Latest / Arise Women of God / Empowered Partnerships: Lessons from Priscilla's and Aquila's Joint Ministry
Transcript
- 0:00Can you juggle being a successful business woman and your church responsibilities or ministering to other people?
- 0:10How do you do that?
- 0:11Do you do that?
- 0:11Well, sometimes we as women wear so many hats.
- 0:15It's putting the right one on at the right time.
- 0:17And today we're going to learn from a wonderful woman in the New Testament how she did this and was able to powerfully influence the those around her.
- 0:27So stay tuned.
- 0:31Are you a woman who knows God is calling you to something more, but you're unsure where to start or how to grow it into something impactful?
- 0:40You are not alone, and you're in the right place.
- 0:44Welcome to the Arise Women of God podcast, a show for Christian women who feel called to shine his light and step into their divine purpose.
- 0:53Each week you'll hear stories of faithful women, both from the Bible and today, who heard God's voice and chose to say yes even when it felt uncomfortable or uncertain, to step with faith into the unknown.
- 1:08You'll walk away with encouragement, spiritual insight, and practical steps to follow those holy promptings in your own life.
- 1:17So let's arise together as women warriors of light.
- 1:21Let's do it God's way, God's strong.
- 1:28Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Arise Women of God podcast.
- 1:32I'm your host, Tamara K.
- 1:34Anderson, and joining me today are two amazing women.
- 1:38First of all, my co host, Bonnie Randall.
- 1:41Bonnie, thank you so much for being with us today.
- 1:44Thanks for having me on.
- 1:45I love this new podcast and the mission of it and diving even deeper into these other women and.
- 1:53Oh, I'm excited.
- 1:54Thanks for having me.
- 1:55Absolutely.
- 1:57And wonderful.
- 1:58Tiffany Fletcher.
- 1:59Tiffany is a member of our Women warriors of Light advisory board.
- 2:02Tiffany, thank you so much for being here today.
- 2:06Thank you for having me.
- 2:06I'm just excited to be here.
- 2:09Okay, ladies.
- 2:11We are excited to dive into a woman in the New Testament that we don't hear a lot about, but she was a woman who had a powerful influence and.
- 2:22And her name is Priscilla.
- 2:26And just a little bit, we're going to dive into some of these verses about Priscilla, but I wanted to let you know one thing.
- 2:34She is always mentioned with her husband Aquila, and they were always mentioned together.
- 2:44And so I thought I would kick us off by reading a couple of verses if you want to follow along.
- 2:51We are in Acts, chapter 18, and this is Paul.
- 2:58And it says in verse two that Paul found.
- 3:03He departed from Athens and came to Corinth.
- 3:06And that's where we pick it up.
- 3:07And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus lately come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, and he came unto them, and because he was of the same craft, he abode with them and wrought, for by their
- 3:25occupation, they were tent makers.
- 3:29And so I love first of all here that we have that Priscilla didn't sit idle.
- 3:36She worked with her husband making tents, right?
- 3:40She was a businesswoman and worked side by side with him.
- 3:46And then if you skip down, I'll read a couple these verses and then we'll just dive deep into what you guys liked best.
- 3:54In verse 18, it says, and Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, so he hung out with them, so they must have been well enough to do, to host him.
- 4:06And we'll read a little bit more about that.
- 4:08But it says, and then took his leave of the brethren and sailed thence to Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila, having shorn his head in centuria, for he had a vow.
- 4:21So guess what?
- 4:23Not only were they successful businessmen and business women, they traveled with Paul as he went to minister to other people.
- 4:34And we'll get to the next verses in just a little bit, but let's pause right there and just say, any thoughts on these verses here?
- 4:44Let's start with you, Tiffany.
- 4:47Yeah, I have a lot of thoughts.
- 4:48First of all, I didn't realize that Paul was a tent maker until I read this.
- 4:52I thought that that was so cool to know that he was a tent maker.
- 4:55But also imagine because they were the same also tent makers, they must have been really good friends.
- 5:02He knew he could live with them, he knew he could count on them.
- 5:04But I love, I looked up about the tent maker life and what that was like back then.
- 5:11And the tent maker life is they would go from place to place, they would be in the place, they would be in people's homes.
- 5:17They would help me building these tents.
- 5:19And what a great opportunity for them to minister to people along the way.
- 5:23They had so many opportunities to talk with people and to share the gospel with them and to testify of Christ in natural ways as they were just going about their business, creating this safe space for people to, to
- 5:39come to know the gospel and to know Jesus Christ.
- 5:43And I, I really love that.
- 5:45I, I imagine Paul, same thing.
- 5:47And, and for them to be traveling together, they must have been in his inner circle and very much trusted at a time when women, let's be honest, women were not seen as, as they, they were kind of forgotten
- 5:59a lot of times because men were kind of the ones that were carrying the, the gospel, right?
- 6:05But for her to Be there right alongside her husband.
- 6:08And also Paul showed how valuable she was to.
- 6:11To both of them to.
- 6:13In her ministry.
- 6:15Yeah, love that.
- 6:16Thank you so much, Bonnie.
- 6:18I agree.
- 6:18Tent maker is kind of actually a term that a lot of Christians use to mean a minister, someone who is creating a church in their home.
- 6:28And they incorporate their livelihood and their home space with church and ministry and missionary work and things like that.
- 6:41So it's kind of a fun metaphor.
- 6:42Also, that word also jumped out to me, Tiffany, when I was reading, and I thought there's significance here.
- 6:49So I went and researched it too.
- 6:51Like the other thing to.
- 6:53To know about Priscilla, I knew that she was in the Bible when you gave me this assignment, but I didn't know who she was.
- 7:04So I got to do a ton of research, which was awesome because I got to read all these different commentaries on her life.
- 7:12And one person, I went and checked and make sure this was right mentioned that she has is mentioned about six times in the Bible, and four of those times she's mentioned first.
- 7:25And this particular scholar notes how important of a detail that is, because usually if there's a couple mentioned, the man is mentioned first.
- 7:35And as Tiffany touched on, it's because in that culture, right, men typically take the forerunner role.
- 7:42They're leading out.
- 7:44They're the provider, right.
- 7:45Like, rarely do even hear about their wives and rarely do even hear about women.
- 7:51But the fact that she was mentioned first four of their four of the six times suggests that she actually had a prominent role in this ministry.
- 8:02And the more I prayed and dove into that, the more I actually began to really identify with her.
- 8:13Not saying that my husband takes a back seat by any means, because he doesn't.
- 8:18But it got me thinking about my own ministry and what my husband and I are building together and the partnership.
- 8:25And I just, I really spent a ton of time researching her because I felt like there's a lot of lessons here for me personally, not just for our audience.
- 8:37So I can't wait to kind of dive into some of that too.
- 8:40It's exciting.
- 8:42Love, love, love that.
- 8:44And I'm going to read just a few more verses so that we can really dive in, because there's.
- 8:49There's a few other verses here that really help us get a little bit more of a flavor, and then we'll just talk.
- 8:57So while Aquila and Priscilla were traveling with Paul, they ended up listening to a man named Apollos.
- 9:06And this is in Acts, chapter 18, verses 24 through 26.
- 9:10And he was standing up.
- 9:12He'd Been instructed in the baptism of John, and he was standing up and he was teaching to the people.
- 9:20And I love what we learned from what they did.
- 9:23It says that he was speaking boldly in the synagogue.
- 9:27And when Aquila and Priscilla heard this, they took him unto them and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.
- 9:38I love it.
- 9:39Sounds like they listened to everything he had to teach, and then they pulled him aside afterward and said, let us add something to what you have right there, and let us teach you about the role of the Savior
- 9:55and add to your knowledge of who he is in John the Baptist.
- 9:58And I love it.
- 9:59It says that they took him unto them.
- 10:01So it was of them that they both ministered together.
- 10:07So there is a role for women in ministry to teach and expound.
- 10:14I'm going to read three more verses and then we'll just open it up for a complete discussion.
- 10:19And I'm going to take you to Romans, chapter 16, verses three through five.
- 10:25And this is Paul speaking to the saints in Rome at this time.
- 10:30And it says, greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus.
- 10:36So it sounds like they must have traveled to Rome by this point.
- 10:40And this is beautiful.
- 10:41Who have for my life laid down their own necks, unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles likewise greet the church that is in their house.
- 10:55So right there we know that they are housing the church.
- 10:59How neat is that?
- 11:01That they would open their doors and that they were blessed enough financially to be able to do that.
- 11:08Right.
- 11:08That God had blessed their business and they were not stingy with it.
- 11:13They were giving.
- 11:15So I'm going to pause right there.
- 11:17Those are the verses we wanted to cover.
- 11:19And just let us go wherever God guides us in this discussion.
- 11:23So I'm going to open the discussion back up.
- 11:25Bonnie, why don't we kick it off with you?
- 11:27What would you like to point out here from what we've read?
- 11:31Okay, first of all, it's important to note that Apollos came from Alexandria.
- 11:39And so just from a context standpoint, that's an important thing to know, because Apollos wasn't just some random preacher.
- 11:48Okay.
- 11:48He was most likely learned because Alexandria is where we know had all of the libraries.
- 11:57It was a very scholarly place.
- 11:59A lot of the theologians and philosophers and schol congregated there.
- 12:05It was a cultural place with tons of different backgrounds and religious and just everything.
- 12:11It was a melting pot.
- 12:12And so he likely had a vast knowledge of all these different things.
- 12:18Okay.
- 12:19And so when he was preaching up there, and he was likely eloquent.
- 12:24And I just kind of picture this charming, charismatic guy who is just attracted to followers.
- 12:32And here comes Priscilla and Aquila, and they start listening.
- 12:36And I love that they weren't intimidated by him.
- 12:41They weren't intimidated by his knowledge where he was from.
- 12:44Who knows whether he was dressed nicely or not.
- 12:47I don't know.
- 12:47But the beautiful part of them gently correcting, and instead of publicly rebuking him and shaming or humiliating him, they took him unto themselves, which suggests that they invited them him into their home, and they probably communed with him
- 13:07and gave him a meal and all those hospitality things.
- 13:09Right.
- 13:10That I, I, I like to kind of picture her as that kind of person.
- 13:14Right.
- 13:15Just the little bit that we know about her creating a church in her home.
- 13:18And so she likely was this very hospitable woman.
- 13:23And then they gently corrected and expanded, and he went on to be one of the most profound influencers in Christendom.
- 13:33Like, he helped spread.
- 13:35And same with Paul, right?
- 13:37Like, those two are for that early history.
- 13:41And yet Priscilla and Aquila kind of just fade into the background.
- 13:46But that, to me, was a sign of.
- 13:49We, right, might not have some prominent preacher role or a missionary or be these podcast hosts like Tamara, but we might kind of take more of a background role.
- 14:04And that's okay.
- 14:05We can still be influential.
- 14:07We can still support and build a ministry and do our calling.
- 14:12We don't have to be these big glowing superstars to have an influence on the world.
- 14:18And that's like, that part of the story that you just mentioned really stuck out to me for that reason.
- 14:23Like, it's okay that I'm just Bonnie.
- 14:26Like, that's, it's all right.
- 14:27Like, that's good.
- 14:28That's what he needs me to be, is be me.
- 14:31I love that.
- 14:32Thank you so much for diving in and giving us a little more background on Apollos.
- 14:36I love that you did that.
- 14:37Thank you, thank you, thank you.
- 14:39Tiffany, anything that you'd like to draw out?
- 14:42Yeah, I, I agree with Bonnie.
- 14:44I had those same thoughts.
- 14:46I love how they were always in the right place at the right time to do what God needed them to do.
- 14:52They were there to help Apollo, and again, they were very humble in how they approached him.
- 14:57They were very loving and kind and privately took him to themselves.
- 15:03That means that they really minister to him.
- 15:05Right.
- 15:06It wasn't just like, hey, you know what?
- 15:07Jesus is here.
- 15:08You don't need to talk about John the Baptist anymore.
- 15:10That guy he was talking about he's already here, right?
- 15:12Like, like they just loved him and like Bonnie said, and carefully shared the gospel more perfectly.
- 15:20I love that, that they, they showed him the way, expanded unto him the way of God more perfectly because he had a wonderful understanding like Bonnie said.
- 15:29But to know Christ was a more perfect way than what he knew and what he was preaching.
- 15:35And I love that they were just in the right place at the right time to be able to help give him that little piece of information that he was missing so that he could go on and testify boldly
- 15:45of Jesus Christ throughout the world.
- 15:47And because even says, it says for he mightily convinced the Jews and that publicly showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.
- 15:55So then he became a powerful ally of Christ and helped spread the gospel throughout the world.
- 16:00Once he knew Christ, he then became an ally.
- 16:03They basically brought him to Christ.
- 16:05And it's the same that the scripture about Paul where Paul says, you know, they risked their life for me again in the right place at the right time to rescue someone that is very important in spreading the gospel
- 16:17of Jesus Christ.
- 16:18So in their humble way, they weren't these big preachers like Bonnie said.
- 16:22Like they didn't have this platform, they didn't have this calling.
- 16:25What their calling was was to be in the right place at the right time to help the right person receive what they needed so that they could move on in their mission.
- 16:35And I really, really love that.
- 16:36I think sometimes we think that we have to be the Pauls of the world.
- 16:40You know, we think that we have to be the forerunners.
- 16:43But God doesn't need all of us to be prophets.
- 16:46He doesn't need that many prophets, right?
- 16:48He.
- 16:49There's.
- 16:49There's much fewer prophets than there are people who are just willing to support people who have talents that are like, I don't know, edit video editing or talents that are like, you know, social media or talents that are
- 17:01just being there and giving people the right information at the right time so that they can accomplish their mission.
- 17:08There are supporters of other people in their mission and that it is a mission in itself.
- 17:13And I think it's important that we understand that.
- 17:16And I think that when we pray to Heavenly Father and say, what gifts and talents do we have that will help build Thy kingdom?
- 17:22He will help us to be in those right places at the right times to help the people that need to be helped so that his work can go together.
- 17:30Because we're all on the same team.
- 17:32We're all working together to bring people to Jesus with the talents and gifts that we have.
- 17:37And that's exactly what Priscilla did.
- 17:39And I love that about her.
- 17:42So, so wise.
- 17:43Thank you so much for sharing that.
- 17:45I am so impressed with both Priscilla and her husband.
- 17:51And I love that it talks about them ministering so much together.
- 17:56They must have had a great friendship relationship and they worked well together.
- 18:02And I think that is a great example to me to strive for that.
- 18:09I've been really blessed in that my husband and I have get along most of the time just fantastically.
- 18:16And I love hanging out with him and doing things with him.
- 18:20And I love that I can look in the New Testament and find an example of a couple that did the same thing.
- 18:27You know, we might not be in business together like Priscilla and Aquila, but that's okay.
- 18:34We can still hang out.
- 18:35And right now, actually, we are actually teaching the young children in our church's primary together.
- 18:43It's the first thing that we've done together, I think, our entire marriage.
- 18:46And we love it.
- 18:47It's so much fun.
- 18:50We just, we play off of each other and it's.
- 18:53It's awesome.
- 18:53And so I love that this is an example of a couple that worked hard to have a good relationship with each other and that God was able to use them for good.
- 19:03You know, I'm sure it wasn't all roses and rainbows through their whole marriage, but that they worked hard to get to that point where they balanced each other out and that God was able to use their talents to
- 19:15spread his light to the world.
- 19:19All right, Bonnie, what would you like to add to what we've talked about?
- 19:25So when Tamara invited me to do this with her, I wasn't originally going to do Priscilla because of timing.
- 19:32And then I told I could do it, and she's like, oh, good, because you and Jake work together.
- 19:36And remember, at the time I'm like, I didn't understand why.
- 19:40And then when I dove into it, I was like, oh, yeah.
- 19:44So it's funny because we do work together professionally.
- 19:49I started a marketing agency twenty something years ago, and then a few years ago, I stepped away and he took it over and so now he's running the marketing agency.
- 20:00God told me to go to stop the business, go into life coaching and do this other stuff.
- 20:05And then now we're kind of bringing it back together.
- 20:07So now we're kind of starting to work together again.
- 20:11And it is a challenge.
- 20:13I don't want to pretend that it's not.
- 20:16We do get along.
- 20:17We have fun and we, you know, he's my best friend.
- 20:20But that doesn't mean that when we work together there aren't creative differences.
- 20:26As.
- 20:27We would like to call them, because we have plenty of those where, you know, our two perspectives.
- 20:32But we are learning how to bring God into those discussions too.
- 20:40I think for a really long time, business and God were kind of separate, kind of like separation of church and state, I guess.
- 20:48But we are over the last five, six years really starting to bring him into that, the business planning and the direction.
- 20:58And even with our clients, if we're having a stupor of thought about which way to go with somebody, we'll pray about it and we'll ask and.
- 21:06And so we're learning how to incorporate him into more of our life.
- 21:10And I feel like that's what Priscilla and Aquila did, that their tent making profession, right, was really a ministry and they were able to provide a space for people to come and to heal and to come into Christ
- 21:27and receive that spiritual nourishment that, that they wanted.
- 21:33And so I look at my husband and I and I think, hey, what are we doing as a couple?
- 21:39And both our profession to help bring people on to Christ and what are we doing in our home?
- 21:46We just so happen to have.
- 21:48Our profession is linked with our ministry.
- 21:51We just started with Tamara and some others, a divine by design program that helps other business owners learn how to incorporate God into their business.
- 22:03And that seems really simple, right?
- 22:04We just pray and we ask him for help.
- 22:06But there's actually I have found for me a formula in which I go to him and I ask for direction and we talk about finances, we talk about strategy.
- 22:18I bring the tactics to him and say, you know, how to reach these people.
- 22:22What do we do?
- 22:23Right.
- 22:23And anyway, I don't mean to get carried away on this really long tangent, but the point is, is that I feel like we as couples, we don't necessarily have to be in the same profession, but it's that invitation
- 22:37to bring God into partnership with us, whether that's professionally or just in our marriages and in our homes.
- 22:45What are we doing to always bring our family and our neighbors and everybody unto Christ?
- 22:54Oh, I love that is a really good question.
- 22:56And it's going to look different for all of us.
- 22:59I think that's the beauty of looking at these different women today and the different women in the Bible is they each were able to do things in their own way with the talents that God had blessed them with,
- 23:13right?
- 23:13And so I love that we don't have to compare because we each are called to do things.
- 23:21Whatever God has impressed us to do in the best way, we can do them, right?
- 23:28So it's beautiful.
- 23:29And.
- 23:29And so we can look at these people and say, I love this about Priscilla.
- 23:34You know, I love that she worked with her husband.
- 23:37I love that she ministered with her husband and that God used them for good.
- 23:41And I can glean something from that that I can apply to myself today, you know, Tiffany, what else would you like to point out or bring up or discuss?
- 23:51When I think about Priscilla and how I want to be more like her, I really loved how she brought people into her home.
- 23:57And.
- 23:57And if you think about it as a tent maker, she carried her home on her back or on the back of a.
- 24:02A donkey, right?
- 24:03Like.
- 24:04Like she was a tent maker.
- 24:05So her home was likely a tent.
- 24:07Like, it wasn't big and fancy and illustrious.
- 24:11I'm sure she didn't decorate it because that would take a lot of time away from her business.
- 24:15Like, I'm sure she just, you know, she set it up, she made it comfortable, and it was a sacred stuff space where people could come and learn about Jesus and feel ministered to.
- 24:27And I think about how we can do that today, whether that is, you know, creating a women's group or even just inviting your children's friends to come into your home where it's a safe space where they can, you
- 24:38know, feel the spirit with you or.
- 24:40Or even, like, doing podcasts.
- 24:43I mean, you are literally looking into my home right now and Tamara's home and Bonnie's home.
- 24:47Like, we are inviting people into our home and we are sharing about Jesus and.
- 24:53And it.
- 24:53It can be so simple, but it can be also very profound for the people who we invite in.
- 25:00And I feel like sometimes we think, oh, I don't know, that I could do that, or my home isn't clean enough, or my home isn't immaculate enough, or my voice isn't.
- 25:10I.
- 25:10I can't share like Priscilla did.
- 25:12I.
- 25:13I don't know the scriptures like Priscilla did.
- 25:15You know, we can have so many doubts, but imagine what would happen if Priscilla had those doubts.
- 25:21You know, what if she said to herself, my home is a tent.
- 25:25I don't have anything to offer these people.
- 25:27Let's just set it up, go to sleep, take it down, and move on, you know, but she didn't.
- 25:33She created that space with what she had, and I love that.
- 25:37And I think that that is so applicable to us today.
- 25:40We can create a space with what we have to help further the mission of Jesus Christ and, and prepare the world for his second coming.
- 25:48Because I really do feel that that' commission is as disciples of Christ is to be his hands on earth, but also prepare the world for his return.
- 25:58So how can we do that?
- 25:59How can we bring people into our homes?
- 26:01How can we go out of our homes, into the marketplaces and into the world and, and help people understand who Jesus Christ is and, and gain a testimony like Apollo did of who he is so that they can
- 26:14go forth and also declare their testimony of Jesus?
- 26:18And I think it's really a one by one ministry, right?
- 26:20It's a, it's a talking to a person marketplace.
- 26:23It's a inviting someone into your home.
- 26:26It's little by little, but little by little becomes a lot and it eventually changes the world.
- 26:33And if it does nothing more, it will change your world as you are willing to open up yourself to be that person.
- 26:40Like Priscilla was to bring God into your business.
- 26:43If you can, like ask him.
- 26:45Like Bonnie said, ask how, God, how could I bring you into my business?
- 26:48How can, how can you become a partner with me to ask what talents do I have that could help me go out and declare my testimony of God and the Savior?
- 26:58And how can I support the people around me who are testifying of Christ?
- 27:04What can I do to make their mission easier or better with the talents that I have?
- 27:10I think that as we seek out opportunities to minister, those opportunities are going to come and we are going to be able to make a profound difference in the, the lives of those around us.
- 27:23And again, we don't need a call to do that.
- 27:26All we need is connection to the Spirit and asking in prayer, God, how can you use me today?
- 27:33Where do you need me to show up and what is it that I can do for you to, to bless the lives of the people around me and to make a difference in your ministry.
- 27:42If we can make sure that we do that each day, then God can use us for good.
- 27:45Just like he used Priscilla.
- 27:47Wow.
- 27:48So, so good.
- 27:49I love the insights you guys have shared.
- 27:51It's amazing that here we just have a handful of verses where we learn just a little taste of this amazing woman in the New Testament and we get just a glimpse into her life and who she was and
- 28:06how she ministered.
- 28:08Let's start wrapping it up.
- 28:10Any final thoughts or takeaways that you think we can apply today?
- 28:15Bonnie, let's start with you.
- 28:17So I appreciate what Tiffany said because it made me think about my own journey with becoming a tent maker and I'm so gonna use that now.
- 28:26Like, it's.
- 28:28It's a thing.
- 28:28I'm making it a thing and looking at her example, and I love that she brought up.
- 28:35It doesn't have to be immaculate, and our space doesn't have to be this glamorous thing.
- 28:41And I asked myself, what am I doing to make my home a church, you know, because that's what they did.
- 28:48And the spirit whispered, it's really about the atmosphere.
- 28:52It's not about the things in the home.
- 28:55It's not about how big your house is.
- 28:57It's not even about how clean your house is.
- 28:59And I used to really fuss over decor and cleanliness to the point where I actually think it drove out the spirit because of my stress and my anxiety and being so worried about what people thought about me and
- 29:15about my home and about my kids and all these things.
- 29:18Once I started to let go of that perfectionism and this comparison and some of those things, I was able to feel more settled in my own body and in my own self.
- 29:30And then that sort of just started happening in my space.
- 29:35And not to say that my house is a disaster.
- 29:38It probably is more often than not, because I have four kids.
- 29:42But the best compliment I get when people come to visit is they almost always say, you have such a nice spirit in your home.
- 29:50And I hope that doesn't sound boastful, because I don't mean it that way.
- 29:55But the point is, is that walking into my home, you wouldn't think that because it's a mess.
- 30:01It's not.
- 30:01It's not super clean.
- 30:03But it's the atmosphere.
- 30:05And I guard that so carefully.
- 30:08I make sure that my children and I are watching appropriate shows, that we have good music playing, that we read our scriptures together and we pray together.
- 30:17And I pray over my home all the time.
- 30:21And I do things intentionally to bring the spirit into our home.
- 30:26And so when someone notices that and they say something like, I just feel so safe here.
- 30:32Wow.
- 30:33Like, I don't want to leave.
- 30:34I just.
- 30:35Like, I feel home.
- 30:36Like, that is really the best feeling.
- 30:39And when Tiffany was talking, it made me realize that was intentional.
- 30:45That was my intention.
- 30:46And I have worked hard to make our home a safety and a refuge for those.
- 30:53And so my takeaway from today, while it could have been a million other things, my major takeaway was that epiphany of realizing it is intentional creation with God to make my business, my life, my home, my children, everything.
- 31:12Right?
- 31:12It's intentionally creating with him an atmosphere within.
- 31:17And once I Have that atmosphere within good.
- 31:21It then starts to radiate and come without.
- 31:23And that's when our influence can grow and we can become mighty.
- 31:29And even if we're not called to be a Paul, right, we become mighty anyway.
- 31:36Our testimony has become mighty.
- 31:39We help and influence those around us.
- 31:41And I truly believe that every person who's listening, you're listening to this episode on purpose, right?
- 31:48This is no coincidence.
- 31:49There's something from today that you learned that you gleaned.
- 31:52And I hope that you will comment and share and tell us what you learned so that we can learn from you.
- 31:58Right?
- 31:59This is not just us talking at you.
- 32:00We want this to be a conversation and we want to hear what your insights are and your suggestions and ways that you make yourself and your home a tent for God.
- 32:12Love that so much.
- 32:13So, so good.
- 32:15Oh, thank you for sharing, Tiffany.
- 32:18Yeah, for me, I think that it's just about being willing to be bold, but also humble.
- 32:24I loved how she was bold and willing to talk to Apollo and going from place to place in clearly standing up for Paul in saving him from death.
- 32:33So she was bold, but she was also humble.
- 32:35Bold enough to stand when I need to and humble enough to live in a tent.
- 32:38I think that that is really beautiful.
- 32:41Characteristics of a woman of Christ she lived her life on purpose.
- 32:46She had a mission.
- 32:48She lived each day of her life on a mission for Him.
- 32:52Teaching of Christ in the marketplace, learning of Him.
- 32:55She clearly knew the Scriptures in order to help Apollo understand how the Scriptures related to the Savior.
- 33:01She was both spiritually minded, business minded, and also humbly obedient to the things God was asking her to do.
- 33:10She answered the call multiple times to be where she needed to be if we could be bold but humble and obedient to the call that God is giving us and just ask him to put us in the right
- 33:21place at the right time so we can make the do the most good that we can for Him.
- 33:27Love that so, so much.
- 33:29I think I'm going to conclude with one of the verses I read earlier.
- 33:34In Romans chapter 16, verse 3, it says, Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus.
- 33:42I think that would be one of the highest compliments that anyone can pay to any of us.
- 33:50That we are helpers in Christ Jesus, that we are helping others come unto him, that they see a little bit of Jesus when they look at us, they see characteristics that he has.
- 34:03They feel the love that he has for them through us.
- 34:10And we each have different ways and gifts that we can share that.
- 34:14Some people share it through music.
- 34:16Some people share it through ministering and loving and serving and inviting people into their homes.
- 34:22Other people, I've noticed, go about and do quiet acts of service that make such a big difference.
- 34:29Like they notice when people need help and they just serve.
- 34:34And so don't doubt that whatever your gifts are, God can use them for good and that you too can be helpers in Christ Jesus and help other people around you.
- 34:46Arise and come unto Christ.
- 34:49So don't doubt that your gifts and talents have worth and value.
- 34:55Be bold, be brave, to stand up and be God strong and trust that he has given you exactly what you need to fulfill your divine mission on earth.
- 35:10Thanks for tuning in to the Arise Women of God podcast, brought to you by Women warriors of Light.
- 35:15If you're feeling unsure how to move forward in your calling or just tired of doing it alone, visit womenwarriorsoflight.com you'll find resources, accountability, and a community of women who get it.
- 35:30Sometimes the calling feels bigger than you.
- 35:34That's when you need steady reminders of the powerful God who called you.
- 35:39Subscribe now for weekly inspiration and the courage to keep going.
- 35:43Because with him, nothing is impossible.
- 35:47And you're not the only one.
- 35:48God is calling that friend on your heart right now.
- 35:52Share this episode with her.
- 35:54Your small act of obedience could be the breakthrough she's been praying for until now.
- 35:59Next time, may you arise, walk God's way and stand God strong.