I’ve been told several times in my life that I should write a book and the fact is, writing is “my thing”…it’s what I think I might have just been put on earth to do (maybe, we’ll see). Not that being a wife and mother are not fulfilling for me or what I feel has been God’s plan for me as well, because I absolutely love being both. (Don’t you just love how I’m opening my blog with a disclaimer on my husband and kids, ha!! But whatever I digress!) I just think we all have our way of letting the world know what matters. Some of us do sport and do it SO well, which can often show us the benefits of perserverance and hardwork. Others are amazing artists and whether they are singing, acting, drawing, painting or making something amazing out of sand, they are showing us ALL what can erouse the emotions we have that let us know we are alive and are doing more than just existing.
Besides the fact that I am mediocre at sport and I am pretty certain my almost 7 year old has just surpassed me in artistic ability, I truly believe writing for me is giving life a voice….all of it…the good, bad, controversial, beautiful, horrific and everything in between. I wanted to start writing and wasn’t sure what angle I would take for awhile. What exactly would I be talking about? How would I “title” my “voice” in the world of blogs? Then lately, probably since I started my journey as a mother (almost 7 years ago) and most intensely the last 2 years, I have felt this burning inside me as a woman…a Christian woman….that so much of being a woman today AND being a Christian, is misunderstood. We are often stuck somewhere in a time warp, where being a Christian woman today means you are more liberated than the women in “Mad Men”, but don’t you dare even think about admiring any current day women activists, because after all they just don’t know their place as God ordained it, right? Women are still being raped, abused and marginalized daily, in the hundreds of thousands and I feel there is not enough being said by Christian women, women of faith, on these issues. We are caught up defending the interpretation of one verse or the relevance of another, rather than just looking around us and really seeing where we are needed, as a united voice, to not only defend our faith but defend our rights, our freedom, our health, our prosperity, as human beings first…but more important as of late, as women.
If you look at the definition of feminism it says this in Webster:
1. the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes
2. organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests
Not sure why anyone would be opposed to this or fight so hard to define themselves as NOT a feminist, but I find that in Christian circles (in general of coure, not all), “feminism” is viewed as the “F word” and something to be avoided. It would be far better to aspire to be just about anything else, other than an outspoken…GASP….feminist. But I believe feminism is something that would be supported by Jesus today. I believe He lived, preached and served with a feminist attitude. In a day where men and women were so divided in every aspect of life, Jesus sought women out (and not just any women, but some of those that felt the harshest judgement from society) and encouraged them to know their worth.
I have chosen 2 Timothy 1:7 as my “tag line”….it says, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love and sound mind.” I think the church often forgets that THIS verse was also written to women as well. The Bible was written for all and I feel this verse, right now, is a battle cry for women. Feminism has indeed gone a bit extreme in some areas, almost in a frenzied fashion to just get as far away from the oppressive past as possible. It is a concept, that like any other, once God is taken out of the centre of it, power and control will corrupt. I want to put Christ back in the centre of feminism because I think if He was there, us women would have a much easier fight on our hands. He showed the ultimate sacrificial love and is the embodiment of mercy and grace…why would we not want Him leading the way in the fight for a better world for the coming generations of girls?! Christianity and feminisim are not opposing forces. One is a world view that should be the source of motivation behind the other…I want to show that to be true to the world around me.
I won’t just be writing about women’s issues, but will be reflecting on many areas of life as they come up and I will be sharing from the perspecitve of someone who loves Jesus and is indeed, a feminist. I am someone who looks at the world and sees a lot of “much ado about nothing”, while real opportunities to show Christ’s love to those most in need are passing us by. In this day we need to be smart, we need to be saavy to the real issues facing those we come in contact with, we need to know how to help our children navigate a world that is flooding them with destructive messages every day. We need a counter message, one that is not so concerned with being right but is desperate to show real truth and love in how we live and treat everyone around us…especially those that are the most forgotten.
The picture above is of my little girl facing the waves at the beach, head on. She loves the beach. It is one of her favorite places on earth and has been since she was tiny. At the beach, my daughter is her most free and fierce. She is a child that at times can be very timid and shy when faced with the unknown, but at the beach she has no fear, no inhibition, she waits to attack and jump into every wave. This image to me is how I think we all should face life…with total abandon, passion and conviction to jump in no matter what is coming. We need to trust that if it’s been put in our path to jump into, then HE who put it there, will give us ALL we need to see it through.
Not sure what is coming with this blog, but I feel like I just need to jump in and “do my thing.” Hope you can join me!
God's Little Feminist 