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It’s a lesson that keeps coming back to me, especially as I participate in my corps’ study group. My corps officer invited me to join in on the women’s ministries discussion of Jesus Feminist, and I’ll admit: I was skeptical. I had already read the book, walking away changed and inspired from its pages. I was unsure what kind of reception the book might receive in a group of wonderfully kind women, but most twice my age with a completely different generational approach to life.
The beauty of God’s people is that He speaks to all of our hearts! As I joined with the women of my corps to discuss and wrestle with the subjects of each chapter, I came to realize I had been wrong.
I was guilty of assumptions that were the very thing I wanted to stand against.
This issue of gender equality is not my generation’s banner alone! It is an empowering truth when you get to stand alongside women of every generation! We are not alone as we wrestle with these questions and weigh cultural biases against a scriptural standard. Women of every kind long to be heard, acknowledged, and seen for who they are: daughters of the Living God, called by His name, sent with His message, and empowered with His Spirit.
My moments spent around the plastic tables in the corps fellowship hall really do embody what Bessey says in her chapter Reclaiming the Church Ladies: “We want to be with other women who know and love and follow our Jesus. Somehow we know that we will love him better if we hear from others how much they love him, too.”
My corps’ “church ladies” are making me a better woman.
