I love studying obscure verses, people and situations from the Bible. Especially narratives that involve women in the Bible. We can learn so much about what is said or not said in the various passages throughout scripture. Here are 7 lessons that we can learn from women in the Bible.
Hagar
Hagar teaches us that God see us and knows us by name! Her story lets us know that there are some times when we are put in situations, we don’t respond in the best way and then we run away. However, in our running away the Lord comes to find you, calls you by name, gives you an encouraging word, and instructions to help guide you in life.
Martha
Martha teaches us to trust your heart more than your hands. I have heard many people not speak so highly of our friend Martha. They often compare her to her sister Mary admonishing those they are in conversation with to be a Mary and not a Martha. That is, to choose to stop being seen as a busy body and to sit still and take in what is being taught. Although I often disagree with this blanket statement I will support the idea that we must take in what we are hearing, interact with it internally and allow it to influence our words, thoughts, and actions ultimately trusting our heart more than our hands.
Abigail
Abigail is one of my favorite women in the Bible. She is a woman that does the right thing even in midst challenging circumstances. Abigail is a wife who has a husband who name means foolish. Assuming that this marriage was arranged and she did not readily choose to be with a fool of a man, I am sure she had her share of good and bad days. After meeting Abigail she is thrown into a situation where she chooses to continue to honor her marriage, defend her husband, and not take the easy road of getting rid of the foolishness in her life. Because of this the Lord still takes care of her and made sure that she would be put in a situation even better than the one we met her in. God honors you when you do the right thing.
Leah
Leah is a woman that gives me great pause when I read her story. She is a woman that is put into a VERY difficult situation. In this situation her biggest desire is to be loved. She is a woman that has seven children! SEVEN! Her first four children she birthed she named them out of the desperation she felt to be loved. Her rational each time “now my husband will love me.” Throughout her life we are never given any indication that she was ever loved by her husband. Though said, we learn from Leah that having a mans child does not make him automatically love you.
Tamar
Tamar teaches us that sometimes we have to advocate for ourselves. Tamar is an interesting narrative in that she is a widow twice over. After her second husband died she was instructed to go back to her fathers house and wait for the young man that was to be her husband to grew up to the appropriate age to be wed. When she recognized this was not going to happen she took matters into her own hands and created a situation in which she would be able to have children and be taken care of. Tamar teaches us that sometimes we have to advocate for ourselves because no one else will.
Delilah
Delilah teaches us that a nagging woman can bring death. Delilah is a narrative that shows us the power that a woman has. She is confidant, shrewd, a business woman, and uses her influence to get the information she desires. However, the information that she desires resulted in the death Samson. I believe there are some times where we can nag and eventually get the information we want but the nagging can lead to the death of the relationship. Delilah teaches us that nagging can lead to death.
Rahab
Rahab teaches us that we must utilize the negotiating skills we have. Rahab was a business owner working inside the walls of Jericho. In her line of work she encountered and interacted with men from within her city as well as visitors from other cities and countries. Because of this way able to gain insight on the dealings that took place domestically and abroad. These dealings helped her to recognize what was soon to come and to negotiate the well being for herself and her family. Rehab teaches us to use the negotiating skills we have.
