A quiet heart.

"The apostle Paul tells us we are "hidden with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:3, NIV). There is mystery there, but when I think of the life of Mary, I see some facets of that mystery that I missed when I read the apostle. Her's was a hidden life, a faithful one, a holy one - holy in the context of a humble home in a small village where there was not very much diversion. She knew that the ordinary duties were ordained for her as much as the extraordinary way in which they became became her assignment. She struck no poses. She was the mother of a baby, willing to be known simple as his mother for the rest of her life. He was an extraordinary baby, the Eternal Word, but His needs were very ordinary, very daily to his mother. Did she imagine that she deserved to be the chosen mother? Did she see herself as fully qualified? Surely not. Surely not more than any other woman who finds herself endowed with the awesome gift of a child. It is the most humbling experience of a woman's life, the most revealing of her own helplessness. Yet, we know this mother, Mary, the humble virgin from Nazareth, as "Most Highly Exalted."

I am thankful to God that unto us a Child was born. I am thanking Him also that there was a pure-hearted woman prepared to receive that Child with all that motherhood would mean of daily trust, daily dependence, daily obedience. I thank Him for her silence. That spirit is not in me at all, not naturally. I want to learn what she had learned so early: the deep guarding in her heart of each event, mulling over its meaning from God, waiting in silence for His word to her.

I want to learn, too, that it is not an extraordinary spirituality that makes one refuse to do ordinary work, but a wish to prove that one is not ordinary - which is a dead giveaway of spiritual conceit. I want to respond in unhesitating obedience as she did: Anything you say, Lord."

Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they shall see God.

- Except from Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliott
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What this is.

A few weeks ago, I was having a conversation with a friend, and we were talking about the women of God who have this captivating quality about them. Women like Elisabeth Elliott, Amy Carmichael, Ruth Bell Graham, our own mothers. These are strong women - not a strength of the physical kind, but a strength and a confidence that comes from years of putting their hope in the Lord. They are purely feminine with a beauty we all desire, that unassuming beauty of the soul - the kind that reflects our maker. My friend and I are both in our early 20s, and we want to be women of that substance. Women of unshakable faith, gentle strength, and a beautiful heart. We want to know Christ, and for his glory to be revealed in us.

Have you ever noticed the incredible combination of delicious food and great friends around a dinner table? It doesn't even have to be a dinner table! It can be a few chairs or a porch swing, but it's that conversation - the laughing, talking, sharing of life - that creates truly great moments. The kind of moments that add so much richness to your life. I live for moments like these.

So, in light of everything mentioned above, my friends and I have decided to meet once a week. There will be food, of course, and learning how to be women of God. I made this blog so that material is easily accessible for those girls, but also for anyone else who might be interested. It will contain passages from the Bible, books, articles, sermons, songs - words that might serve as an encouragement. God's word is our ultimate authority, but it's sometimes nice to have the perspective and wisdom of those who are far wiser than us.

 My prayer for these girls is the same prayer that I have for myself, that God would enable us to be women like that.