When you open the Bible, you’ll find stories about countless courageous women who used their gifts, talents, positions, and faith to serve God; they were women who dedicated their lives to Him for His glory. One commonality among these women is how they bowed their knees to the Lord and gave Him their yes. Their yes transformed their lives from ordinary to history-making. Here, we’ll look at just a handful of these women of valor.

Esther

Esther was a beautiful orphan girl who lived in Persia. The king of Persia – who essentially held a beauty pageant to find his future wife – commanded that all the beautiful young women in the kingdom be brought to his palace and go through six months of beauty treatments so he could select his queen from among them. He selected Esther.

As queen, Esther could have kicked back in luxury, enjoying her life in relative peace. However, when an evil law was passed that threatened the lives of all Jewish people, she knew she had to do something. Esther called a fast (abstaining from food and water) for all Jewish people because she understood that prayer and fasting were ways to humbly seek God’s help.  

After the fast, Esther risked her life by illegally going before the king. But God (through the king) bestowed His favor to thwart the consequences of the unrighteous law. 

God used Esther – a woman of faith and boldness – to save her entire people group, a people from whom we later received our Savior. 

Deborah + Jael

Deborah was a powerful prophet and judge over the nation of Israel. Deborah heard from the Lord, and shared a message with Barak (commander of the Lord’s army) about confronting Sisera (commander of an enemy army) and freeing their people from the enemy’s oppression. Afraid, Barak asked Deborah to come with him to confront Sisera, which she agreed to do.

Due to Barak’s fear (i.e. lack of faith), Deborah prophesied that the Lord would honor a woman with Sisera’s final downfall. Barak and his soldiers defeated Sisera’s army, sending Sisera running. Sisera ran straight to a woman named Jael, and begged to hide in her tent. She consented, and soothed him with (apparent) kindness. However, once he was asleep, Jael killed him by driving a tent peg into his skull. 

God used Deborah to lead Israel to confront their enemy, and God used Jael to deliver the final death blow to their enemy’s commander. 

Hannah

Hannah suffered from infertility issues and it broke her spirit because her rival taunted her over her inability to conceive or bear children. She went to the temple and cried out to God, promising that if He would answer her prayers for a child, she would dedicate that child back to His service.

The Lord heard Hannah’s prayer and she conceived and gave birth to Samuel – who later became God’s prophet and the last of Israel’s judges. Hannah could have become bitter, but instead she chose to hit the floor with her knees and seek God in faith. 

God used Hannah’s willingness to seek Him in difficult times to bless the entire Jewish nation.

Mary

Mary, a young woman in Israel, found favor with God to do arguably the most incredible thing in human history. God chose Mary to birth the Savior of the world. What an incredible honor! At the time, Mary was engaged to a man named Joseph, but when word spread through town that Mary was pregnant (and Joseph wasn’t the father), he had every legal right to abandon his commitment to her (ultimately, the Lord sent an angel to Joseph in a dream explaining the baby’s significance and he did not abandon her). 

Imagine the strength Mary must have had in order to accept God’s mission for her life and, in so doing, undoubtedly suffer being misunderstood by her family and community. Yet, she stood firm in her decision to follow God’s plan. 

God used Mary’s faith and obedience to bring salvation to the entire world.

How Can You Please God?

God has empowered women who are willing to intertwine their stories with His. God is still calling women today – including you – to do great and marvelous things. Some are called to fight injustice like Esther, some are called to be leaders like Deborah, while others are unassuming servants of the Lord like Jael, and still others are like Hannah and Mary who used their faith to impact multitudes. 

You Can Give Your Yes to God

Mary and Deborah gave their yes to God. Mary could have feared the unknown and Deborah could have been frightened by the battle ahead. Yet they were willing to trust God and give Him their yes. You too can do mighty things for God when you give Him your yes and make yourself available to His calling. God is seeking people who will partner with Him to accomplish His will. You can do this through seeking God in prayer and reading the Bible. As you walk with God, He will make His calling and ways known to you. The Bible teaches us how to connect to God and follow His ways. 

Pray Consistently 

Both Esther and Hannah sought God in prayer in the midst of their difficulties. As a result, their prayers were heard and God intervened. When we connect to God through prayer, it can impact everything. You have God’s attention when you pray. Do not ever underestimate the power of praying. Jesus said that God delights in giving good gifts to those who ask for them (Matthew 7:11). Your prayers can bring much needed change to your family situation, your community, and even your nation.

Walk in Faith

It takes faith to pray to a God that you cannot see. God promises that if you will seek Him in faith, He will reward you (Hebrews 11:6). Everything revolves around faith when it comes to a relationship with God. In order to pray, we must have faith that God will hear us. In order to seek God’s will for your life, you must first believe that He exists. Jesus promised that if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, then you can move mountains and nothing is impossible (Matt 17:20). 

You have a place in God’s story. And you have special talents and unique abilities that He can use to fulfill His purposes. Take courage from women who have gone before you, and watch what God can do with your life.

If you are curious about how to walk with God, Jonni Nicole Parsons wrote an amazing book called Ignited which discusses how we can walk with God.

Keilah Jude is an actress and model who resides in the Chicago, IL area where she and her husband planted Axess Church. She is currently a graduate student at Wheaton College studying Bible and Theology. Some of Keilah’s work includes acting roles in The Last Witch Hunter, all four Horse Camp movies (on Amazon Prime), four ALDI commercials, and modeling for various fashion magazines and designers. Connect with Keilah via www.KeilahJude.com.