There’s a common trend among many women’s events, popular books, and blogs today. Whether it’s devotionals that speak words directly from Jesus, or women’s conferences that focus us on fulfilling a grand purpose, it seems we’ve whittled down the words of Jesus to only those of encouragement, support, and affirmation. We’re comfortable hearing him (and one another) say: You’re wonderful! You’ve got this, girl! Be yourself! You can do it!
And, to be clear, Jesus does encourage. He offers words of strength to the weary and comfort to the hurting. In a world where we so often feel we don’t measure up, we need his encouragement daily. By focusing on only part of his message, however, I’m concerned that we’ve reduced Jesus to a spiritual cheerleader. And, in turn, that’s what we’ve become to one another. We offer words of affirmation, but not rebuke; words of forgiveness, but not repentance. We rightly celebrate his grace, but often forget to mourn our sin.
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