Posts Tagged ‘women’

Sisters in Christ – Part 3

February 2, 2013

WWJD and Our Sister Relationships

WWJDFor the past decade or so I have worked with a professor who greatly admires Jim, a former dean of our school. When this professor finds himself in a complex professional situation, he tells me he asks himself, “What would Jim do?” There’s an ornery little place inside me that always wants to buy him one of those little WWJD bracelets whenever he says that, but he probably wouldn’t get the joke.

I know the whole WWJD fad is so 90s, but it’s still a valid question to consider—What would Jesus do, that is. It seems weird, I know, to seek out guidance on female relationships from a guy. Really, though, the most important thing we can do is look at what Jesus did, at how he treated women, and then follow his example. (Read More)

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Sisters in Christ – Part 2

January 21, 2013

Jesus and Sisters

Ladies, when is the last time you turned to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for guidance on building stronger connections with Madelyn, Maia, Lakeesha, and Joan?

In the past, I would never have expected to glean anything from the Gospels that would help strengthen my relationships with other women. Then I began a more in-depth study of Jesus. I discovered all the love, compassion, respect, and empowerment he offered to the women he encountered.

My first reaction was to apply it all to myself and just bask in the utter assurance that Jesus (and, by inference, God) valued me, too—even though I’m not a man! That’s awesome!

Right in the middle of feeling all warm and fuzzy and confident, though, a second truth hit me. Just as Jesus was the face of God, putting a human face on the Almighty, I’m supposed to be the face Jesus. (Read More)

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Nonprofits Helping Women and Children

December 4, 2012

“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
(Matthew 25:40)

'happy smiling children' photo (c) 2012, planetlight - license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/The end of the year often means that lots of us are thinking about charitable giving, and I wanted to share with you some causes that my husband I have donated to in 2011 or 2012. Each of these organizations benefit women and children in some way:

Locally:

I give to the local food bank to help those with emergency food needs, many of which are single moms.

I also support the local Love in the Name of Christ chapter. This clearinghouse organization matches people in need with churches and individual Christians willing to help. Last year, they matched me with Virginia Watkins, a dear 94-year-old widow living by herself. We became great friends. Nearly deaf and blind, she loved for me to read the Bible to her—loudly and slowly. I miss her very much since her passing earlier this fall. Love INC has 130 chapters across 30 states. (Read More)

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Jesus on Women – The Summary

November 24, 2012

Over the past six weeks, I have been sharing with you a series called Jesus on Women. Considering the things Jesus said about women in his ministry has expanded the understandings of God we had already gained by looking at what Jesus said to women. This final post in the series sums up all we discovered.

As Jesus traveled the region of Palestine and taught about the coming kingdom and his Father’s will, he made sure that women knew he wasn’t running a boys-only club. He featured women in his illustrations and made reference to their familiar experiences, clearly communicating that he both invited and welcomed women’s presence among his public audiences as well as his more intimate circle of disciples. (Read More)

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Jesus on Women – Part 6

November 16, 2012

Adultery and Divorce

I’m going to be totally honest and tell you that I saved this topic until last  in the series for a very good reason. I was hoping the extra time would bring some brilliant spiritual insight on some scriptures that confuse me. Alas, it never came.

Yet, I am not deterred from sharing with you some words of Jesus on Women when discussing adultery and divorce.

The first statement of Jesus is easy-breezy to understand and very pro-woman given the culture of the day: (Read More)

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Jesus on Women – Part 5

November 9, 2012

Women in Apocalyptic Discourse

In this series on the sayings of Jesus about women, we have covered instances in which Jesus used women as his story illustrations, as well as statements Jesus made specifically about widows and about women in their family roles. Last week we looked at passages in which women were involved in Jesus’ confrontations with the Jewish religious authorities.

Today we will take a brief look at Jesus’ discourses on the destruction of the Temple and the coming of God’s kingdom (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 17, 21), because Jesus mentioned women in these contexts too.

The interpretation of these broader passages has been debated by learned scholars for centuries. I won’t claim enough wisdom to sort out all the details, but I will provide some context. Understanding of these teachings is complicated, because the language Jesus used bears the characteristics of apocalyptic literature.  (Read More)

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Jesus on Women – Part 4

October 31, 2012

Jesus and Women v. Jewish Religious Authorities

The Jewish religious leaders frequently felt threatened by the popularity of Jesus and his refusal to defer to their authority. Twice when they challenged Jesus, he used references to women in his responses. On another couple of occasions, the compassion of Jesus toward women itself became the point of contention.

The Queen of the South (Matthew 12:38-42) 

Some Pharisees and teachers of the law challenged Jesus one day to show them a miraculous sign. Jesus offered only that he would spend “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth,” comparable to Jonah’s three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish. Then, he told them, 

The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here.  (see also Luke 11:29-32)  (Read More)

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Interview on Zoe Elmore’s Blog

September 28, 2012

Today, Christian speaker Zoe Elmore of Charlotte, NC, has graciously posted an interview with me on her blog Living with Purpose and Passion. At the end there’s a chance to win a free copy of my book and a bracelet Zoe is giving away.

 

 

Lynn, what message has the Lord put in your heart for women?

Women really matter to God.

We all know that when Jesus came to earth as a man, his main purpose was to reveal God more clearly, usher in His Kingdom, and offer himself as a sacrifice for sin. I find it so exciting that this mission frequently brought Jesus into contact with many different kinds of women.

 He healed women with diseases, disabilities, and demon possession. He allowed them to travel with him in his ministry, accepted their financial support, taught them Truth, commended their faith, noticed their tears, forgave their sins, defended them against criticism, and granted their requests. He unfailingly treated every woman he encountered with compassion and respect. He demonstrated clearly that he valued these women and wanted to empower them for Kingdom living.

Knowing all this about Jesus increases my confidence in God’s love for me. Even more, though, it has changed my perspective toward all the women in my life. I want to make sure that I follow the example of Jesus in the way I care about women in financial need, the way I reach out to women who are lonely, the way I communicate acceptance to women whose lifestyles are different from mine, even the way I partner with other women who are devoted disciples. I want to make sure that when they look into my eyes, their value to God is crystal clear.

Read the rest of the interview on Zoe Elmore’s blog Living with Purpose and Passion.

Answer the following question at the end of the post and every answer will be entered in a random drawing for a copy of The Gentle Savior and a silver-tone stretchy heart & cross bracelet:  What is challenging you right now?

Winner to be announced on Tuesday, October 2

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“Thank You” or “Please Forgive Me”? Pondering the Prostitute’s Purpose

May 8, 2012

Was she there to beg his forgiveness or to worship him for a cleansing already received? 

This was the question that sparked all the Bible study I’ve invested in the subject of Jesus and women over the years. (God may have possibly had something to do with this, as well.) The question was prompted by an ambiguous Bible translation, which resulted in a significant misinterpretation. 

One day back in the mid-1990s, I was preparing to teach a children’s Sunday school lesson on the story of the sinful woman in Luke 7:36-50. I was taken aback by a statement in the teacher’s manual that Jesus forgave this woman because she had demonstrated a sufficient amount of sorrow for her sin. 

In other words, they thought Jesus was saying, “Give her some space, Simon. This woman is working hard at proving to me that she is sorry for her pitiful life. If she grovels long enough and with enough conviction, I’ll forgive her.”  (Read More)

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