THE STAND
“Just go ahead and hit me! I’m tired of you saying what you are going to do to me. Yeah, you beat me before– but no more! Not today! Not today! If you have the balls to do it, just do it and get it over with! But just know that if you do, one of us gonna die today and God told me to go to church tomorrow!”
She had had enough. She was no longer afraid of the punch. She knew that the fear of the blow was worse than the real thing. And today was the day she decided to stop fearing and start standing. But there was more, that bible verse her neighbor gave her kept coming to her mind. “You deliver me from the violent man.” It turned over and over inside her head like the clothes in a dryer. With each tap against the dryer wall, courage came like bricks stacking atop the mortar of a fence. She was finally drawing a line.
A decisive courage to stand up for herself rose in her heart. “I am better than this. I will not run and hide! I refuse to be beaten down. I will not bow and cower. I will stand and yes, I will fight.”
For the first time there was a fire in her eyes, he had never seen before. She seemed taller and stronger. Her words came out slowly like the low rumble of a storm on the horizon. Her head tilted to the side like a snake poised to strike. Who is this woman?
What has happened to his punching bag. The old woman was gone. In her stead, a warrior was rising.
All of a sudden, her attacker felt very small. He backed down turned and walked away for the last time.
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In what ways have you been cowering to fear?
Where do you need to stand up for yourself?
What have you been beaten down by?
When will you take a stand?
Father God, we pray that you give our friend CHAYIL COURAGE to stand up for herself. May she find the strength to defeat every foe. May she rise up to the full measure of her potential in you, In Christ Name we Pray, amen.
And in that moment a new woman emerged.