"My church friends tolerate me but don't respect me—divorce made me second-class in the body of Christ."
How it sounds in your head: I see how they treat the women with long marriages—asked to teach, to lead, to mentor. I'm invited to attend but never to lead. They smile at me but look through me, like I'm damaged goods they're being kind to.
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
-- Galatians 3:28Source: Religious culture that creates caste systems in the church based on family status, making divorced women the untouchables who are pitied but never empowered.
The leadership structure seems to favor intact families, and you're never asked to do what other women your age are doing. The subtle exclusion feels like evidence of permanent second-class status.
Had seven demons cast out of her, questionable past, yet Jesus chose HER to be the first witness of the resurrection and the first evangelist sent with the message 'I have seen the Lord.' Given the highest honor despite what religious culture thought of her.
I REFUSE the lie that I am second-class in the body of Christ because of divorce. IT IS WRITTEN: 'You are all ONE in Christ Jesus'—no tiers, no caste system, ONE. I am not tolerated; I am TREASURED. I am not damaged goods; I am a chosen vessel. IT IS WRITTEN: 'You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.' ROYAL means first-class, not second. The BARAK blessing makes me the head and not the tail, above only and not beneath. I carry the same Spirit as every other believer, and my voice matters in the kingdom.
The Father doesn't have favorites based on marital status—He has BELOVED CHILDREN, and you're one of them. What the church overlooks, He SEES, and He's positioning you for honor that has nothing to do with their approval.