Zebra Ministries

Friday, March 10, 2017

Good morning Zebras,

I love you and I love how God speaks and confirms things when your ears are open to hear Him.

Yesterday God didn’t give me anything to say today, so I thought “It must be an Oswald day.”

He confirmed it when the first thing Gary did this morning was send me a link on “Why We’re Still Reading “My Utmost for His Highest’ 80 Years Later” from Christianity Today.

Chamber’s was an obscure Scottish preacher who was mostly unknown and unpublished on American soil. And yet this little book remains the bestselling devotional of all time while many of his popular contemporaries have faded away.

Personally, I think the key is that God had a hand in the writing of this book.

Biddy Chambers, Oswald’s wife, was a trained stenographer who took notes during her husband’s sermons for the seven years they were married. After his death, at 43, she dedicated her life to transforming those notes into books and to overseeing their publication. It was a labor of love from which she never drew more than a modest salary.

According to the article, lots of famous Americans have read it including Billy Graham and Bill Bright. Bill Wilson and Bob Smith, the founders of AA started early group meetings by reading from this book. But that isn’t what has kept it going. It is the millions of American Evangelicals who have incorporated this book in to their daily time of devotion, giving copies to their family members and friends.

That certainly describes me.

This year marks the 100^th anniversary of Oswald’s death. One hundred years since he died and God is still using him to influence and teach His people through a book he didn’t even write! To me that is amazing. And encouraging.

Proof that God can do anything through a life devoted to Him.

Love,

Jill

My Utmost For His Highest

So often we don't see fruit from the work we do, or at least not as much as we hoped, but that doesn't mean God isn't producing fruit. He is just preventing us from falling into the trap of pride which is so awesome of HIm! Oswald never thought the words he spoke would be used so powerfully-and yet... Some people like the stories of people who worked hard and made millions-I love the stories of people who obeyed God and were used in ways they never thought possible. Missionaries who were told they were unfit to go on the field only to follow God anyway and be used in powerful ways. Or Mueller who never asked for a dime and yet ran an orphanage in England where the children never went hungry. I love stories of people who believe we serve a BIG God and act accordingly-I guess that is why I love the Bible too. Enjoy your day Zebras, be encouraged, follow God, and leave everything else to Him because you really have no idea what He is going to do. Like D.L. Moody is quoted as saying: (although the quote was not originally his) “The world has yet to see what God can do with a man fully consecrated to him. By God’s help, I aim to be that man.” Amen!

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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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