. Hospitality was a strong commandment and expectation of the Jews in the Old Testament. This strongly informed the New Testament and serves as a powerful reminder for ourselves. Come back tomorrow as we will jump into what hospitality looks like in the New Testament and early church!

Read more in this series:

• Biblical Hospitality Defined: The Art of Serving Others
• Hospitality Through the Bible: Old Testament {You are here}
• Hospitality Through the Bible: New Testament
• More to come! See all posts in the Joy of Hospitality series HERE!

Today is the first part in a new series I am excited and passionate about bringing to you on hospitality. Come with me on a journey to The Joy of Hospitality as we discover this lost art of Biblically serving others! You can find all the posts in the series HERE.

Hospitality: What comes to mind? Do you picture a beautiful house complete with a gourmet meal, friends around the dinner table, and polite chit chat? Hospitality can be this, but it’s really much more.

Hospitality can look like:

• Inviting a non-Christian family out to pizza after the soccer game.
• Sharing a picnik at the park with the single mom down the street.
• Inviting that new couple at church over for Sunday brunch.

Hospitality can come in many forms but the ultimate purpose is this: To honor and obey God by serving those around us. As Christians we are called to practice Biblical Hospitality…and practice it with joy!

“Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice’ (1 Sam 15:22). The words of John 14:15, 21-24 clearly identify that the primary evidence that individuals are Christians is their choice to obey their Father’s commands….I learned that to please my heavenly Father I need to respond to all of his instructions with an obedient spirit and not just pick those that appeal to me – and that includes my response to what his Word teaches about hospitality.” ~ Practicing Hospitality, Pg 22

Hospitality – A Biblical Command

Why should we be concerned about hospitality and practicing it? Because God commands that we practice hospitality – and we should obey!

“Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” ~ Romans 12:13

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” ~ Hebrews 13:2

“Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.” ~ 1 Peter 4:9 -

“First Peter 4:9 builds on the instructions to practice hospitality and reminds me that my attitude is of utmost important – I am to practice hospitality without complaining! This verse challenges me to conduct a heart search to discern what my attitude is and whether I am approaching this opportunity to minister enthusiastically (Colossians 3:23).” ~ Practicing Hospitality, Pg 23

Later this week I will go more in depth into what hospitality actually looked like practiced in both the Old Testament and the New. We will dive into Biblical examples and how we can learn from people such as Abraham & Sarah, Lot, Gideon, and more!

So What Does Hospitality Look Like?

So now we know that Biblical Hospitality is commanded {and we will delve into that more} but what exactly does that look like? As I showed above, Biblical Hospitality can take on many different forms.

The ultimate purpose of hospitality is to minister to those around us – both believers and unbelievers. Our hospitality is a form of ministry and is a way that we show love, care, concern, and how we can serve others!

“Hospitality from a Biblical perspective is to recognize that God is more interested in caring relationships than the mold behind the shower curtain…It need not matter if we live in a single-room apartment or a split-level ranch, the only real requirement is allowing God to use our lives and our possessions…Our homes and our lives are indeed the most powerful combination of ministry to our world.” ~ Hospitality with Confidence, Pg 9

Hospitality is not about showing off your house, your decorating skills, or your cooking abilities. It is not just having friends over to play games {although that can be an element of it}. It is not about you or your possessions - Hospitality is about God and how he uses you and your possessions to serve those you come into contact with – both friends and strangers, both believers and unbelievers.

Anyone – even the single gal in a dorm room – can show hospitality to those around them. It doesn’t take fancy china or expensive food. Hospitality is about investing in other’s lives and learning how you can best serve those around you.

We could have a revolution within our churches of believers reaching out into our unbelieving neighborhoods and inviting families over, new people to the church quickly getting plugged into church life, and Christians really genuinely caring and serving for one another – through the Biblical art of hospitality!

I am excited you are on this journey with me! We are going to begin tomorrow by diving into what God has to say and teach on Hospitality in the Old Testament tomorrow.

Read more in this series:

• Biblical Hospitality Defined: The Art of Serving Others {You are here}
• Hospitality Through the Bible: Old Testament
• Hospitality Through the Bible: New Testament
• More to come! See all posts in the Joy of Hospitality series HERE!