Selling our Birthright?

My husband has recently been in contact with a large company that was interested in hiring him. It seems as though his name precedes him in the work field. His name flows from the lips of people who have never met him. He has integrity. He's a team player. He works hard. Everyone knows it.

After many phone conversations with the president of the aforementioned company, she told him that she wanted to fly him to Minnesota for a meeting. Verne agreed. The next day, this female president called and told Verne that the travel arrangements were made. She would pick him up at the airport to take him back to the office.

Verne and I have a policy that we will never be alone with a member of the opposite sex. He proceeded to tell the company president that he would not ride alone with her. He was kind, and explained himself very well. (I was in the room.) He asked if perhaps a man could pick him up, someone else could ride along, or he could just rent a car. She was silent. She didn't understand. Her exact words to Verne were, "Don't think of me as a woman. Think of me as your boss." Verne politely said, "You are still a woman. I don't have a problem working for a woman. I just have a problem putting myself into a situation where we would be alone." The conversation ended with her saying that she would think about how to handle this.

Later that evening, he received an email saying that his plane ticket had been canceled. She regretted to inform him that she canceled the interview, because if he took the job, there would be many times that he would be required to ride with female salespeople as he would be overseeing them.

Instead of being upset, my heart soared when I realized that God had closed the door to this job before the interviewing process went any further, when it might have been a temptation to bend our scruples. Of course, Verne was upset, but I was so proud of him for standing up for what he believed in, even when it was difficult and awkward to do.

The words spoken by this female company president resounded with us for several days. The next morning, Abigail was taking the dog outside to use the potty. Verne walked up the driveway as he returned from his run. He said that as he looked at Abigail standing there, her skirt gently blowing in the breeze, he hoped and prayed that his daughters never said to anyone,
"Don't think of me as a woman."

God made us women to fulfill a unique role. It's not that women can never work outside the home, but to throw away our femininity to do so is no different than Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of stew.

Genesis 25: 19-34

• 19.
• Now these are the records of the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son : Abraham became the father of Isaac ;

• 20.
• and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife.

• 21.
• Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren ; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.

• 22.
• But the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is so, why then am I this way?" So she went to inquire of the LORD.

• 23.
• The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb ; And two peoples will be separated from your body ; And one people shall be stronger than the other ; And the older shall serve the younger."

• 24.
• When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.

• 25.
• Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment ; and they named him Esau.

• 26.
• Afterward his brother came forth with his hand holding on to Esau's heel, so his name was called Jacob ; and Isaac was sixty years old when she gave birth to them.

• 27.
• When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents.

• 28.
• Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

• 29.
• When Jacob had cooked stew, Esau came in from the field and he was famished ;

• 30.
• and Esau said to Jacob, "Please let me have a swallow of that red stuff there, for I am famished." Therefore his name was called Edom.

• 31.
• But Jacob said, "First sell me your birthright."

• 32.
• Esau said, "Behold, I am about to die ; so of what use then is the birthright to me?"

• 33.
• And Jacob said, "First swear to me"; so he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob.

• 34.
• Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew ; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

image courtesy of Allposters