FEMININITY: Developing a Biblical perspective

Welcome as we dive into Biblical Womanhood in the Home. I would like to open with John Greenleaf Whittier's prayer that Nancy included at the end of the introduction:

"Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our foolish ways!
Reclothe us in our rightful mind;
In purer lives Thy service find,
In deeper reverence, praise.

In simple trust like theirs who heard,
Beside the Syrian sea,
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word,
Rise up and follow Thee.

Drop Thy still dews of quietness
Till all our strivings cease.
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of Thy peace."

The first section of this book introduces us to God's design for women and begins in Chapter 1 with Femininity. We were designed to be feminine by no accident. God had a beautiful purpose and design for us. Carolyn Mahaney (the author of ch.1 ) says, "The important point here [referring to Genesis 1:27, 2:21-22] is that God created us, and being the creation of God determines everything for us as women. We don't look to our culture to find our feminine identity; we don't consult our feelings to discover our purpose. Everything that we are and everything that we do must be rooted in God." (p.23) This is an important revelation in understanding God's design for women. Many things in this book are EXTREMELY counter-cultural, and even so within the church at times. I have learned that where I initially feel opposition to what I am learning about biblical womanhood, more often than not I am walking in disobedience in that area.

Part of our feminine design is to be a helper to our husbands, and if single then in other relationships in our lives. We are to come along side of our husbands in order to help them live out their God given calling. I thought that the passage by Author Douglas Wilson gave wonderful insight into this:

"The man needs the help; the woman needs to help. Marriage was created by God to provide a companionship in the labor of dominion. The cultural mandate, the requirement to fill and subdue the earth, is still in force, and a husband cannot fulfill this portion of the task in isolation. He needs a companion suitable for him in the work to which God has called him. He is called to the work and must receive help from her. She is called to the work through ministering to him. He is oriented to the task, and she is oriented to him." (p.25)

We are also designed for motherhood. I LOVED this passage:

"As women, we are created to be life-bearers. Our bodies have been designed with the ability to mother—to receive, carry, and bear young. In fact, our bodies prepare themselves repeatedly to conceive and bear young. We express our femininity by gratefully embracing every stage of child-bearing, receiving and nurturing each child as a gracious gift from God."

Sometimes mothering becomes a burden instead of a joy, which Carolyn addressed in the text, and it is true for all of us at times I am sure.

The final part of our femininity addressed in this chapter is cultivating a love for our home. "Domesticity –devotion to the quality of home life—is an essential facet of femininity." Being good and skilled keepers of our home is in fact just another way of loving our husbands and nurturing our children. It is our job to feed, clothe and care for them in an environment that allows them to feel safe and loved. Home should be their safe haven from the chaotic world.

Loving service to our husbands and children is the perfect way to emulate Christ and live out God's plan for our lives. So often as women we get carried away with ministry, friendships, and other things that call us away from our home. Our home is where we are most vital and where we are called to be. We tend to be kinder and more patient with friends and strangers than we are with the people who we share our lives with. Are we truthfully and wholeheartedly following God's commands if aren't purposefully living out our design with those closest to us? Through our servant's heart and peaceful spirit, our husbands and children should be able to see a brilliant reflection of Christ in us.

Does God command us to abandon passions for other Godly pursuits, no! - but we are wisely cautioned against allowing these things to interfere with what matters most. Our femininity is found in our God given purpose to encourage, care for, and support our husbands, to love and nurture our children, and to keep our homes (Proverbs 31, Titus 2:3-5).

What did you think? Was there anything that particularly spoke to your heart? Please feel free to share your thoughts and commentaries below and engage in discussion.