Women

The world hates women is a post my friend Siya shared on Facebook, it shows the violent abuse of women across different countries around the world. It must have been chilling for her to see considering that she's got a little girl.

The bible says that God created man in his own own image; both male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27). The scripture goes on to say, God looked at what he had created and it was very good. Sin has entered our world and it has distorted the beauty that God created. This has affected the world we live in, the relationships we have and the way we live. Women have not been exempt from the effects of sin, it can be seen in the way women see themselves and the way men see women.

Listed below are some of the extreme cases of abuse against women and girls:

• Girl children are being aborted, abandoned or killed because of their God-given sex. The United Nations estimates that in Indian and China there are over 200million girls who are missing as a result. In the clip below, we hear from a woman who has killed 8 children at birth because they were girls.   

                                     

• The value of girl is being determined by how much a man is willing to pay for her. God says priceless and man says the highest bidder wins

•  200 girls in Nigeria are abducted and it's over a 100 days and they are nowhere to be found 
• Genital mutilation is an evil that aims to steal the gift of sex from women
• The United Nations estimates that 1 out of 3 women has been beaten, forced into sex or abused during her lifetime. This film is very graphic so if you are sensitive do not view it. It communicates a real account of brutal and violence stories against women and babies.  

I am sure you can add more films and stats to the above, but those stories just show how prevalent the problem is. 

Before you say but that's not me, we need to look at ourselves and how we contribute to this culture that hates women:

• Do you call someone lucky because he has a boy instead of a girl? The desire to have a boy is a beautiful desire but do not let it enslave you. The enslavement comes in the form of person's relentless pursuit of a boy either by the spouse bearing more and more children until they have a boy or a man marrying other women until he has his son (I won't even rant about how he is the "problem").  A healthy baby is a privilege that some parents do not have. 
• Do you pay women less than their male counterparts for the same qualifications and same job?
• Do you tease people by referring to them as girls?  This is highlighted so beautifully in this ad by ALWAYS

• Do rape cases focus more on the woman's dress code than the man's behaviour?
• Do men in a work environment get punished by their companies and the law for the sexual harassment of women?
• Do you talk inappropriately about women? Or do you allow the objectification of women by people around you? 
• Do you pollute your mind with images that objectify women and then expect the women in your life to live up to those images? Do you expect your spouse to perform for you because that's what you see in porn? Do you tell her how fat she is because you consume too many images of perfection in media?
• Do the men you hang around with value their wives and children? 

Again, the questions that you can add to this list are endless.

The link below is one of my favourite poems by Jon Jorgenson, it's called "Who you are?". I pray that we can be women who believe that we are awesome and that we raise girls who know that they are. Girls whose self-worth is not determined by their circumstance by a deep knowing that they are worthy of love and that they are LOVED! Because LOVE is a beautiful place to make world changing decisions.

This is not a usual feel good woman's day post. My hope is to raise awareness of woman's issues so that those who are touched may be moved to action. Doing something may require a big change like leaving your comfortable job to join an anti-human trafficking organisation or it can be small like ensuring that we speak well of all women not just those we love like family. May woman's month celebrations include the men and women working tirelessly to make my hypothetical future daughter feel loved, worthy and always enough.

God bless