PRAYER FOCUS

Women of DaySpring

When God created woman she, like man, was made in the image of God to reflect her Creator to the world. She was fashioned from the rib of Adam, showing that Adam needed a partner, not a servant, to co-rule God’s beautiful creation. When sin entered the world, the seed, Jesus Christ, that would one day crush the serpent’s head was promised to come through the woman. One can see that women have a special place in God’s creation and kingdom. 

 So how can a woman live into her womanhood as God intended? Women find themselves in various walks of life and positions — being wives, singles, mothers, grandmothers, daughters, aunts, professionals, homemakers, and much more. A woman can live into her Biblical calling no matter how young or old, married or single she is. Let’s examine some Scriptural examples of women who lived into God’s calling.

In 2 Timothy 1:5 Paul writes to Timothy, a young pastor and previous ministry partner: “For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that is in you as well.” It is likely that these two women had responded to the gospel at the time Paul visited the area during his first missionary journey. They had since mentored Timothy, to walk in the faith, and his faith had become so strong that he was willing to go to great lengths for the sake of the gospel. The mention of his father in Acts 16, leads us to believe his father was not a believer, yet his mother and grandmother impacted his life so greatly that he became a faithful and strong believer. A woman can nurture her family toward the Lord in any stage of life. I once knew a young teenager that chose to read scripture to her unbelieving family daily, causing her younger brother to seek a relationship with Jesus. Age and family status should be no hindrance to sharing Christ. These two women in the Bible and this young teenaged girl were all powerful in their homes and in the kingdom of God by nurturing in a way that God specially equips women to nurture and doing it with kingdom purpose in mind.

God has gifted women with a natural ability to love deeply and express love in an open and heartfelt way, which is a reflection of our Creator, who is Love. This flows more genuinely when we have experienced the Lord’s healing and grace in our deepest sorrows and most broken places. Luke 7:36-50 and John 12:1-8 tell us of two women who anointed the feet of Jesus, washing His feet with their hair and tears. Both women displayed a beautiful act of love and devotion to Jesus. As women, our love for our Lord should overflow from within us and spill out to a hurting world around us without being forced. God can work in our brokenness to bring us to this place.  

We have an Old Testament example of a young slave girl who led her master, Naaman, to seek healing from the Lord’s prophet. Deborah displayed strength and courage when she stepped up to battle, filling a role that needed filling. Mary, a young, virgin submitted to the Lord’s calling to bear the Savior of the world. Women cared for Jesus’ needs and were the first to see our risen Lord. God has and does use women in mighty ways to advance His kingdom.

Let us live into His calling to be women of God who affect the world; starting in our homes, our church, our community, and the world.

PRAYER PROMPTS