W@W - Women@Work for God

What does it mean to live a God-first, Christ-led, Holy Spirit-inspired life?   Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV): “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”                                      

Let’s practice representing God well. Let’s live a life that put Jesus on display. A life that others look at and say: “I want what she has”. An extraordinary life that glorifies our amazing Father.   Ephesians 4:1-3 (NIV): “... I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”   

Let us live from a place where we truly believe that God is our strength. In and through His power that is at work in us, nothing is impossible!   Psalms 18:1-2 (MSG): “I love you, GOD - you make me strong. GOD is bedrock under my feet, the castle in which I live, my rescuing knight. My God - the high crag where I run for dear life, hiding behind the boulders, safe in the granite hideout.”  

Are you worried, stressed, lonely, discouraged, or just tired? There is only one place where we can find true rest and peace, where we can refresh ourselves and find the courage we need to boldly step out and become all that God created us to be. That is in the presence of our Father God. True happiness only comes from living in the Shadow of our amazing Father.   Psalm 91:1-2 (NIV): "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 

Let us be determined to daily give our lives - our eating, sleeping, drinking, working, EVERYTHING - in total surrender to our Father God. And let’s always have a smile on our faces - reflecting Jesus' light in us.   Romans 12:1-2 (MSG): “So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering…”  

Victory comes from TRUSTING and OBEYING God! Do you truly trust and believe that nothing is impossible for our Father? That you can be victorious in anything because of Jesus?   Deuteronomy 1:8: "See, I have placed the land before you; go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to them and their descendants after them."

A God-first, Christ-led, Holy Spirit-inspired life is all about being intentional with how we spend our days. Intentional living is underpinned by simplification, good discretion, understanding and discernment in all circumstances; and in living a disciplined life. The book of proverbs teaches us that wisdom cannot be separated from discipline. Discipline is needed to obey God’s instructions, and to be intentional with our time and with what we do. That is what finally cultivates wisdom in our hearts. Being wise and in right standing with God ultimately leads to His gifts of protection, favour and blessing.   Psalms 90:12 (NIV): “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

Joy is defined as “the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune; or by the prospect of possessing what one desires”. A worker is defined as “a person who is actively involved in a particular activity”. How wonderful would it be if we could be defined as joyful workers in our Father God’s service? That is what would enable us to reflect an intentional God-first, Christ-led, Holy Spirit-inspired fulfilled life, that is an act of worship and thanksgiving to our Lord and a blessing to others.   Psalms 100: 1-2 (MSG): "On your feet now—applaud GOD! Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence..."

What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you see ‘not good enough’, ‘not pretty enough’, ‘so many flaws’, ‘so many failures’? Why do we listen to what the world tells us about who we should be, how we should look, and how we should act? Please stop... let’s step back into the beginning. The bible says God spoke creation into existence (through the power of His word). But then He did something extraordinary – He formed man from the dust. He FORMED us. Just as a potter uses clay to create something beautiful, God formed and created each one of us by HAND. He got CLOSE and very PERSONAL. He had a divine design for your life... Oh... and it is spectacular! He was intentional when He made you!   Psalm 139: 13-15 (MSG): "Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God - you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration - what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something."

Have you ever stopped to consider what it truly means when we say that we were created in God’s image and likeness? That we are a reflection of our Creator? That we are like Him? Would that cause you to act differently? To look at yourself differently? To look at and treat those around you differently?   Genensis 1:27 (NIV): "God created human beings; he created them godlike, reflecting God’s nature. He created them male and female."

Regardless of our mistakes, our inadequacies, our weaknesses or our failures, we have a Father who loves us, and who created us fearfully, wonderfully, and perfectly. He doesn’t make mistakes and He has chosen us!   John 15: 16-17 quotes the words of Jesus: "You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you. But remember the root command: Love one another.“

Can we be found in the presence of the One who made us? The One who has a wonderful plan for our lives? Do we really spend enough time with our amazing Father?   Genesis 3:8-9 (NIV): "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”  

Do you sometimes feel like hiding because you’ve eaten forbidden fruit? Know and believe, that regardless of our sin, shame or fear, we never again need to hide from God. Know that we have LIFE because of the One who gave His life for us (refer to Galatians 1:4).   Genesis 3:11 (NIV): “And God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines GIFT as: "Something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation". What is the greatest GIFT you have every received?   John 3:16 (AMP): “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life."  

As we think about Calvary, let’s celebrate and praise the Name of our Lord, JESUS CHRIST.   1 Corinthians 11:26 (Amp): “For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are [symbolically] proclaiming [the fact of] the Lord’s death until He comes [again].”  

Have you considered what it really means to be living attached to the one and only true Vine? Jesus says in John 15:4 (MSG): “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me”.   John 15:5-7 (NIV): “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing."  

Do you understand how much God truly loves you? There is no greater act of love or kindness than laying your life down so that someone else can live a life of freedom!   1 Corinthians 1:10 (NIV): “I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master. I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common.”  

We serve a good good Father, who wants the best for us, who holds our plans and dreams in the palm of His hand, and who provides and cares for us. He loves us more than we can ever comprehend!   Psalm 34:8 (MSG): “Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see - how good GOD is. Blessed are you who run to him.”

Do you sometimes limit yourself or others? Do you do this merely because you don’t believe or dream big enough? Do you truly believe that for our amazing Father God – nothing is impossible?   Luke 1:36-38 (NIV): “And did you know that your cousin Elizabeth conceived a son, old as she is? Everyone called her barren, and here she is six months pregnant! Nothing, you see, is impossible with God.” And Mary said, Yes, I see it all now: I’m the Lord’s maid, ready to serve. Let it be with me just as you say. Then the angel left her.”

Wisdom is to know our Father God. To know Him, we need to spend time with Him. A God-first life is one in which we seek knowledge, understanding and insight from our Father God.  It involves setting our hearts to live in absolute obedience to His will, and to be 100% dependent on Him for everything.   Proverbs 1:7 (MSG): “Start with GOD - the first step in learning is bowing down to GOD; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning."