We’ve heard that we’re supposed to be warriors as women. We recognize that there’s something fierce lying dormant deep within us, waiting to emerge at the first sign of need. We see it in the way a mother fights with everything she has to protect her children. We see it in the way a seasoned wife fights against all odds to save her marriage. We even see it in the way a young girl stands in righteous anger against the injustices she sees around her- whether in the form of standing up for a bullied friend or protesting passionately against sex trafficking. There is something within us that almost seems to be bigger than us. Something that when it emerges, we stop and ask ourselves, “Woah, where did that come from?” That thing called a warrior spirit.
Now I have to stop for a moment and be honest here. Bringing myself to use the word “warrior” to describe something within me kind of makes me shudder just a bit. Because when I think of warrior women, I think of "Xena, Warrior Princess". You remember her- tough, fierce, kind of weird outfit. And frankly, I do not see her in myself one bit. And I’m not sure I want to. See, there’s something about the word “warrior” that puts me off. Simply because for most of my life, that word has only held the connotation of a man in my mind. And if not a man, then a fiercely intimidating woman who used mens’ weapons and played mens’ battle games. And while I’m sure there are some women who get excited at the thought of that- shooting bows and using shields- this girly girl (not ashamed to admit it) would much rather entertain the idea of wearing a dress and painting her nails.
And for a while, I believed there was something very wrong with me for preferring that. I mean, if God made us to house a warrior spirit within us (which, looking at the examples of strong and courageous women in the Bible, I’d say He sure did), then maybe I was simply superficial if I preferred the idea of wearing makeup or cuddling over wearing warpaint or running into battle with guns. So I began to ask myself if a woman could really hold a warrior spirit and still maintain her girliness. Could I call myself a strong fighter of God and still be dainty and gentle? Is it even possible to be both?
But this morning (while I was putting on my makeup, ironically enough), God opened my eyes to something new. The revelation that maybe, just maybe, we’ve gotten confused about what a “warrior princess” is supposed to look like. We’ve taken all that we’ve gathered from movies and books and used that to define the term “warrior” within our minds. We’ve chosen terms like “brave” or “manly” and we’ve written them on “hello my name is...” name tags and stuck them on mens’ breasts while as women we’ve only accepted beautiful, but nameless brooches on our own, leaving us questioning just what our role exactly is in the battle. Or we’ve stolen mens’ name tags and tried to live them out in the same ways they as men would, pulling a Joan of Arc or a Mulan if you will, loosing our femininity and burying our beauty because we don’t want to be dainty and “weak”, and we don’t know how else we can be warriors without abandoning those very things that declare us women. We show up to battle looking like a poser William Wallace from Braveheart, when God never intended us to play his role.
Now let me just clear something up before I continue: I do not think that just because I enjoy dresses and makeup that every woman should do the same and deny the different passions that lie within them that maybe look a little more adventurous than mine. Let’s just take a moment to recognize that physical appearance and one’s enjoyment of the color pink or glittery things does not define whether or not they are a woman. There is a beauty that is deeper, that lies in every single woman no matter their shape or stature, that was placed in every woman’s heart by God. One that comes from a root of femininity (which again, is not defined by girly things, but rather by the feminine heart God has created within you- the gentleness and the capability to love in the way that only a woman can love) And likewise, let’s also recognize that just as women who enjoy hiking and hunting are not less womanly because of those things, neither are women who take delight in flowy dresses and strappy shoes any less warriors, for the simple delights of ones heart is not what defines the warrior spirit.
Now that we’ve cleared that up, let me end by proposing a simple theory: the idea that maybe we as women are indeed warriors. But maybe God intended us to fight differently than men. I listened to a podcast once that said something along the lines of “You know, we’re supposed to crush the enemy's head under our foot. And it’s a lot more painful when women do it because we’re wearing heels.” God never asked us to drop the things that make us women in order to fight whatever battle is in front of us. Rather, when we walk out in the things that make us women, when we embrace our femininity, that is when we are most effective in battle. As women, God has equipped us and endowed us with traits that only we as women can bring to the front lines. He has placed a gentleness within us that is not to be confused with weakness, and a quietness that is not to be confused with silence. He’s given us strength that we were intended to lend to others, beauty that was intended to allure others to Him, and bravery that comes from a confidence that we are indeed princesses. Daughters of a King who loves us and fights for us as we step into whatever battle lies before us. We step into battle with beauty and grace as the weapons at our sides. We draw the fear of the Lord from our belts and we slay whatever evil sets foot before us as we place our confidence in God.
As women, I do believe we were intended to be fought for. Not to mean that we cannot take care of ourselves, but that we don’t need to. We were not created for independence, but for dependence on God. And in that dependence on God, we do find the confidence of William Wallace as he charges into battle. Only, we find it in a much more beautiful way. We find it in the way of strength, of dignity, and of laughter without fear of the future. We find our strength, our confidence, and our warrior spirit when we allow God to fight for us. We find our warrior spirit in our feminine hearts that so much resemble our Maker’s and that He is more than willing to fight for.
