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A
Woman of Influence
by Teresa Bell
Kindred
www.teresakindred.com
Do you consider yourself a woman of
influence? You are, and it’s up to you whether that
influence be good or bad.
Most of us would never consciously choose to
be a bad influence on others, but when we make wrong choices
we are unconsciously influencing others to follow a path that
leads to destruction. In fact, the things we do today may
influence future generations. The saddest thing about leading
others astray is that the danger seems greatest where we have
the most influence, in our roles as a wife and mother.
Consider these examples from the Bible:
Wayward Wives
Eve sinned and then enticed
Adam into joining her. This sin affected not just a few
generations, but all generations to come.
Job’s wife begged him to
curse God and die. Not exactly a supportive wife, and
certainly not an example of loving God with all our heart.
Bathsheba’s choices to bath
on a roof top, to go to David when he sent for her, and to
commit adultry, all contributed to the murder of her husband
and the loss of her child. (2 Samuel 11)
Mothers Who Made Wrong
Choices
Rebekah persuaded Jacob to lie
to his father about his identity so he could receive the
better blessing. Her actions brought sorrow to her husband and
encouraged animosity between the twin brothers that lasted for
years. (Genesis chapter 27)
And one of the worst, in my
opinion, was Herodias. When her daughter pleased the king with
her dancing, this vindictive mother advised her daughter to
request John the Baptist’s head on a silver platter.
(Matthew chapter 14)
On the other hand...
There are many examples in the
Bible of women who made right choices.
Deborah, a prophetess, became a
leader when she was chosen the fourth and only female judge of
Israel. She wasn’t power hungry, but when chosen she rose to
the occasion and she never forgot that God was in charge. God
led her to victory and she sang praises to him. Her influence
extended throughout her nation. (Judges chapter 4)
Esther- She saw her God given
opportunity and seized it when she risked her life by asking
King Xerxes to save the Jews. By using her influence correctly
this God fearing woman saved thousands of lives. (the book of
Esther)
Hannah- who prayed and prayed
for a child and promised she would dedicate him to God. Her
son Samuel became a man of great influence. (Samuel chapter 1
and 2)
Ruth- Her faithfulness to her
mother-in-law Naomi led her to Boaz, who became her husband.
She eventually becomes the great-grandmother of King David,
and thus she is included in the lineage of Christ. A study of
Naomi also shows how important the influence of an older woman
can be for younger women. Naomi’s love of God and obedience
to Him greatly influenced Ruth.
Love is a key theme throughout
the book of Ruth and one of the most familiar passages quoted
at weddings comes from this book. "But Ruth replied,
"Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you.
Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your
people will be my people and your God my God. Where you died I
will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with
me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates
you and me." Ruth 1:16
Mary- Chosen by God to give
birth to our savior. (Luke 1:30) Her life couldn’t have been
easy and yet she accepted her fate with dignity and gave
thanks to God for His son. (Luke 1:46-55).
Godly women are influential
Not only are women influential in their
roles as wives and mothers, but they are to be role models for
other women.
In the New Testament the concept of older
women teaching younger women is mentioned in Titus 2;3-5
" Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the
way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine,
but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger
women to love their husbands and children, to be
self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and
to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign
the word of God."
Women: second class
citizens...NOT
There are many people in the world today who
would like to convince women that they are second class
citizens, that by honoring our husbands and caring for our
children we are somehow missing out.
Nothing could be further from
the truth! Proverbs 31 extols the virtues of a "wife of
noble character" and says her worth is more than rubies.
"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman
who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she
has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city
gate." (Proverbs 31; 30-31)
While we live in a different
day and time from the "virtuous woman" in Proverbs,
some things never change. To
be a truly influential woman we have to be women who love God
and obey His commands.
This
article is copyrighted by the author. All Rights Reserved. No part
of this article may be reprinted without permission of the author.
©Copyright
2001
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