Becoming an Extraordinary Woman

The 'extraordinary' women in the Bible "aren't memorable solely because of their physical beauty, their natural abilities, their personal accomplishments, or some position they attained. Not one of them distinguished herself through a great career, some worldly accomplishment, or anything that would even stand out in the eyes of a cultural observer. All of them were basically modest, in every sense of the word - as 'is proper for women professing godliness' (I Tim 2:10)".
John MacArthur, Twelve Extraordinary Women

Recently I read the book Twelve Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur. MacArthur went through scripture and discussed Eve, Sarah, Rahab, Ruth, Hannah, Mary (mother of Jesus), Anna, the Samaritan woman, Martha and Mary, Mary Magdalene, and Lydia. It opened my eyes to what Biblical Womanhood looks like. "If these twelve women teach us anything, it is to center our lives, our faith, and our perspective of the future on Christ and Christ alone." Being a woman I think about marriage, admit it...you do to. MacArthur gave some great truth about these women. "Did you notice that not one of our twelve extraordinary women is noteworthy exclusively because of whom she was married to? These women did not derive their identities or their reputations solely from their husbands." Most of the women he covered in his book were not even married at the time of their extraordinary faith. Eve and Sarah were the only two who were married at the point of the story in which we encountered them. All of the rest were either single, widowed, betrothed, or in the case of the Samaritan woman, living with a man whom she was not married to.

These women were normal women. They had daily tasks and lives they led. They were all sinful, just as we are. The neat thing is, we can be considered extraordinary to God just like these women. Each of them were known for the faith they had in God. As I read through scripture I see that I am not supposed to be worldly or covet worldly things. It is hard sometimes to see what I am supposed to be like when everything around me screams "covet me", "dress like me", "lose 25 lbs like me", "drive a brand new car like me", "date guys that look like movie stars", ... It is so hard to ignore the things of the world when we are constantly surrounded by it. Yet, Lydia who was wealthy was considered to be extraordinary for her faith in Christ. She didn't care about the money or about any of those things. She cared about making Christ's name known in the world around her. Her whole household (it was unknown if she was married or not so this could have been servants and such) came to know Christ. They were all baptized with her in the river. She had struggles too, just like we do. We may not have been told of them, but she was human so we know she had issues too. Lydia's story alone holds so much that you would have to read what I could write about her in parts.

These women were women of faith. They were also women of love. They each loved God and recognized Him as the Almighty, Eternal God of Heaven. From looking at these women's lives it is obvious that women who are being raised up in Him are to be like they are. Now, do not think I am saying in order to be a Christian it is a requirement to do these things. We know that in coming to know Jeuse Christ we will be transformed and made more like Him. Thus our desires will change. We will desire to have faith in Him and we will desire to love Him above all else. These women very obviously displayed that. They desired to put Christ before everything else in their lives. This was not something they were forced to do to retain a religious status. They genuinely loved Christ and expressed it outwardly to others by displaying faith, love, hope, ... (Galatians 5:25).

These women did not consider themselves extraordinary. For the most part they considered others greater than themselves (you should check out their stories in scripture). So from their lives I have concluded, being an extraordinary women requires a genuine love for God and submitting your whole life to Him. He loved you enough to die for you, so what makes you think He loves you any less now then He did then?

A Life Worth Dying For

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. -- Philippians 1: 21
If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. --John 15:18
...and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. -- Matthew 10:22

Last night I went to see a movie with some friends and some people we have been trying to minister to. The movie is about this guy who is willing to die for the honor of his country and his family. He wanted to restore his family's name and bring honor to his country. It made me start thinking about what is truly worth dying for. I have, as you too probably, heard the phrase "I would die for" or "I would kill for" this or that. Most of those people are just expressing how much they would love to have something. But that phrase, if we really disect it makes for a dangerous thing to say. We will use body image for this little example. There are girls who will say "I would kill to have her body" or "I would die to be a size 2, like (insert name of the size 2 girl you know here)". There are really girls who nearly kill themselves trying to become a size 2. Then when they hit a size 2, they are not small enough and they want to try for a 0 or a 00. Then they have to fight to stay that tiny. Here is another example for us as girls. As women we desire to be beautiful and have things that make us look and feel more beautiful. But sometimes that causes us to start trying to keep up with the Jones' and we end up in more trouble than we realize. Hearing girls say they would die or kill for a designer bag that is $800 is a little sad. Watching girls go into debt because they want to have the latest trend or the hottest fashion to feel better about themselves. They do not kill others nor do they nearly kill themselves physically. They are probably killing their credit, though.

Are those things really worth all the trouble? Is it really worth all the physical pain and the emotional stress? Honestly, according to scripture, no it is not worth it. Christ calls us to be satisfied in Him. He wants us to make His name known. According to scripture, making His name known is worth dying for. Christ has commanded us to know Him, make Him known, make disciples of all the nations, baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teach them. He wants us to work for Him and not the things of this world. Showy cars and hand bags and being able to fit into a size 0 are not worth the time. One thing God has been teaching me lately is I would much rather be hated here on this earth for trying to make His name known than die and get to heaven and have the blood of others on my hands. God has put people in our lives for a reason. Things are not by chance, not fate, not luck, not anything other than the divine appointment from an Almighty God. Our purpose in this world is not to be the coolest thing to ever touch the face of the planet. We are called to be aliens. Weird huh?! Scripture says that those who follow Christ will be treated as Christ was. Guess what, Christ was hated. He was not only hated but He was beaten and brutally murdered. This is not to say that everyone who is walking with God will be brutally murdered. But we will be looked down upon, especially if we are living radically for the gospel to be proclaimed among the nations.

In David Platt's book Radical he asks several convicting questions. "Are we willing to obey the orders of Christ? Are we wiling to be like Him? Are we willing to risk our lives to go to great need and to great danger -- whether it's in the inner cities around us, the difficult neighbor across the street, the disease-ridden communities in Africa, or the hostile regions in the Middle East? Are we willing to fundamentally alter our understanding of Christianity from a luxurious lifestyle to the life style of soldiers that forsake comforts in the world to accomplish an eternally significant task and achieve an eternally satisfying reward?" Is your current lifestyle justifiable before Almighty God? Are you willing to be considered a stranger to your family for the name of Christ? A "freak" in your workplace? Or even a variety of other names to the lost world around you?

Christ came and lived 33 years on this earth to provide you and me an opportunity for salvation. For that very purpose He shed His blood. He died to save you. Are you willing to give back to Him for what He gave you?