Overall, I appreciated the thoughtful way that Noel laid out this biography of Sarah's life. First, she set the story well by explaining many of the hardships that living in colonial America in the early 1700s brought to Sarah's everyday life. Noel also seemed to dig deep into many different resources to find gems of information about Sarah and her family that gave a fuller picture of their lives, which was necessary since Sarah herself didn't keep a journal. In addition, I loved the way Noel drew some of her own take-aways at the end of the chapter, noting how she had related to Sarah and how the story of Sarah's life had touched her.
After having read through this chapter a few different times now, I have tried to narrow the number of things that I specifically gleaned from Sarah's life. For me, personally, Sarah's life encouraged me to continue seeking to be faithful in the mundane parts of my life {Noel's subtitle for this chapter was "Faithful in the Mundane"}. Specifically, there were a three areas of Sarah's life that she excelled at that were encouraging to me: faithful wife, faithful mother, faithful hostess.
These three areas are ones that I am currently in the midst of and usually slightly overwhelmed by, and I don't even live with the hardships of that era! I was so encouraged by the way that Sarah shaped her daily life around her husband's calling. Such a humble attitude clearly placed him and his needs above her own, which is clearly the attitude that we are called to in Philippians 2. This has made me stop and think about ways that I can do this as well with Hugh.
I was also encouraged by Sarah's commitment as a mother to raising her children to know and fear the Lord. It seemed that she was continually in prayer for her children and that her means of discipline allowed her children to mature in obedience and personality. The list of contributions that the Edwards' family had made to society (such as 80 holders of public office, 66 physicians, 100 lawyers, etc.) astounded me and only reinforced how the faithfulness of one family in raising their children well can reach far into the future (p. 22).
Additionally, Sarah's role as a hostess gave me a good perspective on a few important characteristics I'd like to mimic. First, she was caring and noted well the personalities of those who stayed with her. She also seemed to be quite welcoming and hospitable, as her home was "well known, busy, and praised" (p. 25). And it seems that this hospitality only highlighted (rather than detracted from) her love for her husband and children. Although hospitality is not my strongest gifting, I do desire to become better at it because we aspire to have a very open and welcoming home. Hugh and I have experienced the blessing of such families/homes personally, and we feel that it is one of the best ways of living out our faith in Christ within the context of community. This was impressed upon me even more by some of the testimonies of how the Edwards family had loved those staying with them and how even the smallest of conversations had impacted those visitors' lives in great ways.
Well, that's all of my thoughts. For those of you who read along with me, how were you encouraged by Sarah Edwards' life? Do you find yourself struggling to be faithful with specific "mundane" things in your life? Post a comment below and share your thoughts!
2 comments:
I really loved the chapter. I knew nothing much of Sarah Edwards, so this was very interesting. First, I loved learning about life in the colonial days. It really helped me put my daily struggles in perspective. Second, I also loved that she supported her husband and how she kept the family going in his absence. That's a lot of responsibility!! With Josh travelling so much, I can definitely identify - sometimes it feels overwhelming! But Sarah was so faithful with all of her tasks and it truly reached to eternity. Third, I loved the stories about her intimacy with God. She was so content with him, at such a young age. What a great goal for all of us women! How wonderful to live a life so close with the Lord. Finally, I loved that Noel shared Sarah's struggles. I was reminded that in my imperfections, the Lord can do great things. Even in darkness, He is there. Life is full of seasons, and I pray I can be faithful like Sarah. I also loved her life verse and have been encouraged to seek one myself.
Thanks for sharing, Ashley!! I hadn't considered how your husband and Sarah's were similar in that way. And I agree that her intimacy with the Lord was so encouraging. What a high goal for our lives. :)
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