The worth of a woman

[hooyah678]

So Valentines day being tomorrow and all, I thought I'd start a topic about, well, women.

*note* This isn't a bashing thread so... yeah, just don't go there.

I heard a quote recently from a pastor friend - "the greatest expression of spiritual warfare that you (men) can put your hand to, is to lay your life down to make a woman great"

That got me thinking, do we REALLY esteem women in our society rightly?
Seems to me that what's portrayed in the media is the exact opposite - the role of woman is portrayed as one who is here to serve instead of BE served... It's everywhere, we have a billion dollar porn industry that destroys and twists the role of women in our society. How do we fight against this? We're told to love our wives as Christ loved the church, giving ourselves up for her, preferring her needs/wants/desires over our own... does that really happen? Do we practice that in the church today?

I'm just curious to hear your thoughts. How do you esteem the women in your lives?
This is open to everyone, not just men... I'm curious to hear women's thoughts too.

 

[seoulsearch]

You have some very heart-felt observations, and I couldn't agree more about the fact that the world has a very skewed view of women.

I'm always amused when I encounter Christian men who speak very passionately about the fact that wives are to submit to their husbands--they seem to forget the second part of God's command, that husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her. I never hear these same men state that they are willing to be beaten, whipped, falsely accused, and then die in the most terrible way for a woman, but they often say the reason marriages fall apart is because of the women's failure to submit. I'm not denying at all this this is God's command for wives, but I also always wonder... "Do you always make it a point to remember only half of what God says? No wonder God isn't sending you a wife!"

Hooyah, you are obviously a man of a different heart who takes both sides of the Scripture into consideration and that's a very cool thing--hopefully there are other guys out there like you!

I know this may sound overly simplistic, but I suppose one way to start is to apply God's most basic commands--love God with all your heart, and love other people. Having love for God will prepare you for the job of loving, esteeming, and highly regarding other people, both men and women. When you're seeking God with all your heart, it helps you see others as God's creations as well, and I think it's harder to see other people as merely sex objects or stepping stones to our own advancement. It's not that we don't stumble or fall along the way, of course, but at least it's a start.

I think it's always important to keep things within a balanced perspective--women are not perfect, of course. Some of the most heartbreaking stories I've heard are those of people who had mothers who were not able to the source of love and encouragement they needed.

For myself, it is very important to me to work on being someone who will be an asset to a future husband and not a liability. I would hope he would see me as a valuable addition to his life and not just another responsibility he had to take on. I always pray that God would give me the person I'll be happy serving for the rest of my life. BUT, I also pray that he'll have the same kind of heart, because, as we all know, it's all too easy to find someone who loves being served... but has absolutely nothing, not even their heart, to give back.