…of whom the world was not worthy…
Hebrews 11:38a
I have actually started typing this post seven or eight times, and I’ve begun it in my head countless times. It is hard to write. Not because I don’t know what to say. But rather because there is so much left to say.
There remain countless women who were teachers, mentors, family members, friends, colleagues who remain unmentioned but who have a lasting impact on my life.
I would have loved to write a post this month celebrating…
- …my childhood Sunday School teachers. These faithful women who were the first outside of my home to tell me of God’s great love and help me fall in love with the stories of the Bible.
- …Flannery O’Conner, whose short stories inspire me to be a better story teller, a better preacher, but most importantly a better person because a good man is hard to find.
- …Perpetua and Felicity. If you are a Christian and don’t know their stories… Well, then shame on all of us; stop reading this blog and google their names or click on their names above to at least read their Wikipedia page (After you’re done reading about them, please come back and finish reading this post, follow my site, and share on your social media).
- …Mary the mother of Jesus, who was favored by God. In a world where our daughters need positive role models, why are we NOT celebrating Mary in our evangelical protestant churches!
The list of possible posts, goes on and on! We need more than a month! Of course, that’s the point, right?
Until we realize that far too often the roles of women have been forgotten, overlooked, minimized; until we realize the unbelievable impact that they have had on Christianity and the world; until we realize that they are listed alongside the men of old of whom the world was not worthy; until we realize that these women are truly a gift from God; well until then, we need a day, a month, a reminder, that we don’t deserve them either.
Of all the things — and believe me when I tell you that they are too numerous to count — of all the things that I have learned from my wife, Stace, the most important is that I don’t deserve the best things that I have in my life. She, like the rest of the best, is a gift from God.
I am privileged to walk through life with her — I wouldn’t want to walk it without her. I am privileged for the women (and men) who have gone before us on this road. And I am excited to see those who are coming behind us with their own adventures.
As this series concludes, my hope for myself and all who read it is that it will simply serve as an ongoing reminder that we, like the rest of the world, are not worthy of their faithfulness, their strength, or their inspiration. And because we don’t deserve it, we will remain forever grateful.
From The Margins Of My Bible 