By EEW Magazine Staff // Biblical Wisdom // Empowerment

We’ve got to stop judging people, even if those people are ourselves, for not being perfect. Though we strive to please the Lord, He does not need our lives to be spotless to use us for His glory.

Unlike people, God does not play respectability politics by distancing Himself from bad behaved, controversial, socially rejected women.

In fact, throughout Scripture, we see numerous examples of how He used bad girls to accomplish His good purpose. As naughty as they were, God showed that He had enough grace to cover them and demonstrated that He chooses and uses whoever He pleases—even the naughtiest among us.

To prove it to you, EEW Magazine Online is sharing 4 Scripture-based examples of bad girls that were still loved and chosen by the same good God who loves and has chosen you!

Bad Girl #1 - The Maneater (John 4) The term maneater is used to describe a dominant woman with multiple sexual partners or someone who runs through several men and can’t seem to keep one. Some might characterize the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at the well as a maneater.

We can’t fully know her situation, but we do know she got around. She had been married a whopping five times and was living with a man who wasn’t her husband. Despite that, Jesus ministered to her and converted her into a powerful evangelist who carried the message of the gospel to other Samaritans. She went from maneater to woman preacher.

Bad Girl #2 - The Prostitute (Joshua 2) Rahab was a harlot and a Canaanite, among the sworn enemies of Israel. But when the Israelite spies came to Canaan, instead of ratting them out, this prostitute by trade risked her life to hide them because she had faith in their God.

Rahab’s amazing deed has landed her in Scripture’s Faith Hall of Fame (Hebrews 11:31) and she in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. She went from being a vixen to being a vessel for God.

 Bad Girl #3 – The Adulteress (John 8:1-11) Committing adultery was a no-no in Scripture, punishable by death according to the Law of Moses. But when the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought an adulteress to Jesus—one they had caught in the act—things didn’t go down the way they expected.

Instead of stoning her, as the Law of Moses prescribed, Jesus forgave the bad girl and released her, using her to show forth His compassion and mercy. She went from being an example of human disgrace to a model of divine grace.

Bad Girl #4 - The Insubordinate (Numbers 12:1-16) Miriam was a boss, and she was bossy. This anointed prophetess, Moses and Aaron’s sister, had trouble controlling her mouth, keeping her ego in check, and remaining subordinate when she needed to. When God spoke through Moses and she didn’t like what was said, she linked up with Aaron to usurp Moses’ authority.

That act of insubordination didn’t sit right with God. So, Miriam was stricken with leprosy and kicked out of the camp for a week, but she was later healed and reinstated into the fold. Miriam proves that even if you have trouble taming your tongue and ego, God will correct you, but He can also still use you.

If you are not perfect either—as no one is—and have felt guilty about falling short of God’s standards, you are in good company. Put your mind at ease. You are still a perfectly imperfect candidate to be used by God.

And keep in mind, being deliberately naughty is not the goal; we don’t ever want to abuse the grace of God and use it as an excuse to sin (Romans 6:1-2). But, if by chance you stumble, know that grace is always available in abundance.