What does it mean to be a woman? I'm embarking on search to describe what it means to me. It's who I am, but who is that? How do I fit in this puzzle of culture and family?
I'm writing this as a question to you readers of mine who share this identity. Tell me who you are.
What are your deepest desires and aspirations?
Where is your heart, and how do you listen to it?
What fulfills you, moves you, inspires you, frees you?
Share your loves.
This is my deepest desire: That the world be healed and the people of God holistically defined by the new creation order of Jesus, the second Adam, not defined by the human institutions organized under the curse, but to recognize their membership in this new order of resurrection, the infusion of the Holy Spirit into every living member, in order to bring about the reconciliation of all things to God through Jesus. A people defined by the Sermon on the Mount and the Jesus story in much the same way Israel was defined by the Law of Moses and the Exodus.
ReplyDeleteThat's what my personal identity stems from. My deepest desire is that my gifts and talents be recognized and validated in every arena, as a competent defender of truth and a formidable foe against evil. Practically, my pursuit of homesteading organically and natural parenting is my way of participating in the healing of creation, my choice of unschooling/homeschooling a way of undoing the mental hegemony of "the powers that be" for my children, a way of "bringing down strongholds and making every thought captive to Christ".
Deep down in my heart I want to be free. Free to exercise my gifts and move without hindrance among the various circles of society and be recognized as an equal in every respect. The thing I hate most is stereotypes, and I am always trying to operate outside of them. When I try to conform I am stifled.
Many things inspire and move me, and when I am doing these things I feel the most free, the most natural: Dancing to rhythm, letting the music and the beat flow through me and define my movements; swimming in a river, riding my bike by woods and fields, anything that allows a flowing movement in a natural, scenic setting; hiking a new trail and wondering what's around the next curve or over the next hill. And ideas. When I read something new, and it sparks something inside, and suddenly a million sparks go off, things connecting in new ways, and soon I am creating a new idea that must find a way to be expressed, whether through prose, poetry or a physical art form, or even an activity. These are what make me "tick" as an individual.
What does this have to do with being a woman- a wife, mother, sister, daughter? Everything. My family and circle of friends are both the nearest recipients of my gifts and talents, as expressions of my love, and a constant source of inspiration for them. But let me make this clear. Womanhood does not define me. I define it, or rather bring my own contributions to it. Thank you for inviting me to share! It is part of my Exodus.
I hesitated to say anything, since this is obviously a woman thing, but I think I will anyway. Naturally a lot of what Sara has to say is very good and inspirational; but there's just one problem: a lot of those things can just as easily apply to men as well. What Marianne is aiming for is to discover the core natures that make women special as distinct from men.
ReplyDeleteMale and female are not equal in the sense that they have no differences, because I'm sure that God, when he created Eve, didn't have just another Adam in mind (and you can't say it was solely for the reproduction thing, because that could easily have been handled other ways). This is not a question of social class: it's a question of what makes women women, distinct from men: what they have that men haven't got, and in turn what men have that women haven't got. Stereotypes are not the enemy here (in my opinion they are nonexistent), but only Satan, who seeks to confuse those distinctions and destroy the beautiful picture of the man and the woman. We cannot redefine what God has made, or things will become twisted (look at homosexuality, for example). But conformity is not what is asked of us here, for womanhood and manhood hold plenty of freedom for individuality within them.
So I would encourage you women who follow this blog not to be afraid to share with Marianne what you believe is a part of true womanhood, because everyone's opinion matters, and observing the opinions of many can often lead to a deeper truth.
My deepest desire right now is to surrender myself wholly to God. To give up all my rights, to be His servant, and in so doing to serve those around me. That is what my heart wants, but my earthly pride fights a fierce battle, and says that if I become like that, then I will no longer be cool. I'm the one who can say what she thinks, and no one can walk all over me because I would beat them down first. Each day I have to surrender my pride to to God. Each day I struggle, but in my weakness He is strong.
ReplyDeleteMy heart right now is sometimes hard to find. It often hurts, so it likes to hide. Finding it and examining it hurts, because there's a piece missing. There are also two other pieces of my heart that are running around me, getting into stuff, getting hurt, and staying close to me. Their names are Lacey and Simon.
When I am feeling empty and hurt, and I can't quite find my heart, then I ask Jesus to fill me. I am nothing without Him, and I am realizing that more day by day. It's also very healing and fulfilling to spend time with my husband, to love him, walk with him, and be partners in this life together. When I play my saxophone and make music, I am lifted to another world, carried by the music, and when I set it aside, I feel refreshed.
I have also been in a womens bible study, and after each meeting I feel so encouraged and filled with strength to do the right thing.