From Devotions to Doctrine: Breaking the ‘Pink Bible’ Stereotype and Diving into God’s Truth

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. —2 Timothy 2:15 (ESV)

Okay, before anyone gets their knickers in a twist over my title, let me just say this: I have zero issues with women carrying pink Bibles—if that’s what they like. Personally, I’m not a fan of pink (unless it’s in a sunrise or sunset), and there are very few things I want covered in flowers. That’s just me. If you love pink and floral everything? Great! You do you.

Alright, now that we’ve cleared that up...

Picture this: you open your pink, leather-bound Bible and read Philippians 4. Then you grab your frilly floral prayer journal, jot down a few feelings about the verses, write a short prayer, and walk away from your half-hour devotion with warm fuzzies.

Now imagine meeting a friend for coffee who’s a brand-new Christian. She leans in and asks, “So… what is justification by faith?” Your mind immediately panics. Justification? Did my pastor ever use that word? Is that even in the Bible? Suddenly you’re giving off full “deer in the headlights” energy because you have no idea how to answer her.

This is exactly why I’m writing this series. I want to help women develop a deep love for solid, biblical theology—something far richer than the shallow “emotional fluff” Christian publishers keep churning out. As someone who grew up in church, one thing that always turned me off about women’s “Bible studies” was how thin and superficial they were. Most weren’t studies of Scripture at all. They were more like, “What does this verse mean to you?” or “Let’s talk about our trauma and sprinkle some verses on it.” Or maybe they included a 15-minute devotional followed by 45 minutes of gossip and TV-talk.

So, in this series, we’re going to tackle three big questions:

1. Why do women avoid theology?
2. Why do women embrace bad theology?
3. Why do women need theology?

This article tackles the first question.

WHY WOMEN AVOID THEOLOGY

There are all kinds of reasons women shy away from theology. Maybe it feels intimidating, irrelevant, “unfeminine,” too time-consuming, too difficult, or just plain boring. But here’s something many churches fail to emphasize:

EVERY Christian is a theologian. God expects His followers—men and women—to know Him, to handle His Word well, to defend the faith, and to guide their families.

So, let’s start with the basics. What is theology?

THEOLOGY: the study of religious faith, practice, and experience—especially the study of God and His relationship to the world.

*Theo — God
*-ology — the study of

Theology helps us understand who we worship and why. How can we say we love God if we never take the time to really know Him? How can we teach others about Him if we barely understand Him ourselves?

Let’s look at a few of the common excuses.

Excuse #1: “Theology is for men or pastors.”

It’s true that historically most well-known theologians have been men—but that doesn’t mean women haven’t played significant roles in shaping Christian doctrine. Remember Priscilla in Acts 18? She and her husband Aquila were tentmakers and close friends of Paul. When a gifted preacher named Apollos came through—zealous but lacking a full understanding of Christ—Priscilla didn’t sit quietly and let her husband handle it. Together, they taught Apollos the truth. She was actively involved in explaining Scripture.

Or take Lady Jane Grey, the Nine-Day Queen. At just 16, she was confronted by an abbot sent to persuade her to convert to Catholicism before her execution. Instead, she schooled him in Scripture. She was known for her theological clarity and unwavering faith even as she faced death.

Women like Marie Dentière and Queen Elizabeth I also made bold contributions to Christian thought. Women have always been part of the theological conversation. It’s time modern Christian women stop settling for spiritual “baby food” and start enjoying the feast God has prepared.

Excuse #2: “Theology is too hard or intimidating.”

This is one of the enemy’s favorite lies: “You’re not smart enough. You can’t handle this.”

Yes, theology can be challenging—but God gave both men and women capable minds. The real problem is that many women’s Bible studies are designed as fluffy, emotional self-help sessions with a few Bible verses sprinkled on top. They insult our intelligence and keep us stuck on spiritual milk instead of helping us grow. But when we truly study God’s Word, the Holy Spirit fuels our hunger to keep going. We may have to re-read passages, wrestle with concepts, and dig deeper—but spiritual growth comes through persistence. God wouldn’t have given us brains if He didn’t intend for us to use them.

Excuse #3: “Theology is boring.”

Let’s think about that for a second. Theology is the study of God. So how can we gush about how “amazing” God is in our Bible study groups but refuse to spend time learning about Him? That doesn’t track.

The truth? Many women find theology boring simply because they’re more invested in entertainment. They’ll binge 3–4 hours of Netflix every night but skim their Bible study materials 30 minutes before group just so they can say they did it. There’s an old saying: “What we spend the most time and money on is what we truly worship.”  These days, many of us worship comfort and entertainment more than God.

Nick Campbell in his article puts it perfectly: “We cannot worship God intimately (with heart and emotion) if we don’t know Him accurately.” Amen to that!

WRAPPING IT UP

Ladies, it’s time to stop making excuses.

*It’s time to stop settling for shallow, emotional fluff.
*It’s time to stop letting publishers spoon-feed us spiritual baby food because they think we can’t handle anything deeper.

God calls us to know Him—to really know Him—with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And honestly? It should offend us that so many resources assume we’re not capable of more.

In the next article, we’ll dig into the second question:

Why do women embrace bad theology?