Body Beautiful
There is a place inside every woman that longs to be accepted and loved. To belong. To stand tall and not shrink under critical gazes.
It is often difficult to be a woman amongst women or a girl amongst girls. We are complicated creatures. We can be kind, we can be cold. So often power struggles define groups of females and at the core is the desire for acceptance.
As Christian women, we are not immune to this. We hurt each other, we hold grudges, we feel alone. We keep smiling so the truth is not seen. Satan loves to cause trouble amongst Christian women. And often it's not that difficult. How many times are divisions caused by misunderstandings and poor communication? We can be so quick to justify our feelings towards others and forget that “... our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the ... spiritual forces in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12). All our energy is spent fighting each other.
Jesus knew this would happen so He prayed for us. Jesus prayed for all believers to “... be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21). What a huge responsibility and privilege. This is a crucial bond; non-negotiable. We must be one! God longs for us to be unified. To pray for each other. To know each other. To be inspired and not to feel alone. Our God loves us. He doesn’t love us because we smile and look the part. He loves us dirty, He sees us clean.
The world needs to see christian women who love each other. Who are vulnerable and available to help carry each other. Who are willing to get their hands dirty to show love to their sisters. To reach out of the confines of that oneness and embrace broken women who do not know the love of Jesus. To draw them into a community established in love and truth. That’s what the world craves. That’s what God craves. Our body working seamlessly in unity to draw those in darkness into the light.
How can this be done? A.W. Tozer said “Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other ... So one hundred worshippers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become ‘unity’ conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.”
As with most things with God, it's not up to us to devise new programs to make ourselves united. We cannot make ourselves love each other. We cannot force each other to do things out of duty. We must first sit down with God, look in His eyes and see we are loved. How can you not be moved, then, to love your sisters and brothers? To love God’s church, the bride of Christ. And then draw the lost to the family of God. Not a bickering, petty bunch but a group of dirty old sinners who know they are loved and are overflowing with the love of Jesus.
