judge

RBG

September 19, 2020 — Leave a comment

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, not that Ehud was dead. So the Lord sold them into the hands of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. Sisera, the commander of his army, was based in Harosheth Haggoyim. Because he had nine hundred chariots fitted with iron and had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried for the Lord for help.

Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided. She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, ‘The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead them up to Mount Tabor. I will lead Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.’ Barak said to her, ‘If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.’

‘Certainly I will go with you,’ said Deborah. ‘But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.’

Judges 4:1-9

Women lead and women decide. Women prophecy and women protect. Women watch over and women take charge. Women are chosen by God to watch over nations and are chosen by God to overthrow nations. Deborah the prophet, the judge, was no exception. She was but an example of where women belong.

Rest in power RBG. Thank you for how you set an example for all of us women and warriors to do what is right and to lead a life that is marked by integrity and dissent. Thank you for fighting hard for us even while you were fighting hard to stay alive. We will honor you by choosing to live our lives in a way that bring others together and elevate the integrity of humanity. We will honor your legacy by stepping in even when we are exhausted, even when it feels so late in the game, even when we know our time is coming to an end. You showed us how to keep going and you showed us no is a good answer. We love you. We honor you. You are marked by God and as you rest in Shalom, may you continue to preside over this nation. We need your vibes.

CBG: Public Pause

June 11, 2020 — Leave a comment

And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”

As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” Now I was the cupbearer to the king.

Nehemiah 1:2-11

Nehemiah knew that the king was somehow the answer to his problem. He knew that this person that he had gained access, intimate access to, was a key in the freedom of his people. But Nehemiah didn’t ask the king right then, right there to help. He didn’t ask the next week or the next month. It was months later that he finally found the right timing and right moment to ask for exactly what he needed.

I wonder how Nehemiah felt in those between months of knowing there was oppression and not doing anything about it. Well, at least, publicly. I wonder how the people who told him about the oppression felt about Nehemiah’s lack of action. Well, at least, publicly. I wonder how the king was witnessing Nehemiah’s shift because it was the king who eventually saw Nehemiah’s overt sorrow and pain on his face. That was super public.

Did Nehemiah feel guilt? Did he feel like he wasn’t doing enough? Did he feel judged for still living his life as if things hadn’t changed? Was he a coward or was he waiting for the proper time to drop a radical ask? Was he apathetic or was he having heart transformations privately? Was he nervous about what people thought about him or was he unmoved because he was centered on his goal and purpose? Both? Yes and yes? And yes and yes. What mattered was when he was put right on the spot, he had an answer. When his skill and the opportunity aligned, he didn’t miss a beat.

How are you feeling about your timing? How are you holding your responsibility in the face of oppression? How are you sustaining between seeing the reality of injustice and doing the thing YOU are called to do?

Prayer: God, you are the judge and no other. May that give me wisdom, courage and humility.

Who or what do you believe holds the answer to a pain you have right now?