Write Your Testimony Here!

This is my testimony. Part 2. I never seem to have enough to say. I just wanted to make a point in this piece on the difference between real sisterhood in Christ and worldy sisterhood. Thanks Min. Hatchett for the opportunity to share.

One of the main reasons I wanted to pledge was to experience the sisterhood that looked so attractive from the outside looking in. My biological family ties were not so strong, and I desired connection to something. Looking in, I saw that surreal love at probate shows and step show competitions. I saw the community activities and thought it would be a great move to be a part of a sisterhood that was positive. I would say that my relationship to Jesus at that time was superficial. I thought I was cool because I respected who He was and knew the Bible, but there was no real application of the Word going on. I was in a liberal minded, back-slidden state. I was really rebelling against what I knew was right, on all levels. I thought being in a sorority would line right up with my plans to be a success in the world. I was already in college, so I thought this would just keep me moving upward.

My process was a mess. It was a train that got derailed. By the time it was all said and done, I, along with the other four that were on the line, were considered skaters. We went through an underground process for 5 weeks or so, but when an anonymous letter was written the director of student affairs regarding us being hazed, we decided to drop line on our own because we did not want to loose chances altogether to be in the sorority. Life was crazy. We fought each other, we were being harassed by the “big sisters,” there was infighting, a call was made to the Regional Director who did not bother to investigate because her “sorors” lied to cover up the real deal. And this was all post hazing. There was still the underground component that we went through. I can say it brought out the worst in me. There was a lot of focus on this particular line that I was on because it was the first to be taken over under a newly chartered chapter. The charter members had a lot of respect to gain on the yard, and we were the proof.

There was a lot of “one-up-man-ship” on the line that I was on, and for as hard as the hazing process is defended for establishing unity, I saw the inner workings and all I can say is there was no unity on the line. All the wood we took, errands we ran, money we spent, nights we stayed up did nothing but create aggravation and hostility. There was nothing genuine about it; it was so warped and corrupted that we weren’t even “faking the funk” of sisterly love…there was constant turmoil. The only thing everyone agreed on was to collectively drop.

Hazing just gave us all something in common, that we could all relate to, but there was no cohesiveness. As soon as we stopped marching to the beat of their (Big Sisters’) drum, we who were soon to be their beloved sisters in just a few more short weeks, became the total opposite: targets of their rage. This was the irony of it all, and this is, to me, the glue of superficial sisterhood. Beyond all that stuff, there really was no substance to the relationships. After we went our separate ways, there was no real effort to remain close. An occasional call here or there, but nothing like die hard camaraderie. The one bond that I did keep with one of the girls ended in yet another altercation.

In hindsight I can say, older and wiser in spiritual wisdom, thanks to God Almighty, that none of that was worth it. Everything I ever thought the sorority was about was based on a superficial argument. I said earlier that it was a train that got derailed. I don’t think that was by accident. I was not at all in God’s Will, and unbeknownst to me at the time, He was keeping me away from what I erroneously thought was fruitful. I got to see the ugly side of it all. And years later I can say that I God pulled me right out of a spiritual tragedy. I did not know this at the time. It took some growing and maturing. But I thank God for it all.

What God did do was throw me right into the center of His Will. That has taken some getting used to, because I thought I had my life all figured out. Dating back to college, I saw myself doing different things. But through it all, I am pleased and I trust God for my well being more than I trust myself. He has placed me in a lifestyle that is constantly shifting. I am away from family and familiarity for me changes every 4 years.

I am pleased to say that I have found true sisterhood in all of this constant changing, in fact it is probably because things are constantly moving and changing that there is that desire to bond and connect. I will even say that these relationships are even closer then those in my own blood family, because the glue is Jesus. That is the key. Because of my lifestyle, God has placed people in my path that I have true bonds with: and our common ground is the Light of Jesus Christ. The relationships that I have made have been a result of iron sharpening iron, women who have stood with me in agreement in prayer, women who have needed a Word of encouragement because they are going through, and because I know someone was there for me when I was going through, we connect to Jesus, together. Women who have been with me while I have given birth, older women who have been good counsel for me because they know what the Word of God teaches. They are women who I have been able to show up at their doorsteps unannounced with heaviness, and for me they have dropped everything to help me in that time of need.
I needed immediate attention in my home one time, and a sister came over in her pajamas to assist me in prayer I have grown tremendously through these relationships.

We go to the Word together, we study together, we fellowship together; we help each other with a godly motivations and I ain’t stood on line, or took a single stroke of wood for/with these sisters. None of them I knew for a long period of time prior. It is all God. There was no real process to the making of our bond except being sensitive to the Will of God, and making Jesus our source of motivation. This is how I came to know what true sisterhood is, there is nothing superficial about this.

I was striving for success in this world for so long, the world’s system of education, and the world’s system of relationships. God has taken me from that state of mind to one that strives for His success, within His framework. I have had to redefine a lot of things that were programmed into my person. But the social good that I do, the strong bonds of devotion that I form, the volunteerism, and all that stuff that goes on within a sorority, I do within God’s framework. And I am glad about it. God has to be a the root of everything to really have true purpose.