The “R” In STWEARD
We're on to the sixth letter in our STEWARD series: R.
I am a redeemed, resilient, relentless representative for my King.
Notice the order. Redeemed comes first on purpose, because it's the fuel for everything else.
Redeemed
Do you remember who you were before Jesus? Or, if you've walked with Him since you were a kid, do you know what you'd be without Him?
I do. And I'm never getting over it.
Psalm 107:2 says, "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so." Not "let the redeemed think about it." Say so!
When I think about everything God has delivered me from, the pit He pulled me out of, the lies I believed, the messes I've made, the things that should have taken me out and didn't, I can't help but ask what the psalmist asked in Psalm 116:12: "What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me?"
Do you realize that He PICKED you?!?! And He’s so in love with you He’d pick you over and over again?
I don't know about you, but in elementary and junior high school when teams were picked I was always LAST. I was slow and wildly unathletic.
God CHOSE us. He paid our ransom. We are FREE if we choose to be.
I don't represent my King because I have to. I don't do this out of duty, or guilt, or because I'm trying to earn something. I do it because I have been so extravagantly loved and so completely rescued that being apathetic is not an option.
Gratitude is the engine. Everything else in this declaration runs on it.
Resilient
When you saw the statement at first, you might have been thinking… Dorothy, resilient and relentless…those are pretty much the same words. To me, they are far from the same!
Resilient means getting back up when you've been knocked down. It’s standing your ground, surviving setbacks, and integrating hard experiences into a healthier perspective.
It’s to defend and recover.
Not pretending you weren't knocked down. Not bouncing back like nothing happened. Getting up, with the hard thing woven into your story instead of hidden from it, and still standing.
Proverbs 24:16 says, "for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again."
Seven times, friend. The verse assumes you're going to fall. It just says you won't stay down.
Rejection, disappointment, a diagnosis, a season that flattened you, a prayer that didn't get answered the way you asked.
Life will knock you down. Resilience is what redeemed people have that everyone else is trying to manufacture: we know how the story ends because we know WHO is writing it!
Redeemed people get back up because we remember who picked us up first.
Relentless
Now here's the flip side. Resilient is what you do after a hit. Relentless is your attitude all the time.
Relentless is offense. It means you keep pushing forward, keep showing up, keep loving the people in your path, and you refuse to settle for "good enough" when God has more fruit He wants to create for you and through you.
God was relentless with us first and honestly THAT is where I get my drive from.
Remember the shepherd in Luke 15 who left ninety-nine sheep to go after the one? Remember the father who saw his prodigal son a long way off and ran down the road to meet him? That's the God who came after you. He didn't wait for you to clean yourself up. He didn't give up when you wandered. He pursued you, relentlessly, until you were home.
So when I keep seeking to take care of my body when I'm having setback after setback, when I keep speaking truth in a culture that doesn't want it, when I keep going after my assignment in the middle of opposition, I'm just using the relentlessness that was shown to me.
The most recent verse I wrote on a card is Psalm 56: 12 and 13:
I must perform my vows to You, O God:
I will render thank offerings to You.
For You have delivered my soul from death,
Yes, my feet from falling,
That I may walk before God
In the light of life.
Representative
A representative is someone who stands in for someone else. A few weeks ago we talked about being an emissary, sent with the full authority of the King. This is the heart behind it.
We represent Him well because we know Him well, and because of everything He has done for us.
2 Corinthians 5:14 says, "For Christ's love compels us." Compels. It pushes us from behind. It's not a burden. It's a current.
So here's my question for you this week:
When was the last time you sat down and actually thought about what God has redeemed you from? Not to feel guilty, but to BE grateful?
And if you did, what would change about how you show up on the hard days?
Maybe take ten minutes this week and write it down. Everything He's delivered you from. Everything He's brought you through. Read it out loud.
Then go be resilient and relentless, on purpose, because of Him.
In passionate purpose,
Dorothy
Father,
Thank You for redeeming me. For pulling me out of what should have taken me out. Let gratitude be the fuel that keeps me getting back up when I'm knocked down, and keeps me pressing forward when I want to quit. Help me represent You well, not out of duty, but out of joy. Make me as relentless in love as You were with me. In Jesus' mighty name, Amen.
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