(Hey everyone! Here’s a post I originally published on my other blog, Wake up, Girls!. (View the original post here.) I wanted to post it here for my “Yah’s Girl” followers too, so I hope you enjoy!)
As a young teenager, I struggled with the concept of womanhood. When our Bible study group decided to study this topic, I was excited because I wanted to learn more about what I was supposed to become, how I was supposed to act, as a woman in Christ.
But after the meetings, I was so confused because of all the information coming from the people in the group. The verses we talked about were on submission, teaching, head coverings. Yes, I know it’s a sensitive topic and it’s good to know where you stand, but I think it was a lot for me to take in, as an inexperienced and a tiny-bit-immature-15-year-old.
What made it harder was that most of the people presenting their ideas were … the men. I didn’t see any women saying things about how they’d learned to take their identity from the Bible. I didn’t see any women sharing their wisdom with the others.
If you know me, you can see that this topic would be hard for me.
I love debate and freedom. I love the idea of living alone and being independent. I want to do dangerous and risky things, like walking fenceposts, kayaking down crazy rivers, and going on backpacking trips. I’ve even wanted to be a secret agent at one point!
I’ve had the image of the strong, independent woman in my head for my whole life. I wanted to be that kind of person.
But I wanted it for MYSELF. Not for the glory of God. For the glory, courage, and fame of MYSELF.
See? When you start with the heart of the matter you see what’s wrong. The defenses fall away. And you can see the truth.
See, what I realized was that men and women have different purposes. The purpose of the godly man is to be responsible for his family, wife, and children. To protect them. To love them. To lead them where God leads him. He can’t do that if his wife or daughter is constantly second-guessing his decisions or pulling at his hand to move him elsewhere.
And the purpose of women? I’ve learned that it is multifold – but I think the root of it all is to help. To help their parents, instead of tearing them down and making trouble. To comfort and encourage their friends with their troubles. Cook when Mom’s sick. Do the chores when Dad’s away. Babysit for a couple on a date. To help their husbands lead them in a godly way.
Instead of thinking of the men’s responsibility as an encumberment to our independence, why don’t we think of it as a blessing from God? Instead of thinking of our purpose to be helpmeets as a burden, why don’t we rejoice that we have the power to change and to move people? We woman can help people be the best they can be! We can encourage the men in our life instead of scoffing at their leadership!
Something that was really important for me to learn was this: That my Dad has my best interests at heart. In fact, at one point I didn’t believe this. I thought he was out to wreck my fun – maybe he wouldn’t ever let me move out. Maybe he’d never let me date the guy I liked. Maybe he’d never let me leave the province without him or Mom. I thought, “This sucks. Why does he have to be in charge of me for my entire life? Can I never make my own decisions?”
But stop a minute, old Makayla. I know my Dad. He loves God. He loves me. He wouldn’t want to hurt me. He wouldn’t do anything he didn’t truly believe in. He’s not out to wreck my fun. He’s out to protect me – to fulfill his God-given responsibility to take care of me, his baby girl.
When you think about it THAT way … it takes away all the skepticism and all I feel is gratefulness and love.
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So now we know what it DOESN’T mean to be a Godly Woman … what DOES it mean?
There are SO many facets to what it means to be a godly woman that I can’t fit all the concepts in this post! This will be part one of a series on Biblical Womanhood, and I’ll be incorporating the stories of Biblical women in the posts, to illustrate the qualities we can show in our lives today. I hope you’ll follow my blog or continue checking it out so we can journey through this womanhood series together!
“Yahweh, I pray that you would work through this series. Help all the women and teenage girls to know what your special purpose is for them, and to accept the purposes which you have given to men. Thank you for your principles of Biblical manhood and womanhood that we can follow. They are beautiful and desirable, not a burden or an encumberment. Help me as well, to know what to write, and continue to fill us with your words through Your Word. Please renew us all. In the name of your son Yeshua, Amen.”
I hope you all have an amazing day!
Makayla
(By the way, the Womanhood series will be continued on the other blog, Wake up, Girls! Head over and click the follow button to receive notifications for future posts!)
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