I love warrior chick movies. No, I’m obsessed with warrior chick movies. There’s just something about watching a woman overcome some crazy-hard obstacle, and come out victorious.
When Keith Urban debuted his song “Female” at the CMA Awards in November 2017, I sat upright in my chair. I stopped scrolling through Instagram and listened as I saw words describing what it means to be “female” flicker across the stage. Sister, shoulder, daughter, lover, healer, broken halo, mother, nature, fire, suit of armor, soul survivor, holy water, secret keeper, fortune teller, virgin Mary, scarlet letter, technicolor, river wild, baby girl, women, shine… Female.
Those words cut straight to my heart and sat there for days, weeks and months after that awards show. As confusion, chaos and tension surrounding just what exactly it means to be “female” swirl around me, these lyrics remind me of what God has breathed into our bones from the start: baby girl, it’s not what you do that makes you female. It’s who you are.
When we live from the core of who God made us to be, daily choosing to be her, we come out victorious, no matter what obstacle stands in our way.
Who did God uniquely design females to be? Two distinguishers stand out from the first woman, Eve—first, she was created to be a partner. Second, she was designed to produce new life.
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. Genesis 2:18-22
Notice God didn’t craft Eve from Adam’s pinky toe, his elbow, or any other part of his body for that matter. Intentionally, Eve was formed from Adam’s rib cage—his side—placing Eve’s position directly next to him, not above or beneath Adam. She was designed to be his helper, his partner, to make him and the world around them better.
Genesis 3:16 unpack the moments after Adam & Eve disobeyed God in the Garden, outlining the consequences each would face. For Eve? Childbirth would be painful. Ouch… while the pain of this curse weighs heavy, there is a blessing hidden within: females give birth to new life.
Hear me: birthing new life doesn’t always look like bringing a human into this world. Producing new life is discovered in choosing to extend kind words, and shutting down gossip; walking in peace, not drama & chaos; taking your next step today, not procrastinating what you know you should do; investing in your local church, not sitting on the sidelines; encouraging those around you, not competing with them; and sometimes birthing new life looks like bringing a newborn into the world or adopting a newborn to raise, helping them become who they were made to be too.
Warrior women, we are partners & we are producers. And at the root of it all, we have the power to choose to be both, or not. We choose to partner with those around us, or leave them alone, fending for themselves. We choose to produce life with the words we speak, the people we mentor, the opportunities we step into, or not.
“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!” Deuteronomy 30:19
What does it mean to be female? Choosing to be who God made you to be. The choice is always up to you, and only you. Friend, you are a warrior woman. You are a partner. You are a producer. You are female. Now, will you choose to be her?
