G.I. Jane

Last week my sister and I watched G.I. Jane with Demi Moore. I had seen parts of the movie before, but had never really sat down and watched the entire thing. The part of the movie that I liked the most was seeing her training. She had to physically train more to be a Navy Seal in order to keep up with the men who were in training for the same thing. The part of the movie that I didn’t like was that she wanted to be treated like a man. She didn’t want any special treatment because she was a woman. As a woman, I want special treatment: doors opened for me and being spoken to with kindness. I don’t want to be overlooked for career opportunities that would better myself and those around me because I am a woman. This past weekend I was part of an amazing conference for youth and young adults, Elevate 10 at Shoreline Church. I had the honor and opportunity to see lives transformed through worship, messages, and most importantly the presence of God. My role was to direct the conference and lead the tworship (technical + worship = tworship) team, which included all men except me. A woman leading men can work. Why does it work? We are all working toward the same vision: to create an environment to make the name of Jesus famous and to create an atmosphere where lives are transformed. We have respect for one another’s roles, gifts, and talents. We treat each other w/respect by the way we speak to one another. Each of us own our roles and take responsibility for them. We want everything to be done with excellence. We have established relationships so we trust one another. I had a blast and our team worked great together.

I had women all around me at the conference, most of them younger than me. It was incredibly refreshing to see women praying for one another, encouraging one another, serving one another, leading one another, and being one another’s best cheerleaders. It is a high value for me to be supported, believed in, encouraged, and given ownership of things. From the lobby, to the café, to the breakout sessions, to the main sessions, I was able to see women in roles leading, serving, owning, and being believed in to make the conference happen. You could see the joy on their faces as they were serving and knowing they were making a difference.

The “Single Ladies” breakout session with Heather Frierson and Tamra Cobbins gave great perspective on dating, singleness, and marriage. The question every woman wants answered is, “Am I beautiful?” When you truly believe that Jesus made you unique and beautiful, you have confidence and completeness in Him. Then your heart is more open to what Jesus has for you and it’s easier to attract a complete man as well. That’s a bonus.

Women are special. They are servants. They are leaders. They are daughters of Jesus. I am going to serve and lead, but most of all I am going to enjoy being the daughter of The King.