Women's Stories
Excerpted from The Intentional Woman, copyright 2002 by Carol Travilla and Joan C. Webb. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. For copies of the book, visit www.navpress.com.
Choosing to Change
Newly married and employed in full-time ministry with my husband, I felt happy and excited that I was using my gifts. I loved the opportunities I had to speak, counsel, plan events and nurture young Christians. My husband and I shared the household chores and I was content with my daily life.
Then after our first child arrived, things changed. As delighted as I was to have a darling baby girl, I was less than thrilled to suddenly be stuck home all day with no adult companionship and now in charge of all the routine housework. As a creative extrovert, I hated the loneliness and monotony.
Since getting household help was not an option, I felt trapped. Consequently, I spent some time complaining to the Lord about my predicament. Then I had an aha. Maybe I could try looking at domesticity as a spiritual discipline. I determined to do the mundane things as a sacrifice of praise and let God transform my attitude.
Soon I recognized that God was developing a new sense of patience and self-discipline in me. I had made a conscious choice to change the way I faced my circumstances and no longer felt so frustrated and unhappy. Little did I know thirty years ago that I would exercise this same discipline repeatedly throughout my life as a young widow supporting myself and two children, as the CEO of the company my husband left behind, and most recently in my new marriage with the challenge of a blended family.
I've gone through The Intentional Woman process several times and each time I better understand the power of my story and how God has used my past experiences to help me live for Him today.
-Helen Sims Steinkamp, Director of Marketplace Women, CA
Then after our first child arrived, things changed. As delighted as I was to have a darling baby girl, I was less than thrilled to suddenly be stuck home all day with no adult companionship and now in charge of all the routine housework. As a creative extrovert, I hated the loneliness and monotony.
Since getting household help was not an option, I felt trapped. Consequently, I spent some time complaining to the Lord about my predicament. Then I had an aha. Maybe I could try looking at domesticity as a spiritual discipline. I determined to do the mundane things as a sacrifice of praise and let God transform my attitude.
Soon I recognized that God was developing a new sense of patience and self-discipline in me. I had made a conscious choice to change the way I faced my circumstances and no longer felt so frustrated and unhappy. Little did I know thirty years ago that I would exercise this same discipline repeatedly throughout my life as a young widow supporting myself and two children, as the CEO of the company my husband left behind, and most recently in my new marriage with the challenge of a blended family.
I've gone through The Intentional Woman process several times and each time I better understand the power of my story and how God has used my past experiences to help me live for Him today.
-Helen Sims Steinkamp, Director of Marketplace Women, CA
Who Did God Design Me to Be?
Because I am a reasonably responsible person with a variety of interests, I often found myself in leadership positionsorganizing and directing activities at work, home and church. I did everything from planning taco dinners for 200 youth to directing the children’s musical. Since I had the necessary skills, I felt it would be selfish to say no.
As the years passed, I burned out. Serving was no longer a joy. I begin a project thinking, I can't wait until this is over! I was frustrated and exhausted. The bright spots during that time were teaching a junior high girls Sunday School class and the times when youth or women came to me with a problem. I loved helping them find answers and encouraging them with God's Word.
Then I took the DISC personality assessment tool and my scores registered in the box indicating that I am fast-paced and motivated by influencing others. Details can be especially annoying to someone with this personality. No wonder I was exhausted. I began to understand why it was so rewarding to see those I taught and counseled take steps toward personal growth.
I started saying no to those tasks that clearly fell out of my natural behavior tendencies. Not only were they contributing to my burn out, they were tying up my time and preventing me from doing the things God had equipped me to do. More importantly, I learned that when I took on tasks outside my giftedness, I was denying someone else the opportunity to use their gifts for the glory of God. As I surrendered my life, personality and gifts to God, it drew me into a closer walk with Him a walk of dependence and joy.
I've personally gone through The Intentional Woman process several times and led many other women through the process, as well. Each time I complete the exercises myself and watch others experience it, I am amazed and grateful that we better understand ourselves as the women God designed us to be and that this knowledge leads us to know and love God more.
-Cathy Roberts, Professional Educator, wife and mother
As the years passed, I burned out. Serving was no longer a joy. I begin a project thinking, I can't wait until this is over! I was frustrated and exhausted. The bright spots during that time were teaching a junior high girls Sunday School class and the times when youth or women came to me with a problem. I loved helping them find answers and encouraging them with God's Word.
Then I took the DISC personality assessment tool and my scores registered in the box indicating that I am fast-paced and motivated by influencing others. Details can be especially annoying to someone with this personality. No wonder I was exhausted. I began to understand why it was so rewarding to see those I taught and counseled take steps toward personal growth.
I started saying no to those tasks that clearly fell out of my natural behavior tendencies. Not only were they contributing to my burn out, they were tying up my time and preventing me from doing the things God had equipped me to do. More importantly, I learned that when I took on tasks outside my giftedness, I was denying someone else the opportunity to use their gifts for the glory of God. As I surrendered my life, personality and gifts to God, it drew me into a closer walk with Him a walk of dependence and joy.
I've personally gone through The Intentional Woman process several times and led many other women through the process, as well. Each time I complete the exercises myself and watch others experience it, I am amazed and grateful that we better understand ourselves as the women God designed us to be and that this knowledge leads us to know and love God more.
-Cathy Roberts, Professional Educator, wife and mother