It Takes a Village
By: Chelsey DeMatteis
“Go into all the world & preach the good news to everyone.” - Mark 16:15
Seven years ago, I showed up to my very first Bible study. I didn’t know a single person in the room. I had no church community, but what I did have was a heart hoping for guidance and connection. I took that uncomfortable step of obedience and God blessed me by placing my newly saved soul under the teaching of a woman who deeply desired to grow young women in the Word.
For the first time in my life, I not only began learning what God’s Word said for me, but I learned what true discipleship looked like. I learned why I needed a village of women to walk alongside me.
As I sit and pen these words, I’ve just come out of a season that reminds me again why we all need our village, why we need the body of Christ. In this era, we love the thought of having a village; it sounds amazing to have women encouraging and equipping us with God’s truths. But our often filled-to-the-brim schedules don’t leave any space for this to happen. The thought of being vulnerable beyond a screen can be paralyzing. Our flesh desires what makes us comfortable, but God calls us to more than comfort.
The Lord tells us to, “Go into all the world & preach the good news to everyone” Mark 16:15. That is not a calling to comfort, but it is a call to move within the framework God places us. So how can we do this if we let fear drive our choice to never change? How will we become part of someone’s village if we don’t begin taking God’s call as a command and not a suggestion? We act. We act on what His Word tells us to do and then, we go. We stay in step with His spirit (Galatians 5:25), press on against the enemy’s tactics to control us, and we don’t stand in agreement with the insecurities inside of us that keep us in a complacent, cozy faith.
Titus 2:3-5 is a place in scripture filled with God’s call for women. It calls us to a duty that is high and holy; Godly relationships. The Lord asks us to pour into women who are seeking guidance. We have something unique and special. Our testimonies, which are filled with all the glorious and mundane things God has taken us through. We must not let that inner critic or the enemy trip us up with the lie that we’re unequipped. We are equipped when our hearts are tethered to Jesus and His leading. Women are hungry for truth, but sometimes they might not know where to find it. If you’re in their community, you now have the gift of stewarding them to His truths.
I want to leave us pondering Ruth and her example of following the call to a deeper relationship. I love how she shows us what it means to keep showing up for women we care about or the ones God calls us to. It is hard to think about leaving a place you’ve known your whole life to go do what God has placed on your heart. This is what Ruth did. She left the comfortable to please God. Doesn’t this give your heart such encouragement?
When God moves you to ask the new woman on your street to coffee, He isn’t surprised by the apprehension of your heart. He knows the call is uncomfortable- it goes against everything in our flesh that clings to familiarity. He’s inviting you and me into something that is far greater than we can imagine when we accept. He’s inviting us into being His hands and feet. Trusting us to love, lead, and steward others to Him. We’ve got to start counting the cost if we let fear keep us from extending invitations or accepting them. We shouldn’t ever want to miss out on the opportunity to point people God-ward and to find people to do the same for us. Ruth counted the cost. She moved God-ward to the community He called her to. I pray my heart can be like hers, don’t you? Leaning in, listening, and going. Stepping out in faith to the village He called her too.
My prayer for you is this, that your heart will see the gift God’s given you; your story for His glory. I pray that we can break free from the fleshly desire of familiarity. That we will move when God calls us. I pray God leads you to women who need to hear the wisdom you have to offer and trust that God will bring women to come alongside you as your village grows.
You can find more from Chelsey on her website, https://www.chelseydematteis.com/.
Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith
Kerry Washington, Andrea Bocelli, Reba McEntire, Mark Wahlberg, Tony Dungy, and Matthew McConaughey—what do all of these people have in common? They are all people of faith who have leaned on God in both the good and challenging times—and they’ve shown up to tell their stories of faith on The Jesus Calling Podcast. The Jesus Calling Podcast provides a place for people from all walks of life to share the heartaches, joys, and divine moments that keep them going.
Inspired by Sarah Young's classic devotional book, the Jesus Calling podcast has brought encouragement and peace to millions. New episodes drop every Thursday! Listen today on LifeAudio.com or wherever you find your podcasts.
Originally published Friday, 21 June 2024.
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