Discover. Uncover. Learn.
They are all quite acceptable words, really. Each holds within them the beauty of exploration and adventure. But all fell short when it came to describing One Woman Can Change the World. Instead, a wise council of souls joined me in embracing the word “reclaim.” It was my husband who actually said the book is about women reclaiming what was ours all along, according to the Lord’s design and His great love. It’s not a bootstrapping exercise in getting it right or figuring it all out or learning a new way of scheduling the days. Instead, the pages of the book are a conversation about a woman’s God-designed influence and impact being there from the beginning.
Reclaim is a wonderful word. And right beside it is a precious sister: restore. Restore could have easily been used as well. God is a God of redemption, restoration, renewal. He restores years that have been raped and ravaged, He renews our hearts and fills our lungs when we feel we can’t take another step, He redeems our stories by reminding us that His story has always been woven into the pages written on our days.
I’m reminded of a moment on a hilltop home in Guatemala, listening to young women sing a proclamation of their place and purpose. The song, “Arrebato,” means to repossess, to restore. The youngest, just 13, watched her four-month old son as he slept. She was a slave when the woman who founded the home found her. A 16-year old cradled her toddler with one arm as she raised her hand to the sky. Next to her, a 14-year old closed her eyes and smiled as she shouted every word. Every girl was a victim of sexual abuse or trafficking. Rape and incest clawed away their innocence. Childbirth left scars on bodies too young to understand. The stories on the pages were smeared with darkness. But God spoke His story, and restorative, redemptive, renewing light shattered the night.
The young women sang for each other. They held hands and reclaimed their birthright purpose.
I am made an heir with Him
And He has given me the power to bind and loose
And declare a word to change your generation
And today I declare that what was stolen from you is returned.
I repossess family, I repossess my health
I repossess the treasures of the heavens, they belong to my home
I repossess, I repossess
I repossess all that is mine
I repossess, I repossess what’s mine, what’s mine.
God reclaims. He redeems. He repossesses. He renews. He restores. Even me. Even you. Even now.
