Last Updated on May 14, 2018
When Courageous came out on DVD, it was the number one selling DVD in the country. That movie celebrates the roll and calling of men to step up and be men that choose to lead their families well.
Servant leadership was designed by God and is a beautiful thing to behold. It is the way God designed man to complement woman. When I see it in other couples it literally makes my heart sigh. I too am blessed to have a man who is a servant leader. This is not to imply that he has it all figured out, simply that he is aware and he works at it.
I have been thinking a lot about the flip side to the coin. As a woman, how can I be courageous? My heart tells me that the answer is far from what the world is communicating to women. A woman’s call to be courageous is a word that has a tendency to cause women to cringe, or stiffen up in defiance. I believe a truly courageous woman is called to submit and be selfless. This is the true complement to her man’s calling.
Submit first to God and His desires for her life, striving to hear His voice over her own inner sinful screams to be heard and validated by the world. That desire started in the garden with a bite … and it continues in the heart of every woman who succumbs to the “you deserve this” whispers of the enemy and her own sinfulness.
Submission does not mean that you are shackled from thriving or living a full life. It means that you are striving to walk peacefully in the provision that God has for you and not go ahead of Him seeking what you think is best for you. If only Eve had allowed herself to grow in relationship with God, then perhaps she would have recognized the hissing lie for what it was – the end of all the plans God really had for her.
Submission has gotten a bad rap because far too many people who do not practice servant leadership have heralded the importance of submission. One without the other is always counter to God’s intention. But each mandate practiced side by side in a covenant relationship results in two healthy, thriving adults that have truly figured out the key to God’s intended oneness.
Oneness is what God gave us in the garden and the enemy continues to lure us away as we recoil over words and appearances. I challenge you to beat back the whispers of the enemy and seek God’s truth with all your heart.
Ladies…we were born to be courageous too!
Great post, Tracey! I needed to hear that after a weekend of “how dare so and so”, “I just want to take a nap”, I could go on with my list but I won’t, it’s shameful. I think I beat everyone over the head this weekend with “my rights”. I needed the reminder of the submissive / servants heart that we as women are supposed to have.
I especially liked how you put it:
“I believe a truly courageous woman is called to submit and be selfless. This is the true compliment to her man’s calling.
Submit first to God and His desires for her life, striving to hear His voice over her own inner sinful screams to be heard and validated by the world.”
Ouch…but it’s a good ouch.
Thanks for the post Tracey! It definitely takes courage to walk in biblical submission it rubs against how the world tells us we should live and it goes against the desires of our flesh. A a wife I have to look at Christ as my ultimate example of submission especially when we I get into the internal war about my rights. I’m so thankful that God empowers us to walk this out! And I learning the more I walk in obedience to God’s design the more I’ve seen my husband flourish and more freedom I’ve found in living out the role God has called me. Thanks again for your blog! Looking forward to getting your book soon! :0)
Great Post! Exactly what women need to hear more often.