The Journey of Womanhood

I want to preface a new season of posts with this one. You see, many years ago I began a journey that I'm still on today, and will always be on. That journey has been learning what it means to be a woman. And not just a woman, but a woman deeply and radically in love with the God of the universe. Am I a woman? Am I a Godly woman? If so, how? And what does that actually mean practically for me, day in and day out?

This journey began many years ago, but I purposely began walking through things in regards to womanhood about three years ago. If you knew me in college, I believed myself to be a strong, independent, sometimes brash, but really just passionate girl. I claimed I wanted to be single for my life and wrote off dating and an interest in guys for a few reasons, primarily a need for control. I didn't like being girly really, and at times had difficulty accepting others who were like that because of multiple reasons. 

I tended to think most women (including myself) lived on a sliding scale with one extreme being uber girly sorority girl like and the other end being extremely masculine or just everything the other end is not. I will talk more on this at some point... 

But three years ago, a lot changed for me. I was in the Forge, an 8-month discipleship program at Pine Cove. It was a long process and at times painfully difficult, but very revealing. One of the biggest lessons I've carried with me came from a dear Forge brother of mine. You see, he lovingly told me that I wear a "not interested" or "keep away" sign on my forehead for guys to read. He told me that guys don't even approach me as someone they could date because of the way I carry myself. He gave me many more details in a analogy he created, but to sum it up, what he and a few dear guy friends told me later began a long journey of seeking to understand myself and the way I relate to God and then in turn, the way I relate to men and other women. 

So you may be asking yourself, "is this a series of posts covering all the junk she's uncovered in her life?" Well no. But it is an account of many of the lessons I've learned and conversations I've had along the way. I've already come up with 20+ posts which is basically just an indication of how much I've needed to learn.

The more that my life unfolds, the more I believe in the truth of scripture found in 2 Corinthians 1: 4, "blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ... who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any afflication." I've seen this played out so many times in my life, where just the right person has gone before me in an area and is able to encourage me as I follow them down certain paths. For me, I have had the privilege of sharing with different young women things I have learned in this area of life, and my blog is honestly the easiest place to share. 

I don't claim to have answers. I don't claim to have authority to speak on this. Goodness, I can give you the email of so many women I trust and have learned from in this process. I just want to share because God has taught me a lot and I feel the need to openly and transparently allow others the chance to be open and transparent about these things as well. I also have a lot of funny stories, and need a place to share. :) 

My name is Kimberly and I am a Godly woman. This is my story...