Today is International Women’s Day, a day set aside to “celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievement of women” as well as to press for gender parity in those parts of the world where it does not yet exist. So while we take time today to consider the contributions of women to history and culture, it’s worth considering the ways in which women shaped the history of the Bible and Christianity, and continue to lead and influence the faith today.

It should come as no surprise that many of the key figures of biblical history were women. Women of the Bible is a good place to start: it’s a free devotional series that looks at a different woman from the Bible each week, summarizing their accomplishments, evaluating their successes and failures, and considering the lessons that we can glean from their lives.

We’ve written detailed reflections on a number of these women, including:

• Mary Magdalene, the first witness to the resurrected Christ
• Elizabeth, who experienced the “other miraculous birth” of the Christmas story
• The Medium of Endor, a curious character whose witchcraft plays a unusual role in the life of a famous ancient king
• Herodias and Salome, responsible for the death of the famous preacher John the Baptist
• Four biblical mothers you should meet, each of whom left their mark on history
• Ten wicked women from the Bible, whose ranks include queens, mothers, and murderers (and for further reading, see this interview with author Ann Spangler about these women)

If you’re interested less in historical figures and more in the challenges and opportunities facing women of faith today, quite a few of the free devotionals in our library are written by and for women. While you don’t need to be a woman to draw inspiration from them, they tend to focus on challenges and themes that are especially relevant to modern women of faith. They include:

Girlfriends in God, a weekday devotional by Mary Southerland, Sharon Jaynes, Gwen Smith, and others, with a very practical approach to living out your Christian life each day.

Encouragement for Today, also a weekday devotional, draws on the insights of Lysa TerKeurst, Liz Curtis Higgs, Renee Swope, and many others associated with Proverbs 31 Ministries.

Devotions by Christine Caine is a weekly devotional by speaker, author, and activist Christine Caine, with a focus on helping you overcome challenges and trials.

NIV Devotions for Women draws on content from the Women’s Devotional Bible, offering guidance and encouragement with a particular interest in the struggles that women face.

NIV Devotions for Moms takes a similar approach, but focuses more specifically on the experience of motherhood.

Chocolate For Your Soul and His Princess Every Day are two devotions for women by author and speaker Sheri Rose Shepherd. The first provides a weekly video devotional, and the second imagines how a daily “letter from God to you” might read.

Fulfilled: A Devotional for Single Women zeroes in on another specific theme, with single women in mind. (Note that this devotional is part of the Bible Gateway Plus experience, which you can gain access to with a free 30-day trial of Bible Gateway Plus.)

These are just some places to start, whether you’re interested in the historical women of the Bible or in the ways that God calls women to lives of faith today. And if you’re a woman, you certainly aren’t bound to read devotionals or other materials “just for women”—there’s plenty in our devotional and study library that all believers, male and female, will find equally enlightening.

So today, take a few minutes to reflect on the role that women both historical and contemporary have played not only in the overall history of Christianity—but in your own life of faith.