This post is primarily for the ladies, but men can learn from it too:
As I watched the little girl twirling in her summer dress in front of the church yesterday, I saw something in real life that I'd been reading about in "Captivating" (by Stasi Etheridge) - that all little girls want to be seen and thought of as pretty.
Ladies - I definitely recommend this book, although, I think I'm the last one to read it.
"Captivating" tells us about who God created us to be as women. So far, I've taken 3 major lessons out of the book:
1. Woman was the last thing God created and each creation He spoke into existence was (arguably) more beautiful and complex than the one before. Each part of creation had a specific purpose, but God got more detailed with each succeeding creation. Again, woman was the last thing created. That says A LOT about our complex nature.
2. Woman was created because God saw that is wasn't good for man to be alone. That should give us a BIG clue about our purpose as women. It should tell us that our purpose is to reflect God's heart for relationship. That's why women are seen as more relationship-oriented and men more task-oriented. Women are here to remind that world that God loves relationships, the ultimate relationship being our relationship with Him.
3. Satan really hates women. Why? Well, Lucifer was beautiful and full of himself (Eze 28) and because of his inability to humble himself to God, He was kicked out of heaven. He hates women because we reflect God's beauty. He also hates us because He's all about death and women give life. So, Satan has pretty much been out to get us from the beginning (notice who he approached in the garden) trying to mess w/ our heads about our identity, causing us to doubt our beauty, etc. I'm sure I'm not making this sound as eloquent as the book, but that's the gist of it.
So what does this have to do w/ worship?
I think I've said this before, but an important part of worship is understanding and recognizing who God really is (how can you love and praise something you know nothing about?). As we get closer to Him in worship, we begin to see more of who He is. As we see and acknowlege more of who He is, we begin to understand more of who WE are.
So in recognizing who God created me to be as a woman, I am learning more about Him. That will deepen my worship.
