The story of Deborah begins with the words, “After Ehud’s death, the Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. So, the Lord turned them over to King Jabin of Hazor, a Canaanite king. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-haggoyim.” (Judges 4:1, NLT).
Soon the situation of the Israelites became desperate. “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help.” (4:3).
Deborah is God’s answer to the desperate repentant cry of the Israelites for deliverance from Jabin’s cruel oppression. Deborah is God’s appointed woman judge and prophet, a Godly woman of great and effective leadership strength.
She not only delivered justice for the people of God and called them back to God, but also takes leadership responsibility in a time of crisis when no one else is stepping up to the plate of leadership responsibility. She had to go beyond the cultural roles of women in her day to help the people see who God was and what He had planned for them.
In her story we discover five life directives that energized her exceptionally strong leadership. These same five directives remain vital as guidance for anyone, man or woman, who seeks to be an effective Christian leader in today’s arrogant and selfish world of deception and division. Indeed, everyone of us is given a particular leadership role in our world and so the directives are for all of us.
1) Deborah was driven by a genuine desire to please God. She considered herself a team partner with God. For Deborah, leadership was not about “being in charge,” but rather about “pleasing God.” She communed with God often and did not let her busy life disconnect her from her relationship with Him.
This committed desire is certainly counter-cultural in our present “I’ll do it my way” kind of world. And when this kind of devotion to God’s will is evident in someone’s life, we tend to think of them as a “religious freak.”
2) Deborah found her life’s place and purpose in God’s space. The search for meaning and purpose in life is one of our strongest human impulses. Deborah had no problem with this. She moved easily among the religious and political leadership. She was confident that God had placed her in this leadership role and was not afraid of straight talk.
According to verse five, “She would sit under the Palm of Deborah” where ”the Israelites would go to her for judgment.” They recognized her as a wise and discerning person who had it together.
3) Deborah stayed connected with her people and interacted with them on a regular basis. She considered herself a team partner both with God and with her people. She did not allow her busy life to disconnect her from relationship with them. She knew that those connections kept her on track with God’s working in her world.
In chapter five, verse two, she sings this line from her song of praise, “Israel’s leaders took charge, and the people gladly followed. Praise the Lord!” Her song begins with the idea that “we are in this together and I am not the boss, God is.”
It is often easy to place events over people and programs over relationships. But, when we do this, we disconnect from relationship. And whenever we disconnect from relationship, for whatever reason, we are walking away from what God desires from us, that is, a full team effort in doing His Kingdom work.
4) Deborah believed that God is always on patrol, looking for and selecting persons whom He can appoint to responsible leadership position, or a challenging task, or risky assignment. The Scriptures are filled with the stories of such God-selected, God-appointed persons, both male and female.
Through Deborah’s leadership, God was moving, working, acting and reacting, listening, judging and confirming. Deborah knew that God was on patrol and in control. She just needed to show up for work.
5) Most importantly, Deborah walked her talk. She acted and lived by what she believed and counseled others to do. Deborah had total confidence in God. She considered worry as wasted energy, useless and non-productive. Whether it was in giving advice, providing support, leading an army, or praising God, worry was not a part of her leadership strategy.
Deborah trusted God so fully, that she was willing to place her life on the line when needed, without question, doubt, or fear. The result of her leadership, according to the Scripture in 5:31, is that “Then there was peace in the land for forty years.”
This is Deborah’s treasured legacy to both religious and national leadership persons in all generations since her time. Furthermore, when we are available to God and others, when we are a doer and not a worrier, when all of this comes together as it did for Deborah, our nation will be a “land” at peace.
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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – October 6, 2021
Ray M. Geigley
Healing Rays of Righteousness 
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