Jun 03 2020 9 mins 3
How do we handle chaos around us? What do we do when it seems the world has gone astray, when everyone is going their own way, when no one seems to know which way to turn? In today’s world of chaos and confusion, what do you do? Where do you turn? How do you find the answers? In today’s episode of All God’s Women we take a look at Deborah, a woman who became the voice of calm in her world of chaos. We find Deborah’s story in the book of Judges. If you’re looking for an uplifting read, the book of Judges is probably not for you. It’s a gory book filled with vile behaviors. It covers a time period much like modern days. Judges opens with the death of Joshua and explains how the Israelites failed to follow God’s instructions to defeat the enemy nations but instead chose to intermingle, to intermarry, and to intertwine with the pagans. They lost sight of who they were, and God allowed them to become oppressed by their enemies. For over 200 years, the children of Israel followed a pattern. They did evil in the sight of the Lord. He gave them over to their enemies. They cried out to God for mercy. He raised up Judges to deliver them, and while they listened to the judges, they experienced times of peace. But once the judge died, they’d go back to their old ways, behaving even more corruptly than before. In the midst of the chaos and terror, lived a housewife named Deborah, an unassuming woman, married to an obscure man. But Deborah was a prophetess. God spoke to her and she listened. And she shared what He said to those around her. In today’s world of chaos and confusion, God needs calm women and men to stand strong, to remain steadfast in their faith, to keep their eyes focused on Him, and to be willing to serve Him however asks. Scripture Background Judges 4-5 Additional Reading Portraits of Bible Women by George Matheson Wicked Women of the Bible by Ann Spangler The Unique World of Women by Eugenia Price The Modern Reader’s Bible A Woman God Can Use by Alice Mathews Women of the Bible by Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda Every Woman in the Bible by Sue and Larry Richard All the Women of the Bible by Herbert Lockyer All of the Women of the Bible by Edith Deen The Woman’s Study Bible
