Women's Ministry

The enemy likes to flaunt our past mistakes often in an effort to make us feel unworthy of God’s love. It used to be an effective method to grip my soul in fear of God’s wrath and judgement, knowing I could never measure up. But God.

One of the first times I felt the Lord wooing my spirit was in the early days of high school. I believed in him, but mostly I believed the lies that he was a vengeful and scary God that I had to walk on pins and needles to obey. I never could. As I pleaded with this far-off being out of fear, he distinctly told me to read Joshua 1:9. “Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” That was confusing, but I clung to that scripture through college, hoping that it was true, that I could trust him just as he asked the Israelites to trust him. But no matter how many steps forward in trying to obey I would take, I would fall again in my efforts to people please and maintain a state of perfectionism. I believed the lie that I wasn’t, and would never, be good enough for God’s best so I needed to take matters into my own hands since my life was going to remain in this perpetual cycle of bondage. But God.

In his wonderful patience, God placed Spirit filled women along my course that waited in obedience until I was at my lowest and finally would allow him to come near. They led me to the feet of Jesus, and He healed all my broken pieces and showed me the many lies I had believed about myself and him. All the chains the enemy had been so faithfully piling on my limbs, the Lord stripped away. As I sat writing out my testimony one day, I looked back and saw all the ways he had drastically changed my life. I was amazed and realized I am no longer a slave to fear!

You, daughter of the King, were created to live in His freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” When you allow Holy Spirit to move in your spirit, you find freedom. You have freedom to celebrate. You have freedom to grieve. You have freedom to dance. You have freedom to rest. You have freedom to do whatever he is calling you to do. Sometimes that is uncomfortable, but it is always worth the step of faith. When he whispers to you, “Trust me, daughter,” you can look back at your testimony and see his faithfulness. When the enemy circles back around in difficult seasons, you can declare the Lord’s faithfulness.“For you, Lord, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living.”

Psalms 116:8-9. 

The Lord is with you, he is for you, and you are no longer a slave to fear.

We want to thank Christian Greer for sharing this post.

I had a crazy childhood. Not in the way most would think, but even so, it felt crazy.  My sister and I were conjoined twins. Crazy right?! We were born connected. We were separated when we were 1 and had surgeries throughout our early childhood as a result. 

Looking back, I learned to see where the enemy took things that God meant for blessings in our situation and fed me lies. God gave me a sister to walk through those crazy unrelatable circumstances. He BLESSED me with a friend and sibling to walk through those times with; to have someone to relate and talk with.  However, the enemy snuck in and fed lies to make us feel uniquely alone in those moments.

I remember a situation in school when I was in track. I was not good at all at running (because of, you know, the conjoined twin thing), like not even clearing the second curve of the track while everyone else was finished, getting the pitiful “you’ve got this” clap! As I was sucking air back in my lungs, my coach so graciously offered me the manager position because I would be “good at it”. (FYI this coach was amazing and had a lot of compassion).  That story makes me laugh but it is such a kind, merciful story. God placed a community around my sister and I to be a blessing, a cushion, to have understanding and grace for us. 

BUT. The enemy took those stories and fed lies. People would tell us things like: “You are a miracle.” The enemy’s lie: “Wow, you shouldn’t even be here.” People would say: “Oh my, your poor parents.”  The enemy’s lie: “Wow, what a burden you must be.” 

Fast forward to growing up, I struggled with doubt and unbelief. Of course, I did. I was living off lies about who God was and what He said about me. The truth was that God was a merciful God who wanted to be glorified in our crazy situation, to provide us blessings for His glory, but I was seeing God through the lens of what the enemy was saying about God, and Me!  This made life feel heavy, like a burden, like I was walking through mud. It affected relationships, my desire to overachieve to prove myself, my worth. Walking through life through the lens of the enemy was heavy. 

God slowly began to work on me, helping me through His word, friends, through my husband. Constant reminders of truth, of who GOD is and who HE says I am. I got to a point where I laid it all out to God, praying, “Show me who YOU are. Heal my unbelief. Heal my critical heart, my performance heart.”  I laid all false beliefs, all beliefs from what man had taught me, and went to the Source. I began reading Gods word (the Bible) diligently. God so faithfully showed me exactly who He is, who HIS character is. And what He says about ME. The Freedom that has come through understanding God through HIS word has been undeniable. 

I get this picture of walking through mud, but with rose colored glasses, not knowing why things feel heavy, not knowing you’re in the mud. And when we take the glasses off, we can realize the mud, the lies we are viewing life through, and start walking on the road with God, in the truth of what God says, through His Word. 

We must KNOW God to walk with God. We need to understand HIS truth to hold it up to the enemy’s schemes, to the lies we are believing. 

James 1:25 says, “But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.”

Galatians 5:1 says: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

If you are feeling the heaviness or burden of life, look to the truth. God has given us his Word through the Bible. It is alive and living. When I began studying God’s word diligently, my understanding of who God is and who He says I am changed. It has allowed me to walk in the freedom of Christ. I encourage you to use the community God has surrounded you with but ultimately, we must know the truth of what God says as our standard to walk in freedom.

We want to thank Lori Johnson for sharing this post.

James 1:2-3 TPT “My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties, see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can! For you know that when your faith is tested it stirs up power within you to endure all things.”

The Joy of the Lord – what an amazing gift! And that’s just what it is: a gift. In January of this year I had my daughter, Stevie Joy. We gave her the middle name Joy because we felt like joy would completely describe her personality and her life. Stevie means “crowned one” and we spoke over her that she would live a life crowned with joy! I have been on a rollercoaster ride with joy in my life, and I wanted to definitively proclaim that Stevie would not have to battle for joy like I did. She would live it! 

In April of 2016, my dad died suddenly. My whole family was shaken, as he was definitely the rock and spiritual leader of the family. He was a mighty man of God that lived a life proclaiming the gospel always. While others in my family dealt with their pain by going to the Lord, I struggled with this. I ran from the Lord for a while, because getting quiet with God was painful. It just brought up the hurt I was going through, and feelings of abandonment and anger. Even though I knew the truth of His word, and that only by drawing close to Him would I be able to heal from this experience, I pushed Him away for a while. I chose to cope by other means of distractions that would keep me from addressing my pain. I entered into some patterns of sin that were distracting from the real pain I was feeling. But these actions also caused me to feel shame because I knew a better way! Therefore, drawing close to God became even harder because I felt dirty and unworthy of His love, grace, and the healing that He was offering me. 

In 2018, my mom invited me to go on a Walk to Emmaus with her. I agreed, but hesitantly. I knew this would be a weekend where I would encounter God in the way I needed but wasn’t quite ready for. That weekend, there was a man on the leadership team that allowed me to talk with him as if I was talking with my dad. I was able to share with him some of the painful parts of everything I had been feeling and thinking since my dad had passed. I spent time weeping, and pouring out my emotions of anger, abandonment, hurt, and pain. Being able to verbalize those feelings allowed me to hand them over to God and begin to receive healing for them. I received love, grace, forgiveness, and healing that weekend from the Lord. God was and always is tender-hearted towards us, and I felt that that weekend. After recognizing my feelings, and repenting for my sin, I could receive healing. The Lord also spoke to me that weekend that it was time for Him to restore my joy. The day my dad died I remember saying the words “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to feel happy again.” But God reminded me that joy is a gift, and one that we can choose to receive and walk in, even if our circumstances are not joyful. So that weekend I chose to let God restore my joy that the enemy had stolen. 

Now of course I still had hard days even after that weekend. But God was and is faithful to continue to restore my joy! Joy is a gift! And it’s a gift that we can choose to live in, even when going through something that is not joyful. Choosing joy is possible through the power of the Holy Spirit, and us allowing Him to have free reign in every aspect of our lives. When we have His eyes, ears, and heart, then we can view every circumstance through the lens of supernatural joy. My prayer for you would be that no matter what you’re going through, you could lean into the Lord and choose to partake in His gift of Joy! 

We want to thank Joanna Capps for sharing this post.

Galatians 5:22 (NLT) But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things.   

The fruits of the Spirit are a package deal – it is not like a beautifully displayed fruit tray where you pick your favorite and leave the rest. Can we express love without the rest of the fruits? Can we really be gentle if we don’t maintain self-control? Can we show kindness if we have no patience or peace? How can we live in the joy of the Lord if the other fruits are absent? If we find ourselves lacking in one of the fruits…chances are we are deficient in them all. For the sake of desiring our lives to flourish as a healthy orchard, let’s look at the fruits of the Spirit as a whole package. 

My mother-in-law loved fruit trees and had a yard filled with several kinds, but her favorite were her peach trees. She took great care to make sure they had all they needed to produce the best peaches. She watered, fertilized, pruned, and picked the ripe peaches at just the right time. It was a full-time job to keep the trees healthy and producing. At times the task was just too much for her alone and she had to ask for help. Her family and friends reaped the benefits every year as she shared the delicious fruit. Not only did she share her fresh peaches but she would make pies and cobblers to freeze, can the peaches, dehydrate the peaches, and store them with care to last her family until time for the next harvest.  

In contrast to the trees of my mother-in-law, let’s think of three other situations we have all seen with fruit trees….

• A fruit tree that fails to produce any fruit at all.
• A tree that produces fruit but it doesn’t make it to the ripened stage. 
• A tree that produces good fruit but it’s fruit rots on the branches.  

This is the truth with our spiritual fruit as well.  

• We can be Christians and not produce fruit.
• We may be producing some fruit but it isn’t making it to the ripened stage. 
• The fruit is there but we are not sharing it with others – therefore it rots and isn’t beneficial for the Kingdom.  

If we want our lives to produce healthy and beneficial fruit, we have to put in the work. We must be willing to tend to our hearts in order for the fruits of the Spirit to grow and ripen and be useful for the Kingdom. 

• Watering our hearts with prayer can strengthen the roots of our faith to get the nutrients we need to produce the fruits of the Spirit.  
• Applying God’s Word to our lives as fertilizer is the added boost of promises and assurances we can rely on when the storms of life come.  
• Allowing the Holy Spirit to prune away the things that can cause us to stumble will leave room for healthy fruit to flourish. 
• Asking for help! There will be times that this walk is too much for us to bear alone. Look for healthy Christians that are producing fruit like you would like to see in your own life and ask them for help.  
• Sharing our fruit with those around us is the key to building the Kingdom of God. IT IS FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE WE WERE CREATED!

We want to thank Jill Winders for sharing this post.

“The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.” Psalms 28:7

The source of joy is the Lord. The Bible tells us in Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice.” An important way to rejoice in the Lord and take delight in Him is to spend time with Him. When I spend time reading the Bible, praying and listening to God I am more focused on Him, and reminded of His love and faithfulness. Time in God’s presence allows Him to speak to us, encourage us, and pour His joy into us. I have learned this time with God is so important for me and sets the tone for my day. I notice my joy is affected when I have neglected to spend time with God. One of my favorite verses is Deuteronomy 31:6 that states “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” This verse brings me great joy and peace. How can we not have joy knowing that God is always with us and never leaves us? 

I know that I have more joy when I have a heart filled with gratitude. Being grateful makes you joyful. When I intentionally recognize and appreciate God and His blessings, I can’t help but be filled with joy. It’s important to notice and appreciate the small, simple, things that we might take for granted. It’s not the possessions or circumstances that bring joy but praising God that leads to joy. When we look for God and His blessings we will find him. Sometimes having gratitude is a struggle for me and I have to intentionally change my thoughts to focus on the positive instead of the negative. I am reminded of these verses in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 that state “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” I have learned that gratefulness changes my perspective and leads to joy.

When our focus is on God and his goodness we are bound to have joy.

We want to thank Bailey Adams for sharing this post.

You did it: you changed wild lament into whirling dance;

You ripped off my black mourning band and decked me with wildflowers.

I’m about to burst with song; I can’t keep quiet about you.

God, my God, I can’t thank you enough. 

Psalm 30:11-12

Life rarely turns out the way we dream it would, but that doesn’t mean it has to affect our joy. We may have been dealt, what we perceive, as an unfair hand. We may struggle in our marriage, maybe our relationship with our children isn’t what we dreamed it would be or we’re not satisfied in our work. Are there health issues that you struggle with? How can we have joy in the midst of life’s struggles and sufferings?

In 2005, after several  trips to the Emergency Room with debilitating headaches, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Going on 18 years, the headaches continue. I have headaches more days than not. I made a choice the day my doctor diagnosed me to remain joyful and even celebrate this path. I continue to remember that nothing takes God by surprise. I was and still am right in the center of His perfect will! So, is there a secret to having joy in the midst of our struggles?

Hebrews 12:2 starts out by saying, “We look away from the natural realm and we focus our attention and expectation onto Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection”.

We will never achieve joy or peace if we keep our eyes on the world, our situation, our suffering. We must focus our attention and expectation onto Jesus. We must let go of every wound that has pierced us and the sin we so easily fall into. (Hebrews 12:1) We can’t let unforgiveness, bitterness, or resentment keep us from being joyful.

Continuing on in Hebrews 12:2, “He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy He knew would be His afterwards.” We can be willing, as Jesus was, to have joy in our suffering.

“Everyone that rejoices in their suffering are doing it for the sake of the Gospel and are bringing their souls closer to Jesus.” 2 Timothy 2:10

If our identity is anchored in Christ then our suffering will drive us deeper into our source of joy.

        -unknown

In her book, Defiant Joy, Stasi Eldridge states, “Suffering is an essential part of all our lives. And it is when we are in the midst of it that God reminds us that the absence of suffering is not our good. And knowing His presence in the pain is the sweetest gift of all.”

Ladies, whatever you are going through today, make it a priority to keep your eyes on Jesus and not your situation. Forgive, let go, praise and dance like nobody is watching!

We want to thank Kerri Harper for sharing this post.

My name is Hope. Having a name like that creates a lot of variations.  Some of the nicknames I have had in my lifetime are: Hopie, Hope the Dope (you have to say it all together, really fast), Hoppy Toad, and Hopeful to name a few. But the name that seeped into me and became a lie I believed was Hopeless. Not only did it become a password I used from time to time for different sites, it became a definition for how I viewed my worth.  

I used to say that my mother named me Hope because she “hoped I would turn out better.” Saying that in jest doesn’t make it true or any less painful to speak over myself. But the truth is I am not hopeless, I am full of  hope. Hebrews 10:23 says, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” After confessing adultery to Don and my family I thought all hope was lost. Completely lost. I was ready to throw in the towel. Really throw in the towel. But God…He was faithful.  Through a loving God, respecting husband, a family that loves, prays for, and forgives, and a wonderful Christian counselor who has spent many hours helping me to see the light, I am no longer hopeless. Healing wasn’t easy by any means. But with healing came a newfound hope and that brought joy, real joy, into my life and my heart.  

I said earlier I have had many nicknames in my life. There is one more to add to that list. A precious friend and her husband sometimes call me Joy.  Now, that is a name I can live with. Joy is defined as a feeling of great pleasure or happiness. The biblical definition says joy is more than a happy feeling. It’s a lasting emotion that comes from the choice to trust that God will fulfill His promises. John 16:33b says “In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, I have overcome this world.” It doesn’t say we will never have problems or once we accept Christ our lives will be smooth sailing. No, it says we will have trouble. “Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering, it is the presence of God,”-Sam Storms. When life seems to be working overtime to bring me down I hold on to the words of Psalms 30:5b “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” And what is the best way to handle those problems? Choose Joy. Joy is something we choose in the midst of the storms, and in the middle of a celebration. Joy is what we search for. Joy is a prayer. Joy is strength. Happiness is a feeling, based on an emotion. But joy comes from knowing in your spirit the One who is in control and standing with you all the way. Galatians 5:22-23 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, JOY, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Emphasis added). When we have joy, true God-given joy, in our hearts there is nothing that can stand against us. Romans 15:13 says, “May the God of hope (Hope) fill you with all JOY and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Emphasis added)

We want to thank Hope Warren for sharing this post.

For me it comes down to this..

Grace = humility, or at least it has to begin there.  In “Christianese” or what we could call church-talk, GRACE means unmerited favor. It absolutely is unmerited, but let’s really break that down.  Unmerited would mean undeserving or not worthy enough.

Ephesians 2:8 says “for by grace you were saved…”

So, we were granted salvation by grace? Many times we believe we were saved and definitely know it wasn’t deserved, but why? Why me? Why would He do that for me?

Our God is so big, so mighty, the beginning AND the end, the creator of our universe, all-powerful, all-knowing, just every BIG word you can think of…what use could He have for me?

He can make a huge impact with little ‘ole me. That’s where humility comes in. When I begin to understand that our God desires my participation and that He made ME to use me. ME? Then I am humbled and I begin to realize I can have an influence, I can do big things-God things-not for my benefit or my purpose, but for His. Our big God who “knitted me in the womb”, who created me “wonderfully” wants me to be a part of His revival in this world we live in. Little ‘ole me.

“For we are his workmanship, (after all) created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

But not only that,

We are so loved by God that He made us bear His image (Genesis 1:26). We were created to live holy lives and tell others of His greatness. This is where being that woman of grace comes in.

Being a woman of grace can mean we are dedicated to obeying the commandments of our Father to the best of our ability and willing to use whatever wonderful spiritual gifts He has given us, even when we’re not feeling it!

“For from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (John 1:16) or more plainly blessing after blessing. And why? Because He’s a good, good Father.

The gift of grace gives us the power to deal with the ups and downs of life when we increase how we know God and what He desires from us so we can separate His truth from human mistakes and be that loving, compassionate woman of grace.

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:31-32)

Showing kindness speaks for itself, having compassion or empathy for others, and forgiving others the way He forgave us when on the cross… His greatest expression of grace! This was the whole gospel of Christ!

It costs nothing for us to forgive. God forgave everything that might keep others from Him. So why wouldn’t we do the same when it was so freely given to us?

To be able to be that woman who has that same humble grace for others that was granted to us and showing that same compassion He has for us, we have to see His perfect purpose for us but also see others with that same kindness, compassion and forgiveness that was granted to us all. With that same grace given to us, we can fulfill His perfect purpose.

We want to thank Sandra Villa for sharing this post.

Have you ever had one of those days where you feel like Superwoman? You marked off everything on your list. Maybe you worked ahead. You made every event in your calendar. You were even (mostly) on time. You cleared out the emails, made the meal, finished the project, folded the laundry (and put it away). No one was sick. Everyone was happy and went to bed on time.

What about the opposite? Have you had the day (or week or month or year) where nothing seems to be falling into place? You missed the meeting. You forgot the appointment. You said the words. You felt the hurt. You were late to the game. The kids wouldn’t stop fighting. Someone didn’t want to eat or sleep. Your to-do list was growing instead of shrinking, and you were so over-scheduled that you were running from one place to the next.

I’ve been thinking about what it means to be a woman of grace. If grace is defined as both unmerited favor and God’s empowerment, then it seems like Superwoman is our model woman of grace. And this other woman? Not so much, right?

But what if it’s both? Or neither? What if it’s about the condition of our heart in each of those moments? The Bible tell us that God gives grace to the humble (James 4:6), and in our weakness is when his power is made perfect (2 Corinthians 12:9).

In our everyday life, we’re going to be opposed. Between an enemy who’s on the prowl and the sin nature of our fallen world, we’re going to face troubles. Even Jesus said so (John 16:33).

Some days, we’re smashing down those obstacles left and right because we’ve got the power of God on our side. Other days, we’re hitting brick wall after brick wall because we’re trying to do it in our own strength.

What if, even on the worst days, we could stop and reset and humble ourselves and submit our hearts—and in that moment, receive all the grace that we need?

Guess what? We can!

The question for us, grace-filled women, is how we will respond to the opposition we face. When our day’s interrupted, when our heart’s disappointed, what will our response be?

Will we call upon the Lord and submit our hearts to him and say, “Help me; I need you”? Or will we tryto do it in our own strength and then later bury ourselves under our own blankets of comfort?

Do you know what’s great about grace? It’s unmerited. When we don’t get it right, there’s always another opportunity the next time. God’s not mad at us. He overwhelms us with love as he holds out his hand and says, “Do it with me this time.”

Every day, every moment, we get to choose to be women of grace. Let’s take His hand today.

We’d like to thank Laura Brandenburg for sharing this post.

Becoming a woman of grace is not complicated, but sometimes it isn’t easy.  It requires humility – realizing that without God we are completely lost, in this life and for eternity.

Let me tell you of one time when I was so humbled, and still God showed His grace in amazing ways. Back in 2010, I felt led to get my doctorate in education.  Circumstances prevented this until June of 2015.  The program was online most of the time, but for 2 weeks in June, I was to be on campus.  So, June of 2015, I was set to begin the program. 

Also in June of 2015, my mom went into the hospital with seizures.  She got worse and worse.  Mom died on June 19.  I moved into the dorm on June 21.  Kelly came home from Kenya June 22.  We had visitation on the 23^rd and her funeral on the 24^th.  Then I had 1 ½ more weeks to go at Tech. Even during this awful beginning, God’s grace was flooding my life and I didn’t even know it.  My cohort (a group of about 10 other students) was so supportive.  The teachers were wonderful.  I think that experience bound us together for our journey over the next 2 years. 

I was the first person in our cohort to defend my dissertation, and the first one in our cohort to graduate.  Completing this was the hardest thing, school-wise, that I ever did.  But God is faithful!  I was held and cared for the entire time – by GOD!  Truthfully, I had never considered myself “doctorate material” – whatever that is.  God showed me that HE IS doctorate material.  What do you need Him to be for you? 

From all the references we read in Scripture, grace is evidently both the motive and the means for everything God does for people on the earth.  Picture God reaching down to meet every need of His children.  As a woman of grace, I lean heavily upon the God who wants to meet my needs.  He is no stingy Father!  He’s always looking for a way to bless us.  Because of grace and by grace. What do you need God to reach down and do for you? 

The way that grace can reach me is when I humble myself and understand that I NEED His grace.  Recognizing that I need grace makes me a great candidate for it.  Humbling myself opens the door for God to pour grace into me.

Being a woman of grace requires confession and repentance. Along with confession to God, we are called to give and receive forgiveness from others.  Do you cringe at the thought of asking someone to forgive you?  Those closest to you offer a wonderful training ground for asking for forgiveness and giving forgiveness, even if no one asks for it.   

Being a woman of grace means seeing myself as God sees me.  Scripture after Scripture tells me who I am in Christ!  When I read these verses, yet I believe that they can’t possibly apply to me, for whatever reason, I’m lacking humility, because I’m refusing to accept God’s Word as true, despite my feelings. You really are a woman of grace, a daughter of the King of Kings!

Being a woman of grace means that I relinquish the need to “fix” everything.  When my mom was in the hospital and I was in this position of feeling like I needed to fix this, I begged God to tell me what to do to make it all ok.  He spoke to me one day and said, “This is not about you.  If your mom is ready to come home, she will come home.”  He was helping me to understand that my will was not the guiding force in this situation.  It gave me relief to just let God be in control, and to let my mom go.  When I have to “fix” everything, that’s pride.  If I think my way is the only way, there’s no humility there, and I resist His grace. 

As I am humble before God and receive His grace, I am in turn able to give that grace away to those around me.  Hoarding up the grace stops the flow.  I can only behave as a woman of grace to the degree that I receive that grace from Him.   Let’s fling the door of humility wide open!   Let’s live our lives as women who are both empowered by and who radiate grace. 

We’d like to thank Sheri Warren for sharing this post.