Keepsakes: The Heart Series: For Broken Women in a Broken World

By Donna Stutts-Piras

Keepsakes: The Heart Series is a journey from fear into freedom, written for women everywhere who struggle with never being good enough to be loved. It is my story, but it is also the story of so many like me, searching for confidence and peace.

I remember thinking, Lord, it is so unfair if you return when I am having a bad day or I'm not being as good as I should be or if I didn't score enough points that day to get into heaven. Like so many, I lived in subtle fear that my life was judged on an invisible scale, with each deed being measured against perfection.

Once I understood, when I accepted Christ, God's son, into my heart, I was saved; I was going to heaven! I could never be good enough--on my bad days or my good days--to get into heaven, but Christ inside me could. That's when I stopped focusing on myself and my performance, and I started understanding who God was.

And I now get to lean on, depend on, talk to, and cry with my King every day on my special journey of life. He knows my every thought, my every motivation, my every deed; he knows my ugly, and he still loves me. Not like the love from childhood, where I had to be perfect to be accepted, but an unconditional, never-ending love. He walks hand in hand with me through every season--no scales, just a hand holding mine.

My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God's Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he is listening. And if we are confident that he is listening, we know that what we have asked for is as good as ours. (1 John 5:13-15)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 22, 2024
• ISBN: 9798891305267

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Keepsakes

The Heart Series: For Broken Women in a Broken World

Donna Stutts-Piras

ISBN 979-8-89130-525-0 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89130-526-7 (digital)

Copyright © 2024 by Donna Stutts-Piras

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

So Why Make Woman?

How Good Do I Have to Be, Lord?

Why Did It Take So Long for Me to Understand?

Why the War Zone and the Quiet?

Why Does Oatmeal and Cinnamon Toast Mean So Much?

Rules and Traditions or Heart Transformation?

What Old Records?

Why Did I Wait So Long to Touch Spookie?

TWIG or COBE?

How Do I Talk to God?

Supplication: How Does Asking God Change Your Life?

How Long Does It Take to Answer My Prayer?

Where Would I Be without Family?

Why Can't You Be My Cosmic Santa Claus?

Was Mamaw Really Mean?

How Can God Want to Give Us the Desire of Our Hearts?

How Does My Answered Prayer List Strengthen Me

Why Doesn't It Have to Be Big to Be Right?

Why Do I Have to Be S-I-C-K?

How Different Would My Life Be without God's Spirit?

How Can I Get into Alignment?

To Trust or Not to Trust?

Why Did He Say Yes to the Second Nail?

Why Didn't I Say No?

Why Did I Waste So Much Time Trying to Fill?

Where's Waldo?

Is It Me or We?

Who Is Your George?

Why Are Things So Clear When I See My Life in Reverse?

Why Can't You Follow My Plan?

Why Do I Allow Everyone to Be Looking for Me?

Why Does It Hurt When My Heart Sobs?

Why Did I Forget About Today?

Why Me, Lord?

How Can I Be Grateful for a Brain Tumor?

Why Does He Make It So Easy to Realign Myself to Him?

Why Is Life Easier When I Feel Loved?

Why Eyes Above the Waves?

Why Does 20 Minutes Mean So Much?

Why Do You Always Love Me?

Why Am I So Vain?

Is Your Tide in or Is Your Tide Out?

Need More Time?

Why Do I Ever Doubt God Walks with Me Each Day?

Why Does God Weep?

How Much Love Does It Take?

From Sweat to Joy?

Did 1, 2, 3 Quickie Really Work?

Why Can't More People See Your Miracles?

Who Is Working Your Jigsaw Puzzle of Life?

Why Do I Need God to Take Away My Sludge?

Why Do I Forget You Are Always There?

Why Did God Give Us Tears That Cleanse?

How Does He Find the Beauty Within the Ice?

Are You Martha or Mary?

Am I Really Torn?

What Did I Learn from My Christmas Tree?

Why Do I Miss the Inside So Often?

Love's First Flame or Dirty Sock Complaints?

Why Are Intimate Words from the Heart Enough?

About the Author

So Why Make Woman?

I am an adult, thinking about the beginning.

God said, let us make mankind in our image, after our likeness. (Genesis 1:26)

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1:31)

God had it all. He had created in his own image. He created a world and man exactly the way he planned to. Complete and perfect. Perfect for God. But if it was already perfect, why did God say: It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him (Genesis 2:18)?

What was in it for God?

Why did God cause the man to fall into a deep sleep and take one of his ribs?

Why did God make woman from the rib he had taken out of the man and then bring her to him?

And it hits me, tears flowing down my cheeks. I am God's love creation.

He had everything already perfect for him, but he made woman (you and me) out of his selfless love for man. Man could have spent every minute worshipping him—total focus, no distraction, but God put man's needs first: God made woman. The first example of true love from our King. The first of many in my life.

The man said,

This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man.

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. (Genesis 2:23–24)

The real love story began in the garden as woman was created.

Keepsake: For those of us who live with the constant mental struggle of never being good enough to be loved, we are. The first step is believing.

How Good Do I Have to Be, Lord?

Until several years ago, I lived my life in fear because I remembered Solomon, the wisest man in the Bible. Solomon, a man after God's own heart, fell away at the end of his life. I thought that meant Solomon was no longer going to heaven.

When Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away to follow other gods; his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord, as the heart of his father David had been. Now the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away. He appeared to him twice and commanded that he was not to follow other gods; but Solomon did not comply with what the Lord had commanded. (1 Kings 11:4–10)

If Solomon could not make it to heaven, how can I?

Lord, it is so unfair if you return when I am having a bad day or when I am not being as good as I should or if you return when I didn't score enough points that day to get into heaven. Like so many, I thought of my life as judged on a scale with each deed being measured against perfection.

Once I understood I can never be good enough—on my bad days or my good days—to get me into heaven, my life changed.

Once I understood when I accepted Christ into my heart, I was saved. Yes! I am going to heaven! And I get to lean on, depend on, talk to, and cry with my King every day on my journey of life. He walks hand in hand with me through every season. No scales—just a hand holding mine.

If you openly say, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from death, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God's Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he is listening. And if we are confident that he is listening, we know that what we've asked for is as good as ours. (1 John 5:13–15)

Once I understood that God loves me, my life changed even more.

He knows my every thought, my every motivation, my every deed, and he still loves me. Not like the love from childhood where I had to be perfect to be accepted;