"Deborah" by Gustave Dore
TO CHEW ON: "In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,
In the days of Jael,
The highways were deserted,
And the travelers walked along the byways,
Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel
Until I Deborah arose,
Arose a mother in Israel." Judges 5:6-7
A mother arising—I love that picture. I can identify with it, especially as it relates to mothers arising in defence of their children.
- Sarah was such a mother when she asked Abraham to expel Hagar and Ishmael from their home to guarantee that Isaac would be Abraham's sole heir (Genesis 21:9-13).
- Jochebed, Moses' mother, arose, albeit ever so secretly, to protect her infant son from Pharaoh's butchers (Exodus 2:1-3).
- Hannah's arising in the form of pleading prayers caused God to open her womb and she became the mother of prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 1:9-17).
- Bathsheba's arising took the form of a meeting with elderly King David to remind him of his promise to anoint Solomon as his successor, even as Solomon's brother Adonijah was organizing his own coronation (1 Kings 1:15-17).
But Deborahs's arising was on another level altogether. Her mother-heart embraced all the citizens of the nation as her children. The forsaken villages and deserted highways—emptied as people hid in fortifications for fear of Jabin and Sisera—outraged her. She, together with Barak and their army of 10,000 eventually routed Sisera and his iron chariots. He alone fled on foot to Jael's tent where she dealt the final blow (Judges 4:21).
As mothers we have tremendous influence. The proverb "The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world" is no idle saying. And that influence isn't only through the impact of our kids. It comes in other ways too. Have you noticed, for example, how many women have arisen, often out of personal tragedy, to form organizations that bring good things out of bad:
Candace (Candy) Lightner started Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) after a drunk hit-and-run driver killed her 13-year-old daughter.
Betty Fox formed the Terry Fox Foundation (an organization that raises money for cancer research) after cancer took the life of her son Terry.
Wilma Derksen was instrumental in bringing Child Find to Manitoba and started Victim's Voice, an organization that supports victims of crime, after her 13-year-old daughter Candace was abducted and murdered. (She tells her story in Have You Seen Candace?
)As mothers let's harness the powerful nurturing force within us by rising up first within our families, and then by following God's leading into other ventures in our communities and nations.
PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for the example of Deborah's mother-heart for her nation. Help me to take my place with all the godly mothers who have arisen to make an impact in their homes, their communities, their nations, and the world. Amen.
MORE: Wilma's story
In the 2011 100 Huntley Street video "Wilma Derksen—A Victim's Voice," Wilma and Cliff Derksen talk with Magdalene John about the impact of Candace's death, how God helped her through this time of unthinkable tragedy, and the good things that have come out of it.
The man accused and sentenced for Candace's murder in 2011 has since been retried and in October of 2017 declared not guilty. Read the Derksen's reaction to this development in "It's over for us" - (National Post).
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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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