Greeting my uncle who is in his 80’s, we began talking and somewhere in our conversation I referred to myself as a girl. He scolded me saying, “I hate when women refer to themselves as girls. You go through so much to become a woman and then you refer to yourself as girl.” I laughed and brushed it off in the moment but later I realized that he had a valid point. I’d been mulling it over off and on when I gathered with a group of women for tea yesterday.
I looked around the room. This tea brought 30 women together. We began to speak about the topic at hand that day which was the privilege of being adopted into the family of Christ and what responsibility that carried with it. The women began their stories slowly and softly as is always the case. They began to tell of where the Lord had brought them from and where they thought they were going. These were women who had earned the privilege of being called a WOMAN. Two hours later and a few cups of tea, there were women who were laughing, crying, comforting, counseling and you began to feel the camaraderie of women who had made their way through some STUFF! I realized I was in the company of some strong women, some women who had, as my uncle said, “gone through so much”.
The things that were discussed in that room, stay in that room. Suffice it say that there was breakthrough and prayer and that when women get together and pray SOMETHING HAPPENS. The next day at church, I saw a sparkle in the eyes of those who attended. I saw a look of acceptance and love and knowing, we had opened up our hearts to each other and the payoff was love. One thing I know about women is we can be each other’s biggest enemy but also each other’s biggest ally.
Although we may not have walked in the footsteps of the other, we had walked through things which had hurt us deeply and we had come through. We understood the pain, the trial of overcoming and the triumph. We also understand the gift our God has given us of redemption and restoration and future and a hope.
My uncle is right. We aren’t girls, we’ve come through a lot to be women. Now we need to own it.
Pastor Susan 
Very well said Pastor Susan. Yes we are taken from Glory to Glory in our Lord Jesus Christ and often times we do not even know it. When I visit the rooms in my mind where I had closed the door I begin to realize how far down that hallway He has taken me. Yes indeed Pastora He alone has restored us and planted us next to streams of water.
While I agree with you and your uncle about owning your adulthood, I also believe that the affectionate title of “Girls” night out is kinda fun. I also think all of us still have a bit of the kid in us so when we refer to ourselves in that childlike way it’s a reference to our fun loving side.
May be it’s more about being conscious of how far we’ve come while being intentional about the titles we give one another. Good thought though.