Women Can Find Courage and Confidence

It is far too common today for women to feel a lack of confidence. We are continually striving to find our self worth in our work or our relationships. We need to recognize that our true confidence comes from Christ alone.

Why do we as women feel so insecure? Is it our upbringing, the age old nature vs. nurture argument? Or Is it that as women we are wired differently from men? Maybe it is because we just simply don’t understand our value in God’s eyes. It is true that many of us grew up in homes where we felt devalued. Perhaps we were intimidated by a sibling who seemed to have more appealing or valued talents and abilities. Maybe our parents were not as nurturing as they could have been and we felt abandoned and unprotected. Perhaps there was strife in the household; a job loss, or divorce of our parents can confuse us making us wonder if we were somehow responsible. Maybe we are one of the estimated 3 out of 4 women to be sexually abused in their lifetime. These things along, with a myriad of life circumstances and situations, allow guilt and shame to creep into our lives completely decimating any sense of self worth.

As women we have made great progress with our civil rights in the last 100 years, yet it remains a fact that society continues to discriminate against us. We are looked upon as the “weaker sex” and in one way we truly are. Generally women are, in fact, physically weaker then men. That is simply a fact of life. Women were created to be nurtures while men were created to be hunters and providers. These traits were vital to survival at one time. Though gender roles have become somewhat more equal in modern times it still remains that despite legislation we still make only 75% compared to men’s salaries. But does that make us less valuable?

God did not make us to be a “weaker” sex. He created us to be man’s partner. When he created Adam he looked upon his work and saw that it was incomplete. He recognized immediately that it was not good for Adam to be alone. He tells us so in Genesis 2:18 where He says,”It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” God intentionally created us to be different. Woman was created and designed to ”compliment” man, to ”complete” him; not to compete or be compared to him. We are different, but no less valuable nor loved. Galatians 3:26 tells us,”You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

If Christ sees us as man’s equal, why do we allow society and other people to determine and define who we are. We learn that we are so important and special to God that “the very hairs on your head are numbered.” We must ask ourselves if we are trying to find our worth in Christ or man. Galatians 1:10 reminds to ask urselves,”Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” We will never find our value from others. We all fall short of the Glory of God. Only in Christ do we find our true and complete worth.

No one should rely on ”self-confidence”; our confidence comes directly from God himself. For without Christ, we are nothing; through Christ, as stated in Philipians 4:13,”I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”.

With God’s blessings,

Lynn

Lynn Kennedy
Associate Publisher
Director of Women’s Ministry
Christian Times Online
http://www.ChristianTimesOnline.com