Have you ever considered the important role that women play throughout the Bible?
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Eve is the mother of all humanity. From her offspring would come a son who would "bruise the head of the serpent" and would bring salvation from sin and death.
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Sarah was the wife of Abraham and became the mother of a great nation. Although she was very old, she gave birth to Isaac, who was the beginning of the fulfillment of the covenant that God made with Abraham.
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Shiphrah and Puah were midwives for the Hebrew people during their slavery to the Egyptians. They stood against the Pharoah's orders to kill all newborn Hebrew males in order to weaken and subdue God's chosen people. Their actions, along with Jochebed, Miriam, the princess of Egypt, and her servant girl, provided for the life of Moses whom God used to lead the Israelites to the Promised Land.
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Rahab hid the Jewish spies from the king of Jericho. God saved her and her family when Jericho's walls fell in defeat. God included Rahab in the ancestral line of King David and Jesus.
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Deborah was one of Israel's judges who God used to not only help lead the people but also to bring a victory over the Canaanites.
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Ruth was from a foreign land, but after the death of her Jewish husband, she still chose to follow God. She would end up as the great grandmother of King David.
Skipping forward to the New Testament:
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Mary, a young virgin who came from humble means, gave birth to Jesus, the Messiah.
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Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome were the first to learn that Jesus was no longer in the tomb and was resurrected.
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Mary Magdalene was the first person that Jesus appeared to and spoke with after his resurrection. She was also the first one to tell Jesus' disciples of what had taken place.
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Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila, took Apollos aside and "taught him the way of God more accurately."
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As the church is established and the gospel begins to move forth, Lydia, a single woman, becomes the first European convert to Christianity, the first European to receive the sign of the covenant (baptism), and started the first European church in her home.
This is just a small sampling of the women that we find in the Bible. Time and time again we find God using women to play prominent roles in the fulfillment of his covenants and purpose. We need to notice this to learn how God views women and to recognize that women are not weaker or lesser than men.
If you are a parent of daughters, your girls need to hear about these women. They need to see how God loved them and included them to accomplish his will and bring him glory. Our daughters need to know that no matter what the world - and unfortunately many times the church - says about them as women, God loves them and has a plan for them. They have been created in the image of God and are equal in nature to men. They may not hear that anywhere else but from you.
The Bible is clear that God has unique purposes for men and women, but it doesn't teach that one is stronger, more important, or better than the other. As a man, I am thankful that God saw Adam was alone. He needed more than himself.
I love seeing God's story throughout all of Scripture and how he used his creation to carry out his will, accomplish his purposes, and bring about his glory. Our daughters need to see how God didn't just call a bunch of men. He called women to do some absolutely critical and amazing things. I hate to think that my own daughters might not ever understand that and buy into the lie that they are somehow less than men. I hope you will join me in teaching them this incredible truth.