A Woman of Substance: My Testimony and Legacy Seeking to Be All That God Has Destined You to Be

By Deborah Ruth Dinnall

There are aspects of the Proverbs 31 woman in all of us. God had a clear blueprint of what He intended us to be when He created us. He was certain about His creation. His intention was in no way ambiguous. We were created with a clear place and purpose in life. We were endowed with feminine graces that enable us to bring life and sustain it. It is imperative in this day and age that we understand Gods dictates for femininity. If we are swayed by the doctrine of this world we will not only lose our way, but we will abort our destiny.
God is waiting for us to take our place in Him by becoming women who He can depend on. We are made of the same stuff as the Proverbs 31 woman. The same God, using the same material to bring us into being, created us. The same substance formed us. It is time for women of God to stop living beneath their privilege. There is no woman like the woman of God, a woman of substance, strong, focused, and filled with the beauty of Christ.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 22, 2010
• ISBN: 9781456810009

Deborah Ruth Dinnall

Deborah Ruth Dinnall is a scholar, prolific teacher and preacher, evangelist and serves in ministry at Bethel United Church in Bristol, England. She shares her powerful and biblically practical and life changing ministry throughout England and the Woman of Substance Ministries seminars nationally.

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Copyright © 2010 by Deborah Ruth Dinnall.

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ISBN:                 Softcover                           978-1-4568-0999-7

                           Ebook                               978-1-4568-1000-9

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Printed in the United States of America.

Cover and layout design created by PJ Edmund.

Editorial content by PJ Edmund.

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Contents

Dedication

My Testimony

God Said Survive

Foreword

Preface

1 SPIRITUAL

2 UNIQUE

3 BRAVE

4 STRONG

5 TEMPERATE

6 ACTIVE

7 NOBLE

8 Compassionate

9 EXEMPLARY

10 From Symbols to Substance

Conclusion

Final Thought

Closing Prayer of Legacy

About The Author

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These Women of Substance, some mentors, some mentees, some role models have brought a sense of strength and inspiration to my life. I salute these Women of Substance. God bless you!

THE BEGINNING

Dedication

I want to dedicate this work to those who have been particular inspirations to me.

First, giving honor and all praise to God from whom flows all inspiration, revelation and knowledge.

To my parents and pastors, Bishop Gerald and Evangelist Sweedie Edmund, thank you. Dad, your dedication to education was passed into me that urged me to learn and labor for learning. I love you Dad. I know I am your favorite.

Mom, you taught me to be the best that I could be and be anything because of my strength. You have passed that on as a legacy to show me how to be a strong woman. What you have deposited in me throughout the years has enabled me to see myself and see God in such a blessed way. I love you Mom.

To all my siblings, Hedy, Shandy, Dexter, Peter, and Rachel. You have made me proud to be part of this family. I love you all. Hedy, my Tampa, Florida vacations with you have been the highlight of my year. Nobody like you Hedy. I love you Hedy. Shandy, we have talked about everything and you have inspired me. I love you Shandy. Dexter, you have inspired us all. Thank you for being there for me during one of my sickest times and holding the sick bucket for me. I love you Dexter. Peter, you came to me at a time when I called you. We have always had a bond that could not be explained. You fathered me through University in America and here you are fathering me again. I love you Peter. Rachel, the youngest and the strongest. You have always been there. I love you Rachel.

Most of all, I dedicate this work to my husband and family. Without their support I would never have taken the extra hours to accomplish a task such as this. Lance, you always believed in me more than I believed in myself. You would talk to people about me and I would think to myself who you are talking about? You helped me grow into the person that I am. I love you.

Bethany, you gave me hope again especially after I lost Jordan and not knowing if I could carry a child again. You became my comfort with your humor and personality. I love you.

Rebecca, you were our surprise child because they convinced me I could not have any more children. You bypassed medical science and came when no one thought you would. I love you.

Bradley, you were the restorer of the promise because God promised me a son. It was prophesied that you would love me and be my protector. You are a gentle and kind young man. Thank you for restoring the promise. I love you.

I have learnt from you and have been strengthened by each of you. I thank you all for sharing in my life.

My Testimony

This is my story about my journey through breast cancer in chapter and verse.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is credited with having the best first line ever written, It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. This is how a momentous chapter in my story also begins. Twists and turns. A book can be compared to a lifetime. As with life, books are divided into chapters within which you find paragraphs, and sentences. A chapter can equate to a season in life when you deal with a particular issue or face a particular challenge. You have introductory chapters that set the scene for the story and introduce the characters involved. In these chapters you find out the setting and scenario that will play out in the book. The middle chapters are where the action takes place, where the story really gets told. Then the concluding chapters present closure. Our lives are like this. We have a beginning, middle and end. Sometimes the things that happen at the beginning of our stories are not thought to be important until the story begins to play out and we realise the simplest detail was significant to the big picture.

I will never completely know the answer to the question that plagues me. The question is why did this happen to me? Why me? How was I selected to walk this path and what qualified me to do so. Whatever the answer, there is one thing that I do know, without a doubt, I was destined for this road.

I have been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Travelling on this journey, taking this road, is not a choice you make. No one chooses to go on this journey. No one plans for it, prepares for it, expects it. The fact is that one day you’re told its cancer and the journey begins. You don’t know where you are going or will end up on this journey, nor how long it will take, or what it will cost you to travel this road. There is no fork in the road, no other route to take. This is the road you must travel. Suddenly life changes, suddenly you become a sojourner on the road just trying to see your way through.

There is nothing that can prepare you for the emotions, situations, and issues that you will face when walking this path. When you face unfamiliar territory and unexpected challenges, you find out who you really are. The fire truly does purify and burn away pretence, inauthenticity, false love, false friendship, irrelevant desires, masks, roles, acts. It reveals the truth of who you are.

God assured me that my healing was already confirmed in the spiritual that I should hold on to my faith until it was revealed in the physical. He also showed me that although my healing process would include medical science and medical practitioners, I should in no way forget that my healing would come from Him. He was my balm in Gilead, the comforter of my body and soul. Therefore I never considered not undergoing medical treatment. God did not tell me that chemotherapy or radiotherapy were symbols of a lack of faith in His ability to heal me. He showed me that this was how he would bring my healing. In a sense it was like the healing of