Genesis 17:15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.”

This is extremely important, but we almost miss it in English, and we completely miss it in Japanese. The thing is, “Sarai” and “Sarah” mean exactly the same thing, princess – exactly the sort of thing you might name a cute little baby girl. So why change it? Because, just like her husband, she received the ruach, the Spirit of God. The birth of Isaac was as much a work of the Spirit as the birth of Jesus, because at 90, Sarah was well past menopause. Today, many people spell the name Sara, but that is missing the whole point. And as I said, Japanese misses it entirely, because it isn’t written alphabetically, but with a syllabary. We often miss the way the Bible treats women, particularly since ancient societies were often very misogynistic. Here, Abraham is considered the major character, but Sarah too received the Spirit of God, enabling her to do what was humanly impossible. Just yesterday I read a blog post from Frank Viola that centered in on this issue. On analysis, the New Testament is absolutely amazing in this area, elevating women far above what society in general did, and for that matter, what many people even today do. This is a major issue, and one I won’t go into further here, but men and women alike need to remember that every believer needs the Spirit of God in order to be and do what God created them to be. Focusing on physical factors can be totally misleading, but at the same time, we are unified beings, and the physical, emotional, and spiritual all mesh together to make us what we are. None of those factors are to be ignored, even as we remember that “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28) Sometimes this issue can seem totally beyond our “mental horsepower,” but if we are humble before God, He will guide us into His perfect plan.

When I was a child, I was on the periphery of this issue. My mother had major struggles with the fact that she had been appointed a missionary in her own right before marrying my father, but after that wedding, she was effectively demoted to the status of “missionary wife.” I was the fourth child, and she was expected to “keep house” while my father got to be the missionary. That totally ignored the fact that my mother had avenues of influence that were totally closed to my father, and both men and women came to faith and active discipleship because of her. In my own case, I am very aware that Cathy impacts people in ways that I simply can’t, and my impression is that she is better loved than I am! Men and women in general have different roles, but there can be major overlap. The person God seems to be preparing to lead this congregation after me is a woman, and she certainly has His Spirit, though not with some of the gifts some groups require as “proof.” God’s children are all different, but they are all equal before Him, and I must never forget that.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for the magnificent woman You have given me as a partner. May I be the support that she needs to fulfill every purpose You have for her, just as she supports me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!