GI Jane (An Example of Perseverance)

We have woman who teach primary and secondary education, Sunday school at church and are ordained ministers.  Women worked in the factories while men were out fighting wars and now women are officers in the military.  Woman on the Senate (not a president yet) except Margaret Thatcher was a British politician, women who are surgeons, engineers, and about every field of work.   Our mothers were our best mentors in life.

Why did the apostle Paul say, "I do not let women teach men or have authority over them." 1 Timothy 2:12

I believe what the apostle Paul is saying is that men have to learn to fight their own battles in life. If we do everything for our children, they are never going to grow up. It's the same with a man that he has to learn to fight his own wars in life. I base this on two scriptures:

Of David. Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. Psalm 144:1

And the example of the married judge and prophetess Deborah where the military commander insisted that she come to battle with him and she told him that the glory of capturing the enemy king would be given to a woman since he refused to fight the battle without her.

Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go. But if you do not go with me, I will not go.” She said, “I will indeed go with you. But you will not gain fame on the expedition you are taking, for the Lord will turn Sisera over to a woman.” Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh. Judges 4:8

It was a CIA operative woman who was credited with taking down Osama bin Laden even though the Navy Seals were the ones that went in and took him.  It’s because the men were not persistent enough in the CIA.  Reminds me of Jesus comparing prayer to a widow who was persistent.  The woman with an issue of blood who pressed through a crowd of people to touch Jesus garment for her healing, the man’s friends who cut a hole in Peter’s roof who was lame for his healing (Jesus said “their faith” had made him whole), the Gentile woman who came to Jesus although his disciples wanted to forbid her for healing for her daughter who had convulsions.   Even Rebecca’s determination in feeding a bunch of camels gave her the right to be chosen to marry Isaac.

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.  He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.' Luke 18:1-3

Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. James 1:3

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, Hebrews 12:1

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Romans 5:3-4

That really is what it was about for women who decided to get into the military, go into surgery, engineering, computer programming, politics and church ministry.  Abraham Lincoln’s persistent in getting through political rhetoric to pass the 13^th amendment to abolish slavery, and Rosa Lee Parks in her decision that she was a person of value to not give up her seat on the bus.  Thomas Edison and Henry Ford as inventors – persistence pays off.

Many times in being married to a Christian, I found my husband very stubborn to listen to me –he sort of reminded me of how Abraham did not want to listen to Sarah about losing his son Ismael but the strife was not working out in their home, or how Joseph did not believe Mary when she told him she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit – that would take an “act of God” to believe.  Thank God for prayer at those times he would not listen to the Holy Spirit, but was trusting in his own intellect or understanding.  Men have to learn to hear the voice of God (inner voice of their spirit) on their own.   As women we can’t walk the walk for them.