In August 2017 I wrote an article called “Lessons from 5 Rebel Girls of the Bible”
Which you can access here, sis
Among those that got an honourable mention were Mahlah and her 4 sisters- Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah
I know what you’re thinking…
Well…
To summarise Numbers 27:1-11, they were the daughters of Zelophehad and when he died they advocated for themselves regarding their inheritance
by standing
“before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, by the doorway of the tabernacle of meeting, saying: 'Our father died in the wilderness...and he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be removed from among his family because he had no son? Give us a possession among our father’s brothers'"
Causing God to instruct Moses to give it to them
Like it literally says that, when Moses brought their case before the Lord, He spoke to him saying:
“The daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; you shall surely give them a possession of inheritance among their father’s brothers, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them."
Which shows that God is an advocate of women's rights, equality and leadership- despite what we may have traditionally been taught
This is important because it plays into how girls are socialised which, in turn, has knock-on effects on our ability to show up and be visible in our visions
As Jean Case acknowledges in her 2018 Forbes article, “For Women Only: The ABCs of Breaking Through":
“Women have been so conditioned not to push for their own needs or wants, or comfortably convey their talents and strengths, that when the time comes to put self-advocacy into play , it isn't surprising that it is often uncomfortable”
This is doubly so for many Christian women
Who not only have to navigate secular systemic sexism such as gender pay gaps, mansplaining and rape culture, they also have the added baggage of the misogyny that occurs as a result of legalistic religious beliefs within the church
Who, like I once did, may question whether they are sinning by walking towards a purpose that deviates from the traditional route of getting married, having kids and finding fulfilment solely in that role
Here’s what I’ve come to find and want you to walk away from this with if you’ve been battling the same thing:
Mahlah and her sisters show us that “a woman’s place is wherever God calls her” (Marshawn Evans Daniels)
You don’t have to conform to anything that feels out of allignment for you. Married or single, mother or not; career/business woman or stay at home mum- you are significant, amazing and worthy because you are YOU!
And that belief, sis, is the first step towards self-advocacy!