The Concidence "Game" (also known in normal computer land as The Confidence Game:)

Hello, dear friends...from South Dakota!!!

This should be interesting since I am writing from my iPhone. I am used to typing the old fashioned way with ALL ten fingers and not just with thumbs, but right now I am thrilled I have this technology to stay in touch with you...even if it is through "thumbing it out" rather than typing:). So all that to say, this is going to be short!

This week we are going to be discussing "confidence." What did you girls discover taking the "Confidence Robbers Checklist"? Did God show you any areas where Satan was "playing games" with your self-esteem? Did any verse on page 73 particularly impact you?

Well, girls, the thumbs are beginning to cramp:). I can't wait to hear from you!

Sending love from South Dakota!!!!

Cherri

Aunt Janice and Her Designer Clothes:)

Good morning, Girls!

 I hope you are all having as "lovely" a time as I am having in this "light" study as Diane so dryly put it on Facebook:)  This first week has me reeling.  As I have lived out the hours in my days, there have been many times I have caught myself in an attitude of pride I had no idea was there.

While doing this study, I was reminded of a journal entry of my husband's Aunt Janice.  Aunt Janice died some years back and her journal was found on her computer.  Her husband read her entries and had them printed up for the family, and I am so glad he did.  Let me introduce you to Aunt Janice...Janice was a brilliant lawyer hired by the Los Angeles City Council back in the 90s.  She was a beautiful woman...inside and out.  Because of her high profile job, she had an incredible wardrobe filled with designer clothing.  However, the most important thing you need to know about Aunt Janice is that she LOVED Jesus and tried to follow Him in all ways.  Janice loyally attended a church in Los Angeles where she taught Sunday School and was extremely active wherever and whenever there was a need.  In her journal she tells of time when a woman in her church lost her job and was virtually penniless.  Janice found out that this woman was in need of professional clothing for job interviews.  She was pretty sure they were the same size, so with great excitement, she went through her closet choosing some beautiful outfits.  On Sunday, Janice had a large box of designer clothes to give to this woman and she could hardly wait.  She KNEW it would bless her...she just knew it!!  Janice found the gal after church and presented her with the clothes..then, she watched in disbelief as the woman, not only went through the box piece by piece, criticizing each article, but handed back the box to Janice with the statement:  "These just aren't my style" and then proceeded to turn and walk away!

In her journal, Janice explains the humiliation she felt because she had already told others in the church that she would be bringing some clothes for this woman, so" they would know this need was taken care of." Eventually, Janice had to face the truth...She had been filled with pride giving her clothes to this "needy" person.  She goes on to write that had she been giving the clothes with the right attitude..."as unto the Lord" she wouldn't have been offended...surprised, maybe, but not humiliated.  She realized during this experience that she gave those clothes for selfish reasons.  She like to be thought of as:  "Janice is always there when there is a need"...."We can always count on her"...and..."Look how generous she is!!!"  In the end, Janice was more humbled by the exposure of her own selfish heart before God, then the public rejection of her gift of designer clothes.  That truth changed her and in her journal you hear her confession and her declaration to change now that she saw "the real me." 

From that point on, Janice gave anonymously because she knew her heart's propensity toward self- promotion.  Janice died young...in her fifties of pneumonia, but her legacy of honesty, humility and love for the Lord lives on in her journal.  I wanted to share her story with you. 


I hope everyone has received their books by now.  We will spend another week on "Humility" and then move on next Monday to "Confidence." 

Love to you....

Cherri

Sharing Pictures

Hey Ladies!

I'm back with a new feature for you guys! Cherri wanted to know if it was possible to post pictures on the blog. Unfortunately, only the blog owner can post pictures directly onto the blog. There is no way to post pictures in your comments.

BUT, that doesn't mean you can't share your photos this summer on this blog!

Over here on the right hand column ------>
I have added a new widget entitled "Flickr Photostream". You will see a picture of my handsome, four-year old son as a sample (shameless, I know). Flickr is a photo-sharing website, and I have created a group just for y'all to share your pictures with each other. That widget will update with the newest photos as they are uploaded - so you can see new pictures when you come to the blog, but then you can click on them and see them larger, and even make comments on them.

There is one catch.

You have to join flickr to participate, and you have to upload photos there if you want to share them. Flickr is free, and you can create your own account based on the same account you use to make comments on this blog. So it's not too hard.

But just to make it easier, I am including an invite at the end of this post - it will have a link. Click on that link and it will lead you through signing up, and then it will automatically add you to the One Wise Woman photo group.

I also have an account on Flickr, so if you have any questions about how to use it, let me know. I know this can seem a little intimidating, but if you stick with it, you will be able to share with everyone any photos you want and it's always fun to get a glimpse into each other's lives. So give it a try!

Here is the invite:


Hi!
I wanted to invite you to join a cool group on Flickr! It's called One Wise Woman, and it's a big bunch of fun! If you would like to join this group, click on the following link (or copy and paste it into your web browser). Then you can see what this group is all about!
http://www.flickr.com/welcome/45390058/f5ac4dc6bd/

See you there!
OneWiseWoman


Post any questions you have about this here, and I'll do my best to answer them. Thanks!
-Jen

Humility--I have a thought...What do you girls think?

As I am reading through this chapter on humility and doing the daily devotions this week...the more I get into it, the more I find myself thinking I need another week to really let this lesson sink in. What about you girls?  Should we take another week on this chapter?  We have more than enough time to get through the book by the end of summer if we take an extra week.  We will just have to retitle our particular journey to: Character Makeover-47 Days with a Life Coach to Create the Best You.:)  I also know that some of you have yet to receive your books in the mail.  An extra week here might help some not to have to rush through a really throught provoking chapter.  Let me know what you think....

For those of you who have been working this week on the chapter on humility...what are your thoughts so far? 

I pray you are all having a lovely week!

Love from Genoa, Nevada....

Cherri

Introduce Yourself!!! And Miscellaneous...

Hello Girls!

My dear friend, Robin, who will be joining us on the blog this summer, had a great idea!  She asked if she could invite her friends from out of the area to be a part of our blog through the summer.  That sounds like a wonderful idea, so if you have friends you might like to join us...please don't hesitate to let them know they are more than welcome to share the Character Makeover summer journey with us.  

Because we might not all know each other, I thought it a good idea to introduce ourselves to the group as we join.  All you need to do is give your name, where you are from and a couple of sentences describing yourself to the group. Write it as a comment to this post.  We will be getting to know each other very well over the next month or so:).  This was very obvious to me as I began to read the first chapter of this book!  

While we are on the topic of good ideas...some others of you had great ones as well.  (That's why "together we are one wise woman"!:)  One of the ladies asked if we could upload pictures during the summer...What a wonderful thought!!!  Jen says that we can, so I will ask her to write a separate tutorial on how to upload pictures to the site.  (By the way, thank you, Jen, for explaining the blogging process so well to us!  We truly appreciate your help.) I know that some of you are excellent photographers, so it will be fun for us all to share in each others' summer adventures!  

Another idea mentioned was sharing summer recipes.  I love this idea, too!  Really, the options for using this blog are as limitless as the ideas that come to your minds!! I look forward to it all!

Well, I pray that your summer is already a blessing!


Talk to you tomorrow...let the blogging begin:)


Love to you....

Cherri

How to use (and enjoy) this blog

Hello all! Cherri asked me to write a quick tutorial on how to use this blog. So here it goes!

• There are two columns on this blog. The one on the left will always have posts and comments in it, and the right column is fixed information that doesn't change very often.

• If you want to have an e-mail sent to you each time a new post is published on this blog, then enter your e-mail address into the box on the top of the right column, under the title "Keep up by E-mail!".

• If you want to follow the blog through a feed reader, like Google Reader, then you can subscribe on the right-hand column under the title "Subscribe to Together We Are One Wise Woman". If you don't know what this is, then don't worry about it :)

• If you want to comment on a specific post, you'll find a link at the end of the post - click on it, type your comment, and then it will have a drop-down menu of different accounts to use in order to leave your comment. The two most common choices in that drop-down menu would be Google account or OpenID. They are both free accounts to have, and very simple to set up - if you don't already have one! Here are links on how to sign up for each one (but you only need to choose one - no need to sign up for both):
• Google
• OpenID

• Once you have one of these accounts, select it from the drop-down menu, and it will ask you to login. Once you've successfully logged-in, it will show you a preview of your comment, and it will display a word verification that you have to copy (this helps protect against spam), then you submit your comment. Depending on the security settings of the blog, your comment will either be visible right away, or it will be visible only after being moderated and approved by Cherri. 

• If you post your comment, and then panic because you accidentally included your shopping list - you can delete your comment. There will be a little trashcan icon after the date/time stamp on your comment - hit that, and it will allow you to remove your comment completely. 

I hope that helps clarify some of the features and pitfalls of the blog world! If you have any questions, please feel free to comment on this post, or, if that still isn't working for you, e-mail me. A blog is most useful and most enjoyable when everyone participates - if everyone just reads the post but doesn't leave any comments, then it's not really a conversation. So the more you participate, the more everyone will get out of this. Enjoy!

-Jen