Leadership Connexion Winter 2022

Over the years, we have opened our home to men and
women who needed housing and/or mentorship. Some
stayed with us for short periods, and others stayed
much longer. Either way, while they lived with us, our family life
changed as we made room for them to feel comfortable and
welcome. My perfectly decorated GUEST room became their
room. Before long, it did not look like a guest room, but a welllived-in
space, complete with their belongings. As more time
passed and our guests felt comfortable, their presence became
a part of our daily routine as we learned their food preferences,
etc. They became family as our lives intertwined, and their
presence changed our lives for the season they were with us.
Our home became their home.
When Jesus came to the earth, clothed in fl esh and blood, His
presence changed lives eternally.
I love how The Message Bible says it,
“The Word became flesh and blood and moved
into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with
our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like
Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true
from start to finish.”
While Jesus was active with the Father at creation, He was
unseen until the moment He entered our earthly reality, fl esh
and blood, born of a virgin. Then, the simplicity of a space
made for animals became a birthing room for the King of Kings,
and humans like you and I saw (beheld) His glory. You can read
these words in the NKJ version of John 1:14.
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among
us, and we BEHELD His glory, the glory as of
the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth.”
Welcome, Jesus,
this Christmas!
The Complete Jewish Bible refers to GLORY as Sh’khinah,
which means the manifest presence of God. Before this time,
God’s presence would manifest as a cloud or a pillar of fi re, but
NOW Jesus was with us – fl esh and blood – spending thirtythree
years on the earth and ultimately giving his fl esh and
blood, becoming the perfect sacrifi ce to atone for our sins.
“The Word became a human being and
lived with us, and we saw his Sh’khinah, the
Sh’khinah of the Father’s only Son, full of
grace and truth.”
Complete Jewish Bible
When we welcome Jesus into our lives, He comes in with grace
and truth. Grace is unmerited favor, which we don’t deserve,
and His truth will set us free from sin. At our best, we invite
Jesus to make Himself at home in every area of our life, and
His touch is unmistakable. His presence becomes as normal as
the sun rising each morning. As time goes on, we begin to give
Him access to each space in our hearts, and the more we do
this, the more His Glory shines in us.
While I’ll never experience what it was like for those who
physically walked with Jesus during His time here on earth, I
can tell you that His Sh’khinah (Shekhinah) changes everything.
I love the song “When You Walk into the Room” by Bryan and
Katie Torwalt.
When You walk into the room
Everything changes
Darkness starts to tremble
At the light that You bring
And when You walk into the room
Every heart starts burning
And nothing matters more
Than just to sit here at Your feet
And worship You
PENNDEL WOMEN | Liz DeFrain | 484.686.4554 | liz@penndelwomen.com | penndelwomen.com
This Christmas, the best present you can give to Jesus is allowing
His presence access to every part of your heart. I promise,
everything changes with that kind of access.
LEADERSHIPconnexion | Winter 2022 5