What does it mean to be a woman?
A woman is more than the many roles she plays. The roles of being a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, auntie, co-worker, administrator, nurse, CEO and waitress do not define what it means to be a woman.
Our culture produces empty shells of what a woman is supposed to look like but, our culture cannot produce a woman. We are bombarded with images of preserved, mummified, dressed up and painted role models. We see through cultural glasses, the feminine image that longs to stay forever young and girlish.
Embracing your roles and duties in society and looking good at it, does not define you as a woman. To become a woman is more than getting your first period, making love your first time and having your first baby. As significant as all these experiences are, they do not make you a woman.
Our society today is sadly lacking role models of what a woman should look like. Very few will experience or pursue this sacred passage into womanhood.
Our cultural images today portray women who are young and girlish. Some, not fitting into this image have become bitter. They are bitter that life has forced them into the realization that the world does not evolve around them or their desires. Some, after facing enough disappointments, declare through bitter tears and clenched teeth, “It is time to grow up”. Most end up with a twisted perception of what being a woman is all about.
That is not God’s plan for you. To grow old and bitter about your life and situations you had no control over. That is not God’s plan for you, Woman of God! God is not through with you and your life is not over!
Proverbs 14:1 says, “The wise woman builds her house”. The image of the wise woman who built her house is an image of a woman who does not mourn the passing of her youth. This woman embraces whatever the next season of her life brings. This woman has a sureness in her steps though they may be slower. This woman has grace painted on her face, not hardness. This woman has strength in her eyes that no workout routine can give her. Though her voice may be shaky, it is sweet as honey to those who receive wisdom from her lips. Age cannot rob her for she is more than smooth skin and fine bones. This woman is timeless and she does not fade away as she gets older. She puts on a full display of everything inside of her.
To become a woman is a sacred endeavor. The sacred passage into womanhood is God-breathed!
I love this post!!! There is so much pressure by society to look a certain way or be a certain way. But…does that really make a difference?
I remember my own godly grandmother. She tried to look her best, but it was her spirit that I remember more than what she wore or how she looked. Whenever I needed prayer or was struggling, she was there to encourage, give me a spiritual spanking if needed, laugh with me, and get me back on track. She always directed me to God. She told me that nothing was too difficult for Him. I knew I could always count on her to speak the truth into me regardless if it was what I wanted to hear. She would tell me stories of how she spent the day with the Lord and what he told her. It was through her that my desire to hear the Lord clearly was birthed. She told me of the adversities that she had been through and how the Lord rescued her. If we aren’t real, we can’t help people in real situations.
Truly enjoyed the post and was encouraged. Thanks!
You’ve hit on it, Pastor Connie. We’ve all met some of those women. Maybe, we are one of them ourself, hard as nails on the outside, but lonely, hurting and unfulfilled on the inside.
Today, we enjoy more advantages in the workplace and society than our sisters of past times. Yet, have we learned what it means to be a REAL woman on the inside? We think, “Is this it — get an education, juggle job and family, keep my body fit, etc., so I mirror the “sucessful woman” image set before me?” Perhaps, others, like me, find themselves getting stuck in the “doing” mode and lose sight of “being” a real woman. And, what is a real woman all about? I don’t want to be just a better “me”. Bring us a fresh breath of air, we need it!