Radical Womanhood

Women Against Pornography

(The following is an unedited excerpt from my forthcoming book, Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World. It is from a chapter that traces the reasons for the female raunch culture that we live in today. This excerpt is about the brief period when Christians and feminists were in agreement--about the issue of pornography. Caution: This blog post is not appropriate for younger eyes...)

Hugh Hefner launched Playboy from the kitchen of his Chicago apartment in 1953. He sold more than 53,000 copies for 50 cents each—the beginning of a multi-million dollar enterprise. Playboy reached the height of its U.S. circulation in the early ‘70s, shortly after it came under scrutiny by the Commission on Obscenity and Pornography, which was established by President Johnson in 1968. The commission published its report in 1970, stating that it found no evidence that pornography caused crime or delinquency among adults and youths. While it supported laws prohibiting sales of pornographic materials to children, it also recommended eliminating all legal restrictions on the use by consenting adults of sexually explicit books, magazines, pictures, and films.

At the same time, a serial killer named Ted Bundy began a horrifying murder spree across the country. From at least 1974 to 1978, he sexually assaulted and murdered dozens of young women in five states, dismembering and defiling their corpses in unmentionable ways. Some say he was responsible for more than 100 such murders. He was sentenced to death in 1979 and spent ten years on death row before he was executed in 1989. He was one of the most notorious criminals in the 20th century—as infamous for the extent and severity of his crimes as he was for his law-student smarts and boy-next-door good looks.

While Bundy was on death row, another national commission on pornography was formed under President Reagan in 1985. Led by Attorney General Edwin Meese III, and informally known as the Meese Commission, this commission invited several prominent Christian leaders, including Focus on the Family’s founder, James Dobson. In the 16 years between these commissions, society and technology had changed. The VCR had introduced porn films to private homes, but the Internet was not yet commonly available. Even so, there was a distinct difference in the way society viewed pornography from the 1970 commission to the Meese Commission:

By this time, society had changed in several ways. Pornography had become even more available; a new generation of social science studies suggested a link between exposure to violent or degrading pornography and male aggression against women in laboratory settings; and new conservative and feminist movements were joining hands to attack pornography. In addition, the membership of the new commission was decidedly more conservative than that of the 1970 commission. Not surprisingly, the Attorney General’s Commission on Pornography, also known as the Meese Commission, reached strikingly different conclusions than did its predecessor. In its 1986 report, the commission concluded that violent pornography and degrading pornography (pornography showing the “degradation, domination, or humiliation” of women) cause violence and discrimination against women and an erosion of sexual morality.

Here’s the unusual twist: The language in this report of a “decidedly more conservative” commission bore a striking resemblance to many leading feminist statements of the time. What fascinates me personally is that I clearly remember this period myself. I had recently graduated from college when the Meese Commission was formed. In my women’s studies classes, I was taught the feminist position that pornography degrades women. I have forgotten many things about college, but the lecture about pornography is still clear in my mind.

The Porn Wars

Women Against Pornography coalesced in the late ‘70s out of several organizations, and was loosely led by feminist author Susan Brownmiller, who wrote Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape, and the militant feminist Andrea Dworkin, among others. Dworkin made headlines in 1980 for collaborating with feminist and legal scholar Catharine MacKinnon on behalf of Linda Lovelace, star of the X-rated movie, “Deep Throat,” whose civil rights they were convinced had been violated. Dworkin campaigned frequently on the subject, helping to draft a law in 1983 that defined pornography as a civil rights violation against women. The law was later overturned by an appeal court as unconstitutional.

Dworkin even testified before the Meese Commission and a subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, as reported in a 1979 TIME magazine article:

Perhaps the basic question is whether pornography really incites men to violence against women, or does the opposite—lets them sublimate their aggressive sexual fantasies in a relatively harmless way. The 1970 report of the President’s Commission on Obscenity and Pornography implied that it did indeed serve as a useful social outlet. But since then, at least one of the study’s authors is having second thoughts. Says University of Pennsylvania Sociologist Marvin Wolfgang: “The weight of evidence [now] suggests that the portrayal of violence tends to encourage the use of physical aggression among people who are exposed to it.” Backed by such support, Brownmiller and other feminists have every intention of stepping up their fight, hoping to recruit still more converts to their cause.

Serial killer Ted Bundy could have been their poster child. In the final hours of his life before his execution in 1989 in Florida, Bundy gave a controversial video interview to Meese Commission member James Dobson. In it, he stressed over and over the influence of violent media and pornography on his thinking, and on the thinking and impulses of the other men in prison with him:  “I’ve lived in prison for a long time now and I’ve met a lot of men who were motivated to commit violence, just like me. And without exception, every one of them was deeply involved in pornography—without question, without exception. Deeply influenced and consumed by an addiction to pornography. There’s no question about it. The FBI’s own study on serial homicide shows that the most common interest among serial killers is pornography.”  Bundy claimed he wanted to make this warning about pornography his final message because he had seen the mainstreaming of porn and he was concerned for future generations.

Opposition to pornography was the link between two groups that typically had little else in common: the Christian Right and feminist activists. For a brief period in 1980s, they found themselves on the same page.

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I've embedded a segment of that video conversation between James Dobson and Ted Bundy. It's direct, but not graphic. During this interview, Bundy talks about how you can find stuff on cable TV that you couldn't even see in X-rated theaters years ago. And this was 1989 -- nearly 20 years ago! Now we have Law & Order: SVU depicting sexual violence each week on broadcast TV. If ever I'm flipping through channels and come across this show even briefly, I am horrified at what they portray.

It's a significant conversation. Unfortunately, sin is nowhere mentioned. That would have made a stronger video, in my opinion. Bundy was a master manipulator, so his motives for granting this interview are questionable. But even if he was looking to clean up his reputation by shifting blame to the influence of pornography, I think he still raised some valid points about the mainstreaming of porn and sexual violence. And all this was said before the rise of the Internet and third-wave feminism's "porn-positive" ideals.

The 'Fantasy Land' of the Single Christian

I'm now working on a chapter about feminist influence on sexuality for my book. This is where the influence of the less-defined third wave of feminism (1990s to present) is really found. The female raunch culture of Girls Gone Wild, Sex & the City, Victoria's Secret, and young women who dress for the office like they would for their honeymoon is a direct result of the ideology of third-wave feminism. And it makes for a difficult task to accurately, but discreetly, describe this movement and its effects.

That's why I was actually pleased to read an article that ran in last week's Wall Street Journal, titled "Sex Education." The opening paragraphs are highly discouraging as the author describes the current state of hooking up on college campuses. But then she writes about a class she taught at Boston University that was received surprisingly well by her students:

When last semester I taught Wendy Shalit's "A Return to Modesty," in a class at Boston University called "Spirituality & Sexuality in American Youth Culture," I assumed that my mostly left-leaning students would reject her arguments about the terrible effects that the hook-up culture has on young women and the positive effects of traditional religion and morality on young women's well-being. Instead, my students ate up her critique and were fascinated by her descriptions of modesty as a virtue, especially within the context of faith. One student said that she felt empowered to stop tolerating vulgar remarks about sex made by peers in her presence.

The class was equally attracted to some evangelical dating manuals, like "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" by Joshua Harris and "Real Sex" by Lauren Winner, that I asked them to read. They seemed shocked that somewhere in America there are entire communities of people their age who really do "save themselves" until marriage, who engage in old-fashioned dating with flowers and dinner and maybe a kiss goodnight. They reacted as if these authors describe a wonderful fantasy land. "It would be easier just to have sex with someone than ask them out on a real date," one student said, half-seriously.

I am so grateful I get to live in this "fantasy land"--but my heart breaks for the women who feel they have no other choice except to participate (physically or emotionally) in the denigration of God's good gift of sex. When I meet young women like this, I am eager to introduce them to the young men I know who will be true gentlemen, honoring them and extending kindness and courtesy to them. More importantly, I am eager to introduce them to the Savior who has rescued us from just punishment for our sins and who has redeemed our relationships.

Here's an idea: If you know of a twenty-something (single or not) who needs to be introduced to the community of believers their age--and ultimately to Jesus Christ--please consider sponsoring them to attend the New Attitude conference this Memorial Day.

HT: Justin Taylor.

Observation and Interpretation

It's been interesting to read the responses to the Sanger except from my forthcoming book. I didn't expect the conversation to be so focused on the issue of birth control. But then with only an excerpt, you all wouldn't know why I brought up her up, anyway.

To clarify, Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World attempts to explain why our culture has certain assumptions and ideas about womanhood and how we arrived at them. Then I want to compare and contrast this with what the Bible teaches on these subjects. My point in bringing up Sanger is to show how her commitment to eugenics shaped 20th-century conversations about children and motherhood. This is from a chapter titled, "The Mommy Wars," which is not so much about the ongoing media discussion about stay-at-home mothers or working mothers, but about the spiritual and ideological opposition to motherhood and children. It follows a chapter about how the home was denigrated through 19th-century changes and first-wave feminism. When the home was devalued, so was the woman who worked there. And when the woman was devalued, it wasn't long before her offspring were seen as a hindrance, too. (This is a broad generalization so that you can follow the arc of these two chapters.)

I don't quibble with Sanger's observation that numerous pregnancies can be very hard on a woman's body or that poor families with many children can suffer tremendous financial hardship. But right observation does not always lead to right interpretation. Sanger saw poor health, poverty, sin, anger, abuse, and numerous other challenges and her interpretation was that the "unwanted" children were the root problem or that some people shouldn't breed at all. Thus, she was able to make the outrageous statement that “the most merciful thing that a large family does to one of its infant members is to kill it.” That is the farthest thing from mercy! But her thinking has influenced our culture. Therefore, contraception is not the issue of contention in this chapter. (Abortifacients, however, are. We need to clearly distinguish between prevention and abortion.) What this chapter addresses is why children are disposable--seen as anything ranging from inconveniences to parasites--instead of received as gifts from God.

Because of the comments on this post and the cross-conversations I've read in the blogosphere, I thought it would be helpful to post the preface of Radical Womanhood for the sake of clarity. This is the unedited version, but I think it will illuminate why I am writing this book. 

One day I walked into a church as a brand-new Christian. I was 30. Becoming a Christian  was the very last thing this party girl expected to happen so close to her 30th birthday, but God had gotten my attention then and I knew I was supposed to be in a church pronto.

So there I was, lost in the land of Church Ladies—women wearing floral prints and long skirts, holding a baby on each hip, and happy to be homemakers. I’m sure I was gawking like a tourist at a zoo. I’m sure they were tempted to gawk back, too, for I was an obvious newbie. I was the brash, single professional woman far more familiar with the latest issue of Cosmopolitan magazine and the alternative music scene than I was with the Bible or any hymns or praise choruses.

How well I remember those first months of culture shock in that church. As a new Christian, I had an entirely new worldview to process and evaluate: People were actually reading the Bible! And believing it! They talked about relationships and roles so differently from anything I had ever heard before. Part of me wanted to run away, and part of me was greatly intrigued.

I’ve never forgotten what that experience was like. That’s why I wrote this book. I wrote it for my 30-year-old self, the woman who needed to understand why all she had been taught in college and read in the media often led to a dead end, and why the Bible—with its "antiquated ideas" about so many things—seemed to inspire joy and peace. I hope these pages will also save numerous readers a few years of asking “why?” and learning lessons the hard way, as I did.

More importantly, I wrote this book for the girls I addressed many years later at a regional conference for college students. Trying to gauge their understanding of the various items I was referencing, I asked for a show of hands as I mentioned people or events in my message.

“How many of you have heard of the suffrage movement?” A few hands went up. “How about Betty Friedan? Gloria Steinem?” Again, only a sprinkling of raised hands. “Simone de Beauvoir or Paul Sartres?” Maybe one hand. Way in the back.

“What about the Proverbs 31 woman?”  To my surprise, again, only a few hands shot up at this Christian conference.

“Okay, then. Well, how many of you are children of divorce?” More than half of the room raised their hands.

At that point, I realized I was talking to a generation living with the fallout of seismic cultural change, but they didn’t know what had happened! (They also didn’t know what was in the Bible—an alarming thought for a Christian event, though not entirely unexpected for so many new believers.)  Seeing their need, I set aside my speaking notes and began to address them with passion. I explained to them what the previous few generations had done to change the definition of a woman. I talked to them about all that they had inherited—both benefits and the detriments. I talked to them about what the Bible had to say on these matters. And then I challenged them to discern the lures, reject the lies, and grasp what true liberation really is. I encouraged them to be radically different, to live as biblically savvy women in the modern world.

When it was over, many of them came forward to say this information was all brand new to them.  “Why hasn’t anyone ever told us this before?” they asked.

I hope some of them find this book one day so they can know more than what I could explain in only one hour. I want them to understand what is truly radical about being a woman in the image of God.

I'm in the final stages of writing this book. Many of you have told me you are praying for me. I greatly appreciate that! (So does my editor!) I need wisdom, humility, and stamina to complete this project. Even as woman who earned her women's studies certificate in college (making me a certified feminist prior to my conversion!), I have learned a lot about the movement I once heartily embraced. I've also been reminded once again that feminists are not the real enemy, for we do not war against flesh and blood but against spiritual forces of evil (Eph. 6:12). Plus, intellectual honesty demands that we acknowledge the limited benefits that have come from the various women's movements, such as the right to vote, be paid equal wages, and own property. Therefore, I'm not trying to create an "us vs. them" polemic with this book. I want to engage the claims and examine the ideologies of feminism, but in the end, I want to remember that I am doing so as an object of mercy. For Scripture reminds me that I was once an enemy of God, but now I have been reconciled to Him through the death of His Son (Ro. 5:10). Amen and hallelujah!

Amazingly enough, Radical Womanhood is available for pre-order on Amazon. So if you'd like, you can place an order today and pressure me place a vote of confidence that I'll finish it on time and for the glory of God! The comments function is open for further feedback. . .

'The Clogs and Destroyers of Civilization'

(Another book chapter finished! Yay! Here's an unedited excerpt that ties in with the current focus on abortion. I look forward to your feedback. I've opened the comments function; comments are moderated.)

Margaret Sanger was the founder of the modern birth control movement and a vocal proponent of eugenics—the theory of race improvement that was the cornerstone of Nazi Germany. Sanger believed that all evils stemmed from large families, especially large families of those she deemed as unfit. As she wrote in her 1920 book, Woman and the New Race, “The most merciful thing that a large family does to one of its infant members is to kill it.”

I can’t even fathom saying such a thing, but Sanger’s personal history undoubtedly influenced her thinking. She was born in 1879 in Corning, New York, the sixth of eleven surviving children. Her father was a stonemason and a supporter of radical socialist causes. Sanger’s mother succumbed to tuberculosis at 49. Sanger later said the strain of 18 pregnancies was what broke her mother’s health. 

Sanger went on to study nursing and married in 1902. Her first pregnancy was a difficult one that landed her in a sanitarium for her confinement and recovery. But she regained her health and gave birth to two more children. In 1910, she began to work as a midwife and home nurse on the Lower East Side of New York City. A year later, she joined a radical labor movement and participated in several labor strikes.

By 1912, Sanger began writing a series of articles on female sexuality and contraception in the socialist publication, The Call, in bold defiance of then-current law against the dissemination of information on sexually transmitted diseases and contraception. Two years later, separated from her husband whom she would later divorce, she founded the monthly magazine, Woman Rebel, under the slogan, “No gods; no masters!”  In 1914, she fled to Europe after she was indicted for violating U.S. postal obscenity laws. But two years later, having avoided imprisonment, she was back in the U.S. to open the nation’s first birth control clinic, in Brooklyn, New York. After ten days of operation, she was arrested and jailed. The trial made her a national figure, and handed doctors the right to prescribe birth control advice.

In 1921, Sanger organized the American Birth Control League, which later became the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. For Sanger, the birth control movement was founded on two goals: limiting the reproduction of the “unfit” and challenging Christian teaching by creating a “new morality.” She campaigned against women “with staggering rapidity” breeding “those numberless, undesired children who become the clogs and the destroyers of civilization.”  Sanger’s scorched-earth writing left no one guessing about her views:

While unknowingly laying the foundations of tyrannies and providing the human tinder for racial conflagrations, woman was also unknowingly creating slums, filling asylums with insane, and institutions with other defectives. She was replenishing the ranks of the prostitutes, furnishing grist for the criminal courts and inmates for prisons. Had she planned deliberately to achieve this tragic total of human waste and misery, she could hardly have done it more effectively. 

[T]he most urgent problem to-day is how to limit and discourage the over-fertility of the mentally and physically defective. Possibly drastic and Spartan methods may be forced upon American society if it continues complacently to encourage the chance and chaotic breeding that has resulted from our stupid, cruel sentimentalism. 

She was equally as caustic about Christianity and the Bible’s teaching on sexuality:

Let it be realized that this creation of new sex ideals is a challenge to the church. Being a challenge to the church, it is also, in less degree, a challenge to the state. The woman who takes a fearless stand for the incoming sex ideals must expect to be assailed by reactionaries of every kind. Imperialists and exploiters will fight hardest in the open, but the ecclesiastic will fight longest in the dark. He understands the situation best of all; he knows what reaction he has to fear from the morals of women who have attained liberty. For, be it repeated, the church has always known and feared the spiritual potentialities of woman’s freedom.

When women have raised the standards of sex ideals and purged the human mind of its unclean conception of sex, the fountain of the race will have been cleansed. Mothers will bring forth, in purity and in joy, a race that is morally and spiritually free.

I think it’s safe to say that with the perspective of nearly a century of hindsight, we have hardly attained a cleansed human race that is morally and spiritually free. To expect this kind of salvation from women is unwise, unbiblical, and downright impossible. As we will see in a following chapter, women did not manage to raise the sex standard—in fact, third-wave feminism gave rise to the feminine “raunch culture” we live in today. Yet, Sanger was so confident about the fruits of birth control and the new race that she predicted exactly the opposite of what has come to pass:

When motherhood becomes the fruit of a deep yearning, not the result of ignorance or accident, its children will become the foundation of a new race. There will be no killing of babies in the womb by abortion, nor through neglect in foundling homes, nor will there be infanticide. . . .

The relentless efforts of reactionary authority to suppress the message of birth control and of voluntary motherhood are futile. The powers of reaction cannot now prevent the feminine spirit from breaking its bonds. When the last fetter falls the evils that have resulted from the suppression of woman’s will to freedom will pass. Child slavery, prostitution, feeblemindedness, physical deterioration, hunger, oppression and war will disappear from the earth. . . . When the womb becomes fruitful through the desire of an aspiring love, another Newton will come forth to unlock further the secrets of the earth and the stars. There will come a Plato who will be understood, a Socrates who will drink no hemlock, and a Jesus who will not die upon the cross. (emphasis added)

God forbid. God forbid!

I type that quote with tears on my cheeks. Without the cross, we are doomed. There is no hope of a new heavens and a new earth, free from the effects of the fall, without the atonement of our sinless Savior. There is no hope for mercy to triumph over judgment unless it be at the foot of that cross. There is no hope for “child slavery, prostitution, feeblemindedness, physical deterioration, hunger, oppression and war to disappear from the earth” if the Father’s righteous anger against these terrible sins is not satisfied. Where would justice be in the universe if such sins go overlooked? No, on the contrary, our only hope is the cross! If Jesus had not been obedient to this plan of salvation, who could possibly be our mediator?

And who could possibly atone for the slaughter that eventually arose from this “new morality”?

Margaret Sanger lived to see the development of the first birth control pill in 1960—something she had worked toward. She died in 1966, the year the Johnson administration incorporated “family planning” into its foreign policy and domestic health and social welfare programs of the United States.  Her life bridged the first and second waves of feminism, but her philosophies were the booster rocket for the most profound effects of second-wave feminism.

It Looks Finished, But It's Not...

Here's the cover for my next book. It's kind of exciting to see it look so final, especially when it's not. So, PLEASE PRAY FOR ME!

I'm serious. I'm writing this book just like I did my first one--on nights and weekends, on top of my regular job. I thought I would never do that again, but here I am, exhausted. It may be the closest I ever get to understanding why mothers go through labor again. I guess you really do forget the pain after awhile! ;)

So, a little history on how we got here. The title, Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World, has been through a number of focus group surveys. The subtitle has morphed a few times, but the main title received the highest number of votes (and from a diverse group of people) right from the start. I like the tension in the title. "Radical" is a word usually associated with feminism. "Womanhood" is a word that's rarely used outside of Christian circles. Since this book looks at women's issues from both views, I like how the title reflects that concept. I also like how "radical" can be reclaimed, in a sense, by women who understand that living for God's glory is truly the radical act these days.

The cover design has gone through a number of tweaks with my publisher, Moody. We looked at several kinds of images for the cover, but in the end, the shoe theme got the highest number of votes. No matter your preference in styles, most women have a thing about our shoes. Plus, the kind of shoe you choose to wear says something about your values and lifestyle. We could have easily selected other kinds of shoes than the traditional pump, but it worked very well in this design and it's classically feminine.

Stretching the childbirth metaphor beyond all good sense, I guess posting this cover image is kind of like sharing a fetal sonogram. It's not ready to be born yet, but at least I have something to put on the refrigerator to show the work in progress.

And, please...pray for me and my crispy brain cells!

From Feminism to Faith

With the conclusion of summer, we are poised to enjoy the fall season. It's also a new season for me. Or rather, it's a return to a familiar season--the season of living in the black hole of book writing. It's been three years since my first book came out, so I've had time enough to forget the pain of a book deadline hanging over my head. I guess that's why I agreed to do it again.

I am pleased to announce that I've just signed a contract with Moody Publishers for an untitled work. This is where you come in. I need your help to come up with a title. Having lived with the pain of an easily misunderstood book title, I don't want to do that  again! (For the record, I did not kiss marriage goodbye. I want to be married and hope it will happen before the bridal party all has to process down the aisle with wheelchairs and walkers!)

This second book is the one I wish I had as a new believer. I came into the church as an adult with the idea I was an independent thinker. I had no concept of how much I had been shaped by feminism (even though I had a college certificate in women's studies). So when I encountered a church that taught and celebrated masculine and feminine roles as defined by Scripture, I thought I had encountered a weird time warp. But it didn't take long for me to see the peace, love, and mutual respect in the relationships around me--the fruit of applying biblical teaching. But still I wrestled with the concepts. During this time, my pastor recommended Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood to me, but that meaty and theologically dense book was way over my head as a young believer. Ever since then, I've looked for a book that explains critical issues about womanhood in a solid, but accessible and applicable manner. I haven't found it yet, so for the last few years I've prayed about whether I should attempt to write it myself. With the encouragement of my pastors, I proceeded to develop the book outline.

I also owe a debt of gratitude to Nancy Leigh DeMoss for her consistent encouragement of this project. Earlier this year, I did an interview with Nancy and another woman, Jennifer Epperson. Jennifer and I both journeyed as adults from feminism to faith--and our conversation will be aired this week on the Revive Our Hearts radio show (you can download the MP3 or read the transcripts online for the "Floating Into Feminism," "Is Man the Enemy?," "Submission Impossible," and "Making the Most of God" programs). In addition to conducting this interview, Nancy also introduced me to Moody and requested that my book be released in time for her national women's conference next October, the True Woman '08: Now Is the Time conference. John Piper, Joni Eareckson Tada, Mary Kassian, Janet Parshall and other speakers will join Nancy for this event in the Chicago area. (If you want to know more, visit the ROH events page and watch the video.) I'm planning on being there, Lord willing, so I hope I get to see some of you there, too.

Back to the book. I would greatly appreciate your prayers in this time--not only that I would finish the book accurately and punctually, but also that I would not stumble in my own life. I am well aware of how tests and temptations can arise when writing or speaking on biblical topics and my greatest desire is not to dishonor the Lord. I would also appreciate your title suggestions. If Moody selects a submitted title, they will be sending a goodie bag of great resources to the winner as an expression of our mutual gratitude.

This week's Revive Our Hearts programs will give you a bit of a feel for the book. But it may also be helpful to read the sample back-cover text I sent to Moody and the list of proposed chapter titles. (Fine print: Everything is subject to change.)

What defines your worth as a woman? Is it your beauty or your sexual appeal? Is it found in your professional accomplishments or your children’s achievements? Is it based upon how well you multi-task to pull off the superwoman act?

More importantly, do you know why you believe this?

For the last two centuries, women have challenged the prevailing thinking of what it means to be a man or a woman. Now this perspective is our culture's default setting—but is it wise?

This book explores how we got here and offers a different viewpoint: what it means to be made a woman in the image of God.

If you value your identity as a woman, but have questions about God’s purposes for your femininity, this book will help clear the fog of cultural confusion. You, being made a woman in the image of God, are no after-thought or accident. You have something sacred to reflect in the guts and glory of your femininity.

My plan is that each chapter will feature a story about a woman who put God's Word and His promises to the test and found Hiim to be faithful. I've been collecting these testimonies for years--all the women in the book are friends of mine, though some of their identifying details will be changed. I want to capture on paper the grace I've seen in these women.

Chapter One: The Gift of a Second Chance
Chapter Two: "Did God Really Say...?"
Chapter Three: Men Aren't the Problem
Chapter Four: Womanhood Is Not Wimpy
Chapter Five: Trusting God in the Storm
Chapter Six: Muttering About Motherhood
Chapter Seven: There's No Place Like Home
Chapter Eight: Botox Nation
Chapter Nine: Raunch Culture Rip-Off
Chapter Ten: Women in God's Face

When I've given the core message of this book at various conferences, I've heard from the groups that I hope to reach with this book. Women who struggle to reconcile God's Word with what they asbsorb in mainstream media, new believers, and women who have been long-time champions of biblical womanhood have all come up afterward to offer their own insights and comments. Most have been unaware of the long, slow boil of feminism and appreciated the historical overview. Many expressed a renewed commitment to God's design when they compared and contrasted worldviews. But I hope all came to understand that biblical womanhood is not a wimpy concept. It takes great strength of character to see what's at stake eternally and to live for it.

I expect my research and writing will also affect the focus of this blog, expanding it beyond the topic of singleness. At some point, you may see a new blog title. But only after I get the book title nailed down! If you have any suggestions based on the above material, please use the comments function to submit them (I won't be posting them, though). For now, I'll just need your name and email address. Many, many thanks for your consideration!

(Photos: Recording the interview on location at the National Religious Broadcasters conference last February and smiles upon concluding the interview.)