Category: gender
“You Are More Than…” Best Mother’s Day Sermon EVER!
Mother's Day sermons are notoriously awful. Sentimental tripe that leaves some women feeling smugly self-satisfied, while others leave licking their wounds. But not this Mother's Day sermon, given by my friend James Walsh, an associate pastor at my church. Seriously? You've got ...
The Proverbs 31 Woman, Theology, and Me, Part 3
In Part 1, I talked about my early understandings (and misunderstandings) of the Proverbs 31 Woman. In Part 2, I shared some of the things I have learned about the theology underlying Proverbs 31. And in Part 3, I'm going to make ...
The Proverbs 31 Woman, Theology, and Me, Part 2
In Part 1 of this post, I talked about my early thoughts about the Proverbs 31 Woman: from my childhood perception of her as a wise, kind instructor that I should emulate, to the law-ridden measuring stick of Christian womanhood ...
The Proverbs 31 Woman, Theology, and Me, Part 1
It's going to be a busy week around here, so I'll be reposting a three-part series I wrote last summer, on my old blog. Enjoy! I've had an ambiguous relationship with the Proverbs 31 Woman over the years. When I was a ...
Oppressors, Activists, and Spiritual Stinginess: St. Paul’s Guide to Praying Better Prayers
"And I am praying that you will put into action the generosity that comes from your faith as you understand and experience all the good things we have in Christ." -Philemon 1:6 I was reading Philemon this weekend, and many things ...
It's funny how these things come full circle in our lives. While working on the message about the need for women to find their identity in Christ, instead of in their relationships with others, I've been thinking a lot about ...
Boyfriends, Bad Ideas, and the Bella-Katniss Continuum: Jenny’s Message on Identity in Christ
I was SO blessed to be able to speak at my beloved Mission Covenant Church last Sunday! The topic was how cohabitation hurts women and children, but we focused on the why--WHY do women get involved in relationships they know ...
Patriarchy, Pop Culture, and Pornography, Part 2
(Continued from Part 1) What it comes down to is that in many ways, society ascribes value to women based on how attractive they are to men. (This is only exacerbated by women’s idolatrous tendency to base their identity on who ...
Patriarchy, Pop Culture, and Pornography, Part 1
Several years ago, I read “The DaVinci Code” to see what all the fuss was about. It was nothing special—a fast-paced novel with interesting, if inaccurate, historical details woven in—but one line still stands out to me. The leading lady ...
(I know, I know--another inflammatory title. But if you're not feeling a bit inflamed by the end of this post, I don't know what's wrong with you.) Wading through statistics makes me cranky. My inner journalist, latent as she may be, ...
Okay, yes, inflammatory title. But I read something last night that made my stomach knot up into a ball Contrary to public perception, research shows that the most likely physical abuser of a young child will be that child's mother, not ...
Simulcasting, Shacking Up, and Very Bad Blogging
I will be the first to admit that I have been a Very Bad Blogger lately. I gave myself permission to put my online presence aside for Lent, but by the time Easter rolled around, I had other things to ...
(Disclaimer--I am recovering from the flu, and only have a few minutes to bang out this post, so I am going to apologize in advance for the gross lack of citation. But that's what Google is for, right?) This isn't exactly ...
Adoption, Women, and BFFs: More Jumbled Thoughts
Writing isn't supposed to be therapy--at least not the kind that happens outside your journal. But sometimes it is. This was certainly the case with my recent post about adoption. I was always a little bit conflicted about it, aware that ...
Evangelicals and Eating Disorders
Yep, you read that right. "Evangelicals and Eating Disorders." That's what I'm writing about today. Rachel Stone just rocked my world with her post "How Patriarchy Gave Me an Eating Disorder." I didn't quite have the courage to share it on ...
Can I make a generalization? Women sell themselves WAY short. To themselves, as well as others. I remember the first time I wanted to teach a Bible study (and I use this term loosely) for adults. I was petrified. I reasoned that surely ...
Junia Is Not Alone
Anabaptist or not, Scot McKnight comes out swinging in his bite-sized eBook defending women in ministry, "Junia is Not Alone." I. Loved. It. Of course it contained the solid, thoughtful scholarship we've come to expect from McKnight. But what blessed me about ...
Melody Harrison Hanson wrote a beautiful, brave post on her blog today about her experience growing up with a father who "was in ministry and was a generous, gracious, loving, God-fearing man," but who was also abusive. In fact, he ...
Crocheted Afghans and Other Coverings: The Women Who Shaped Me
In my last post, I talked about some of the godly men who have had a profound influence in my life. Now it's the women's turn. Yesterday, as I was studying, a cold draft came through the window, and I ...
A Few Good Men
Happy almost-Thanksgiving, everyone! I wasn't planning on blogging tonight, but to be honest, I am overflowing with gratitude, and need to get it out. Here's why: I write a lot about women's issues, and tackle some tough topics regarding gender relations. ...
The Girl Who Cried Wolf, and Other Myths
You can’t go online lately without hearing about hearing about Herman Cain and the allegations of sexual harassment haunting his campaign. Those posts inevitably make me wince—not the articles themselves, but the comments crowded beneath them like protestors punching hand-scrawled ...
Do Christian Novels Romanticize Abuse?
I've been tired lately. Mind-and-heart tired. So tired that yesterday, I decided the most productive thing I could do was give my brain needed a much-needed vacation. I wasn't in the mood for a movie, so I grabbed my Nook ...
Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault: Yes, It IS the Church’s Business
We're having our first AVA (Advocates for Victims of Abuse) training event in the Lake Superior District today, and I'm reposting part of the domestic violence post I wrote a month ago, explaining why I got involved, and why I ...
The Name That Grace Bestows
This article is incredible. A district in central India held a renaming ceremony for girls who had been named Nakusa or Nakushi--Hindi for "unwanted." In that district, there are currently only 883 girls for every 1,000 boys, due to gender-selective ...
Making Space for the Female Voice
Women are natural communicators. No one doubts this, really, and a quick, unscientific glance at the blogosphere confirms the female desire to enter into the conversation about important issues impacting our world. But why are so many of these bubbling ...
When Women Snap: The Good, the Bad, and the Preventable
It seems like an epidemic nowadays--women being pushed to the point that they can no longer cope with their circumstances. When they cease to function normally, and create a whole world of upheaval for themselves and others. This is not always ...
Why You Should Quit Talking About Your “Beautiful Wife”
Eugene Cho, pastor, social entrepreneur, blogger, and fellow Covenanter (just had to get that in there!), posted this video on his blog yesterday. It's over eight minutes long, but seriously? Watch the whole thing. Even if it turns your stomach a ...
Girl Effect Comment Winners!
Okay, so I couldn't choose just one. :-D Here are my two favorite comments from my Girl Effect blog post--one is philosophical, the other is very practical. I'll be contacting Tim and Margaret for their addresses, and sending them both ...
“It’s more dangerous to be a woman than to be a soldier…”
The PBS documentary "Women, War & Peace" will be starting tonight. I never watch television, but I will be watching this. Check your local listings to see what time it will be on in your area. Watch the full episode. See ...
Liberia, the Nobel Peace Prize, and Me
On Friday, three women were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their commitment to women’s rights. Two of those women, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Leymah Gbowee, were from Liberia, the country I called home for most of my elementary school ...
