I’m getting ready to tell you something about yourself that you probably didn’t know. Are you ready? You, lady, are a disruptor.
“Wait, what?”
Yes, you’re a disruptor. I don’t mean that in the context that modern society looks at disruptors. No, no, no. YOU are a disruptor in the sense that you are a history maker, a bold voice in the wilderness, you’re counter-cultural, and you were built to shift the narrative.
Celebrating Black History Month this year is truly one for the books: We have our first Black female vice president! Little girls around the United States, dare I say the world, are looking at someone that looks like them in such a prominent position. And yet, Madam Vice President Kamala Harris, and Michelle Obama, have used fashion, pantsuits, fist bumps, chucks, and pearls to help us relate and connect with them. These two women are disruptors. They are both counter-cultural history makers. Even with all the battles they won and lost, the negative comments hurled at them, the difficult scenarios they had to face, they still came out smiling, joyous, and with their heads held high because they were shifting the narrative. And you can too!
You may be thinking “Tamara, I don’t have anything close to the degrees, connections, or power that these two women have.” Let me introduce you to Abigail.
Abigail is a woman in the bible that is described as very intelligent AND beautiful (1 Sam. 25:3) Abigail was a woman that didn’t have degrees, connections, rank, or power. What she DID have was the Spirit of the Lord that gave her a boldness to approach the up-and-coming King David, in a time where approaching the king could cost you your life. Let me give you some context for her actions.
Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s men went and told Abigail, “David sent men from the wilderness to talk to our master, but he insulted them and railed at them. But David’s men were very good to us and we never suffered any harm from them...You’d better think fast, for there is going to be trouble for our master and his whole family—he’s such a stubborn lout that no one can even talk to him!”
Then Abigail hurriedly took two hundred loaves of bread, two barrels of wine, five dressed sheep, two bushels of roasted grain, one hundred raisin cakes, and two hundred fig cakes, and packed them onto donkeys. - 1 Samuel 25: 14-18
Abigail did not rely on someone else to save her household. She took matters into her own hands. She was on her feet and created a plan quickly. She also didn’t come to the king empty-handed. With a boldness in her spirit and a plan with provisions, she stepped boldly to the king.
When Abigail saw David, she quickly dismounted and bowed low before him. “I accept all blame in this matter, my lord,” she said. “Please listen to what I want to say. Nabal is a bad-tempered boor, but please don’t pay any attention to what he said. He is a fool—just like his name means...When the Lord has done all the good things he promised you and has made you king of Israel, you won’t want the conscience of a murderer who took the law into his own hands! And when the Lord has done these great things for you, please remember me!” - 1 Samuel 25: 23-31
Knowing it could cost her her life, and the life of her household, Abigail spoke up, explained the problem, and offered a new perspective: David didn’t want bad blood on his hands as the up-and-coming king of Israel. She didn’t need a degree, connections, or titles to assist her in showing someone a new perspective. All she needed was the boldness of God that was on her side. For this, she was favored.
David replied to Abigail, “...Bless you for keeping me from murdering the man and carrying out vengeance with my own hands. For I swear by the Lord, the God of Israel who has kept me from hurting you, that if you had not come out to meet me, not one of Nabal’s men would be alive tomorrow morning.” Then David accepted her gifts and told her to return home without fear, for he would not kill her husband. - 1 Samuel 25: 32-35.
So, I’ll ask you this: Who’s life could possibly be in danger because you’re afraid to speak up? Whose household could be saved from spiritual, emotional, physical, or financial despair by your disruption, your boldness? You don’t need what the world says you need to be a history maker. That spirit resides IN you, but YOU have to be the one to take the first step in impacting your world.
Maybe, you’re on the opposite end of the spectrum. Maybe you have connections, degrees, and power but you feel discouraged as a woman in corporate America. Because while we know that times are changing, it’s still moving at a gentle pace. Let me introduce you to Deborah.
Deborah is a perfect example of a woman being able to make the bacon, fry it up, and eat it too. She was a wife, a judge, a prophetess, and a well-respected leader of Israel. In a time of war for Israel, Deborah prophesied their victory and, because of God, walked boldly into purpose and was not ashamed to say so.
Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided. She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead them up to Mount Tabor. I will lead Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.’”
Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”
“Certainly I will go with you,” said Deborah. “But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. - Judges 4: 4-9
Many people talk down upon Barak and believe him to be a coward because of what he said. On the contrary, Barak was a wise man. He knew that with God and this powerful and courageous woman of God, there was no way he could lose. You’ve trained, studied, and worked hard to get where you’re at. But the main thing you have on your side is God. He is the One that anoints you with clarity, vision, and plans. Without you, things would not get done. There would be no follow-through. The mission would not be accomplished successfully. So, who’s losing because they don’t have your presence? What battles could be conquered if you just “went with them”? Corporate America can be tough; I know this from experience. But our God is mighty, and He knows how to lead you to victory.
No matter which end of the spectrum you may stand-in, you were created for such a time as this. Michelle Obama and Vice President Kamala Harris are two modern-day examples that followed the bold and courageous examples of Abigail and Deborah. What makes you think you’re not next? It’s time to embrace your disruptor spirit. It’s time to walk boldly. It’s time to embrace the spirit that God has placed in you to bless and empower others. And the great news, it’s already in you, lady. It’s time for you to turn the world upside down.