Zebra Ministries: Do Not Worry

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Do Not Worry

Matthew 6:25
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body what you will wear. Is not life more important than food and the body more important than clothes?

Good morning ladies,

Even though I have not been writing about it, I have continued to read Studies in the Sermon on the Mount by D. Martyn Lloyd Jones. It has been a wonderful and challenging book full of wisdom and insight. Yesterday I got to the chapters on Matthew 6:25-34.

I grew up “poor” or so I believed. We always had food on the table, a roof over our heads, clothes to wear and even a car to drive when I got old enough. So why did I think I was poor?

I thought I was poor because my parents always worried and fought about money. My dad was self-employed and from a child’s perspective it seemed like we were always on the brink of disaster.

When I got married I told Gary he could do anything he wanted, except be self-employed. There was no way I wanted to continue to live my life constantly worried about making ends meet.

But because God has a sense of humor, and He knew that I needed healing in this area, He provided Gary with a job…in a start up company.

If you have never had the experience of being part of a start-up company, let me tell you I don’t think it is much different from being self-employed. Needless to say I didn’t like it, but Gary did.

On the third job change God gave me this section of scripture.

Therefore I tell you do not worry…Who was Jesus talking to? He was talking to the disciples, men who had just left their jobs and their homes to follow after Christ. If anyone had a reason to worry you would think it would be these guys. You’d think that Jesus could give them a little sympathy. Instead Jesus tells them, I gave you life, and I will take care of you. Focus on what I am asking you to do and let me take care of the rest, quit worrying.

As I look around right now, I see so many people worried about the future and if I stop and think about it I could get worried too. Instead I think of God’s promises.

God gave us life and He has promised He will take care of us. He has promised that He will supply our daily needs, He has promised that He has plans to give us hope and a future. He has promised that every life has a purpose. He has promised that He would never leave us nor forsake us. He has promised that in this world we will have trouble, but He has overcome the world.

I believe one of Satan’s greatest weapons is to get us focused on the cares and concerns of the world making us forget all that God has promised us.

Love,
Jill

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Why Zebras?

In the summer of 2008 I was looking at a herd of zebras in a wild animal park and commented to my son that I didn’t understand why the lions didn’t just eat the zebras because their markings make them so obvious. He told me that the opposite was actually true. God has marked zebras so when they hang together in a herd, their stripes create the illusion they are one large animal and therefore too big to attack. It is the lone zebra that is usually eaten. The same is true of Christians; we must hang together and encourage each other to fight off the lions. The lone Christian is easy prey.

1 Peter 5:8
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Therefore:

Zebras was started to encourage women who desire to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, who want their lives to be transformed to honor God and who are willing to be “zebras” in a world of “horses”. Zebras exists to reassure you that you are not alone and that God has called you to be peculiar. As a peculiar person you should look different than the world

Romans 12:2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Pastor Endorsement

Jill Getchell speaks from her heart and from God’s word in a way that brings encouragement and hope to God’s people. I’ve been blessed to hear her at Awana conferences, a women’s retreat, and from the pulpit of our church. I am confident your people will be equally blessed by spending the day with Jill at We Have Hope...your church will be blessed as well.

Pastor Al Marks

First Baptist Church Vallejo

I have known Jill for many years now. She truly desires to encourage the churches in our community and to strengthen the believers that attend our churches. Her passion for Jesus comes out in her ability to speak, and her heart is to encourage all those that attend to go back into their churches and be a blessing.

Pastor Kelly Patchin

New Harbor Community Church, Benicia

I believe women are vital to the unity and health of the church. They bear the image of God and serve Him in a great way within His church. Zebras has the ability to unite and excite women to grow in their faith and in their relationships with each other. In John 17:20 Jesus says, "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” One of Christ’s last prayers for His church is that they would be one as He is with the Father. And through our unity the world can come to believe in Jesus Christ for salvation. Unity is essential for a healthy church and healthy relationships between women. Zebras can stimulate healthy growth in the spiritual lives of the women in your church too. It is a blessing at New Harbor and I believe it would be a blessing for any pastor to have in their church.

Kelly Patchin, Pastor
New Harbor Community Church

Testimonies

The Zebra herd has given me the opportunity to be myself. I think we all have a face we put on for others, especially on Sunday. We don’t want to let anyone see the pain or hurt we’re suffering because we feel that it’s a reflection on our walk with Christ. I now have a group of loving Christian women with whom to share the joys and sorrows equally… Without the Zebras, I’d still be wearing my Sunday face. ...............Dawn C.

The Zebra ministry has deepened my relationship with Christ and the women at my church beyond what I thought possible... Most importantly, it has given me a safe place to be very, very real… I have learned how to be transparent and allow my fellow Zebra sisters to support me in prayer and God to minister to the deepest part of my soul--the part that needed it the most.................... Jennifer H.

When I came to New Harbor Church I was so lonely. I knew I needed the fellowship of other Christian women but did not know if I could break out of my self-imposed isolation. I felt unworthy of anyone’s friendship, let alone" godly people"... But Zebras has made me feel the true acceptance of these wonderful women. I have slowly opened my heart to them, with their encouragement and love! I don't have that heavy ache of solitude anymore. ................Barbara B.

I was with you in the beginning meetings of the herd and watched it evolve into a place where we as sisters in Christ could share our burdens without judgment. Being a Zebra helped me through a very trying time- Leap of Faith– leaving a relationship, selling my home and trusting in God. It was encouraging to know that I was not alone and being a part of a group where women could feel understood, comforted, and lifted up spiritually. .................Tracy M.

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