Back in February I attended IF Gathering that brought thousands of women together across the country and around the world. It was an incredible time of hearing from many different women who are living lives of obedience - whatever the cost.
It was a time for me where God began to break down some barriers. I realized that while we may appear to have absolutely nothing in common, because we are in different places and walks of life, when you boil it down and we start to tell our stories, we wrestle with so many of the same issues! We really are not that different at all. We have the same fears, and deal with the same struggles. Connecting on that level gave me a renewed sense of connection and empowerment.
On the first night after we came back from dinner, Amena Brown Owen and Ann Voskamp read a poem called Esther Generation that they had penned. It was so powerful the hairs on my arms and the back of my neck where standing straight up. God stirred my heart to begin to collaborate with Emily and Shannon to put this blog together.
In the poem there is a statement "There is a whole Esther Generation rising up right here and now and it is us!" That statement is the heart of this blog, and out of it came the name EstherGEN because we want to be a generation of women, who like Esther, will rise up and say, "We are done being defeated by fears!" Who will say, "Now is the time for brave faith!"
That we may BELIEVE
and PRAY
and FIGHT
and REST
and LOVE!
so beautifully said my friend!
ReplyDeleteI feel that one of the great hinderances of women moving forward in their calling, was the disunity. I firmly believe, just like you, that we need one another. It is time for brave faith! God has some HUGE things in store and I'm excited to see what He does in the coming days!