Bad Girls of the Bible
And What We Can Learn from Them
by Liz Curtis Higgs
Overview
From the Publisher
Women everywhere marvel at those “good girls” in Scripture–Sarah, Mary, Esther–but on most days, that’s not who they see when they look in the mirror. Most women (if they’re honest) see the selfishness of Sapphira or the deception of Delilah. They catch of glimpse of Jezebel’s take-charge pride or Eve’s disastrous disobedience. Like Bathsheba, Herodias, and the rest, today’s modern woman is surrounded by temptations, exhausted by the demands of daily living, and burdened by her own desires.
So what’s a good girl to do? Learn from their lives, says beloved humor writer Liz Curtis Higgs, and by God’s grace, choose a better path. In Bad Girls of the Bible, Higgs offers a unique and clear-sighted approach to understanding those “other women” in Scripture, combining a contemporary retelling of their stories with a solid, verse-by-verse study of their mistakes and what lessons women today can learn from them.
My thoughts
Another excellent book by Liz Curtis Higgs. While I don't always agree with her philosophies, I love the way she makes me think outside the box. Her use of current day stories to illustrate Biblical stories is sometimes elementary but it works. And it works well.
This book starts out with one such story that I thought was so far over the top it was unbelievable.
Until I discovered that it's her story and it's quite real. A true eye opener for me, and something that made me buy into the book immediately.
I'm a fan of Liz Curtis Higgs. I'll be reading and reviewing more of her books in 2011.
Favorite Passage
She had two strikes against her already: (1) She was a Samaritan, not a Jew, and (2) she was a woman, of all things. John, the only gospel writer to record this story, didn't even include her name.
Non-Jew, non-male, who cares?
Jesus cared.
Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?" John 4:7
He cared so much he spoke to her directly. No doubt he looked her in the eyes when he said it, might even have touched the sleeve of her garment to get her attention.
Oh, it gives me shivers to think of it! The Lord reaching out to someone who was in all ways a social reject. Notice he didn't command her; he asked her. His words were polite and forthright, the start of a lengthy conversation - the longest found in Scripture between Jesus and anyone, let alone a Samaritan.
Let alone a woman.
Let alone that kind of woman.
Her gender and her nationality are not incidental to the story; they are integral, because they drive home the universal truth of God's fountain of grace: Its refreshing waters are meant for every human being willing to hold out his empty cup.
