Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Many churches, conferences, and events are taking advantage of the number of this new year, “20/20” as an optometrist would say it, to remind us to have clear vision (1 Cor. 13:12), to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus (Heb. 12:2), and to focus on the unseen instead of the seen (2 Cor. 4:18). During the month of January, we will join in highlighting that emphasis, especially as it ties in with our spiritual theme for the year.

Iron Rose Sister Ministries’ spiritual theme for 2020 is “Part of the Whole” (Eph. 4:16; 1 Cor. 12:12-27).

Above all, we must keep our eyes fixed on the Whole, the I AM. In order to see Him clearly and maintain our focus on Him, we must come to know Him more deeply... know Him by His name.

We invite you to participate in an interactive small group Bible study, starting in January. The latest book, I already AM, is available through our online store, on Amazon, and also now on Kindle! This study is designed to help us keep our focus in the right place, affirm and strengthen our belief and get to know the I AM in deeper and broader ways through an in-depth study of His name.

In the meantime, stay tuned for “Our Part in Prayer” for our Prayer Month in February. And later in the year, we will explore topics like, “There is no small part,” “Christ is the head,” “Our obedience allows others to do their part,” “Celebrating the part others play,” “You are part of the one-another,” “Finding your part,” “Addressing the sticky parts,” “Thankful to be a part,” and a refocus of vision to keep our eyes fixed on the Whole.

Isn’t that exciting?! Yet, my favorite “part” of what is to come are the conversations and upcoming book celebrating Single Women as a vital part of the Whole. If you would like to join that conversation, we are still gathering research and conducting interviews, so let us know.

Thank you for being a part of the whole that God has brought together to His glory! Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your support. And thank you for your vital part of these important conversations, Bible studies, and equipping processes.

Written by Tony Brizendine, husband of Brenda and volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries

I can remember the excitement I felt as if it were yesterday. Brenda and I were picking out the paint colors, cabinets, carpet, and light fixtures for our new home. This is something we had prayed about for years and our dream was finally coming true. We received a phone call from our realtor while we were celebrating my birthday. He congratulated us on securing the property to build our new home on. I thought for sure this was God’s hand blessing us. We had already sold our previous home and were living in the basement of my parent’s house while waiting on our new home to be constructed. We also were pregnant with our daughter and were hoping the new home would be finished before she was born.

The months that followed seemed to contradict all of our excitement. The building of our home was delayed for several months due to a shortage of workers. By the time there were workers available, I received news that I was being laid off from my job. We ultimately had to pull out of building the house a few weeks before Brenda’s due date. I was crushed. No job, no house and a baby on the way. I asked myself over and over, “Why would a good God allow this to happen to us?” I felt angry and abandoned by God.

A few days after our daughter was born, I received a call from a former boss of mine. He invited me to apply for an open job with his new company. Within a week after his call and interviewing, I was employed again. My parents and younger sister helped us with our newborn daughter while we were living with them, which was a huge blessing for us. Two months later, our realtor called us and had a great home available for us to purchase that suited our needs perfectly. We were able to move into our house the weekend of my birthday, exactly 1 year after we had secured the property for the home we wanted to build.

After having some time to reflect, I realized that I was not putting God first. In that season, I had become selfish and shortsighted. I didn’t see God as my provider. I saw myself and my job as my provider instead of Him. He is the Great “I AM” and as Deuteronomy 6:4 says, “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” God is not interested in just granting the desires of our heart, He wants our whole heart. While we see the surface level things, He can see from a much higher level than we can.

While I was very grateful to God for restoring my employment and helping us through that season, I felt as though our dream was lost. Yet three years later, God provided a home that was not far from where we originally wanted to build, and was constructed at the same time we lost our “dream house”. The selling owners took very good care of the house, which was far beyond our expectations, and left it in pristine condition. It was as if God had these people taking care of it for us while He waited for the right time to deliver it.

God had seen what we needed on the surface level, but He wanted us to learn to see Him first, The One, The Whole. Thanks for letting me share this reminder to keep our eyes fixed on the I AM.

Seeing the I AM Clearly
Written by Kara Benson, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries

A few months ago, I had the blessing of attending the Iron Rose Sister Ministries Destination Retreat. It was an incredible experience to be surrounded by so many Spanish-speaking women of faith! I loved meeting, learning from, and growing with these Christian ladies. Hearing their personal testimonies was encouraging and worshipping together in a bilingual context was rejuvenating.

In one of her keynote addresses, Michelle made the following point: our little “I” gets in the way of seeing the great “I AM.” That statement stuck in my mind. The more I processed it, the more I realized how true it is! How many problems are caused—directly or indirectly—by me getting in the way?

A great example of this pitfall is in marriage. I love my husband. We share a lot of the same beliefs, values, opinions, and interests in life. However, that does not mean that he is me. But so often, I forget that. I expect him to think, feel, and react the same way I do. I expect him to prioritize, plan, organize a closet, load a dishwasher, set a thermostat, and decorate a Christmas tree the same way I would. And trust me, we’ve had our fair share of conflicts because of it!

It can be the same with God. Sometimes, I forget that God is not like me. From his beautiful masterpieces in nature, I know He is creative. From His amazing love letter written in three languages, I know He desires relationship. From the six days of creation followed by His cessation of labor on the seventh, I know He values hard work and rest.

But God is not like us (Psalm 50). He doesn’t get hungry; in fact, He doesn’t need anything at all. The whole world and everything in it belong to Him. God is holy. He is never indifferent to sin, even when we have a difficult time staying serious about it. God’s word judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart, whereas we cannot even judge ourselves, let alone our neighbor. God always loves us, even when others let us down. People don’t always have our best interest at heart, but God always looks out for our long-term good. We want forgiveness without a change in behavior, blessings without obedience, and love without sacrifice, but God does not. God is a merciful, forgiving, and loving consuming fire who hates sin and destroys his enemies. And that is hard to wrap my head around.

We don’t get closer to God by digging deeper into ourselves or ingesting the teachings of men. When we try to see God through the lens of ourselves, we will inevitably make God into our own image. To see the I AM clearly, I must remove myself from the picture. I must stop trying to project myself and what I like onto God and instead allow Him to define Himself through His word. It’s 2020. Are you seeing clearly?

We walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). And when we walk in trust, we may later come to see with 20/20 hindsight what God was orchestrating all along.

In the book Prince Caspian, by C.S. Lewis, Lucy is the first one to see the lion, Aslan, return. However, no one believes her because they have not seen him with their own eyes. Later, when Lucy sees the lion and talks with him about the first sighting, she expresses her frustration with her siblings who did not have eyes to see the lion or faith to believe that Lucy had truly seen Aslan.

Aslan then sends Lucy to share the news that he has returned: “...go back to the others now, and wake them up; and tell them you have seen me again; and that you must all get up at once and follow me...”
“Will the others see you too?” asked Lucy.
“Certainly not at first,” said Aslan. “Later on, it depends.”
“But they won’t believe me!” said Lucy.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Aslan.

Lucy goes on to lament that Aslan is not going to show up and conquer their enemies in the same way he did the last time. Yet, they both know that, in time, with 20/20 hindsight, all will be given the opportunity to believe and to trust in the way Aslan will continue to work in the future.

It can be hard to be the only one who believes, clinging to God with the faith of a child, trusting in what we cannot see. Yet 20/20 hindsight affirms God’s faithfulness and informs our testimony of belief (Heb. 11).

What can you look back on in your own life and see how God was working? How does this help you to look with eyes of faith, see the I AM clearly, and solidify your testimony of belief for the future? Take the opportunity to share that story of God’s faithfulness with someone else today. Your 20/20 hindsight of God’s hand at work can be an encouragement to someone else who is having trouble seeing the I AM clearly in the midst of their own current circumstances. And it will serve as a reminder to you to trust the way God is working today.