Writings from the Global Office

Empowering Lives with Purpose

INSPIRATION

What inspires you?

As we go through our day-to-day responsibilities and get caught up in the “busyness” of life, it is easy to lose sight of the inspirations that speak to our hearts, moving us forward with positive ideas. I am a creative person, and simply looking at nature – with its sights and sounds and sunshine - can inspire my creative gifting. But that inspiration is rooted in knowing God’s Word, which teaches us who God is and the beauty He has bestowed on this world. The stories in the Bible also motivate me, drawing me further into the Word of God for my inspiration. Scripture propels me forward every day, directing me to live an abundant lifestyle that has value. To me, that is true inspiration.

God wants us to experience abundant living, but often we are stuck in a rut with no inspiration to move us on to action. I hope I can inspire you by listing scriptures that might spark ideas of Godly inspiration into your life. After all, God’s Word tells us that All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us. (2 Timothy 3:16 NLT)

May these scriptures teach, inspire, and help you as you glean guidance from God’s Word.

1. KNOW WHERE YOU ARE HEADED. God’s Word will guide your footsteps.

Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me. (Psalm 119:133 NIV)

2. SEEK WISDOM.

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. (James 1:5 NIV)

3. FIND SUCCESS. If you follow God’s Word (The Bible), life works.

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. (Joshua 1:8 NIV)

4. OBEY GOD. You need to know God and His words to be able to obey them.

Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees, that I may follow it to the end. Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law and obey it with all my heart. Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. (Psalm 119:33-35 NIV)

5. LIVE IN PURITY. How can we live a lifestyle of holiness and purity without being cleansed by God’s Word?

How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. (Psalm 119:9 ESV)

6. HAVE JOY. You cannot be free of worry or unrest without God’s Word in your heart.

The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. (Psalm 19:8 NIV)

7. GROW YOUR FAITH. We cannot grow in our faith unless we read God’s Word.

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. (Romans 10:17 NIV)

8. EXPERIENCE FREEDOM. Abiding by God’s Word will set you free.

Jesus said, “If you hold My teaching, you are really My disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32 NIV)

9. HAVE PEACE. God will give us a peace that the world can never give, but you will not find that comfort without reading God’s Word.

Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble. (Psalm 119:165 NIV)

We should all be inspired to do something good today and every day we live. A terrific way to gain inspiration for this goal and to determine good from evil, since everything has become so relative, is to read God’s Word daily. For as the writer of Psalm 119 wrote, I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119:11 NIV)

May we all be inspired by the Word of God and allow it to spur us on to influence our world through our actions.

Kimberly Hobbs

Founder & Executive Director, kimberly@womenworldleaders.com, Ephesians 3:20

Biblical Profiles

LEAH

Have you ever felt unloved? Whether real or imagined, the feeling of being left out, unloved, or ‘less than’ can be painful. And that pain can send us swirling into depression or immobility. It can be easy to take small facts, or even subjective opinions, and spin them into beliefs about ourselves that keep us from becoming all that God has called us to be.

Leah, whose story is told in Genesis 29-35, could surely relate to those feelings as her self-esteem was beaten and battered throughout her life. From the outside, it may have looked like Leah had it all. She was the oldest daughter of Laban and the first wife of Jacob, an important position indeed. But those facts – the oldest and the first – don’t tell the whole story.

The first thing we learn about Leah is that she had weak eyes, but Rachel (her younger sister) had a lovely figure and was beautiful. (Genesis 29:17 NIV) Talk about an esteem-crushing comparison!

Jacob came to his uncle Laban’s house to find a wife – and he chose beautiful Rachel, Leah’s younger sister, whom he dearly loved. Rachel’s father offered to grant

Jacob Rachel’s hand in marriage in exchange for seven years of work, to which smitten Jacob willingly agreed. But Laban switched out his daughters on the wedding day, and Jacob married and consummated his marriage with the less desirable Leah, who was presumably forced to the altar with her face covered in veils.

Jacob was furious, so Laban then offered him both his daughters – in exchange for another seven years of work. So this oddly structured family began their lives together. Although Jacob always cared for Leah, he deeply loved Rachel.

One story in the Bible tells about when the family left the birth home of the sisters, heading into what could have been dangerous territory. Jacob coordinated the caravan so that Leah walked into danger ahead of his beloved Rachel. I cannot even imagine the amount of restraint and submission Leah had to conjure up that day!

You may be wondering then why I said that Leah was chosen. After all, Jacob chose Rachel to be his wife, and he chose to love and protect her over Leah.

Leah was chosen by God.

In a time when having children gave a woman honor, and in this family – the godly line of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – where lineage was of extreme importance, Leah became the matriarch of her generation.

When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive. (Genesis 29:31 NIV)

And then Leah, unloved and unsought after by worldly standards, conceived again and again. She had seven natural children in all – and she named each one with growing confidence.

First Reuben - Because the Lord has seen my misery. (Gen 29:32 NIV)

Then Simeon - Because the Lord heard that I am not loved. (Gen 30:33 NIV)

Next Levi - At last my husband will become attached to me. (Gen 29:34 NIV)

And then, with a sinking in of whose love matters most, Judah – This time I will praise the Lord. (Gen 29:34)

There is much more to Leah’s story and her battle for self-confidence and significance. But throughout her life, she never let rejection or what others thought of her derail her from who God called her to be. As we read what little we know about Leah, it is clear that she grows as she allows God to love her. Upon her death, Leah is laid to rest with Abraham and Isaac. And history remembers her as Judah’s mother – the line through which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was born. THAT is chosen!

Despite our beauty or lack thereof in the eyes of the world, despite who on earth does or doesn’t choose us, we can each walk with our heads held high as Leah did – because we, too, are chosen and dearly loved by our almighty Father in heaven. We can combat any downward spiral that threatens to engulf and immobilize us by remembering that we were created individually by a God who loves us more than we can imagine for a purpose that He determined for each of us.

Leah was chosen. By the One who matters. And that One has also chosen you.

You can trust that the God who chose you sees you and knows what you are going through. He loves you with a love that is beyond your understanding. He will provide you with an honor that no human ever could. He knows your heart’s deepest desires and yearnings, even those you don’t yet recognize. And our God, who is able, will care for you and love you and provide for you more than you can ask or imagine!

Take it from Leah.

God has chosen you. So keep walking. And keep holding close to Him – with the assurance that He will never leave you out; because you are loved more than you can possibly imagine.

Julie Jenkins

Teaching and Curriculum Leader, julie@womenworldleaders.com