Unto Sweoster

“She [is] more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.” | Proverbs 3:15

I met a young lady once who was so kind, sweet, and honest that you couldn’t help but want to be her friend. She was cornier than most but somehow maintained an elegant grace that led you to believe that she meant well. She was a great sister, great friend, great colleague, and peer. She was blessed with the gift of support and had a way of motivating others with the way she commanded respectability politics. She had a way of endearing herself to you and giving you the space and time to do the same. Somewhere along the line she fell in love with attention, manipulation, copulation, self-glorification and set her gaze upon the things of others with envy. Eventually, she gave up those she professed she loved and decided to take the short cut to success hoping to get what she wanted faster. At one point, sis flat out reinvented herself to accommodate the expectations of others. For her a Christ-centered life evolved from a desire to please God into a desire to be pleased and adorned with perfunctory salutations. As her circle changed so did she and although it’s easy to place blame and focus on all the ways sis could’ve been a better person, it’s better to evaluate self and realize that there were plenty of missed opportunities before bad got worse to be a good sister. After-all she like me is more precious than rubies in the eye-site of the most High God!  

The interesting thing about the sisterhood is the fact that there a very few secrets within it. When a person is having a bad day or experiencing trouble there’s at least one other sister who knows about it. When there’s a sister on the verge of giving up and throwing in the towel there are signs within the bond that say, this sister is in need and here is a great opportunity to cover her and lift her up, but for whatever reason sometimes because of who it is and how we feel about them we find ourselves broadcasting information shared with us in confidence with other sisters who we already know feel a way about the sister in contention. We then stand in opposition of the faith we emotionally pressure others to embrace and wonder why our women empowerment event this year was cancelled due to low ticket sales and poor social media engagement. The sisterhood is a sensitive and sacred place that cannot be manipulated, bossed, bought, or bullied by those who stand against it in the name of shock value and patriarchal people pleasing. You must understand that fierce women were the first to share with the world that the Savior of the world had risen. 

We have a responsibility to take care of one another. We are literally in the fight of our lives against the enemy in the name of Christ who demands that we work together to evangelize to as many other people as possible, but we can not do that ripping one another to shreds. Stand up little sister, pick your head up big sister and let’s handle the business of the Lord in a way that reflects true sisterhood. Let’s love on each other in a way that says no matter what, that’s my sister one to whom I am spiritually connected with. It is my responsibility to cover her in love and prayer even when I don’t agree with her actions. Let’s be open to sisterly correction because there may be a time when we flat out get it wrong. 

It ain’t easy being a sister in the fellowship, but I believe that we can be more intentional about how we deal with and handle one another. 

May we forever be good sisters and great example of love before those of whom we say we love. May we forever remember that before we can empower a stranger we must uplift the sisters we know. The ones that some feel that they are above because… rumor has it. The ones struggling in their marriage because life happens to us all at one point or another. The one who wants you to love on her as a sister while simultaneously minding your own business because some of us can’t hold water. The one who has mental health moments but comes back better than ever every time. The one who is trying her best to balance motherhood and academic achievement because she knows that she can do it if she stays the course. The one who was in the middle of the he said she said because she’s still our sister and we have a responsibility to cancel the cancel culture that causes us to disregard one another like trash leaving little room for reconciliation. 

May our love for one another be genuine, whole, and excuse free. There’s just something about excuses that don’t sit well in the essence of true sisterhood. An excuse will always find a place amongst the insecure, unsure, and the ignorant. Excuses somehow always line up at the line of scrimmage prepared to make a play as a member of the defensive line but fail to hold the line and make effective plays because they are constantly tackled and debunked by truth, light, facts, and evidence. And here’s the truth that we all know but refuse to acknowledge, we could all afford to be better sisters. 

And finally kind sisters, may we never stop rooting for one another even when our season of friendship has come and gone. There is no measure of sisterhood that demands that we all be friends. Some personalities work better together than others. Some characteristics just mesh and complement one another for year and years no cap. Some make seasonal appearances and are gone faster than you can recite John 11:35, but that shouldn’t diminish the beauty of the time shared nor yield an insensitive campaign of subliminal jabs and cheap shots. This battle is so much bigger than small minded drama and confusion, we literally need one another to survive. A sisterhood is nothing without the prefix, our unity gives it context. 

Let us pray:

Lord, 

  Help me to be a better sister. Touch my sister where she may stand in need of thee. Allow us to walk together side by side encouraging one another every step of the way. Teach us oh Lord how to love on one another in a way that reflects compassion, kindness, light, and authenticity. Show us oh Lord how to respectfully disagree, aide us as we desire to walk close to thee. Guide us as we work to overcome personality differences learning to embrace one another for who it is that you designed us to be. Remind us when we are weak Lord that your strength is made perfect. Remind us that as sisters we have a responsibility to care for one another in a way that pleases you. Remind us that you intentionally created us and gave us gifts for the edification of your kingdom. Give us the strength to keep going, keep running, keep striving, keep goal-setting, keep praying knowing that you are all powerful. Touch us oh Lord, that we might salt and light in a world desperately in need of more of you, for it is in the mighty, marvelous, and matchless name of Jesus the Christ we pray, Amen.