A DIFFERENT KIND OF WOMAN

"Being a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, being a Christan makes me a different kind of woman." -Elisabeth Elliot (Let Me Be A Woman)

It's summertime in coastal North Carolina. The birds are active, the water is warm, rainstorms are popping up out of nowhere, and the humidity is thick. This morning, the world feels quiet, like the calm before a storm. The air is heavy, and the trees are dancing as a light breeze passes through them.

I picked up my well-worn copy of one of my top 5 favorite books, Let Me Be A Woman by Elisabeth Elliot, and gently flipped through the pages to read portions I have highlighted or notated through the years. I was reminded that the war on manhood and womanhood is not a new war; it is an age-old war, one that began in the Garden. The enemy has long been after our identity, enticing us to be like God in ways that we were never meant to be. He has twisted truth, distorted reality, and called into question the very fabric of who we were created to be. I am a question asker, a truth seeker, so this notion challenges me to ask, "Why?"

WHY?

Oh, the timeless question, asked by many a toddler: "Why?" I bring this question to my Heavenly Father: "Why can man not just be man, and woman not just be woman, and we live in our created order happy as can be?"

The answer returns to me, as it has in times past... The enemy of our souls has always been and will forever be, until eternity, out to distract us, discourage us, and cause us to doubt the goodness of God in who He has made us to be. Both manhood and womanhood reflect God in a very real way to a lost world. For we cannot have one without the other.

To be a woman is not a curse, it is a calling. Each calling placed on our lives is a gift. This leads me to conclude that my calling to be a woman is a sweet gift from God. I image Him differently than my brothers in Christ. Girlfriends, I beg you to ask yourself, "Why is this a bad thing?" The world wants us to believe that men are the enemy, and we must push, and force, and play the game of tug of war with our counterpart—man. When really the war is with the one who is the father of lies, the author of confusion! We think just like Eve did that God must be withholding something good from us because He made us a woman. This is not so! No—He saw you in your mother's womb, He shaped and fashioned you in His likeness, He prepared good works for you from before the foundation of the world. He has already given you a seat at the table, you don't need to fight for one. Your seat is a different seat than your brothers', it is not a less valued seat, it is just a different one. When we sit down for family dinner, our children do not argue over who has the best seat. They are all nestled around the table, equal in value, different in their roles in our family. They are loved, cared for, nurtured, and treasured, and without either of them seated in their place, our family table feels a little off.

"May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars cut for the structure of a palace..." (Psalm 144:12)

TO BE A WOMAN IS A TREMENDOUS CALLING

Plants growing, pillars holding—each important, each with great purpose, each with a tremendous calling!

Are we missing the forest through the trees? Have we been distracted by the lies of the enemy, infected by the current culture?

The culture is not the enemy, friends; our culture is our opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ! Let us not conform or try to twist the Gospel to make it more palatable for the climate we live in. I can straighten my hair all day long, but in the North Carolina humidity, my hair will look a bit off, not sleek, more like a little frizzy and confused; "Am I curly hair, or am I straight hair?" If we are not careful, in our spiritual lives we will be asking a similar question: "Am I discerning the word of God, or am I conforming to the pattern of this world?" We do not need to apologize for the truth; God is fully capable of changing hearts and making our ways straight. The word of God is unchanging; it will stand the test of time!

The truth about male and female will never change! The squirrel that I am watching frolic in my flower bed, near my rosebush, will never be the Carolina wren that flits from tree to tree above him. Just as my rosebush will never be the hydrangea that sits next to her. They are equal in value to me; they are both lovely in different ways.

UNPOPULAR OPINION, SOLID GROUND

Biblical womanhood may not be popular in our time; even in the church, it may be scoffed at. Yet, God shows us that Biblical womanhood is always in trend with Him. In fact, if we want to live faithful, full, and overflowing lives, we must start by embracing who God created us to be, love being a woman, and encourage our brothers to be the men they were created to be.

We are pillars, sisters! We are strong, stable, sturdy, and able to withstand much. We are beautiful, we have high callings on our lives—do not get sidetracked and let someone steer you away from truth or twist the word of God. I implore you to read your Bible in context, know what it says, and don't try to dismiss and shed the parts that pertain to you as a woman... For in those passages, you find the beauty of the created order. My fear is that these scriptures have been misused and misapplied, making us fearful of them because of what some men and women have tried to squeeze them to say, and we end up missing the absolute beauty and wonder of what God is actually communicating to us! Let us be discerning women.

"Discernment is not knowing what is right and what is wrong, that is easy. Discernment is knowing the difference between what is right and what is almost right." -Charles Spurgeon

SELF EXAMINATION

Let us ask the questions; "Is what I believe about womanhood right or almost right?"

"Is what I believe about Biblical womanhood right or almost right?"

"Am I willing for my will to be undone and for the will of the Lord to be accomplished in my life as a Christian?"

"Am I acting out of fear or faith when I approach what God says about man and woman?"

"Have I been hurt by the church in the past? Maybe they misused certain scriptures?" (I know I have been; it is only by the grace of God that I am where I am!)

"Am I willing to acknowledge that all of God's Word is true and profitable for my life, even if it goes against what I think?" (And it will—it has in my life!)

WOMEN OF THE WORD

Let us not be women of the world; rather, let us be women of the Word: strong, unmovable, and faithful, always abounding in steadfast love! Let us be women who love being women and walk out our calling in such a way that the world sees Jesus.

The sky is growing gray, the clouds are rolling in from the North Shore, and the temperature has dropped slightly to indicate rain is most certainly moving in. But through the clouds peeks a ray of light; it shines brightly, pushing back the dark spots. Girlfriends, we are living in a time when confusion is all around us, the gloomy sky is everywhere—but the light of God is always piercing through the storm!

I don't know about you- but I want to be a different kind of woman, becoming more like Christ!

Joyfully,

Brittany