7-DAY DEVOTIONAL WOMEN GOD LED TO TRIUMPH By Nicole Smithee*
*Nicole Smithee is a traveling speaker, teacher, and author. She is the Founder and CEO of Iridescent, an online community committed to awakening the brilliance in every young woman. She also serves as the Director of Leadership Development at Liberty Church. She lives with her husband, Ben, in lower Manhattan. Instagram: @nicolesmithee Website: NicoleSmithee.com
Restore is committed to walking alongside women who are foreign-national survivors of sexual slavery with holistic support, including trafficking assessment, counseling, legal assistance, safe housing, and job placement. These women have experienced great tragedy and abuse, but they are overcoming trauma and shame and experiencing healing and independence. This 7-Day Devotional honors the courage of these women and their relentless determination to overcome. We will explore how God has led extraordinary women in the Bible to triumph, despite great obstacles. We pray their legacy would inspire your personal faith and empower you to make a difference - right where you are.
REBUILDING THE LIFE INTENDED restorenyc.org
DAY 1 THE MIDWIVES: THEIR DEFIANCE PROTECTED LIVES
DAY 2 MARY: HER SURRENDER GAVE BIRTH TO SALVATION
DAY 3 JOCHEBED: HER RESOURCEFULNESS PROTECTED THE VULNERABLE
DAY 4 THE WOMAN WHO ANOINTED JESUS: HER WORSHIP WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN
DAY 5 ESTHER: HER BRAVERY RESCUED HER PEOPLE
DAY 6 THE BLEEDING WOMAN: HER FAITH LED TO HEALING
DAY 7 THE SAMARITAN WOMAN: HER STORY CHANGED A COMMUNITY
“The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.” — EXODUS 1:17 NIV
DAY 1
THE MIDWIVES: THEIR DEFIANCE PROTECTED LIVES READ: Exodus 1:1-21 REFLECT: These Hebrew midwives, led by Shiphrah and Puah, were ordered by the king to kill any Hebrew newborn boy at birth. To defy the king’s orders was punishable by death, but to obey the king’s command would require them to defy God himself. They determined that to obey God was supreme and risked their lives to honor him. God saw their brave defiance and was wonderfully kind to them. The Lord kept them safe from the king’s wrath and blessed them with families of their own. Ultimately, their courage saved countless innocent newborns and preserved the future of God’s people. Sometimes, faith looks like righteous defiance. To honor God in our daily lives, we must be willing to defy the status quo when it contradicts what is just. We must oppose oppression and abuse at the sake of our own comfort. This most certainly requires courage. But when we choose the path of righteous defiance, we are met with the kindness of God. He not only keeps us and protects us, but he uses our efforts to do good and bring hope and restoration to others.
PRAY: Lord, give me courage to do what is right even when it is difficult. May I oppose evil by choosing to do what is good. May my righteous defiance be met with your perfect kindness. Use me to be a help and support to those who are vulnerable to injustice and abuse in our world. Bless the efforts of Restore to defy the injustice of sex trafficking in New York City and beyond. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
“Then Mary responded, ‘This is amazing! I will be a mother for the Lord! As his servant, I accept whatever he has for me. May everything you have told me come to pass.’ And the angel left her.” — Luke 1:38 TPT
DAY 2
MARY: HER SURRENDER GAVE BIRTH TO SALVATION READ: Luke 1:26-38 REFLECT: Mary was just a young teenage girl when the angel Gabriel visited her with the news that she would give birth to the Savior of the world. Of course, she had questions. This isn’t the sort of news you hear every day! She also had a fiancé to consider and her future to worry about. If she chose the assignment Heaven was giving her, she could lose her fiancé, her reputation, and maybe even her family. She lived in a culture where an unmarried pregnant woman would be the scandal of the town and the disgrace of her family. Mary had every reason to be afraid of this news and reject it. Instead, she wholeheartedly embraced God’s will and praised him for including her in his marvelous plans! God’s purpose was a greater reward to her than her own relationships, comfort, and security. Because she accepted everything God had for her, she became mother to the Messiah and got to know Jesus from his conception to his ascension - something no one else would ever experience! God has a unique assignment for you. He has magnificent plans for you. They may seem baffling or inconvenient or even impossible, but when you listen to the voice of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit in your life, and daily choose to surrender to his will, you will experience life with Jesus in a radical way!
PRAY: Lord, I ask that your will would be done in my life and that you would use me to glorify you and spread your love to others. I pray that your perfect will would be done through Restore and that your perfect plans for the women cared for through Restore would be accomplished. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
“By faith Moses, after his birth, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful and divinely favored child; and they were not afraid of the king’s (Pharaoh’s) decree.” — Hebrews 11:23 AMP
DAY 3
JOCHEBED: HER RESOURCEFULNESS PROTECTED THE VULNERABLE READ: Exodus 2:1-10; Hebrews 11:23 REFLECT: Who knew a little basket-boat made of papyrus and waterproofed with tar and pitch would save an innocent, divinely-favored child?! Jochebed proved not only her bravery by defying Pharaoh’s decree, but also her resourcefulness. She used what she had, in a rather unconventional way, to protect her child who would one day become Moses, the liberator of God’s people. In the same way, we can make a difference by simply using what we’ve got. God will never ask us to use what we don’t have, but you can always count on him asking for us to make the most of the opportunities we do have. Too often we underestimate the power of what we do have and overestimate the power of what we don’t have. We wish for more time, money, experiences, talents, and opportunities, believing that if we had those things we would be able to do something truly heroic in our lives. Jochebed’s bravery reminds us that we can do extraordinary things simply through resourcefulness. We don’t have to put off doing good, but we can each use our time, relationships, resources, and experiences to do good every day. And when we do, Jochebed reminds us that God uses our resourcefulness to bring his salvation and goodness to others.
PRAY: Lord, thank you for all that you have given me so that I can play a part in bringing forth your kingdom. I pray that I would make the most of every opportunity to spread the Good News of Jesus and to love people that are in front of me. I ask that gratitude would open my eyes to being resourceful with the time and gifts you have given me. I ask that the women Restore serves would develop resourcefulness in a life-giving environment, and that they would be able to live freely in their community and find safe work. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
“I promise you that as this wonderful gospel spreads all over the world, the story of her lavish devotion to me will also be mentioned in memory of her.” — Mark 14:9 TPT
DAY 4
THE WOMAN WHO ANOINTED JESUS: HER WORSHIP WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN READ: Mark 14:3-9 REFLECT: This woman, motivated by extreme devotion, broke her alabaster flask and poured precious oil over Jesus’ head. An alabaster flask would have been considered an item of luxury in Jesus’ day. And the perfume oil with which the woman anointed Jesus was extremely expensive. Some estimate that it would have cost a year’s wages for an average worker at the time. Her worship was both extravagant and costly. That kind of worship is sometimes met with criticism. It’s a worship that frustrates and shocks and offends. Jesus silenced the woman’s critics and publicly honored her for her worship. In fact, it was her audacious and misunderstood worship that Jesus promised would still be told today. Jesus’ response to this woman’s extreme gesture reveals to us just how important true worship is to our Savior. He desires worship that is real and raw, personal and authentic, costly and extravagant. He never wants our lip service or our religious obligations; he wants our very hearts. When our devotion becomes unrestrained and unapologetic, we become a message of God’s love to those around us.
PRAY: Lord, you have sacrificed everything for me. Your love towards me is perfect and complete. I am overwhelmed by your kindness and goodness. May I worship you unashamed and unrestrained. May you alone be worshipped in my life, and may my devotion to you be extravagant because you love me so extravagantly. I ask that Restore’s holistic care would reveal to survivors how extravagantly you love them, and that your love would bring healing and restoration to their lives. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
“Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.” — Esther 4:16 NIV
DAY 5
ESTHER: HER BRAVERY RESCUED HER PEOPLE READ: Esther 4 REFLECT: Esther was a woman who was in many ways living the dream. She was an exiled orphan who became a queen. Soon after becoming queen, her happily-everafter story took a dramatic turn. Her uncle Mordecai informed her that a highranking official in the king’s court had devised a plan to commit mass genocide and destroy all the Jewish people. Esther was afraid to intervene because it was against the law for anyone to enter the king’s inner court without first being summoned by the king. She knew that petitioning the king for the sake of her people would risk her life. Esther made a choice that in many ways we all must make, though the stakes may not always seem so high. We must choose daily if we will maintain our own comfort and ignore the needs of others or if we will boldly sacrifice and risk to advocate for those in crisis. Not only did Esther put her comfortable living on the line, but her very life. Because she did, God saved an entire nation from certain death. In the same way, when we use our voices for those who have none and do what we can to bring help and support to the vulnerable, we further God’s mercy.
PRAY: Lord, thank you that you have called me to such a time as this. Thank you for giving me opportunities to serve others. I pray you give me courage and opportunity to be an advocate for those abused and mistreated in our world and in my own city. And I pray that victims of sex trafficking right here in my own city would be set free and their lives restored powerfully and miraculously. And may you use me to be a voice of justice on their behalf. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
Jesus responded, “Beloved daughter, your faith in me has released your healing. You may go with my peace.” — Luke 8:48 TPT
DAY 6
THE BLEEDING WOMAN: HER FAITH LED TO HEALING READ: Luke 8:40-48 TPT REFLECT: This woman had been suffering from constant bleeding for twelve years. Her sickness had cost her all the money she had in doctors’ bills, and instead of growing healthier, she grew sicker. Because of her illness, she was deemed unclean by Jewish society. For twelve years, she was isolated and humiliated by her pain. But when she saw Jesus walking past her town, she did something drastic to get her healing. She pushed through the crowd to touch the hem of Jesus’ cloak. She believed that if she could simply touch Jesus, she would be healed. Not only did she receive healing, but Jesus affectionately called her “Daughter” and gave her his peace. He not only restored her body, but he restored dignity to her soul. In the same way, Jesus invites us to push through obstacles and difficulties to experience his healing touch in the places of our pain. No matter how long we have been suffering, no matter how deep the disappointment, no matter how overwhelming the obstacles, we too can experience the restoration and peace only Jesus can give.
PRAY: Lord, I believe it is your desire to heal and restore me in the places of my pain. I ask for you to bring healing and hope to my life both physically and spiritually. I receive the love you have for me as a child of God. I receive the peace and hope you give me. I also pray that through the work of Restore, many more women would be able to receive healing and hope in the deepest places of their pain. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
So there were many from the Samaritan village who became believers in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony: “He told me everything I ever did!” Then they begged Jesus to stay with them, so he stayed there for two days, resulting in many more coming to faith in him because of his teachings. — John 4:39-41 TPT
DAY 7
THE SAMARITAN WOMAN: HER STORY CHANGED A COMMUNITY READ: John 4:1-42 REFLECT: The Samaritan woman was shocked that Jesus, a Jewish rabbi, would speak with her, let alone offer her eternal life! She was the kind of woman with whom religious men didn’t associate. She had a poor history with men and her current romance was frowned upon by many. She was only drawing water from the well in the middle of the heat of the day to avoid the whispers and judgmental looks from other women in her village. And yet, Jesus offered her something she had always wanted - truth! Her experience with Jesus, though only a short conversation, had revolutionized her life! And she simply couldn’t keep quiet about it. She went back to her village and boldly spoke about Jesus. She was now eagerly sharing her story with the same people whom she was earlier trying to avoid. She was a changed woman who refused to keep her experience with Jesus a secret. Because she openly shared her story, many in her village also experienced the same radical love she had received. You have a story to tell and an experience with Jesus to share. It is simply too good to keep to yourself ! When you share your story of Jesus with others, your experience becomes a catalyst in the lives of others!
PRAY: Lord, thank you for what you have done in my life! Thank you for saving me and changing me with your love. May I have the boldness and the wisdom to share my experience of you with others. May my story be used to bring hope to others and draw them closer to you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
Our mission is to end sex trafficking in New York and restore the well-being and independence of foreign-national survivors.
REBUILDING THE LIFE INTENDED restorenyc.org