“Women Preachers - The Final Chapter”

Friday, June 24, 2016

(This is a follow-up question to “Women Preachers”, “Women Preachers (Part 2)”, and “Women Preachers (Part 3)”)

Thank you very much for indulging me in our debate about women and women's roles.  I have read in earnest your replies and appreciate your forthrightness (is that a word? LOL).  The root of the reason that I ask these questions stems from my struggle with God's Word and who I am.  God made me, right?  Then why did He make me so stubborn and pig-headed? (Partly a joke, but not all the way.)  Because of the life I have lived and all the stuff I have been through, the only thing that kept me alive and sane was to be as hard as nails.  I am tired of being the "tough guy" on one hand, but on the other, I am strong because of it.  Society gives women conflicting signals: be "your own woman" BUT "find a good man".  Why can't I do both?  How now am I supposed to throw away who I am to live a life that makes me feel like I am in too-tight, itchy, wool clothing (i.e. be someone I am not)?  Am I simply being pig-headed again when I feel that in order to be what I am "supposed" to be, I will actually become a pretender?  I do not know how to be anyone other than who I am, who God made me to be.  How am I to live an honest life if I always go around trying to be something I am not?

Sincerely,
The Not-So-Feminist

Dear The Not-So-Feminist,

Who said anything about women not being allowed to be tough?!  Some of the most godly, brilliant, and faithful women are tough as nails and as resilient as sand under the tide.  Esther had the courage and bravery to stand up to the king and save the entire nation of Israel (Esther 4:16)!  It was women like Mary, Joanna, and Susanna who provided for Christ while He preached the gospel – it was their courage to stand by Him that made a difference in so many lives (Lk 8:1-3).  Abigail put her life in her hands and stood up against a wicked husband and prevented the deaths of an entire settlement of people (read the story in 1 Samuel 25); not to mention, she rebuked David in such a clever way that he adored her for her forthrightness (yes, it is a word).  Rahab risked her life to protect two of God’s servants and left a life of harlotry to become a faithful Jew (Heb 11:31).  There isn’t enough room to tell of the perseverance and knowledge of Priscilla, the devotion of Lydia, the strength of Hannah, or the wisdom of Deborah.  Suffice it to say, the Bible is simply brimming with stories of women who’ve been beaten down and assailed on every side, but they kept getting back up again.  Women and men may have different roles, but women have played a vital and truly epic part in the delivery of God’s Word to mankind.

Will your past affect the way you are as a christian today?  Definitely.  Will you have to change some things in your life to serve God?  Of course.  Will the essence of your personality be lost?  Absolutely not. God doesn’t want you to stop being tough – He wants to channel that into the right arenas.  Like you said, society sends women conflicting signals.  The Bible is designed to remove that conflict and give you real answers to what being a woman looks like… courageous, faithful, and utterly unflappable.  Being a woman isn’t the same as being a doormat.

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