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By Lydia Brownback
A Godly Woman’s Adornment
"Do not let your adorning be external "the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious," wrote the apostle Peter (1 Peter 3:34). We, Christian women of the twenty-first century, are influenced more than we realize by pop culture by media, celebrities, and advertisements with the result that some of us form a superficial and worldly view of the ideal woman. Some of us see her as a spiritualized version of the old commercial that featured the beautiful wife in a slinky dress who, at the end of the day, drops her briefcase and heads to the kitchen, singing, "I can bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan, and never ever let you forget you’re a man." Others of us think the ideal woman is the busiest woman she who serves on several church committees while keeping a perfect home and a perfect figure and raising well-adjusted, successful children. Whatever our particular view of godly womanhood, we seek to "adorn" our lives in keeping with it, not realizing that much of it might be culturally shaped rather than biblically shaped. As a result, many of us are living in chronic frustration. It's our viewpoint that needs a makeover, not our bodies, our homes, or our bank accounts. In fact, it is God’s will to rid us of the anxiety that keeps us stuck on ourselves and in wrong patterns of thinking. If, as Peter said, our adornment isn’t to be the braiding of our hair and the wearing of gold, or successful families, careers, or ministries, by implication there is another kind of adornment we are to display prominently. In this seminar, we will take an in-depth look at what the apostles Peter and Paul wrote in their epistles about how we can glorify God in unique ways as women and experience the blessings that accompany biblical femininity.
Audio CD from the Amazing Grace 360 Women's Conference held in Atlanta from Oct. 7-9, 2011
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