Lately I have been catching a lot of conversations about female ministers over Facebook.  Discussions and quotes from leaders such as Mark Driscoll, George Wood and others.  There was also conversation sparked when my last blog post, I Am Not Equal to Man, came out.  Not necessarily why we are or are not equal to men but what our role is as women in leadership.  Well, not only are we not equal to men, we are not equal to other women.  We are unique!  And let’s face it, you and I are a different breed.

Everyone has a different opinion, but everything needs to be based on scripture. This is not a post on proving that you should or should not be a pastor or woman in ministry.  It is to encourage you in your calling.  If I’ve struggled where I’m at, I know others have too. Let me give you the short version of my back story.

When I was 19 years old the Lord called me into ministry.  A shock considering it was not the path I had chosen for myself.  As I knelt in the stillness of my room that fall, I heard specifically the Holy Spirit speak to me what I think was really the first time I had heard His voice in my short Christian life.  I heard him tell me to get certified as a pastor.  I didn’t know what this looked like.  When my husband and I were first together we both knew we were called to ministry.  We had both assumed he’d be the pastor and I’d be the pastor’s wife, end of story.

Fast forward 10 years.  My husband is a social worker and I am one of the pastors at an amazing church.

For a long time I struggled with being comfortable with myself because I was different.  I felt I couldn’t succeed in a calling because it wasn’t what I thought a woman in ministry was supposed to look like.  I don’t play the piano, I hate cooking, I send my kids to school, and my kids were formula babies.  As much as I love and adore my children, my greatest joy in life wasn’t and isn’t being ‘mom’.  What is my problem?   Why do I feel this way? Why would God ask me to be a pastor? Was I really hearing from Him?  The women I knew who were pastors, their husband were one as well; was my husband really hearing from the Lord?  Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to be a pastor, but it looked different from every other woman.  No other woman around me was pursuing a pastoral career.  Why did I have the leadership ability?  The speaking ability? Why were my desires not geared toward hospitality and homeschooling?

I thought I had to look like every other woman to be in ministry.  Then I looked where I should have looked all along.  Not at other women, but at the Bible. It wasn’t until I really dug into the Word that I began to see how the women in the Bible were that God began to speak to me and open my eyes to the lies I had believed.   Guess what? They’re ALL different!  God purposely put together women who were complete opposites- Sarah and Hagar, the wife and the mistress.  Deborah and Jael, the politician/prophet and the house wife.  Ruth and Naomi, the Israelite and the Moabite.  The list goes on.  All were different, and all were called to do one thing- protect the lineage of Christ, whether they knew it or not.  Now Christ sits at the right hand of the Father, and us as New Testament women are called to point people to Him.  And it looks different for everyone.

I want you to go ahead and take a big depressing sigh.  Go ahead, *SIGH*.  Now ponder upon the Proverbs 31 woman.  I know.  You were going to do it eventually.  Don’t hate me, just hear me out.

I have often heard of women hating the Proverbs 31 woman.  They don’t like her because they can’t measure up.  Some theologians believe that Solomon was writing about his mother, Bathsheba.  Just as I found liberation in the women above, so I also found liberation in the Proverbs 31 woman.  As others have found her discouraging, I have found her a breath of fresh air. I love her because she is different.  She takes care of her home but she gives me the freedom to be an individual.

*She rises in the morning before all get up to do her work (vs. 15)- she gets alone time (can I get an Amen!).

*When she gets up and gets food ready, she gives portions to her maid servants (vs. 15)- In their culture women had help. In our culture moms are trying to be super women.  FORGET THAT!  I want maid servants!  It is a lot harder for us today because most of us don’t have the help of family (or maid servants back in bible times).  I’m tired of feeling like I have to be the Pinterest wife and mom because part of my role as a woman is the home.  Well, when I can afford it, I have someone come and clean my house and I don’t feel the least bit guilty about it. Having help IS you taking care of your home. Thank you, Jesus.

*She considers a field and buys it with her own earnings (vs. 16)-  She was a business woman.  She worked!  She bought a field with HER earnings, not her husband’s.  LOVE this since so many of us working moms feel inadequate as mothers- but the woman Christians praise up and down worked (not putting down stay-home-moms, please don’t misunderstand me!!!)

*She had her own set of gifts and talents (vs. 19)- She used them to bless her family financially (vs. 24), and bless the people in her community (vs. 20). Not one of those gifts was playing the piano. (Nothing against those who play the piano- no offense here!)

*Some theologians believe she was Bathsheba.  If she was- GIRL, you know she had a past!

*Most importantly she fears the Lord (vs. 30)- How many times have we tried to be like someone else because we feared man over God?  How it doesn’t matter what the other women around you are doing because what God is looking for is our reverence to Him and what He has asked us to do!  What a relief!

Ladies, that is the woman to praise. A God fearing woman!  No matter her calling, her gifting, her talent, her looks, her charisma- “Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears The Lord is to be praised.”  That’s good because I don’t have a Hollywood waistline.  I’m almost positive that if you have, or are, answering the call of being a woman in ministry, you are a God fearing woman.

TODAY’S  CHALLENGE:                                                                                                                  I hope you find as much liberation in these women as I do.  I have said this before, if we do not know who we are in Christ we should not be in ministry. When you are struggling, go back to the basics.  You are loved, accepted, and cared for.  You are called to be a part of the body of Christ (1 Corinth 12-14). Our calling isn’t just for us, but to impact the generations after us.  Some women are called to be pastor’s wives, some not to be in a shepherding position in ministry, but to run an actual ministry (Christine Cain of A21 Campaign), and some of us to be pastors.  We are all called to work together as the body of Christ in order to bring glory and honor to our King.  Be encouraged today that you will not look like every other woman.  You’re a different breed. Praise God!

PRAY WITH ME SISTERS!                                                                                                                 “Lord, we are so grateful you have called women to lead.  Thank you for making us all different in order to fulfill the Great Commission. You have called us to preach and teach your Word.  The book of James tells us that those who preach and teach will be judged more harshly, but how much more will you judge us if we do not step out and do as you ask?  Help us Lord, to be the women of God you have called us to be.  Help us not to compare ourselves to what we think we should be, but be women who fear YOU.  Let our lives glorify you always.  Amen.”

In my next post we will look more into the scriptures on your call to ministry, but for further reference to women in ministry with strong biblical context, check out Jeremiah Gibbs’ blog on the subject.

I LOVE GIVING AWAY PRESENTS!                                                                                                                                                                                                                          The Confident Woman by Joyce Meyer, I think, is a must have for all women in ministry. And what goes better snuggled up with a book than coffee??  Eurasia Café is a wonderful business ministry that helps support ministries sharing the Gospel  in the Eurasia area. If you would like to enter to win this amazing book and 2 half pounds of this fabulous smelling coffee, there are three ways:                                                                                                                                                                                                                               1.) Subscribe to the Wife, Mother, Pastor blog.   2.) Go to Wife, Mother, Pastor’s Facebook page and ‘like’ if you  haven’t already.   3.) Once there and ‘liked’, share the picture of our prize on a female minister’s page you know.  If she ‘likes’ the page not only has she entered but there’s a bonus entry for you!