I read a post on
The Rebelution this morning by Brett Harris that really challenged me. (You can find it
here, and I’d suggest reading it before going any further in my post.) It made me think… am I giving in to what I don’t think I
can do? Am I falling to low expectations?
Well as I thought about it I realized many times I have risen above challenges and gotten past the world’s low expectations. I’ve not given in to just accepting the expectation the world has… “Oh well, you’re that way and you’re that kind of person, so don’t worry about working on that area in your life.” Maybe I’m not a “math person” (I can tell you for sure that math is NOT my thing) but I didn’t let that stop me from finishing Algebra so I could graduate. I’m not fond of social settings, but that didn’t stop me from traveling several states over the past 5 years, speaking on ladies in the American Civil War. In these areas and other similar ones, I’ve been able to, with God’s help in overcoming my weaknesses, rise to the challenge.
But are there other areas that still need work? You can be sure of it. What I’d like to point out here though, are challenges that specifically apply to ladies, and where we can raise the bar on low standards. I’ve picked three things that we could raise the bar on.
Cooking: Yes, that’s right ladies, cooking! I know, maybe it does happen that you just manage to burn
something every single time, but is that an excuse to give up? I found that this is one thing that just takes practice. Plus, there are so many methods to get good meals, there is bound to be one that will work for you. Whether you like cookbooks, or like experimentation, you can get over this hurdle. Just think of who you’re blessing by your cooking… maybe your brothers or sisters or parents now, but someday, your husband and children. Even learning just a basic variety of meals will help you in your future home, after all, macaroni and cheese might get a little repetitive after a while. ;)
Sewing: This isn’t a very common skill today, but while it usually is more economical to purchase your own clothing, you may need to sew on buttons, repair a ripped seam, or hem either your or your family’s clothing. Maybe sewing ballgowns isn’t your area of talent, but consider raising the bar and learning how to sew on your own buttons!
Modesty: I’m going to be doing some more extensive posts about this, but I wanted to point it out in this list. This is an area where the bar could
without a doubt be raised. There are quite a few reasons for being modest, the main one being for God’s glory, but a close second is guarding the hearts and minds of our brothers in Christ. As I said, however, I’ll be covering this much more in-depth in some future posts.
With God’s help, we can overcome these, and so many other mountains. And by doing this, we’re at the same time raising the bar, surpassing the world’s standards and replacing them with God’s standards… that of striving to higher ground.
