Sisterhood SecretSmakprov

Sisterhood Is Transformational

“We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too” (I Thessalonians 2:8).

In 1 Thessalonians 2:8, Paul describes what I sometimes call life-on-life discipleship. Sharing not only the Good News but his life meant that Paul pleaded with them, encouraged them, and urged them to live their lives in godly ways. Has anyone ever invested in you that way?

As a university student, my life was a mess. With my Christian crowd, I would pray and praise. With my field hockey and my dorm crowds, I would date wealthy married men. My hypocrisy was exhausting me. Then I heard a knock at my door. Normally I escaped the older woman who knocked on my door every Thursday evening, but on this night, I let Joyce in. “If you’re willing, I’d like us to discover God’s love and plans together,” she said. Every week after that, Joyce shared life with me.

In the two and a half decades since that first knock on my door, not only has an older woman continued to grace my life, but I have become an older sister to almost 50 younger women. This sisterhood has changed my life. It has also changed my sisters’ lives, their families’ lives, and countless lives in our communities. As we follow the Apostle Paul's example of sharing our lives, sisterhood will be the secret to sparking transformation.

Paul commended the Corinthian believers for following the teachings of Christ he passed on to them. As he shared his life with them, he challenged them to imitate what they saw. As you pour your life into a younger sister, and she patterns her life after yours, you will be able to say like Paul, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). I invite you to open up your heart and your home to a younger woman, to share experiences, activities, wisdom, hopes, and frustrations. 1 John 3:16 challenges us to "give up our lives for our . . . sisters." Your life can become a ramp leading a young lady onto the highway of wholeness and holiness. God is ready to send you out to be a catalyst in younger sisters' lives.

Reflection

As you reflect prayerfully over your life, who are the older women who encouraged you in the faith? Thank God in prayer for each one of them. Ask God to reveal to you younger women around you with whom you can share your life and faith. Ask God to give you the courage to begin a sisterhood relationship with them.