February 18

Deborah

            At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you, ‘Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.’” Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” And she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh.

Judges 4: 4-9

            Before Israel was a kingdom…before the ascension of generals and kings and prophets…God led His people through judges.  Scripture says,

“Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he delivered them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge.” Judges 2:18

The fourth recorded Judge was a woman named Deborah.  There are several notable things about Deborah that she is not:

·         She is not a warrior.  Deborah is not going to be on the front lines of the battle, cutting down enemies with her mighty blade.  She was not even planning on attending Barak’s battle.

·         She is not highly educated.  Deborah would not have been enrolled in schooling for law or theology or military tactics, yet the nation came to her to solve their disputes and get her advice.

·         She is not rich.  She holds court not in a palace, but under a tree.  Deborah’s tree to be exact.

·         She is not a man.  In this culture, at this time, having a woman with this kind of influence and power was unheard of.  She is not simply advising her husband.  She is not just one of many voices, she is the Judge and is respected so deeply that Barak refuses to go into battle without her in attendance.

Clearly God’s power and wisdom are present within her and the people recognize it.  Even though she does not fit the Ancient World’s expectations of a ruler, she is honored and she is obeyed because she is faithful to God’s voice.

            At the heart of social services in this country are women.  The front lines of case workers and care providers and medical staff and therapists are predominantly filled with women.  Nonprofits are primarily led and staffed by women.  It has been common for me to attend community meetings for nonprofit leaders and find myself as the only man in the room.  I have learned how to talk with and listen to and work with women and what I have found is that many, many women still serve from the shadows; some by choice and some because that is all the recognition that they can get.  The non-profit sector is not where you go to get famous.  Social Services is not a career path for those who are looking for recognition or wealth. 

            The non-profit sector is largely reactionary.  It finds the needs that are not being met by for-profit businesses or government services and fills them.  It creates services for the homeless and immigrants and the IDD community and health care and the arts and higher education and local sports and faith communities…all the things that are not easily profitable and that the government does not want to staff.  Non-profits depend on community.  They rely on finding staff who are willing to work for below market wages because they are committed to the cause.  They rely on finding partners who will give of their time and money to help the mission succeed.  If there is not community support, the non-profit organization withers and dies.  The sector needs people who see the gaps in society, who recognize unmet needs what the community is hungry for.  It needs people with the creativity and conviction to solve those issues.  It needs powerful networkers to find and inspire partners.

            Most often those qualities are found in the women of our communities.  Just like Deborah, they defy the expectations of traditional leadership and offer wisdom that brings justice and life to their people.  As a man, this culture presents me a choice.  I can honor the leadership of these women or I can reject it and go my own way, confident that my ideas are superior.  My encouragement to my brothers is to follow the path of Barak.  Listen to widom.  Honor the women who are striving to serve your children and make our society a better place.

           

A moment to reflect:

How can you honor the women who have impacted your child’s lives?