Proverbs 31 as a professional woman - Part 42
SPIRIT, SOUL AND BODY
Dear loyal readers, I trust that you’re blessed and highly favoured.
Thank you for joining me on this journey as we continue to unpack success principle ten for Proverbs 31 as a professional woman: “She’s strong, courageous and discerning.” Please read parts 36-41 for more context.
In part 41 I closed off the article by revealing the conversations that the Proverbs 31 professional woman has with the Lord, and I shared that:
“From a place of loving the Lord with her all and having an awe-inspired, deeply reverent fear of Him, she seeks Him with a heart that says –
“Lord, I humble myself before You, I need You, I wholly submit and surrender myself to Your will, please -
Help me, Prepare me, Position me, Embolden me, Empower me, Equip me, Show me, Lead me, Counsel me, Direct me, Enlighten me, Establish me, Align my desires with Your desires for me, Align my heart with Your heart, and
Remove any desires that compete with Your glory.
And where I’m wrong, please judge me, convict me and discipline me with mercy.
There’s nothing I can do without You, there’s nothing I want that is not from You and there’s nowhere that I want to go without You – here I am, use me.”
It takes discernment to navigate which type of strength you need from the Lord – because you recognise that sometimes the strongest thing you can do is to surrender everything to Him, to be still and to know that He is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies who causes wars to cease to the ends of the earth (see Psalm 46:9-11).
The part of being still in the midst of a workplace battle is probably one of the most foolish-sounding instructions, but this allows God to speak in ways that you cannot even imagine because God’s glory is unfathomable.
Exhibit A: Jesus, Daniel, Ruth and Queen Esther
Their collective experiences are proof that sometimes God will make you look weak in the eyes of men so that they will testify about how He lifted you.
All of these people, at some point, looked like they were losing their individual battles before they enjoyed their victories.
The Presence of God’s strength in your life doesn’t mean the absence of battles and it takes courage and faith to hold on to the assurance of the overwhelming victory that we have in Jesus Christ (Romans 8:37).
Sometimes in the midst of workplace battles, it will even look like God is being unfair to you. But God’s glory is not perceived in human terms because His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8-12).
It takes courage to trust in the Lord’s strength to help you navigate the different challenges and obstacles that might come up in the workplace. In part 4 I shared that:
“The book of Daniel will also remind you that being prayerful, remaining in the will of God, pursuing righteousness and standing for God’s truth will make you an overcomer because the battle has already been won (Revelations 12:11). Daniel will remind you to apply Godly wisdom, honour, and respect regardless of the attitude of your superior.
Why, you might ask?
Because you know that it’s not the person, but what’s controlling the person that is fighting you (Ephesians 6:10-18). Wisdom will remind you that you should surrender the battle to God (2 Chronicles 20) and Psalm 46:9-11 will remind you to be still and know that Jehovah Sabaoth is with you.”
Exhibit B: Joseph
In Genesis, Joseph had 4 p’s that defined his life:
Pit (the place where he was thrown into by his brothers);
Potiphar’s house (where he enjoyed favour as a slave, having the trust of his master and also where he was later falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife);
Prison (where he had the misfortune of being falsely imprisoned but being trusted once again with the destiny of other prisoners); and
Palace (where he was eventually promoted to becoming Pharaoh’s second in command).
Each of these places gave Joseph an opportunity to give up or to grow up, but in each situation he trusted the Lord, gained favour and continued to hold on until his restoration, restitution and elevation from the Lord arrived.
Sometimes challenges might seem like a rejection, but with God on your side, they form the redirected steps that lead to your elevation because nothing is lost with God on your side.
It takes strength, courage and discernment to navigate what each season requires of you.
Don’t just go through the fire, allow the heat to refine, purify and to burn away anything that doesn’t glorify God in your life. God’s strength will carry you and when you come out on the other side, His strength will be revealed through YOU in ways that you never imagined.
Shalom.
Thank you for joining me on this journey as we continue to unpack success principle ten for Proverbs 31 as a professional woman: “She’s strong, courageous and discerning.” Please read parts 36-41 for more context.
In part 41 I closed off the article by revealing the conversations that the Proverbs 31 professional woman has with the Lord, and I shared that:
“From a place of loving the Lord with her all and having an awe-inspired, deeply reverent fear of Him, she seeks Him with a heart that says –
“Lord, I humble myself before You, I need You, I wholly submit and surrender myself to Your will, please -
Help me, Prepare me, Position me, Embolden me, Empower me, Equip me, Show me, Lead me, Counsel me, Direct me, Enlighten me, Establish me, Align my desires with Your desires for me, Align my heart with Your heart, and
Remove any desires that compete with Your glory.
And where I’m wrong, please judge me, convict me and discipline me with mercy.
There’s nothing I can do without You, there’s nothing I want that is not from You and there’s nowhere that I want to go without You – here I am, use me.”
It takes discernment to navigate which type of strength you need from the Lord – because you recognise that sometimes the strongest thing you can do is to surrender everything to Him, to be still and to know that He is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies who causes wars to cease to the ends of the earth (see Psalm 46:9-11).
The part of being still in the midst of a workplace battle is probably one of the most foolish-sounding instructions, but this allows God to speak in ways that you cannot even imagine because God’s glory is unfathomable.
Exhibit A: Jesus, Daniel, Ruth and Queen Esther
Their collective experiences are proof that sometimes God will make you look weak in the eyes of men so that they will testify about how He lifted you.
All of these people, at some point, looked like they were losing their individual battles before they enjoyed their victories.
The Presence of God’s strength in your life doesn’t mean the absence of battles and it takes courage and faith to hold on to the assurance of the overwhelming victory that we have in Jesus Christ (Romans 8:37).
Sometimes in the midst of workplace battles, it will even look like God is being unfair to you. But God’s glory is not perceived in human terms because His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8-12).
It takes courage to trust in the Lord’s strength to help you navigate the different challenges and obstacles that might come up in the workplace. In part 4 I shared that:
“The book of Daniel will also remind you that being prayerful, remaining in the will of God, pursuing righteousness and standing for God’s truth will make you an overcomer because the battle has already been won (Revelations 12:11). Daniel will remind you to apply Godly wisdom, honour, and respect regardless of the attitude of your superior.
Why, you might ask?
Because you know that it’s not the person, but what’s controlling the person that is fighting you (Ephesians 6:10-18). Wisdom will remind you that you should surrender the battle to God (2 Chronicles 20) and Psalm 46:9-11 will remind you to be still and know that Jehovah Sabaoth is with you.”
Exhibit B: Joseph
In Genesis, Joseph had 4 p’s that defined his life:
Pit (the place where he was thrown into by his brothers);
Potiphar’s house (where he enjoyed favour as a slave, having the trust of his master and also where he was later falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife);
Prison (where he had the misfortune of being falsely imprisoned but being trusted once again with the destiny of other prisoners); and
Palace (where he was eventually promoted to becoming Pharaoh’s second in command).
Each of these places gave Joseph an opportunity to give up or to grow up, but in each situation he trusted the Lord, gained favour and continued to hold on until his restoration, restitution and elevation from the Lord arrived.
Sometimes challenges might seem like a rejection, but with God on your side, they form the redirected steps that lead to your elevation because nothing is lost with God on your side.
It takes strength, courage and discernment to navigate what each season requires of you.
Don’t just go through the fire, allow the heat to refine, purify and to burn away anything that doesn’t glorify God in your life. God’s strength will carry you and when you come out on the other side, His strength will be revealed through YOU in ways that you never imagined.
Shalom.
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