To the girls: we are beautiful & loved!

I read a book that I got from Cass for my birthday recently; "Captivating: Unveiling the mystery of a woman's soul" by John & Stasi Eldredge. (Thanks heaps, Cass!). I've always thought that women are complicated creatures but I think that's because I don't understand 'us' enough. A few things extracted from the book...

How are we created?
The heart of a woman is to be desired, to be pursued by the one who loves you, to be someone's priority. We are also warriors in a uniquely feminine way.
The heart of a men is that they want a battle to fight, an adventure/challenge that requires something of them (to see if they have what it takes) and they want to fight for that someone.

And, they are meant to fit perfectly:
A woman in the presence of a good man, loves being a woman
His strength allows her feminine heart to flourish
His pursuit draws out her beauty
Her beauty arouses him to play the men, drawing out his strength

What went wrong?
But things don't often turn out to be that simple. See, it all started in the Garden of Eden...

Eve was convinced by the serpent's words (convinced that God did not have His best interest for her) and so took matters into her own hand. She was grasping, controlling and easily falling prey to the lies.
Adam did absolutely nothing. He didn't risk or fight to rescue Eve, he denied his nature & went passive. Every man after Adam, carried in his heart the same failure.

As a result, women are cursed with loneliness and with the urge to control (especially her man). We refuse to be vulnerable. If we cannot secure our relationships, the we kill our hearts longing for intimacy so that we will be safe & in control.

Men, on the other hand, are cursed with futility and failure. Failure is a man's worst fear.

Learning to see beauty

Girls, we are passionately loved by the God of the universe, who has sought us from the beginning of time!

Our strength and beauty lies in the soul, not merely outward appearance.

"I want to be beautiful and make you stand in awe,

Look inside my heart and be amazed,

I want to hear you say who I am is quite enough,

I just want to be worthy of love and beautiful" - BETHANY DILLON-

p/s: If none of this makes any sense... it is because I've extracted only the parts I found interesting. The book is a lot more smooth flowing & lots more goodies - go get one!