"Do You See This Woman?"

My lament on being a woman in the evangelical church during Women's History Month. Will we ever get to a point where it's just called history?

I don’t go around purposely causing dissension. I don’t try with all my might to provoke others into arguments. I actually hate confrontation. Criticism, even constructive criticism, hurts me deeply. I don’t like conflict. I don’t like to be challenged. Well, maybe a better statement is that I don’t like to be challenged judgmentally. If you challenge me on an intellectual level, that’s another story. I love a good intellectual discussion.

Simply put - my greatest desire is to look around at the world and revel in it’s beauty, as I expand my understanding of it.

Photo by James Wheeler on Unsplash

This may be why I am so impacted when I see or hear about hurt. And, within the church? There’s so. much. hurt.

When I say that, I’m not diminishing the good that happens. I’m not saying the whole thing is wrong. I’m not drawing attention to only the bad. But, for goodness sake, wake up and see the hurt for what it is!

When whole groups are speaking out, the time is not to defend, but to listen. Really listen. Don’t listen so you can point out all the ways they’re wrong. How is your teaching better than their experience?