She Stooped to Conquer
LaTan Roland Murphy
We hope you are enjoying the Girlfriends in God daily devotions. We (Mary, Sharon, and Gwen) would like to introduce you to some of our special friends. From time-to-time, the Friday devotions will be written by one of our friends in ministry. We call them our "Friday Friends." So grab your Bible and a fresh cup of coffee and drink in the words from our "Friday Friend", LaTan Roland Murphy, author of Becoming a Woman of Interior Elegance and proofreader for Girlfriends in God devotionals.
Today's Truth
Ephesians 5:21 “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Friend to Friend
"Mom, they were whispering to one another about the birthday party. They didn't want me to hear because I am not invited," my daughter said with trembling voice as tears filled her big beautiful eyes.
My heart was breaking in half as I listened to how hurt she was. "They are my best friends at school, Mom. Why would they not invite me?"
I reached out to hug her, our arms wrapping around each other tightly as she turned her soft tear stained face toward my neck. It was a familiar crying spot as she had buried her face there time and time again in the same position since she was a baby. We helped each other without speaking a word for a while. Sometimes there are just no words to make things better, so I cried with her. One week later, while driving our daughter to school, she asked her dad in a quiet voice if he would please stop at the grocery store.
"Why DaNae'? Do you need something for school?"
"Well, sort of."
"What do you need, honey, because we are already going to be late."
"I need to buy a balloon for someone who is having a birthday party tonight."
"Who is it?" I asked.
"Do you remember the girl who was whispering about her birthday party in front of me? Well, I want to take a balloon to school for her." I looked over at my husband and he looked at me, each of our hearts melting both with a sense of pride and of sadness. We knew we had to stop even if it meant we would be late. It was worth it!
Da-Nae' walked happily into the grocery store and in a few moments came running out with a huge grin spread across her seventh grade face. Her balloon was flying high in the air with a pack of chewing gum hanging from the bottom, acting as a weight. She was the happiest girl in the world!
My husband and I were so blessed by our daughter's actions that morning. She stooped to conquer feelings that could have been filled with anger and hurt. Some people might ask why she would make a fool of herself after being treated the way she was or how she could lower herself after what her friend had done to her. When Christ is the center of our lives, He empowers us to do things we could never do in our own human nature. Our daughter chose not to be a martyr. She chose to stoop a little so she could rise up on a much higher level. She chose to reject her sadness about not being invited to the party. She reaped the blessings of stooping to conquer her emotions and blessed her friend in spite of how she had been treated. When was the last time you stooped to conquer?
Let's Pray
"Lord Jesus, please give me courage to stoop to conquer emotions that are not in perfect alignment with Your plan for me. Help me to be a woman of character--- submitting to Your leading in my life each day. Show me how to respond in a Godly way when I am hurt. Lord Jesus, thank You for stooping to conquer both death and the grave for my salvation. I pray my life will reflect the gratitude You deserve." In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Now It's Your Turn
Hurt will come to each of us. We can’t change that fact. What we can change is the way we respond to hurtful situations in our lives. Will we become bitter or better?
Think of a hurt you have carried for a long time. Think about how it has affected your life. How did you first respond to the hurt? What is your response today?
Ask the Lord to bind up your wounded heart and heal you completely. Ask Him to give you such Godly character that every response is in alignment to His perfect will.
Allow Christ to fill all the empty places in your heart
Understand that by stooping to conquer these emotions, you will defeat the enemy's ploy to destroy and ultimately win over sin!
Accept the truth that we are all made in the image of God and by submitting to one another as the scripture reference reminds us today, we will be reverencing God in the most beautiful way.
More From The Girls
It is a whole lot easier to give in to the base human library of emotions within each one of us, but God always calls us up higher, to make higher choices. Why? One reason is because that higher choice simply screams the message, “I can’t do this on my own! God helped me make this choice!” These words are especially true when dealing with difficult people. Sandpaper People is available as a book, CD and MP3 download and will help you stoop to conquer ungodly emotions.
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Originally published Friday, 05 December 2008.
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