Ministering in some of the most sin saturated streets in Birmingham, we have come across some wild things… But, this particular day stuck with me and all I could see were the young faces.
We had parked our car close to the area where they had found her broken body dumped. One now gone and one we were looking for… She was young and the week before we had talked for a while with her as she waited in line for a drink. She told us how she had come from one of the recovery centers for girls in a nearby state. She said she was doing good. She was young. And I was a bit naive. She was now recruiting new girls. On the street, she’s known as the bottom bitch. But to me, she was nice, a little rough around the edges, a bit broken and apparent to being shaped from a hard life of unhealthy decisions. I woke up with their faces on my mind and in my heart. All I could think about were they once were someone’s little girl.
We walked the streets that day, able to pray over a sweet grandmother, as her granddaughter stood close by my side. When the little girl was asked if someone could pray over her, she sheepishly declined. But, before we could walk away, she looked at me and whispered, “I wanna stay with you.” I held on so tight she told me I almost squeezed her heart out. If she only knew mine had just been ripped from the core. I don’t know where that precious little girl came from and I do not know the life she was walking back to… but I know I prayed for protection and purity to dwell wherever she may roam. I promised I would pray for her everyday. She was my Emma’s age and she was beautiful.
One dead. One recruiting for death and one wanting someone just to speak Life.
When it comes to my girls, I feel like I am in constant war with this world. It is exhausting at times to stay one step ahead of the enemy. There is no way we will make it unless we rely on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
I am learning the truth about the gray… There simply is none. I must seek a life that is clearly black and white. My girls must see what I hold valuable… they must see a life uncompromised. When they see me, I want them to NOT see this world. I want them to see that I wanted more of the Lord, even in the valley. I want them to see a faithful Savior with immeasurable grace. The more you know Him, the more aware you are of the gray in your life. It’s a real eye opener!
Listen, the stronghold of sin , these “gray” areas in our life, can leave one wandering for years, even a lifetime in the desert. Getting caught up in the grays of this world can literally keep one from entering the Promised Land. That’s hard to say, but that’s truth.
Generations were born in the wandering, and if we aren’t careful, we women of God will justify the gray and the legacy we leave will be one of compromise. The truth is we are all called to be like Christ, be holy, be imitators. We know the Truth, we know what can keep us wandering in that desert. My word, we can walk around the same old mountain over and over and over again if we aren’t careful. We have to let the Lord refine us and live a life of truth that leads others to the Promised Land.
I will never know who that body belonged to, how many girls were coerced by that young woman or even the home life that little girl belonged to… I can only pray that seeds were planted that day in their tender and wounded hearts.
Hey women! Yep, I am talking to you. Listen up. I need you! We need each other. But mostly, we need Jesus. This world is screaming cheap, disposable, temporary and devalued. It’s in the news, it’s on the televisions, it’s at the movies, it’s on their phones, it’s in their friends and it’s at the mall. If we aren’t careful, they will see it in their own mirror and worse, in the home. God help us, Satan just needs a foothold. He just needs you to blur the line, compromise or justify the gray. It’s hard. I know. But when our girls look back at us, they need to see Jesus, His truths, His promises and a covenant relationship that cannot be compromised. When we seek Christ in such an intimate way, our relationship with others will be filled with His truth. We need Him. In every area of our life. I encourage you to seek more of Him today!
Search us Lord. Refine our ways. Help us desire your refining fire, to be made pure, to live golden. To be the example. The Titus 2 woman. The modern-day Deborah. The Esther. The Hannah. The bent woman. The life uncompromised. Believe the Lord WILL use you. Believe that such a time is THIS!
But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:16
We need more women who are willing to be broken and show this world real Beauty. It’s really simple. Our girls need us to step up and be radiant.
xo,
