David went on, “He trains my hands for battle; he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow” (verse 34). Too many times we try to tackle problems in our own strength. We try to tackle trouble at work in our own strength. We try to raise kids in our own strength. But God says, “Let Me teach you how to war. Let Me train you.”
David’s words are bold: “I chased my enemies and caught them; I did not stop until they were conquered…. You have armed me with strength for the battle; you have subdued my enemies under my feet. You placed my foot on their necks” (verses 37, 39–40). Wow. Those are fighting words.
Some of us need to wake up that grit within us. We need to stop being passive, stop being a victim of the Enemy’s schemes, stop letting him invade our minds, and stop letting him rob our joy. Take your foot, and put it on the Enemy’s neck in the name of Jesus, because evil is already defeated.
“He is the God who pays back those who harm me” (verse 47). This is a word of freedom because it tells us we don’t have to spend our lives hunting down the people who have harmed us. God is going to pay back those enemies. He’s got your back. He knows who hurt you, He knows who wronged you, and He knows what fights you were dragged into that you didn’t choose. But again, He is the God who pays back.
In the boxing movie Rocky, there are two main characters, Rocky and Mickey.[3] At different times in our lives, we’re either Rocky, throwing punches in the fight, or we’re Mickey, aiding someone in their fight. When we’re in the fight, we need the Mickeys in our sisterhood to say, “You’re going to get through this. I see a jab coming your way, girl, so break up with him. I see a jab. I see a one-two punch to your right. So break up.” The Mickeys in our lives say, “I see you picking up those old habits again.” They confront sin and faulty mindsets and bad habits. We need the Mickeys.
When we’re in the fight, we need to remember that we’re not alone and that God has strengthened us. But once we get our victory, once we get that heavyweight title, we don’t need to just put it up on our mantel. At times, we have to assume the role of Mickey too.
We need to take our victory, find other women who need a Mickey, and tell them that they can get victory too. We need to cheer them on and remind them what’s possible:
I got that promotion I thought would never come my way, so you can too.
I survived freshman year, so you can too.
I got through financial struggles, so you can too.
I got through the sleepless newborn season, so you can too.
I got through being a single mom, so you can too.
My friend Holly went through a season of feeling alone and having no friends. She now has more friends than she can count on one hand. Instead of staying stuck, she became the kind of friend she wanted for herself. She pursued people, and now all these years later, her life is full of beautiful friendships and she gets to help other girls find friends.
I think about Ronda Rousey, a phenomenal professional wrestler and MMA fighter. Rousey’s mom is also a fighter. Every day, she would wake up her daughter and practice this wrestling move called an arm bar with her so that the move was ingrained in her fighting style.[4] The arm bar became her signature move. What we see from this mother-daughter duo is that we fight for ourselves and the next generation. We’re not going to raise a passive generation of women. We’re going to teach the next generation to fight for what they believe in, to fight God’s way, and to call out their dreams. Unfortunately, Rousey lost her last fight. One news reporter claimed that Rousey’s room was quiet and somber before she walked to the ring for her last UFC fight.[5] I wondered if maybe, in that moment, she had lost her fight song. No anthem was playing in her room, so when she got into the ring, she got knocked out.
We need a fight song. We can’t just be quiet, still, and passive and wait as opportunities pass by. We’ve got to shout out the anthems of God. We’ve got to shout out our fight song and declare, “Victory is mine in the name of Jesus. I’m going to make it. It seems like I’m not right now. I feel defeated in this moment, but through Christ I can do all things.” We need to reclaim our fight song. We need to remember that we’ve been crowned to fight.
As royal daughters, we haven’t been crowned to sit in the palace; we’ve been crowned to fight in the field. Second Chronicles 20:15 says, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.’ ” Your family is not yours, but God’s. Your kids are not yours, but God’s.
He wants to wake up the fighter in us. This world we live in requires a supernatural strength and a fighting spirit that won’t back down. He gives us the will, desire, and ability to get in the ring and stay in the ring. He gives us the power to defeat our opponent. If we were left to our own strength, we would be only fighting the wind and running in circles. Can I get an amen?
So remember, the fight that you’re facing is not yours alone, but God’s. Whatever it is that you can’t take one more day of is not yours, but God’s. God is saying, “Sweetheart, let Me carry that for you. Sweetheart, let Me fight this one for you. Sweetheart, let Me remind you that I will be your anthem and your strong tower.” You’ve been crowned to fight, not to sit back.
One Hebrew word for “crown” is atarah and comes from a verb that means “to encircle (for attack or protection).”[6] Our position as royal daughters means we come alongside and encircle others; we look out for one another and fight beside one another. It’s a way of being in relationship that says, “I got your back. I’m not going to stand against you; I’m going to stand up for you.” It’s a posture, not a pose.
Don’t give up. You’re not alone. I believe by the Spirit of God that you’re going to get your fight back, that you’re going to get your sight back, that you’re going to get hope, and that you’re going to get freedom and peace.
Don’t lose heart. You have a whole army of women surrounding you and cheering you on.
This world is waiting and ready. We’ve got to fight for one another, not bully or judge one another. I want to fight for my fellow women from now until eternity because we don’t have time for petty stuff. So I’m calling you to rise up and fight for the women on your right and your left.
Let’s Pray
Father, I’d like to thank You that we’re starting a value revolution in Your daughters around the world. I thank You that You have equipped us to fight the battles we’re facing with confidence that the victory is already won. We’re going to fight for one another because You fight for us. I thank You that greater days are ahead. I thank You that we don’t have to do this alone. With Jesus on our side, we move ahead. Bless every person reading this, and strengthen us in Jesus’s name. Amen.
9 Gifted to Lead
I have a hunch that most of us lead far more often than we think we do. I think about the times you and I didn’t even realize we were leading, like when you heard girls gossiping and you stood up for the person being gossiped about. Or when you led a committee at your child’s school or a Bible study with friends in your dorm, or when you were a role model on a sports teams or at a company, and everything in between.
You were made to lead. You were made to make things better.
You were made to make things better.
I love leading most days. In a previous chapter, I talked about leading our church during 2020. That was a season when leading was extremely stressful and overwhelming, and at times, it almost felt impossible. As my husband and I led together, it seemed as though no matter how much we gave, it still was never enough.
No one said leading is easy. But leading is necessary. I’ve heard it said that leaders go first. And in going first, we pioneer and we also partner with the people God has placed around us. There is no way my husband and I could lead our church without the help of Jesus, our staff, and our volunteers.
Leadership is pioneering and partnering, and it’s also serving. Jesus showed us the ultimate example when He washed the feet of His disciples.[1] He took a towel from around His waist and took on the posture of a servant. That is a position not of lording it over people but of confident humility.
Our world is desperate for you as God’s daughter to take your heaven-breathed authority and stand firm in every season.
Leadership is also lonely at times. Matthew 26:37–45 says that Jesus asked His disciples to pray with Him but they all fell asleep. I’m sure at that moment He felt alone and disappointed. I’ve had moments in my leadership when I’ve felt alone, disappointed, and misunderstood. But I’ve learned that God uses it all to refine me and keep my gaze on Him. I’m not leading to get a platform, more followers, a trophy, or a pat on the back. I’m leading because He called me to, and the same is true for you. Just like Esther, we are called to lead for such a time as this.
Second Kings 2 tells us about the prophet Elijah and his mentee, Elisha, journeying together. When they started out, they were going from Gilgal to Bethel. From there, they traveled to Jericho, then to the Jordan River. Elijah knew his time was almost finished on earth, and all throughout their long journey together, he basically gave Elisha multiple chances to leave him. But Elisha said to Elijah, “As surely as the Lord lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you” (verses 2, 4, 6). Elisha wanted Elijah’s mantle and anointing.
Elijah took his cloak—a symbol of God’s presence and authority—and struck the water of the Jordan River. The river miraculously divided, and the two men crossed on dry land. Then Elijah said to his student, “Tell me what I can do for you before I am taken away” (verse 9).
Elisha replied, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit and become your successor” (verse 9).
“You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, and he instructed Elisha to keep his eyes on him and on God’s presence (verse 10). Soon after, Elijah went up in a whirlwind to heaven. Elisha watched his mentor go, then picked up his cloak.
In our nation and in our world, there’s a cloak; there’s a mantle; there’s an anointing that has fallen. As God’s daughters, it’s time for us to pick up the mantle so that we can receive our double portion by the Spirit of the Lord.
Elisha went back to the Jordan River and remembered what his leader had done there. So “he struck the water with Elijah’s cloak and cried out, ‘Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?’ ” Then the river divided and Elisha went across (verse 14). How powerful is that?
He picked up where his leader left off.
