Yeah, I think that's part of my issues..... church culture tends to make a big deal about gender roles. We act like it's set in stone and has to look a certain way, but like you said Jacob wasn't as "manly" as Esau, yet God chose him to carry on the Abrahamic lineage. And like
@zeroturbulence pointed out, P.31 lady was a total boss babe. So were Deborah, Abigail, and Rahab (admittedly, not in an ideal profession, but hey, God found her some noble work!)
Anyway..... I've never really fit the accepted church standard for femininity (my cooking would leave most normal people dazed and asking "Why?!?!), so when stuff like the independence thing comes up I try to figure out if it's something actually wrong that I need to change or work on, or just a misunderstood cultural thing. It sounds like "independence" is mostly just a misunderstood cultural thing. But yall have definitely given me some good food for thought, especially in regard to how it could affect a marriage. Thank you for your input! 😎