Yes I got your emails, and texts and messages. As women and mothers you want to know what I think about the Target and transgender bathroom issue. You might be surprised.
Honestly I’m not surprised by this next step by this culture to move us into a genderless society. And there will be more. I have studied Womanhood and gender for almost 10 years now I can say without a doubt that Satan knows the power of our womanhood, our marriages, our mothering and he hates it.
So here is a little answer to your many questions about the Target bathrooms. I promise to address specific ones if you ask directly on Facebook.
I have two suggestions for you as believers moving forward and one word on the Target policy.
Please hear this in my sweetest Mumma Mona voice…….
#1 Be Careful of the Words you are using
Stop labeling yourself, as a Jesus Feminist and using hip terms like “inclusive” just because they sound informed and relevant. We want to influence our culture not mimic it. Get informed so you can reflect and speak the truth of God’s word. You may be a busy mom but you can still influence your culture. Be a counter cultural mom. But to do that you will have to be an informed one.
Read the Word for yourself. Study to find out what Jesus said about your womanhood and manhood. I think you will be thrilled and excited. I know I was pumped about my womanhood in a way that propelled me to give my life to helping other women dispel the lies, grab the truth and live the fullness of it. God has laid it all out for us and its pretty amazing.
I’ll be doing several Live Online Studies the topic of womanhood this summer… sign ups coming soon. There will be limited spots so if you are interested message me and I’ll save you a spot.
Friend, we are all going to need to have the correct terminology and Biblical truth on gender to be able to stand effectively to answer the culture and our children’s questions in the coming years. Can you have a loving, knowledgeable conversation about these topics? If you want to be light in your world you will need to be able to. Be a counter cultural mom and do it like Jesus would.
Jesus loved people but He never said sin was ok. And He was able to speak the truth in love. But we need to know the truth. Mainly because it is truth and also because we can hurt people or defame God when we don’t. It’s actually pretty important. So important that God left His word for us so we know.
We need to be able to discern sin, speak truth and love people at the same time. We will need to know the difference between discerning sin/helping people/shinning the light of truth and passing judgment on others. And we will need to be able to use God’s truth and not the worlds vernacular. I’m working on article on discernment and judgment for you for next week.
#2 Forge the mountain
I know that sounds weird … but we need wise knowledgeable men and women who love God to go INTO our culture. People who have talents in the cultural “mountains” of business, music, politics, media and yes family. I believe that one of the purposes our gifts and talents is that they were to be used to reflect God’s plan and purpose for those arenas . And it really doesn’t matter how busy you think you are God calls us all to be salt and light in the world not just in our cliche’s and church groups.
In my opinion the culture is suffering because believers have huddled in their churches and not been Jesus to the world. Morals and God’s values are leaving the culture because the ones who carry His spirit have left it. Where are the godly politicians, godly college professors, godly fortune 500 CEO’s? And yes where are the mom’s that will fight for truth in their communities and schools?
Could it be that they are still in the pews of the church? In all truth we are busy and we hope that the pastors and missionaries will do it. But wait… didn’t Jesus send the whole church? We are all ministers of Gods truth and light.
Where are you shinning today? What mountain of culture do you need to engage? You may be at home with your kiddo’s but you can still forge the mountain you were called to. Be creative and be a culture changer. Take time today and ask the Holy Spirit what he would have you do. And then learn and forge out to impact our culture for God. (More on this topic can be found in the book “The Unstoppable Generation… are we the ones we have been waiting for.)
The Christian life isn’t just about getting people saved… although that is paramount. It’s about LOVING the world and being like Jesus, reflecting the character of God and impacting it so that what is in heaven shows up here on earth.
What government looks like in heaven is what we see on earth. What a family looks like in heaven is what the world sees on earth. What business and commerce look like in heaven is what the culture sees here on earth. Get it?
Let’s just be honest, as Christians we are doing a poor job in reflecting the kingdom of heaven here on earth.
This generation is crying out for love and help. I have stood with people that are homosexual and transgender. My heart ached for them. I wasn’t angry with them. I was very angry at the enemy of their souls that’s continuously hurting them.
But be very clear on this… I would never say that the sin that has deceived them is okay. It’s not. And it’s hurting them and the culture. It is not loving someone to allow someone to be in sin and pain just because you want to avoid conflict or be politically correct. Jesus loves them and wants them free. Jesus would tell them the truth AND love them. Be like Jesus.
Now as for Target….
I am a capitalist. I think government needs to stay out of our businesses. But government is supposed to protect the innocent not the offended. I am very saddened that the less than one percent of a population would influence large corporations to put their customers at risk.
I am a mother. And I am very applauded that any corporation would trade my children’s safety for the sake of hurt feelings. And then try to shame me into thinking I am unkind. Target is a family store and I am pretty sure that the majority of its customers are women. Yep this gets my inner lioness in an roar.
Why? Check out just a few of the stats I could give you. These are from RAINN.ORG:
- 1 in 6 women will be the victims of attempted or completed rape in her lifetime.
- 1 in 9 girls under 18 have REPORTED being the victim of sexual assault.
- 1 in 53 boys under 18 have REPORTED being the victim of sexual assault.
These stats:
- 6.67% of women… 11.11% of girls…. And 1.89% of boys are far higher than the percentage of offended and hurt feelings of a less than one percent of the population.
A woman could claim to “identify as a man” and YOUR little boy could become 1 in 9 in an instant. A man could claim to “identity as a woman” and now are given access to you and your daughters. And just like that you are the 1 in 6 and your girls are the 1 in 9. This is NOT OK>
I am a shopper
I love shopping at Target and just purchased a bunch of stuff for our new house in Nashville. They are so tuned into what we like. How did they miss this?
But hey Target, has it occurred to you that 100% of the people that use your bathrooms are at potential risk? Including transgenders?
Your desire to be inclusive has exposed the rest of us. A person of course has the right in America to “claim and identify” themselves as a gender not of their birth. But did you even consider the rights and protection of others?
Nope Target we aren’t giving you a pat on the back for being kinder and gentler to others. Why? Because, you have given full access to all the Pedophiles, rapist and sex addicts who now can use this policy as a license to prey on people in your store.
A place that Pedophiles, rapist and sex addicts couldn’t get to before now has an open door. Really what are ya thinking Target?
Where are the men in these corporations that will hold policies and lead to protect women and children in these bathrooms? Wonder if they would be ok knowing that while they are inclusive to a small percentage, their own families are at risk of other predators using their policies.
So NOPE I don’t like the policy and NOPE I’m not using their bathrooms. And I don’t think they will change their policy.
And as for the Target policy makers and managers… I can’t help but wonder… where are they using the bathroom?
Ok lil Mumma Now What?
I know many of you want to know what to do. Beyond the harder work of my above suggestions I say let your voice be heard.
You get to decide how you are going to do that. If that means you boycott the store or march to the counter every time you are there to express your dislike of the policy and your desire for them to remove it. You may want to contact your congressman or set an email campaign in place with your friends to flood the powers that be and make it known you want change. Don’t want to go it alone? Get a group of your girlfriends and take your kids to your Target and together tell the manager. Video it and send each mom’s concerns to the headquarters of Target. Be a counter cultural mom.
My advice. Whatever you do – Do it with intention, knowledge and tenacity but DO SOMETHING. We have rights and we have responsibilities. Use your good judgment and be active. And above all do not use anger or hate it disqualifies your request in their eyes.
I totally understand everyone’s anger and passion to do something about it. I am frustrated too.
So whether you boycott Target or not, please pray for those buildings and those in authority there. We are most powerful when we pray. And as you drive by your neighborhood Target resist the temptation to get angry and determine to PRAY for the women and children using those bathrooms. And please pray for our culture and your role in being light in it.