This past summer was one for the books: the good and bad, highs and lows, and proof that growing up never seems to get any easier. In a world where the days are fast and the nights are faster, it is always good to have the proverbial “wake up call” to help us remember what we’re here for.
At a time in my walk when I’m consumed with “life”- up to my neck in academics, drowning in duties, and dying to tackle my to-do list- the only thing I truly needed and was unknowingly desperate for was Jesus. I had been praying for a breakthrough, but I knew I needed something because I wanted to hear Him so badly, but it seemed as though my prayers to hear the voice weren’t getting past the ceiling.
Fortunately soon after, I was given a flyer at Sorority Community Bible Study for an event called Girls’ Night Out. Excited to go, I was joined by several of my Delta Sigma Theta sisters. And what I heard gave me a completely new perspective on life. The speaker, Marian Jordan-Ellis, who I found out later was the President of Redeemed Girl Ministries, stood boldly before hundreds of young, eager women at The University of Southern Mississippi and told her testimony. At the time, I admired her bravery and her spiritual growth. Later, I learned that the testimony that we have isn't and will never be for us. It is for others, which probably explains why young women all over the nation are led to Christ through the Girls’ Night Out event.
At the event, I picked up a flyer for Redeemed Girl Institute that described the event as a week-long discipleship training in Destin, Fla. I put the flyer on my refrigerator, saying that if I still wanted to do this later, I would apply. Thank God, He led me to the best experience of my entire life. For the first time, I really learned what it means to live purposefully as an Oak of Righteousness.
I am so excited for what the Lord is doing through Redeemed Girl Ministries. I’m so blessed to have had this wonderful experience to take me further on my walk, and closer to Jesus. I realize that without Him, we will always be searching for someone or something that can fill an insatiable void that only our Lord and Savior can occupy. My Jesus.
By Jazmyne Butler
