Now You See Her
By: Cathie Ostapchuk
In hopeful expectation of what God will do at Gather Rise: GENESIS this November 4&5, 2022 we offer this message from our lead catalyst from 2018 upon the completion of Gather Rise.
You wonder what Gather Rise is? Why it matters? These words ring as true today as they did back then. Read them as you prayerfully consider going us at Calgary Life Church in Calgary this November…
On October 27, several hundred women from across Canada gathered to experience Gather Rise - Her Hope. Women who came with a voice and a presence to equip and empower by teaching Biblical truth, share their stories, and engage in significant conversations on issues that matter. Women who came seeking to find their voice and be seen by their Creator and women in their nation, and to become visible to themselves.
Now you see her.
The woman who anchors her hope in what is yet unseen. (Romans 8:24)
Now you see her.
The woman who hopes against all hope, when her back is up against a wall, that God will come through for her and be her champion.
Now you see her.
The woman who came looking for a community into which she is invited, accepted, belongs and can share her truth.
Now you see her.
The woman who came wondering if there was a message for her and left closer to Jesus, and with courage to rise another day.
Now you see her.
The woman who came alone seeking a friend and left with sisters.
Now you see her.
The woman who felt she could not find her place, especially with other women, and left in solidarity with those who have been in broken places and have chosen to rise to greater faith in God.
Now you see her.
The woman who is in the church and on the fringe of the church and who has let others silence her voice, who has allowed others to make her invisible and is now realizing that her voice needs to be heard to impact a generation.
Now you see her.
The woman who is ready to take up the training wheels and step into the margins to bring Christ and a hope for a future.
Now you see her.
The woman who is not afraid to develop her gifts in teaching and preaching and equipping the church.
Now you see her.
The woman who understands the time is now and that she is part of the Esther generation in this nation for such a time as this, and that what she brings matters.
Now you see her.
The woman who is prepared to study God’s word daily, meditate on it’s truth and speak and live it to a waiting world.
Now you see her.
Do you see yourself in her?
We gathered to worship, which opened the portals to God’s presence. We felt held there by the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit. We experienced the wonder of seeing the bigger narrative of how God is moving across this nation through His daughters. We felt connected, intertwined, interdependent, knit together in a way that made the distance between us in our large country, melt away.
We made life-long friends, sisters, mothers, daughters, on the journey of influencing our nation with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
When you are seen and when you are heard, you realize that God gave you your voice to proclaim truth and to help others find their voice.
When we gather the many, we are seen and heard in an amplified way. We find that the truth of all that Jesus has made possible for us opens doors of new opportunity to participate in Kingdom work in ways we could have never imagined. We, like Mary at the tomb, realize we are mandated to go out, an army of evangelists spreading the word of love and grace, because He looked at us in love and asked us to go tell the Good News.
We see you, women of this nation. We see you in your places: isolated, fringe, crowded, urban, rural, in the pew and outside the church walls, and all the places in between. We want you to know that God has seen you first and wants you to know the beauty of becoming family in His presence. He adopted us first.
We model Jesus’ invitation by adopting each other into such a strong and tight sisterhood that when the enemy comes to destroy one of us, he has to answer to all of us. Because we see each other, we fight for each other; we raise each other up.
Now you see her.
The woman who has a mission to accomplish, a purpose to fulfill, and who has gathered in to go out and ride.
Now you see her.
The woman who is unstoppable in the face of every challenge possible and still chooses to stay the path for God’s glory.
Now you see her.
The woman who chooses to hope. The Gather Woman.
Shine brightly, dear one. Bring hope against all hope to your nation. We see you. We love you. We are watching you and championing you on!
Let us gather.
Cathie’s work as a leadership catalyst, communicator, consultant and coach has led her to work in global non-profit organizations such as World Vision and Compassion, as well as corporate boardrooms, and has taken her across Canada and as far as Africa and Australia doing the work she loves. Cathie is Co-Founder and Lead Catalyst of Gather, a national movement which exists as a catalyst to connect, equip and mobilize women in Canada for leadership influence. She is a published author of Brave Women, Bold Moves, Choosing Courage in a Culture of Conformity, and was awarded the Best Christian Living book award from The Word Guild. Cathie co-hosts the HerInfluence Podcast and is a national speaker for Leader Impact. Cathie is focused on developing the leaders of today and tomorrow. She can be found at cathieostapchuk.com