Weekly Devotional: June 10, 2026
GOD’S WORD
Exodus 2 and 15; Micah 6:4
Devotion by
Captain Liz Blusiewicz
Corps Officer for the Beckley, WV Corps and Community
DEVOTIONAL
Circle of Influence — The Leadership of Miriam
MIRIAM’S LEADERSHIP ALONGSIDE MOSES AND AARON:
When we think about influence, we often imagine titles, platforms, or positions that validate a person’s authority or power. Yet Scripture consistently paints a different image of true influence.
In Micah 6:4, God Himself affirms Miriam’s leadership alongside Moses and Aaron: “I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam.” That’s not a small statement. Miriam is named as a national leader, someone God used to shape the direction of His people. She wasn’t an afterthought or background figure. She was part of the leadership structure that guided Israel out of bondage. Her life reminds us that God does not wait for ideal circumstances; He works through willing hearts.
What makes this even more powerful is that her influence began long before that recognition.
As a young girl, Miriam showed remarkable influence. In Exodus 2, when her baby brother Moses was placed in the Nile to escape Pharaoh’s decree, Miriam didn’t just watch from a distance; she stayed alert, attentive, and ready to act. When Pharaoh’s daughter discovered Moses, it was Miriam who stepped forward with a solution, offering to find a Hebrew woman to nurse the child. That bold moment of influence resulted in Moses being reunited with his mother and ensured his survival. When Moses could speak for himself, young Miriam was there.
THAT’S LEADERSHIP IN ITS EARLIEST FORM:
Seeing a need, stepping in, and acting with courage. Miriam didn’t wait for permission or a title. She responded to the moment in front of her. That same posture followed her into adulthood.
In Exodus 15, standing on the far side of the Red Sea, Miriam steps forward with a tambourine in her hand. The waters that once threatened destruction now stand as a testimony of deliverance. Behind her is bondage. Before her is promise. And in that moment, she does what comes most naturally to a heart aligned with God: she leads in praise. “Sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted…”
This is not a quiet, private expression of gratitude. This is bold, visible, contagious worship. Miriam gathers the women, and together they respond to God’s salvation with movement, music, and proclamation. She doesn’t just experience deliverance; she helps others recognize it. That’s influence. And more specifically, that’s spiritual leadership rooted in worship.
IT WAS PRAISE:
Miriam understood something that every leader in God’s Kingdom must learn: before you lead people forward, you must lead them upward. Her first instinct after victory wasn’t strategy, structure, or next steps…it was praise. She knew that if the people lost sight of who delivered them, they would lose their direction entirely.
For a Salvation Army officer, this truth cuts straight to the heart of the calling. The work of an officer cannot be summed up in 360 reviews or Orders and Regulations the preaching, organizing, serving, responding, standing in the gap never ends. There is always another demand, another responsibility, another urgent situation. But Miriam’s example reminds us that our first and most essential role is not duty but worship.
Because the danger in the life of an officer is that you can begin to lead people to programs instead of to God.
Miriam didn’t draw attention to herself or even to Moses’ leadership; she directed everything back to the Lord. Her leadership was not about being seen; it was about making sure God was seen.
THAT DISTINCTION MATTERS:
As a Salvation Army officer, our “circle of influence” may include a corps, a community, a congregation, or even other officers, and in those spaces, our worship sets the tone.
People are watching to see: Is our praise genuine? Is our faith visible? Is our dependence on God real?
Miriam’s worship was embodied. It involved her voice, her movement, her presence. It wasn’t polished or controlled; it was expressive and authentic. She created space for others to join in, to participate, to respond.
MIRIAM’S INFLUENCE:
And that’s the calling of an officer, not to perform worship, but to lead people into it. To create environments where people can encounter God. To remind weary hearts of His faithfulness. To celebrate His victories, even when the journey ahead is uncertain. Miriam didn’t wait for perfect conditions to worship. She worshiped in response to what God had already done. And that’s a powerful shift in perspective. She influenced!
Because in ministry, it’s easy to focus on what still needs to happen: The people not yet reached. The needs not yet met. The prayers not yet answered.
But Miriam teaches us to pause and say, “Look what God has already done.” Worship becomes the anchor that keeps our calling grounded in gratitude instead of pressure.