Liberation of Women...

Hi Everyone...
What follows is my script for a Vlog I made in relation to some backlash I received on Facebook because of a status up-date I shared to encourage my female friends to respect themselves more and not bother posting provocative pics of themselves online...

HERE IS THE LINK FOR THE VLOG ON YOUTUBE:
Liberation of Women by Melanie Baker-Nash

This is the script if you'd still like to read it, God bless, Melanie :)

Hi guys, I’ve decided to do something different on my blog and that’s to do a video blog post…

I’m NOT doing this without reason as I actually love to write and read…

However I have chosen to do this Vlog post because I want you to see my heart behind this post…by literally seeing my eyes and hearing my voice…something that text alone can’t deliver…

This is a response from me in relation to a Facebook status update I made today and some of the back lash it copped…You see I have a diverse bunch of acquaintances on FB which I don’t mind at all and although all of you on there know me…there aren’t  many of you who know my whole story.

To some of you I’m possibly that goodie-two-shoes obsessed Christian who doesn’t live in reality and then to others that girl who you considered once to be a tart as I was a basketball cheerleader…was that a gasp, I told you don’t know everything…and then there still some of you who have just always loved me prior to my conversion and still today…

This post isn’t going to give all my story ‘cause it’s way too long…but I am going to chat about my recent status update, in which I trying to get some of my female FB friends to think about not posting provocative pics of themselves on their page…

I’m actually usually NOT very controversial with my status updates sharing most of my thoughts on my blog…but today I did share my heart after seeing yet another set of almost soft-pornographic photos of a female Facebook acquaintance of mine...

I gonna recapping what I posted for those of you who don’t know:

This is being said in love to my female friends here on FB as I hardly ever say anything like this, actually this is the first time I've commented on this particular topic and I've been active on here now for years...

I do love and care about you and because of this I'm gonna say something truthful...your provocative pics that show A LOT of your personal body...like your breasts, thighs and stomach do not do anything other than make blokes lust after you...I understand that you get a bit of a buzz at the abundant comments you receive saying your sexy or beautiful because we all like to feel beautiful...I am a woman too remember!

But it does not make people respect you...man or woman...it does NOT show your inner worth which is your wonderful personality or smart brain.

I love seeing your beautiful face 'selfies' which show your happy smile and beautiful eyes which are the windows to your soul!

I love reading your smart and quirky comments which show me the 'real' you.

I want to be thought of as a woman with integrity...what type of woman do you want others to see you as?

In love, Melanie J

This status update was straight from my heart…I was hoping to plant some seeds for thought and encourage my female friends to value themselves more in our world, which in reality predominately still devalues women…

Not so long ago in my post ‘Home amongst the gum-trees I said this:

My heart aches for women around the world who are persecuted by male tyrants and not extended the rights and freedom I am…we all are sisters!

All women deserve freedom from violence and persecution, prostitution and attacks, derogation and humiliation…All women deserve the right to freedom, safety, equality and education…Gender is no grounds for superiority or abuse.

I asked:

Why are women still being stolen, traded, degraded, prostituted, abused, threatened, raped, bashed, circumcised, being married to strangers at 10 years of age, being ‘punished’ publically with acid, being denied education and health care???

Yet in response to my status update today…some people accused me of being not pro-women… of being judgemental and like Islamic fundamentalists!

Other people did agree with what I said, supporting it…they understood that I was encouraging my fellow female friends to respect themselves more and to not listen to the world that this type of attention is what women need…

I have NOT always lived a Christian life, putting God first and respecting myself as His daughter…I spent many years in rebellion…you see I knew about God I had even had a friendship with Him as a girl and I knew right from wrong!

Yet I was seduced by the world and its lies…

Yes seduced…

I can tell you now I actually KNOW what it’s like to be a hottie…and it ain’t all that it’s cracked up to be!

As I said I was a basketball cheerleader and a professional dancer – I was one of those beautiful girls who would have gotten hundreds of likes and comments of sexy pics… had Facebook been around then…

Some of you may think – well what’s wrong with that?

Well okay I’ll tell ya…it does not get you any respect and it never made me feel any better about myself – it actually just tore me down further and made me feel cheap – an object of lust!

I was NEVER satisfied with myself…and if any of you remember me from high school I wasn’t fat, yet I was never felt beautiful enough, or thin enough, or good enough and at 18 years of age I had liposuction on my thighs and rear…

Even after that I wasn’t satisfied and accepted less than good enough relationships because I had no real self-worth…I didn’t have a mentor to encourage me to use my brain to continue with further education – rather what I was told in both unspoken and verbal ways was that to be a successful woman, I needed to be physically perfect to snag that great guy who would provide me with all I needed – I thought I needed to be a trophy daughter and wife because that’s what women are good for…right???

I mean seriously, if young women are taught that they are of immense value to our society for their brains and ability to be amazing leaders in our communities and in their homes do you really think they’d bother with half-naked pics to attract a bloke for love and attention and self-worth?

This is going to sound harsh…but before you get angry this is being said realistically not judgementally…

What about girls and women working as strippers, prostitutes or marrying men older than their dads…what oppressive influences have they had in their lives and experienced in their communities?

Females who post these pics what type of education and background do you think the majority would have?  Are they the females with a university education? Maybe some…but not many…

Or are they are more likely to be ones who have had a more challenging upbringing or ones like me who didn’t have wise mentors in their lives blessing them with powerful words of affirmation?

Now as for what God thinks about women…I believe that we too are made in His image and are of immense value to Him!  We are uniquely made and we are made strong and smart, we are not created to be trophies or less than men, we are created to be by man’s side and we compliment the picture God has for humanity…

I believe when God created Adam he made him a wise, skilled and beautiful accomplice…

In ‘Why not Women’ by Loren Cunningham and David Hamilton on page 96…Genesis is discussed along with the term often translated as helper.  It is asserted that the Hebrew word –ezer means a more capable, more powerful, more intelligent ally, not a subservient person and is also used in relation to God.  The second word of the phrase keneged, means equal!

I say to you that God does not put His daughters down EVER!

When I was ‘Lioness Arising’ by Lisa Bevere I was reminded that satan hates God’s daughters…which helps me to understand why women are under so much oppression.

God is love, He is Good and liberates…He loves His daughters and I am blessed to be called one of them!  It’s only because of my relationship with God through Jesus that I am healed of my past and have true self-respect and dignity now…and this is why I love other women enough to be counter-cultural and say to them that they don’t need to post provocative pics of themselves…rather find their true worth in Jesus.

If you’re struggling with what I’ve said…I’d challenge you to have a serious think about your stance on the liberation of women in our world because perhaps your stance is actually based upon your love of lust rather than the liberation and progression of women!