I’m going out on a limb talking about this; a limb the mommy wars might saw off at any moment, and I’ll go tumbling to an untimely internet death.
But this message is worth the fall, if I take it. Because I’m really over the assumptions we’re making – these assumptions we women make about each other.Â
This is one of my favorite “favorites” list to date (can I say favorites twice?). The items listed here are either already in use or on their way to me soon. If you’re looking for some great birthday and baby shower gifts, this is the list for you! The following products and places really brightened my heart the last month. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.
What does it mean for a man to be “head of the home”? Where does that even come from? Headship of husbands is a controversial issue. Headship is hotly debated in church and culture, often misunderstood, misinterpreted, and abused. But could headship be very different than what we’ve seen described thus far?
We talk about women’s issues a lot on the podcast. But Lisa and I realized we’ve never broken down why we think it’s important to have these discussions. Why does what we believe about being a woman matter?
The narrowness of my beliefs was safe, comfortable, and secure. I trusted the people I’d read and heard. Their commentary was enough to authorize what I believed, and to question those ideas felt like spiritual treason.
Then I read the Bible for myself.
A few weeks ago I received an interesting question on my weekly Q&A show on Instagram. The reader asked: “Do you think dating is just practice for divorce, like many conservative groups say?” I was a little surprised I’d never heard this before, given my own acquaintance with purity culture. It’s the perfect lay-up to the courtship conversation. And it’s a question we really need to answer in an age of temporary love.
A few weeks ago I did a mini-series on my Instagram stories regarding the misapplication of popular bible verses – verses like Jeremiah 29:11. The ensuing conversation in my community was both exciting and discouraging. In one sense, it was exciting to see how many believers recognized the problems with taking verses out of context and misapplying them. But it was saddening to see how many people had learned these verses in their wrong context, and how many of them were overwhelmed and discouraged when they found out this was the case.
The role of fathers is vital. The love of a good father shows a daughter the kind of man she should look for in a spouse. But what happens when a father’s example becomes a template?Â
I think we’re seeing the result of this in Christian dating. Young women enter the dating sphere looking for a copy of their dad. The problem? Fifty year old men don’t come in twenty-two year old bodies! A few weeks ago I discussed three misconceptions about biblical masculinity. If there were a fourth, this would be it: Your husband is not your father.Â
There’s a fundamental difference between true victimhood and a victim mentality. A victim mentality is adopted, even when that person is not actually a victim of hurt or abuse. It is characterized by a “life is against me” attitude. This mentality is limiting; it keeps a person from living out their potential.
This post is not in reference to true victims of abuse. If that’s you, please find counseling and mentorship, a safe place to find healing and to work through your past. What this post deals with is a victim identity and mentality; victimhood as a lifestyle. There are several ways to identify this in a person, and following are four consequences of living in defeat instead of overcoming by the power of God.