There comes a point when a woman looks at the faith she inherited and realizes:
some parts held her down,
and other parts held her together.
That’s a holy awakening.
It’s not rebellion.
It’s discernment.
And discernment is sacred work.
🌾 The Woman in the Back Pew
She stopped sitting in the front years ago.
Too many sermons made her flinch — words about obedience, submission, silence.
But she couldn’t leave entirely either.
When the choir sang “His Eye Is on the Sparrow,” something in her spirit still rose up.
It wasn’t the theology that kept her — it was the knowing that God had seen her through storms no one else knew about.
So she sat in the back, close enough to feel the presence, far enough to breathe.
She learned that she could reject the teachings that broke her without rejecting the God who healed her.
🕊️ Gentle Reflection
Faith should never require the sacrifice of your safety, sanity, or self-worth.
You are allowed to walk away from doctrines that diminish you, even if they once gave you comfort.
You can love the light of your faith while refusing to sit in its shadows.
This is what spiritual maturity looks like: not throwing everything away,
but sorting what is true from what is toxic — and keeping what gives life.
📖 Scripture for Reflection
“Test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.”
— 1 Thessalonians 5:21–22 (NRSV)
That scripture gives every believer permission to evaluate, to question, to hold faith up to the light and see what still shines.
🌿 Affirmation
I have the right to rebuild my faith with open eyes and a protected heart.
I release what harms me.
I keep what heals me.
My faith is still sacred — because I am still sacred.
