Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth - Becoming Gods True Woman

BECOMING GODS
TRUE WOMAN

Becoming Gods True Woman

Copyright 2002, 2008 by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

Published by Crossway Books

a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers
1300 Crescent Street
Wheaton, Illinois 60187

Second edition, 2008.

Originally published in 2002 as Biblical Womanhood in the Home .

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided by USA copyright law. Crossway is a registered trademark in the United States of America.

Cover design: The Design Works Group, Jason Gabbert

www.thedesignworksgroup.com
and Amy Bristow

Cover photo: Shutterstock Image

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, EnglishStandard Version , copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture references marked NIV are from The Holy Bible: New International Version . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

The NIV and New International Version trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society.
Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.

Scripture references marked NKJV are from The New King James Version.
Copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the authors.

Printed in the United States of America

PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-0549-2
Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-0550-8

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
[Biblical womanhood in the home]
Becoming Gods true woman / Nancy Leigh DeMoss, editor.
2nd ed.
p. cm.
Includes indexes.
ISBN 13: 978-1-4335-0366-5 (tpb)
1. Christian womenReligious life. 2. WomenBiblical teaching.
I. DeMoss, Nancy Leigh. II. Title.
BV4527.B56 2008
248.8'43dc22

2008032935

To our daughters
both physical and spiritual.

May your lives always adorn the Gospel of Christ.
May you know the joy of being true women of God.
And may your homes be reflections of His great
redemptive heart and plan.

Contents

1 Femininity: Developing a Biblical Perspective
Carolyn Mahaney

2 True Beauty
Carolyn Mahaney

3 Daddys Girl: Knowing God as Father
Mary A. Kassian

4 Portrait of a Woman Used By God
Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

5 Becoming a Woman of Discretion
Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

6 Pruned to Bloom
P. Bunny Wilson

The Freedom and Joy of Women as Helpers
and Nurturers of Life

7 A Wifes Responsibility to Help Her Husband
Barbara Hughes

8 Liberated Through Submission
P. Bunny Wilson

9 How to Raise Feminine Daughters
Susan Hunt

10 Nurturing Mothers
Dorothy Kelley Patterson

11 Older Women Mentoring Younger Women: Titus 2 in the Church Today
Susan Hunt

EACH CONTRIBUTOR TO THIS BOOK has been encouraged and assisted in multiple ways on this project by individuals that include husbands, staff, friends, and other fellow servants. Space does not permit us to identify those individuals by name, but from our hearts, each of us says thank you for your prayers, input, and practical assistance.

We also owe a collective thank you to:

Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) and FamilyLife (FL)the two ministries that cohosted the Building Strong Families in Your Church conference in March 2000, where these messages were first presented as workshop sessions.

Wayne Grudem (then-President of CBMW) and Dennis Rainey (Executive Director of FL) for your leadership of these strategic ministries and for your faithfulness in lifting high the flag of Truth in a day when it takes great courage to do so. We thank God for giving such men to the church and pray that He will grant you favor and multiply your efforts for His glory.

Crossway Books and Lane Dennis (president) for your bold commitment to the Truth and for your vision for publishing this series. Thank you for prayerfully considering what needs to be said to the church in the twenty-first century, and for your efforts to penetrate the darkness with the magnificent light of His ways.

Ted Griffinyou are a true servant of the Lord and of His people. Thank you for taking on the thankless tasks of reviewing, editing, and helping to shape this book and for compiling the indices that have made it an even more useful resource.

Soli Deo Gloria.

NANCY DEMOSS WOLGEMUTH is the host and teacher for Revive OurHearts and Seeking Him, two nationally syndicated radio programs heard weekdays on some 1,000 radio outlets. Since 1979 she has served on the staff of Life Action Ministries in Niles, Michigan. She has shared her burden for personal and corporate revival in conferences and retreats throughout North America and abroad. Nancy is a best-selling author. Her books include: Choosing Forgiveness; A Placeof Quiet Rest; Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets ThemFree; A Thirty-Day Walk with God in the Psalms; and the Revive OurHearts Trilogy: Brokenness: The Heart God Revives; Surrender: TheHeart God Controls; and Holiness: The Heart God Purifies. She is also the co-author of Lies Young Women Believe and Seeking Him, an interactive Bible study on revival.

BARBARA HUGHES supported her husband Kents pastoral ministry for 41 years while raising four children. They have 21 grandchildren. Barbara is a popular teacher of womens groups and numerous Bible studies. She is the author of Disciplines of a Godly Woman, which encourages spiritual disciplines as a lifeline to a meaningful relationship with God. Barbara also co-authored three books with her husband: Common Sense Parenting, Liberating Ministry from theSuccess Syndrome, and Disciplines of a Godly Family.

SUSAN HUNT, a pastors wife, is a mother and grandmother, and a consultant to Presbyterian Church in Americas Women in the Church Ministry. She holds a degree in Christian education from Columbia Theological Seminary. Susans burden for women, and especially biblical womanhood, is clear in her many books, which include: The True Woman; Heirs of the Covenant; By Design: GodsDistinctive Calling for Women; Spiritual Mothering: The Titus 2Mandate for Women Mentoring Women; and Your HomeA Placeof Grace. Susan co-authored The Legacy of Biblical Womanhood and wrote two childrens books, including My ABC Bible Verses. Susan is a member of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, and co-authored with Ligon Duncan Womens Ministry in the LocalChurch.

MARY KASSIAN, founder and president of Alabaster Flask Ministries , challenges women to pursue God with passion and delight in his design. A wife and mother of three sons, Mary is also an internationally known speaker and Bible teacher and a member of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. She is distinguished professor of womens studies at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville. Mary is the author of several books and videos including