It’s March y’all! Can you hear it? It’s the sound of the NCAA March Madness theme song playing on your TV in the family room. It’s also the sound of the hamster wheel cranking up its velocity for spring?

It’s playoff and tournament time for winter sports while conditioning for spring sports has already begun. The tracks, tennis courts, and softball fields are buzzing again. School deadlines are looming before spring break. End of the year recital preparations are in full swing. And any white spaces on the family calendar are going quicker than a plate of homemade chocolate chip cookies in a house full of teenagers.

To make March even crazier, here in Kentucky, it snowed on Saturday. Two days later it’s now 70 degrees and sunny! Yes. March can bring lots of madness all around us! But what about INSIDE us? Inside our homes and hearts? Are you filled with MADNESS or GLADNESS this March?

As the weather’s changing (hour by hour:) it’s important to regularly check the heating and air conditioning for our houses. A few weeks ago one of our adult daughters was having issues with her heating system. The issue? Low batteries in her thermostat. That small adjustment made a BIG difference in controlling the temperature of her home. The same can be true for us as women— as mommas. My mentor used to ask me, “Kim, are you a thermometer or a thermostat?” (Translation: do you simply reflect the temperature of what/who is around you OR do you regulate it?) As godly women, we have Holy Spirit power to be a thermostat in our spheres of influence.

As God’s thermostats, we need to keep our batteries fully charged. 

Just like we keep our cell phones charged, let’s keep our spirits from running low by making time in God’s presence a daily priority. Psalm 16:11 says,

“You (God) show me the path of life. In Your presence there is FULLNESS of JOY. At Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore!”

Did you catch that? As we bask daily in His presence—-God will fill us to fullness with JOY! That’s why we created the Heart of Womanhood Bible Studies so moms and daughters can draw closer to Jesus and each other every day by studying His Word together. The results? —Homes filled with contagious Jesus JOY as the next generation becomes lovers and do-ers of God’s Word!

One of the most JOY-FULL friends I’ve ever known had a life riddled with hard. I’ll never forget a call I received from Jackie one morning. She was bubbling over with JOY as she had new creative ideas for the Heart of Womanhood Bible Studies. (Jackie led many groups of moms and daughters through HOW studies and all the photos throughout our resources were taken in her lovely home:) As I was taking notes on all her thoughts, Jackie said, “Can you hold on just one minute? The doctors are here to take my blood work.” I quickly asked, “Jackie! Where. Are. You?” “She giggled and remarked, “Oh, I’m back in Mayo Clinic for several weeks. But I’m so excited about what God’s doing!”

Yep. Jackie was a beautiful wife and mom of three who for many seasons of her life stayed in the hospital more often than at home. But as a thermostat, even her hospital rooms became hubs of hope. She brought in blankets, chairs, baskets of snacks and drinks so that all those who visited her room (family, friends, and hospital staff) left full of JOY!

It will not surprise you that in Jackie’s house she posted a big sign that simply (but powerfully) declared— Choose JOY! She believed that living joyfully is a choice. Jesus made this choice too! Hebrews 12:2 reminds us that

“…for the JOY set before Him, Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus endured this world’s greatest madness by fixing His eyes on God’s JOY and gladness!

Jesus was a thermostat.

So was Jackie. Now it’s our turn to be Jesus JOY bringers too!

Mommas need to keep our batteries charged but…

As His thermostats we also need to keep our hearts and minds set on “HIGH!”

How can we set our hearts and minds on HIGH?

  • Choose PRAISE. Joyce Meyer once stated, “Complaining is praise to the devil! So if we choose to complain, we’ll remain. But if we choose to PRAISE (Jesus) we will be RAISED! It’s our choice. Complain and remain OR praise and be raised!” Ouch! Remembering this will help us when we’re tempted to complain this month! Instead, let’s try playing praise music in your home (office, classroom, car, etc.) 24/7 even if its barely audible. Praise fills our homes with gladness so madness has to leave. This may sound silly, but in recent weeks, I’ve started having a “praise party” first thing each morning. Now, when I turn up a praise song and begin to sing it out loud and dance around, even our golden doodle joins in!!! Praise turns our hearts and homes to gladness!

 

  • Choose THANKS. Another friend of mine (a “gal of gladness”) taught me years ago how to put 1 Thessalonians 5:16 into practice. “Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus!” Do you ever wonder “What’s God’s will for me today? This season?” Well my friend, Missy, would say—“I may not know every detail but I know He wants me to give thanks IN ALL circumstances!” So Missy would do just that! When the car needed repair or she had to referee a scuffle between her kiddos, she would say out loud, “Thank you, God! Thank you that You are greater than all this. Thank You for providing all we need. Thank you for being our peacemaker.” Although the car still needed repair and the kids still had conflict to resolve, the tone in their home turned from madness to gladness. That’s sounds like God’s will to me, doesn’t it to you? Gladness is a beautiful sound.

Both of these mommas faced life’s madness and turned it to gladness. Whether facing irritations or devastations, they are proof that we too can find Jesus joy in the most unexpected places. Like a flower that you see blooming from a crack in a concrete sidewalk, we can be God’s joy bringers no matter how hard the world is around us.

So, as the hardwood basketball courts (and all our “places”) fill with March madness this month, let’s rise up as women who fill …HIS COURTS with GLADNESS! Our fight song? Psalm 100…

“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his COURTS with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever. His faithfulness continues through all generations.”

When we storm the courts with Jesus JOY and gladness, God can fill our days with “One Shining Moment” after another!

God’s GLAD Girls,

Kim Wigginton and the Heart of Womanhood Ministry Team

If you need a winning game plan for building Jesus joy and gladness for your “home team,” check out our Portraits of Womanhood Bible Study Series, ,  @ http://heartofwomanhood.org . Moms and daughters studying God’s Word together will turn our hearts and homes from madness to gladness!