EP 70

70. Living Out God’s Perfect Design for Women in a Culture That Hates It with Lynne Brown and Ann Bradley

Welcome to the smiling at the future podcast.

My name is Christi Rose and this is my pursuit to glean practical wisdom on, femininity homemaking, finances relationships, and singleness from the God-fearing men and women in my life.

Hope you enjoy this journey with me as we learn to smile at the future.

Hello listeners.

Today we have a dynamic duo Lynn Brown and Anne Bradley. Both of whom are dedicated to the study of God’s word and living courageously and teaching boldly. The roles that God has designed for women and debunking. The worldly mindset of feminism that is so pervasive in our culture today, prepare to be sharpened by their wisdom.

Here, is that conversation Lynn and an you ladies are good friends, dynamic duo. And I feel so privileged to be sitting down with you this rainy Saturday morning to glean your wisdom on this topic of God’s beautiful and perfect design for women. But before we go into that discussion I would love for you to share a little about yourselves with the listeners.

Well, good morning. It’s great to be with you again. And it’s great to be on your podcast again. I know it. Blesses so many women and that’s just a joy for me to be here.

I’ve been married for 15 years, my husband is an engineer and actually, when an introduces herself, you will find out that her husband is an engineer as well. And they both work at the same place. I’ve been at Grace, for 23 years, Grace Community Church. My husband and I do biblical counseling I do single. women and we do marriage too. I have two adult stepkids and I live in Camarillo, great.

And I am a man. And as Lynn said, we met each other, ew, G. We both work and you have the privilege of getting to teach it ewg. It’s so much fun. We love it. We both. I have a passion for women Linda’s, to, and teaching them. Just how to love God and to live out. Their roles and their lives in accordance with his word and have a love for his word, and I see that and it excites my soul. When I see young women, that exhibit that, like you Christi, thank you for inviting us on this podcast because it really gives me joy. It just gives me joy to see young women, who love the Lord so deeply because I see hope for the Next Generation.

But, anyways, I am married. I have been married for 45 years to my husband. Doug, we have four wonderful. Will children 3 in-laws to daughter-in-laws one son-in-law and one daughter who is not married yet and we have ten beautiful grandkids, the youngest of whom is 12 days old. I believe I just got home last night from taking care of her. So we’re heavy on the girls. We’ve got eight girls into a little boys, very fun. What else? I love being a grandma. But you know what, I’m actually I’m Mimi. Grandma and me me. But I also have to say, I love being a grandma but it’s not better than being a young single woman, or a young mother, or a mother teenagers. Her mother of young adults. I have loved every stage I’ve ever been in. It’s just a Thrill Ride. This life is fun when you love the Lord, so that’s me. I’ve been a great 50 years by the way. 50 years. Yes, I was a Ager. I was a single teenager, followed, a cute boy to Grace tried and true story.

Oh, and was that cute boy. Did he end up being your husband? Yeah, oh, okay, no, he did not put then I invited my future husband when I was 16 to Grace. And yeah, he yeah, so that’s our story.

Oh, that’s beautiful. And I don’t know you as well. I dunno. Our daughter. We’re in the same Bible study together so that’s been fun. Getting to know her you reference something at the beginning called ewg and I just wanted to share with the listeners that stands for every woman’s Grace and it is the women’s ministry. One of the women’s Ministries at Greece community. So thank you for being so faithful to teach the ladies there.

So for our discussion today, we are going to talk about God’s beautiful and perfect design. Sign for the roles of men and women and and specifically talking because our audience is mainly women, talking about our roles and unfortunately our culture, Satan has Twisted that and has and and it’s kind of ingrained in our society. Now that these roles are oppressive and something to be thrown off and old-fashioned and so that is as how the world is treating this. And so I think we all need to just realize Line are thinking with how God thinks about this and why he designed it this way and help us to see that it is good and perfect and and how the family is supposed to function. So we’re going to weed out some of those worldly attitudes that may have crept into our thinking today, and we’re going to start out by talking a little about feminism, and it’s so pervasive in our society, it hasn’t been around for forever.

Can you help us understand where it had its roots and what, what is feminism for those? Maybe who aren’t as familiar with that term?

Well, yeah, I’ll start feminism is actually a belief system. It is a theology, a philosophy. It is basing your theology and philosophy upon women, which is kind of crazy when you think about it, as Christians, you know, our theology is not based upon women. It’s a based upon God and His word, that’s where we get our theology. So, if you’re a feminist feminism, that’s the ism part of it, it’s an ism, it’s not godly. But it actually, you know, if we want to trace it all the way back, it began at the very beginning, and I think it’s just fascinating. Honestly, that feminism, or actually, they didn’t call it feminism. But Dayton’s very first temptation of Kind in Genesis 3 was when the serpent Satan encouraged, Adam, and Eve to disregard God’s given to them. Roll distinctions really interesting to me because they were created equal in essence. In other words, they were both created in the image of God. Genesis 1:27 tells us that another words, Adam didn’t get more of the image than Eve and Eve didn’t get more of God’s image then Adam. Had equal image of God in essence, but they were created with different roles. And Adam was given specific roles because he was created first, he was taken out of the dust and we see that in Genesis 2:7. And then he created God, created Eve out of the bone, the rib of Adam. So she wasn’t created from the dust. She was created from a demand. We see that in Genesis 2:23.

So Adams first role was to cultivate the land and to keep it. So he’s a provider, you know, creating food, creating work. Genesis 2:15 tells us that and Adam was the one Adam was the one. Not Eve. That was told that there was one tree in the garden, not to eat of so that’s into 17. So he was because he was given that Kind of box to keep to stay in. He’s the protector. Adam also gave names to all living creatures in Genesis to 19, which means he’s the leader, he’s the head because he’s if you name something, you get to control. It Eve was created to be a helper to adamant in Genesis 2 20 and Eve was created to fit Adam, or to be suitable for Adam and suitable in a way. Way that no other created thing could be. And we see that in Genesis 220 and I find it just so beautiful that in Genesis 2:25 we see that there was no shame, no fear, and no dissatisfaction in their given roles, but in that first interaction, you know, the Satan went to the E. First, circumvented the given roles the protector provider, Stick by and watched, and listened to her being deceived without intervening. So he gave up his god-given role. She usurped his leadership role and there we go. Here we are. It’s the oldest trick in the book and it nothing has changed, which is so, you know, crazy that we find ourselves back here again from the beginning. And here we are the same issues. Shoe, but it always begins with. Did God actually say something, you know, do we believe that God said something? He said don’t eat from that one tree and Eve was deceived in Genesis 3:6 but Adam was disobedient in Genesis 3:6 because he stood by and watched and he was given the role to protect her.

So it’s really Significant, I think, you know, you have to start there before we go into feminism, because it is so significant that the sin that propelled all of mankind into sin began with not believing in the authority of the Creator. God being deceived and enticed to rebel against the god-given roles that men and women have been given by God, because they believed that God was holding something back from them and also Desiring to do their own thing. NG rather than the will of God. So the first sin truly was in direct violation of the roles that God had set for man and woman, so that was then, but now we can go up to feminism. As we know it, as we speak of it today and the first wave there have there like for waves, three or four waves of feminism, Simone de Beauvoir. She was a post-world war two French philosopher and she was influenced by existentialism. Which is important because existentialism is this concept in other ISM that the individual is entirely free. And therefore must accept commitment and full responsibility for her acts and decisions get this though in an uncertain and purposeless world, we know that that is not true but that is what it’s based upon. So she taught us that women were being denied their right to autonomy because She believed that autonomy and other words, your ability to be the master of your own universe is the essence of human existence.

Now the Bible though tells this that something very different, the essence of human existence is to glorify God and we know that’s true. Isaiah 43:7 says, everyone who is called by my name whom I created for my glory, whom I formed in me. So we’re created to glorify God but the feminists say something very different were created to glorify self Margaret Sanger, then popped into the scene she believed. So we had, we start with Simone. She believed we had the right to autonomy than Margaret Sanger says, that women were enslaved by children, children or a big issue for her. She said that children deny women opportunities, so don’t have kids and she was the founder of Planned Parenthood for those who I know that and she had a passion for contraception birth control, abortions, and Eugenics, Eugenics, she really believed in promoting the the women who she deemed worthy or the culture deemed worthy to procreate, allowing them to have children. Nobody else we just got killed those ones. So that’s and we saw that in Nazi Germany, as well. OK.

That was the first wave second wave was Betty Friedan who some may be familiar with and she she began. She introduced this whole idea that being a woman in following those rolls its oppression. This is when this first started coming so she didn’t really encourage women to be discontent to complain about their roles. We know that this is wrong because the Bible in Philippians 2:14 says, do all things without grumbling or complaining or disputing. So, you know, you just have to ask, you know, Lynn, you can weigh in here if you want to, but you know, do women, is there any substance to women’s complaining about their roles? I mean, is there any truth in that?

No, I think we can. All find something to complain about regardless of the topic actually. So complaining is something that we all do, I think as humans. And then as sinful man and then as in Rebellion, And to God, so feminism fits right into that, and I’ll just say briefly that that’s the road that I was on before I was born again. I was very entrenched in feminism, but I think one of the roots of it is that I wanted somebody to blame for all of my problems. And I picked a cause and when you look around at the young women today, that’s part of it too, is I’m angry things are not going my way. I’m Content and I want to blame someone for the way that my life is going. So I know I’ll pick men and I’ll say that all of the problems are due to them and what they do, and their oppression and the patriarchal system. And this that and the other and I can tell you from experience. It’s really not about that. It’s about, I’m just content. I’m angry. And I want to take it out on someone or something and it fits so nicely into The rebellious heart of man who’s basically just content with the Lord and wants to fight him. And that’s exactly where I was in my life before. God saved me and any feminist that you’ll meet. I think one thing that characterizes them is anger.

Absolutely. Very angry, very angry. Yeah.

Because they see a problem there. There are problems because anytime Romans 8:23 says for all have sinned and fall short. To the glory of God. Okay, we’re going to stand, we’re going to have problems in relationships. We’re going to have problems. But, you know, identifying a problem and coming with us up with a solution are really two different things, the gods. Are we done? Both of those things? He’s already identified. The problem is sin, not men. It’s not our rolls, its sin, and God has already given us the solution through Jesus Christ. So he’s redeemed us through his own son and we can If we live in obedience to his word, he’s given a thief answer.

So and then we can flip forward to the fourth wave of feminism, which it we’re kind of in. Now, this was the third and fourth was led by Gloria Steinem, who still alive. She’s very old, but she’s still alive and still very active and very vocal about feminism. But this is where the movement move from reform to rebellion and they were fighting and angry and patriarchy. The problem and men are the problem. Doggonit women are not going to be told what to do. No God, no, man, no religion. No institution is going to tell us because we’re completely autonomous. And this is where we started really seeing the elimination of all traditional roles. She’s Gloria. Steinem says, we had to unlearn what we understood to be true. So she was, she really fought and feminine. Is today really fight to unlearn the things that God has taught us through his word and that you know the world has been based upon.

But we know that without roles rules and restrictions that God has put in place which by the way exhibit, our roles exhibit, something beautiful, and really wonderful about himself that in the way he designed us, it exhibits women can Fit certain characteristics of God that men cannot demonstrate and like wise. Men can do the same, so he really has created this beautiful picture of what his image is through the roles of men and women. So anyways, they want to eliminate that. It’s when you understand all that, it’s no big surprise that Satan wants to eliminate that. It’s just, it makes sense. Why Would Satan want the world to see the image of God represented in its beautiful? Wonderful fullness, right? It strikes at the heart of God. Essentially, it’s about hatred of God, it’s not about hatred of men. It’s not a bit hatred of marriage or families. It’s about hatred of God.

So anyways, that’s the quick. I, you know what, I love the study of feminine Sam. I’ve done a deeper dive into it and the other thing for your listeners to know is that it’s Godless So, all of the leaders, I would say of feminism and we’ve done this before, in terms of the quotes that you can pull of things that they have said about God, and it’s all bodily autonomy atheism, no, God’s no Masters. And so to understand that there’s a really satanic route going on in this issue as well.

Yeah, it’s I have come to believe and I’m going out on a limb to say this but I’m going to say it because I Really believe it. I don’t believe you can be a Christian feminist. You can’t because the man is MM, is the theology in itself. And that’s, that’s crazy. Because I think a lot of young women see themselves as feminists because we’ve learned in society, that that’s a good word. It’s a good thing. You know, it’s not, we’ve been duped. Thank you Anne.

One of the things that you brought up at the beginning was how One aspect of our role as women as we were created to be helpers Genesis 2:18, I will make him a helper suitable for him. And I would love for you to flush out that idea of what does that mean to be a helper and for most of the women who are listening to this podcast, we’re single. So what is, how do we fulfill that role even in the season of singleness?

Right. Great question. And something that I think is very applicable, always does as married women, and to single women and the Lord God said is and mentioned the Genesis 220 scripture. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him and God said it’s not good, that man should be alone and so he is going to make a helper fit and the Greek word for helper, which I think is lovely means giving Aid and being a comfort and to lend Strength to, or changed for the better. So I think anybody who hears that definition, thanks who doesn’t want to do that, who doesn’t want to be a helper? It’s lovely. And the truth is when you think biblically and that really is a theme, I think that always needs to be in place. Think biblically, instead of worldly about these issues, because an example of helper, who do we see in scripture? Well, the holy spirit is a helper, John 15:26, when the helper comes Whom I will send to you from the father. That is the spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the father, he will testify about me. So we have the Holy Spirit as a helper. The Lord Jesus Christ is our helper. Hebrews 13 6. So we can confidently. Say the Lord is my helper. I will not fear what can man do to me and then God is our helper Psalm 33, 20 our soul waits for the Lord. He is our help and our Shield so we can think about it as being a helper is Being more, like God Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

So I think we can get an amen. Amen to that. And then all Christians are called to help some of us, even have the gift of helps. So that’s man and woman alike and 1st Thessalonians 5 14. It says, and we urge you Brothers, admonish the idol, encourage the faint-hearted, help the weak, help the weak, be patient with them all. So you can be a helper married or not. And it looks a little bit different. If you’re married because you’re number, one Ministry is to your husband. To be a help for him. But if you’re single, you can pray. That’s a wonderful help to the men in your life pastors Elders. Fathers Sons husbands, whoever it is, you can pray for the men in your life and you can care for other people. In Titus 3 14. It says in let not our people and let our people learn to devote themselves to good works. So as to help cases of urgent Need and, and not be unfruitful. And so, even even when we look at proverbs 31, which yes, is the context of marriage and what a, what a wife does within her children, Etc. But all of those aspects you can do, you can keep your home Lively, you can work with your hands, you can give to the poor. You can exhibit no fear of the future. Strengthen honor can be your clothing, you can open your mouth with wisdom and you can be kind. So all of those Things you can you can do even as a single woman so you can cultivate those qualities. You can cultivate being a helper, you can help your brothers and sisters in Christ. And I think most importantly, we’re called to Bear the burdens of other people. And that’s a huge help, huge help, and we’re all called to do that. So I think just the important truth is being a helper. We’re uniquely designed for that role, and that’s a good thing and we have to push away any Fluence by the culture that says otherwise.

Yeah. Oh Lynn, thank you so much because some people can hear that word and think slave servant less than so helper. Is I love how you brought the quality that the holy spirit is described as a Helper and that’s going back to what an was saying about how we can image God in these roles and his different qualities. So, yeah, it’s a beautiful. I love the definition. You gave at the beginning, Meaning I’m really going to hang on to that. So yeah, it’s once again, as we’re studying scripture, we have to know the real definitions Behind these words. What a scripture mean when it uses them and not? What is our culture mean? Because it’s twisting how we understand these words and making it a negative thing.

And did you have anything else you wanted to add on that island, did a great job, you know, I think that it’s just going to take some real prayer. Awful and biblical thought, process to undo what the culture has told us God says something very very different. So we have to get the world’s definitions out and think biblically, I love what John MacArthur said, he had a great quote, he said that in Genesis to these verses emphasized, Adam need for a companion to help her in an equal. And he said that this points to Adams inadequacy, Not Yves insufficiency, which I think is really important because we buy into the lives that if we are willing to help somebody else we’re saying that we’re less than them. It’s not true.

Yes. Yes.

So, another aspect of our roles as women and this is the word that I think is the the word that women bristle at So we really need to understand. What does the Bible? What does God mean by this term and get the the worldly definition out of our thinking? And that’s submission. Can you share help us? Understand what is this mean and God’s Perfect Design for women. Help us understand what the scriptures say.

Oh, I’ll start land and then you can weigh in because I know that since we are I think submission is super hard. It’s hard for Everybody. It’s not hard, just for women, it’s hard for everybody. But submission from a Biblical point of view would be like it was originally in the original language. It was a military term to willingly Place yourself under the authority of another person somebody that has command over you and the key is willingly. It’s a voluntary position. Yes, willingly to yield without complaining. Lynn always says that. I love that. Yield without complaining. It is a voluntary position because you recognize the order that God has set up. And the Bible actually says that to submit is being more like Christ in Philippians 2:5 and seven and eight because Jesus modeled submission all throughout his time on Earth as he walked on this Earth as a man, his goal if you oh my goodness, it’s fun. Just Your listeners. Some time, just do a little steady on every single time. Jesus said his, he came to do the will of his father to do, the will of his father as what he came to do. And he said in Matthew 1250 that this is what if we do the will of the father like he did. That’s what makes us a sister of Christ that’s in Matthew 12 50. So Interesting. It’s so encouraging. You want to be submissive to the will of God. So when we are not submissive to the authorities that God has put over us, we’re actually not being submissive to God. It’s not about being submissive to our husbands or our, by the way, our own husband’s. I don’t have to submit the lands husband and Linden have to submit to my husband. But we do have everybody. If you’re married, you have to, you are called to submit and James 4:7 says submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. So that’s first and foremost and then to remember that God owns all things and has authority over all things and he delegates human authority. So, that’s an important thing to remember, is that he owns everything and what he Has he delegates certain authoritative bodies? If you will like the government wipe your parents. If you your boss, your elders, it church, if you’re married, your husband, but, there’s an important thing to say about that as well. Because I know we know that this is a real hot button issue, but wives are to submit to your husbands. And that’s a topic all in itself, but we submit to the delegated authorities in our life. Unless they abuse their delegated authority. Okay, so there is proper action to take in that case and because this is a huge issue right now, we just want to make that known that in each and every case you submit to their your delegated authorities unless they step outside of those bounds,

So we’ve been speaking about having to submit and maybe situations that are less than ideal and maybe circumstances that we didn’t choose. So can you share any biblical examples that we can look to for women who found themselves in this type of situation?

Well, there are so many biblical examples, I think of women married that I can think of. And then also this application point, of course, applies to single women as well, but I think of even people like Abigail married to nabal. Let’s say that was really rough for her as a married woman, but she had to keep calm and carry on and show wisdom and mercy and common sense in the midst of very difficult circumstances. I think about Hannah not being able. To get pregnant and her circumstances Ruth having to trudge through the desert with her mother-in-law, after losing her husband. I mean, everyone has a season of basically been a bemoaning their circumstances but their God ordained every one of them. And so you say, how do I respond in this? And God is just using whatever that is to look at sin in your life, weakness pride, and the list goes on. So remember it’s that contentment, peace. I’m in Circumstance let’s say or a season that I don’t prefer that I don’t like that is really hard but how can I be content in Christ? And how can I rehearse the ways that I need to be content in him because we know things change all the time but he is the solid rock on which we stand and we think about even Mary who was semi single, she was betrothed but What her circumstances were actually made a big deal about this particular issue of her being only betrothed because she was with child and quote-unquote, not married. So What about Mary can we think about as far as her circumstances? Well, she was favored by the Lord. She believed that nothing was impossible with God, which was really important. And she submitted talking about submission to the Lord as his servant and she wanted more than her will she wanted his will to be done. And I really just love these examples of what this submission costed, her or could have, could have cost her, if she was sitting. Are thinking about it right her reputation because she’s pregnant and unmarried her future. Because who would marry her? How is she going to live her love? Because she was betrothed to Joseph. We have no reason to believe she did not love this man and want to spend the rest of her life with him her life because the penalty for adultery was death by stoning. So, here’s a young girl who found herself in a precarious position a situation. She was maybe very frightened about But she believed God and she was bold and her submission propelled her to step out in faith. So I think that’s a really great example of submission and a circumstance that is frightening or that you don’t like or that you have fear of the future about. So that’s one example and I think and maybe you have another.

Yeah, I can honestly think of so many. I can think of so many it. Samples that we could follow Rahab in Joshua to great example of a woman who submitted to God in a very difficult situation. That’s a great study for your listeners. Just to go over that and read that learn from her glean what she learned about God and believing God. But I think my favorite honestly is in Genesis 29, with Leah, because there’s so much application personal application for all women. Mmm, At what stage of life you are in Lea, has something for us as far as learning to glorify God in the place that God has a sin. Because Leah I would say, you know, she’s that woman that we all go. Oh yeah you know because she was the week I’d unattractive older sister of Rachel who was the beautiful sister? She was the beautiful one. Then she was Used by her own father to get seven more weeks, a seven more years, excuse me, of work from Jacob, her husband and then she became the unloved wife of Jacob on top of which she was resented by her own sister Rachel. Because God had given Leah children, but not Rachel, so she had so many things in her life circumstances in her life that were We were pretty rough, really pretty rough? And I’m sure that this was not what she had envisioned for herself. I’m sure this is not what she had prayed for herself, but it is where God had her and we can learn from her how to glorify God. Even when we are sad, when we’re hurt. And when we’re disappointed, because God did give her children. Those children that Rachel was jealous of and she had several children many, but the their names just Teach us so much what she named them. Her first son, she named Reuben, because that name means because the Lord saw her. So, keep these definite, these name meanings in mind as we go through her life. The second son, she named Simeon, because the Lord had heard her, the third son, she named Levi because she still desired the presence in the attached attached. Meant the attention of her husband, Jacob, which she did not receive, but she did recognize that, she had the presence of the Lord which she did receive. And then she had Judah, Judah means praise the Lord. So she finally praised the Lord over her circumstances, it took her a while, but it all was tied into the fact. That even though, even though She never received the love from Jacob that she wanted so badly, but she received so much more from God because he saw her, he heard her and he never left her. And it was then when she realized all of those things and understood who God was that she gave him all the praise and the glory.

So ladies, it’s really about believing in the sovereignty of God. Did God really say we go Circle back? Did God really say? You know, and I would just encourage anybody right now who is hurting. They might feel used or abused or lonely or resented much like Leah God sees you, he hears you, he will never leave you. And he wants you to give him all the praise and glory. Because you have to understand that he’s Sovereign, sovereignty is such a huge issue in our lives. And if you want to do a study on sovereignty, read Psalm 47. Verse to Psalm 83 Verse 18 and 97 verse 9 and in Romans 8:32 so many, the Bible’s full of of concentrate on the sovereignty of God in your life. Because God has the answers for our discontent. God has the answers. He has Us in these positions for a reason. Now, we got to see the reason with Leah because she was in the direct line of Jesus Christ through that son, Judah, that son, whom she learned to praise the Lord was a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ. So she got a whole lot more than she bargained for or even ask. For, I love that story because that has something for all of us because truthfully, we can all be discontent in her situation. You don’t have to be married, you don’t have to be single, you don’t have to be widowed. You don’t have to be divorced to understand what discontent is, we all experience it, but the answer is the same for all of us.

Well, that was powerful, thank you for sharing that. And, and just the examples that we have, and that we can look to, to continue trusting the Lord, even when we can’t see the end of the circumstance that God has Us in, or the reason for it. We know who God is and we know he loves us and he’s faithful, and he won’t ever. Leave us. So, for some of the women here, who maybe have realized that they have, some Them in their thinking. And maybe they’ve just kind of picked it up by just being in the world and and being influenced by entertainment, whatever it is, the Avenue that kind of seeped into their heart and mind in this area. How can they re line with God’s word on gender roles and start to live this out with boldness in a society? That is so against this perfect harmony of roles that God created. And is it ever?

So you have to begin by believing the word of God and authority of scripture and it might seem as though, we say that a lot but it’s so very true. You have to believe that God is in charge. You have to submit to his authority into his word and let him Train Your Mind through scripture to think, right thoughts and of course, that’s always the case in any situation. We must believe what God says about it. And remember, you’re in a battle because the world is telling you Satan is telling you, the lies of the world are telling you things that are antithetical and contrary to God’s word. And I tell the story I told the story last Saturday, And even it every woman’s Grace about femininity, and many people are many women because especially now because the idea of it is so skewed. They have trouble with feeling feminine or being feminine or believing that they are. And so you have to believe if God made you a woman, then you are feminine and he has given you. Those feminine traits and maybe you need more help, realizing them or maybe happened. Fully grown into them but you are, you haven’t given the feminine traits and that’s an important place to, to start and to look at and believe that. And I was just looking at the other day, An ad for it was either, it’s H&M and it’s Gap. I believe these two ads because just thinking about how much the world is coming at us and let me caveat that firm for a moment. God has made us feminine that is good and right and that is pleasing to him and then you have an ad like H&M and GAP where the women are now being presented as so androgynous, there pale-faced their dress Like men and their posture, their slouching. They’re not smiling. They’re sitting with their legs, splayed. It’s just ridiculous. And, you know, it’s intentional, it’s intentional to production. People are making women as androgynous as possible, nothing to set us apart between male and female. And so, part of what I would say is, Dressed like a girl in Cross your legs, right? I mean, part of it is counterculture counter that with being as feminine as possible whether that means in your speech, in your dress, in your attitude. Be as God would have, you be in that way. And that doesn’t mean that you have to be quiet mousy type personality. That’s not what we’re saying. Because as you can tell, I’m pretty bold, and gregarious and so’s. And there’s many women like us that are that way. But you want to present a feminine and lovely as lovely as you can win some and attractive. Attitude, that represents God, and that’s what we’re doing. And so we need to do that. We need to stand boldly for the truth. We need to be like Daniel in the fire which I love this scripture. Daniel Daniel 3 16 through 18 of course when they’re in the fire and in seventh verse 17, it says when the three of them are in there, if that is the case, our God, whom we serve is able to Deliver Us From The Burning fiery furnace, and he will Deliver Us from your hand, okay? King. But if not let it be known To You O King that we do not serve your Gods, nor will we worship the gold image, which you have set up and there is gold in. There are gold images all over this culture right now and they are insisting that we bow down to them. And so we must not, we must not and our presupposition. Whenever we talk to people about this issue, has to be that I love this that they are the rebel thinker and they are on I’ll God is Not on trial yours as the Christian or not on trial. You have the words of life and you have the truth. So, we need to speak to that. We need to their walking according to their foolishness. The proceeds from the heart and we need to speak against that. We need to honor God and stand boldly in God’s grace and speak from the presupposed truth of the word of God. And then just look to the spirit to bring conviction and conversion and understanding. Ting when we’re dealing with people in the world and in this culture, who are against the Lord Of Glory?

Yeah, I love it that Lynn, you brought out the whole we’re in a battle because it seems like these don’t fit to be feminine. And a warrior at the same time, it feels like it doesn’t fit, but I think that’s perfect because femininity is not about wearing pink and boats and krill you Curling your hair and pretty dresses. That’s not femininity. You know, the Kardashians are not the feminine ones to follow. We femininity is from the heart. It’s a heart issue. It actually means being a woman, if you dissect the word, it means being a woman as God designed us to be a woman. So we need to be strong in that and bold in that and Unapologetic in that and Colossians. Wait tells us how to do that, it says see to it. That no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ, we need to know what Christ says and stop believing. Don’t let the world Define to you. What a feminine woman is God’s already defined it. You can be feminine and we can be bold because we have to be. We have to be because we are truly at this point in history. I think it feels like, I don’t know if you ladies agree with me but sometimes I feel like we’re trying to swim upstream at the top of Niagara Falls, you know. It’s like it’s a battle out there, it’s a battle and I think it’s, I think it’s needs to be said that the essence of femininity Is Holiness that is at the heart of a truly feminine. Woman a desire to be holy to be the woman that God created her to be that represents God as a light to the world.

That I can’t even add to that. That so beautiful ladies.

So we want to be feminine and we want to encourage the men to be masculine and our culture is attacking. NG men and masculinity and tearing them down. So how can we help as women? Yes, we can. Lean into our femininity be more feminine. For any way that women can encourage the men to be masculine.

Well, I could I can address this because I just experienced a had a great conversation with some young college women recently, and we were on a trip together, and there was one young man in particular, who was Always there to lend a hand. If we were going uphill, he would walk up to somebody and say, let me take your, let me take that bag for you or, you know, going upstairs. Let me carry that or if I was hopping down from a rock or something, there was a hand and it was his and he would grab me and help me down. You know, it just it was very, very masculine and the funny thing was, I noticed this. Nobody knew him at the beginning of the trip at the end of the trip to like 17 days later. I was Was in the airport talking to these young women and they were all huddled around and they were watching him, he had impressed them. So I started the conversation, I said, what what is it about him? And we talked about the luggage, you know, the luggage issue and the girls said that they didn’t know why, but it was their first instinct every time. He said, let me get that for you. Or can I carry that? Can I help you? Their first instinct was to say, Oh no, I got it. I got it. I’m fine. And that’s the world in us. Let me tell you. That is the world in its that’s, that hasn’t been that kind of attitude forever because we understood that men are just stronger. It do women have muscles? Yes. Do women have arms? And can we pick up our luggage? Absolutely. We do it all the time but to encourage a young man. Or a man in general to allow them to open the door for you. Allow them to walk you to your car, allow them to carry your luggage or a big box that you’re carrying at work because what you’re actually doing is training them, helping them learn what it looks like to be a protector of Provider, all those things, we don’t know these things instinctively, we learn these things and I tell you what we’re teaching, man, ever Time you say no, I got it. The next time they’re going to be a little more hesitant to make that offer and then all the sudden they’re going to say, well I don’t need to provide and protect, she’s got it. Women are just, they got it. So we need to really be working and mindful of where we’ve bought into the lies. You know, and I think there’s so many facets, I mean it’s starting with women’s sports hey my girls were athletes so I have nothing against women’s sports at all. But I think that that brought on a whole new layer of strength that women didn’t, it became valued and strengthen women became valued a little higher than it had throughout history. I mean, physical strength. I don’t mean, emotional and spiritual strength, I mean, physical strength is, so it became like a competition. We’re not in competition with men, we don’t have to so encourage them. And encourage yourself to because you’re training yourself to allow somebody to help you sometimes. Which actually as we saw with the girls in the airport feels kind of good.

And I wanted to add just one more thing to that you. No. Modesty is a whole other topic that you know we probably are not going to get to today but I think it’s important to say if we can encourage the men around us to live out biblical masculinity, if we just dress in a way That encourages godliness in the men that are around us. Enough said, you know, read 1st Peter 3:3, you don’t dress like the Kardashians. I mean, you want to encourage godliness.

Yes, I’m want to do a whole episode on modesty in the future, so stay tuned for that. And we’ve talked about this before in previous episodes, but just letting asking a man’s opinion on, Something hearing them asking questions. That shows so much respect. I think sometimes as women we can talk over men or if they’re a little bit quieter than us or you know, we can just yeah, steamroll sometimes but listening to what they have to say asking their opinion. I think that goes a long way and just showing that that respect of you care for them and you want to hear their wisdom. So another little practical step there that we can take as women.

But Ladies this has been so helpful and I just love how we brought everything back to the biblical definitions, loved how we talked about, this is how God designed us. You know we are hard wired this way sin and Satan has Twisted these things but just understanding this is God’s purpose for us and we bring him so much Glory. When we Delight in these roles, we don’t just do it in a drudging way. But We celebrate them, we Delight in, we live them out with courage and boldness and knowing that someday every knee is going to Bow. All of society. All of the world is going to bow to the Creator. We have confidence to live this out because we know the end of the story. We know who’s on our side, we already have the victory. We don’t need to be ashamed of doing this with boldness, even when it feels a little scary at times, and it does feel counterculture for all of eternity. T. Yeah, we are going to be celebrating the victory through Christ. So thank you for sharing your wisdom with us today and excited to see what God’s going to do with this conversation, to help us to be women of God.

Well said Christi.

Amen and it has been a pleasure to be with you this morning. Thank you so much Christi. This is really been fun. I appreciate your love for women and you keep doing what you’re doing and love for God. More than women. Thanks.