We Have A Women Problem
How can women raise the standard for the way men treat women?
There are few things as powerful as a woman who knows who she is and the beautiful love she was made for! Fulton Sheen says that:
“To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more noble her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, and goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women.”
Ok. Pause. Can we just let this awesome truth sink in for a minute???
“The level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood.”
Hold up then…If we see a crisis with men in our world today, then this means that there is also a major crises with women in our world today! It’s important to remember that men desire to rise to the occasion. They want to be challenged! John Eldredge says that “deep in his heart, every man longs for a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue” (Wild at Heart—highly recommend).
Although I would argue that we need to save the rescuing part for God, let’s take Eldredge’s words seriously, and become the beauty that draws out strength in men.
I have four practical tips for you!
1. Know who you are. You are an irreplaceable, infinitely worthy child of God who was desired into existence from the heart of God the Father. If this is hard for you to believe, ask God to tell you who you are. Again and again. If we know that we were made for love, then we will not allow ourselves to be used. Ever. Our standards will be set high, and we will refuse to settle.
A man must rise to the occasion to pursue women like this! And although we cannot control if a man will rise to the occasion, we can give them the opportunity! Side note: women who know that they are a beautiful mystery made for love are very attractive to men!
2. This knowledge of our identity will then affect the way we present ourselves. The way we dress and interact with others speaks loudly! Of course, no matter what a woman wears, she deserves nothing less than respect. However, the way we dress ourselves, the way we hold conversation, our posture, eye contact, and our body movements all make a statement to the world, and have the power to call men on!
Do we present ourselves in a manner that says, my body is good, I respect myself, and I invite those I encounter to get to know who I am as a person? Or do we dress in a way that reduces ourselves to parts of our body? Do we base our confidence merely on our physical appearance? If that’s the case, is that true self confidence? Or is it masking a deeper insecurity about who we are in our entirety?
3. Form strong sisterhoods that build men up. And try to find strong brotherhoods to invest in! Let’s stop competing, and start being on the same team! Discover the great potential men have, and be in awe of that. Encourage them when you see virtue in them. And cut out the nagging, belittling, or gossiping that we can so easily fall into. Instead, be their cheerleaders on and off the field!
4. This last point on how we can call men on comes straight from one of my awesome guy friends. He said the biggest way to raise the standards for men is by letting them lead. This was a bit of a surprise.
Ladies, we need to be humble enough to let men lead.
Ask the men to plan your dates! Or maybe let them lead the route on a hike. Ask them to lead you in prayer. Yea, sure, they will make mistakes. Or maybe they won’t feel qualified. But believe in them and encourage them, letting them know that you believe they have it in them!
By allowing men to lead, we are allowing them to rise to the occasion!
If a man knows he has a young woman who is counting on him to lead, then he will hopefully respond with greater fervor and zeal, knowing that there is someone depending on him to lead well.
As cliche as it may sound, deep within a man’s heart is the heart of a warrior lover who desires to protect the mysterious heart of a princess from danger, and lead her to safety! Let’s be the women who draw that warrior lover’s heart out from within. Let’s start being better teammates, and watch how this transforms our relationships!
