Welcome to Wilco Wednesday! If you are a new around these parts, “Wilco” is Army-speak for “Will Comply.” Think of it as saying “Roger, God. Got it. Will do.” So that is what Wednesday here at 7 Days Time is all about– exploring his decrees and seeking guidance for what complying with Him looks like in everyday life. The best part? He loves us for who we are, not what we do. Remember: He doesn’t want perfection, just obedience. Share. Enjoy. Interact. And let’s respond to God’s call with a hearty “Wilco, Lord!”
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A bit of background for this first Wilco Wednesday Post: God has recently called me to fill the role at Spiritual Life 1st Vice President in our local Protestant Women of the Chapel (PWOC.) This was a message he placed on my heart for the vision of our organization. Not surprisingly, it applies to much more than our local PWOC– perhaps it applies to our personal walk with Christ!
I do not have a green thumb. I have tried all my life to grow various vegetation and the results were less than impressive. It was all I could do to keep Enrique the Spider Plant alive through college and Chloe the Peace Lily semi-sustained in the early years of army wife life. Fortunately, God hasn’t called me to a life of horticulture.
He has called me to a life of Jesus-culture, one that comes alongside other seekers and believers to encourage, build up and teach them as they find Him in their everyday. All my life, I have loved people, and in the last three and a half years in ministry, He has gradually cultivated a deep passion for the women who love Him.
As Spiritual Life Vice President, I envision experiences much like tilling the soil of a field. Seeds are ready to be planted. Jeremiah 17:7-8 in the Message says, “Blessed is the woman who sticks with God. She will be like a tree replanted in Eden, putting down roots near rivers—Never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit in every season.” That is where Lewis PWOC is right now. We are called to lead and teach these women the ways of Christ, to give them tools to follow Him.
We are called to break new ground and cultivate a culture of consistency, trust, love and authentic faith. We are called to establish a safe place in tune with the Spirit as we follow courageous yet compassionate leadership. It isn’t about schedule changes or tasks—it is all about touching and encouraging the hearts of PWOC women to know God at a deep, personal, life-sustaining level.
Throughout the next year, we will allow God to develop not only us as leaders but also those we have been called to shepherd. We will tend His baby green plant shoots that press upwards out of the darkness as they learn to abide and blossom in His presence. We will value spiritual growth as we water and tend His sweet crop.
We will value grace, authenticity, and precious moments together as sisters. We will crave time with Christ as we find Jesus in our everyday and watch Him move in miraculous ways. We will value the God-given opportunity to build-one another up in the Most Holy faith through loving ALL women of Lewis PWOC: The loud, the quiet, the bold, the tender, the healing, the broken, the confident, the uncertain. “God will create a new thing in this land: A transformed woman will embrace a transforming God.” (Jeremiah 31:22 MSG)
This time next year, we will look at what was once a barren field and see that it has been transformed by the grace and guidance of Jesus into a harvest that is ripe. We will yearn for an ever-deepening relationship with Him, knowing that our journey is not complete until we cross the threshold of heaven. We will embrace the truth that He doesn’t expect perfection from us, only obedience. We will know that cultivating a life for Christ is not just a head thing—it is a heart thing.
There will be consistency. Rest. Security. Peace. Hope. Support. We will raise up and send out new tillers, planters and harvesters into the mission field across the world as they fulfill their call to love a military service member and share God’s life-saving news with all they encounter. New leaders will courageously stand to serve after experiencing the fruit from involvement with PWOC. We don’t have to possess a green thumb to encounter an abundant harvest. We must simply have a willing heart.
So friends: What from the above vision strikes your heart the most? In what ways does it challenge you? Encourage you? Join the conversation and leave a comment below.
Sweet sisters, I am so excited for how God is moving within both 7 Days Time and PWOC (And honestly a bit surprised–although I know I shouldn’t be– by how He is working them in conjunction with one another.) Gear up as we live out this vision in 2015 and invite other sisters and Christ to share their hearts here each week at Wilco Wednesday.
Let’s embrace this vision and respond to God’s heart nudges with a hearty (pun intended) WILCO, My Father!
Roger that, Lord.
“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” –Jeremiah 6:16
Linking up today with my friend Kristin over at Three-word Wednesday and having a little Coffee for your Heart with Holley. Oh! And be sure to join our #EverydayJesus link-up community right here at 7 Days Time every Thursday!
