The Proverbs 31 Princess and her ghost writer. . .

God never ceases to amaze me.  He places certain people in our lives when He sees it will be good and profitable for His sake.  A few months ago, I was invited to mom's night in with three other beautiful women.  I knew two of the three, and by the end of the night, I had definitely made a new friend.  

Jenny is one-half of Flourish, a ministry to women, dedicated to seeing them "flourish" in their knowledge of God's Word.  I'm always in awe of women who have the courage to put themselves out there and pour themselves out.  Jenny is no exception.  We spoke about writing, encouraging, ministry and homeschooling and I counted it joy to get to know her.

A couple of weeks ago, I ran into Jenny at an event and she mentioned to me about possibly being a guest writer for her ministry.  The excitement never left me and I began to pray about what God would have me share, whenever that may be.

Well, this week, I had the honor and privilege of writing the devotional for Flourish. What God gave me was an incredibly powerful message to share about the Proverbs 31 Woman, clothed in regal gowns. I additionally have the opportunity to expand upon the teaching later this week.  I am grateful for the edits Jenny and Mindy made to my submission and, again, humbled to actually be asked to write in the first place!

As a woman who loves words, words, themselves, cannot express the joy I have in sharing what I believe is God's heart for His daughters.  It's why I blog.  It's why I believe in the material God gave me to write in my book (which is still a work-in-progress!)  Perhaps this is just the nudge I need to hunker down and get that project done.  Ghost-writing isn't necessarily my thing, but I guess, if God allows me to write a message that will touch the hearts of His people, I am glad to be the typing fingers that sends gets it out.

In the meantime, I'd love to share with you the message of "The Proverbs 31 Princess."  Please be sure to check out Jenny's ministry, which she leads with her friend, Mindy, at Flourish. Sign up for their weekly devotionals and their upcoming Proverbs study! You can join them on Facebook here and stay encouraged all week long! 

And, without further ado:

No matter where we are in our walk with God, many of us struggle with our identities. Although we have called on Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we still struggle with who we are in Christ. We know we have become a part of God's family, saved by grace, given mercy, and forgiven of our sins. Yet, for many of us, we still don't know what that means in light of the person we see in the mirror.

There are two truths I believe God wants you to take hold of today.

You are a princess in the Kingdom of God.

You may have heard this popular inspirational quote, "I am the daughter of a King who is not moved by the world for my God is with me and goes before me. I do not fear because I am His." We love the truths expressed here, especially when we are trying to lift each other up during times of trial. However, this is not just a "feel-good" meme for us to post on social media and the walls of our homes, but a truth that God wants us to take hold of deep in our spirits.

While there are many Scriptures that represent the truth of this quote, I'd like for you to consider one of my favorites, Psalm 45. While it describes the royal court, the writer directly speaks of God on his eternal throne (Psalm 45:6). Additionally, scholars attribute the Psalm as describing Christ's relationship to the Church which is described as the Bride of Christ. Verses 10 and 11 in the New Living Translation state:

"Listen to me, O royal daughter; take to heart what I say.
Forget your people and your family far away.

For your royal husband delights in your beauty;
honor him, for he is your lord."

(click on image to download printable scripture card)

Did you catch that? We are "royal daughters" in the Kingdom of God. He delights in our beauty! Dear friend, did you know that it's not just the beauty that can be seen with the eyes that makes our Heavenly Father rejoice over us? It is our inner beauty that brings Him such joy! In 1 Samuel 16:7, God says that He "doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

This brings me to the next truth I'd like to share with you:

You are the embodiment of the Proverbs 31 woman.

For many of us, including myself, we read about the Proverbs 31 woman and immediately disassociate ourselves from her. She is described as a "wife of noble character" (v. 10) whose "children stand and bless her" (v.28), and most of the time we hardly feel we fit that description. Consider with me, however, that no matter what season of life you are in, you are a combination of the two truths I have set before you:

You are a Proverbs 31 Princess

You may be asking how in the world I have come to this conclusion. In our culture of film and various media, we are bombarded with images of those with whom we would gladly exchange places. We oftentimes identify with one of the characters we've seen portrayed in Disney films, famous for their female heroines portrayed in stories of adventure and romance. Perhaps you are like one of these fictional princesses:

• The wayward daughter who longed to be someone other than who she was and be part of someone else's world.
• The daughter who was stripped of her wealth and status, demoted to scullery maid, desiring nothing more than to be valued and cherished as she had been in the past.
• The beauty who willingly risked it all to save the only family she had left and subjected herself to the "savage beast."
• The independent, strong-willed princess who longed for a destiny other than her own and was beguiled by the ways of her culture while she tried to change her fate.
• The princess who was hidden and raised as a peasant girl until the day she learned of her true heritage, yet still fell to victim the very circumstances from which she was originally protected.

I do not have to name them for you to identify with them. All of them have experienced some kind of ordeal. And, all of them had to reach down inside themselves to find their inner strength.

Let's view the five young women I have mentioned in light of Proverbs 31.

• Each one, in the midst of her trial, desired to be someone she was not; yet, she found that her circumstances formed a strength of character which was "more precious than rubies," regardless of her station in life. (v.11)
• Each suffered some kind of hardship, but persevered as she found she was "clothed with strength and dignity." (v. 25)
• Each had to deal with darkness in the heart of those who oppressed her, yet she brought "good, not harm" to those around her and found a way to "extend a helping hand" and "open her arms" to those in need (vv. 10, 20).
• While young in age, each girl dug deep within herself to speak "wise words with "kindness." (v.26)
• These girls were “energetic, strong, and hard" working regardless of their position. (v.17)

The difference between these fictional princesses and you and me is that we truly are daughters of the most High King. Each one of us possess what we need to be the woman described in Proverbs 31. You don't have to be married and have children to fit her description. We all endure hardship and possess strength, dignity and integrity, serve others with kindness, energy, strength and hard work. We each have been given the Spirit of God, which enables us to live out these qualities in everyday life. Romans 11:9 tells us "The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you.”

So, rejoice, dear sister! You are not just an ordinary woman going through the throes of life, destined to stay where you are. You are the jewel in your Father's crown! You are a Princess who is every bit the Proverbs 31 Woman.

As the Scripture says, "There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but YOU surpass them all!” Proverbs 31:29

Michelle Flaugh is a fourth-generation Russian Jew who became a believer in Messiah at the age of 25. While she grew up in Plano, Texas and has lived in numerous places, she calls Florence, Kentucky home. She is wife to Rob, momma to Kyra, and (step)mom to Cody and Amber. In addition to being a wife and mother, she homeschools Kyra and serves with several ministries. Her deepest passion is to share the heart of God with others so they can embrace their identity in Christ and learn to walk in the calling and purpose God has on their lives. She currently blogs, as the Lord leads, at Armsofgracejourney.blogspot.com.

Blessing in the Brokenness

For those of you who know me, my story may or may not be familiar to you.  I write because I am now at liberty to do so.  And, now, I can share why I have that liberty.  The journey is not over yet, as I am constantly being reminded that there is "Blessing in the Brokenness". . . 

"Broken"              

adjective bro·ken \ˈbrō-kən\

: separated into parts or pieces by being hit, damaged, etc.

: not working properly

: not kept or honored[1]

Broken.  Ponder that word for a minute.  What does it mean to be broken?  Have we ever really looked at that word?  It's definition seems so simple if we apply it to an object or a promise. 

But, what does it really mean to be broken?  Have you ever lived in that place?  What does brokenness look like?  I can tell you.  I used to live there.

Twenty-two months ago, almost to the day, I was broken.  Not just broken, but shattered.  My heart in a million pieces, I walked out of my house, said goodbye to my then six-year old daughter, and just walked away.  I turned my cell phone location services off and then on again.  I turned the cell phone off and on again.  Tears streaming down my face, all I could think of was does my daughter know how much I love her?  Will they tell her?  Will he, speaking of my husband, equally in a place of brokenness, tell her that I love her?  I just walked and cried.   My heart cried out to God, who seemed so far away.  My body moved forward towards the local hospital, the only destination I could focus on that could possibly bring me healing. I texted my husband.  I called my best friend, whom I could not immediately reach.  Moved forward by desperation, I walked 4.3 miles before my husband finally came to pick me up.  And, the sight of my precious daughter running out to me sent my grief deeper into my soul.  Numbly, I walked back to the van and climbed in.  Soon, my best friend called and before I knew it, she was sitting in my living room and then I was sitting in the emergency room on a 72-hour mandatory psychiatric hold.  I don't remember how long it was before the social worker, larger than life on the television screen before me, released me to her care.  As I walked out with her, all I knew was that I didn't know what would happen next and I felt nothing but despair.

The one conscious thought I had was to make a phone call to my husband's best friend. I thought I was calling for my husband, to ensure someone was there for him.  But little did I know how that one phone call would be the beginning of a journey that I can describe as nothing short of miraculous.  The door to the Ministry Of Miracles was opening to me and I didn't even know it.

Our dear friend followed in obedience and made a phone call.  This phone call lead to my husband making a phone call, then another.  And, finally, the instruction came to me.  "I want you to pray about when, not if, you are going to call Bari.  When, Michelle, not if.  Rob has already spoken to her.  She would like to speak to you, too."  I agreed to pray, nothing more.  It's all I could agree to.  Yet, praying seemed so shallow and fruitless. 

But, oh, my Father in Heaven still heard.  He heard the prayers of my husband and our friends and my first call was made two days later on a Saturday night.  "How are you feeling, Michelle?" said a cheerful, but confident voice on the other end of the line.  "Anxious," I said.  "No, you aren't feeling anxious.  You're feeling dread."  How did she know? It was like she could look through the phone directly into my soul.  I tried to shrink further into myself, arms crossed and on the defensive.  But, something pulled me out of that posture.  Someone.  Not just the voice on the other end of the line, but Someone bigger than the two of us.  SURRENDER.  I will never forget writing that word, while laying on my stomach like a teenager, and smiling and laughing.  A new work had begun and my world started to change. 

Today, I walk in liberty.  I stand tall as a Daughter of Zion, a Daughter of the Most High King, a Daughter of Destiny. But this is not just any destiny.  It is a powerful, purpose-filled Destiny that was created before the Earth was formed and my heart existed to possess it.  Today I am rooted in the Living Water that gives me life, the very breath I breathe given to me by the Holy Spirit, poured out over the hours upon hours of counsel, instruction and revelation through the Ministry Of Miracles' principle, Bari.  Strongholds have been broken.  I no longer live with a shattered heart. The chains that once bound me lie scattered behind me.  No longer an empty vessel, the clay from which I was formed has been reshaped and renewed and it now holds the blessings of being raised up and out of captivity.  The scales have long since been removed my eyes and I walk in the light of God's perfect love, perfected in His righteousness, only made possible by Jesus' death and resurrection.  Words simply are not adequate to describe the healing that has mended the broken places in my life. 

Oh, but the blessings were not reserved just for me.  My husband has received counsel and instruction and walks in greater freedom than ever before.  My daughter instantly bonded to Bari and grows closer to God with each passing day.  Gone are the damaged places that kept us in bondage. Hearts and minds that were once under oppression and not working properly, freed and full of life and joy.  No longer are we wounded, living in a fog, feeling dishonored, for we live in the reality of the blessing and honor we receive as children of our loving Heavenly Father. 

Romans 8:9 - 17 says:

"But you, you do not identify with your old nature but with the Spirit - provided the Spirit of God is living inside you, for anyone who doesn't have the Spirit of the Messiah doesn't belong to him. However, if the Messiah is in you, then, on the one hand, the body is dead because of sin; but, on the other hand, the Spirit is giving life because God considers you righteous. And if the Spirit of the One who raised Yeshua from the dead is living in you, then the One who raised the Messiah Yeshua from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit living in you. So then, brothers, we don't owe a thing to our old nature that would require us to live according to our old nature. For if you live according to your old nature, you will certainly die; but if, by the Spirit, you keep putting to death the practices of the body, you will live. All who are led by God's Spirit are God's sons. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to bring you back again into fear; on the contrary, you received the Spirit, who makes us sons and by whose power we cry out, "Abba!" (that is, "Dear Father!").  The Spirit himself bears witness with our own spirits that we are children of God; and if we are children, then we are also heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with the Messiah - provided we are suffering with him in order also to be glorified with him."[2]

Let's go back to that word, "broken."  Brokenness can be and is used by God.  Brokenness is necessary to the process of restoration.  Without being broken, we do not see the hidden places where anger, shame, bitterness, pain and sin hide.  Only when we are broken, can something new and beautiful be revealed.  A diamond's brilliance is not revealed until it has been broken from the layers of rock around it.  On the outside it is ugly and course, but once revealed and refined, we see it for what it really is - beautiful and precious.  Are we not God's precious jewels, born into an ugly and sinful world?  Reread Romans 8:9-17.  We are precious in the eyes of our Abba, Father, who sent His only Son to die a brutal death but was raised from the dead by the Holy Spirit to give us new life.  This new life must be born out of the brokenness that exists deep within our souls, the very brokenness that serves as the fertile ground on which the Holy Spirit cultivates and develops the roots that connect us to the Vine and sustains our lives.

Our blessings came not in place of, but because of and through the brokenness.  I needed to be broken for the Father to bring me to the Ministry Of Miracles.  I needed to be broken further in order to break free of the chains that bound me to the pain of my past.  The deepening bond of my heart to the Father's through the firm, yet gentle voice of Bari had to (and continues to) come as the Holy Spirit works in the depths of my soul through our calls.  And, oh, the overflowing joy!  The laughter and sharing as the Lord healed the hidden places in my husband and me over the last twenty-two months are beautiful and precious.  A song born in my daughter's heart, resonates within me as I reflect upon how even she has been reshaped and renewed though so young.

There is no shame in being broken.  For it is only when we are broken and humbled that we become teachable.  And, when we are teachable, the yearning in our souls is satisfied with the manna from Heaven, the Word made flesh, Jesus.  We can then enter His courts with praise and sing "Holy, holy, holy is ADONAI, God of heaven's armies the One who was, who is and who is coming!" (Revelation 4:8).[3]

Walk through the door.  The Father is waiting.  The Spirit is drawing.  The Ministry Of Miracles is the Ministry of the Miraculous.  I am living proof.  And, I praise Him with all that I am. 

For more information on the Ministry of Miracles, please visit www.ministryofmiracles.org.

[1] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/broken

[2] http://www.biblestudytools.com/cjb/romans/8.html

[3] http://www.biblestudytools.com/cjb/revelation/4.html