“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV)
I sat in a credentialed women’s break-out session during a conference last Friday, somehow having arrived at veteran status in the ranks of women in ministry. I guess it makes sense, I’ve held credentials eleven years now, and served the church continuously since long before I got married. Much of Friday morning’s discussion centered around the ladies coming up through the credentialing process: encouraging and equipping them. The ministry candidates asked the veterans panel good questions: how do we graciously handle the still-prominent gender bias without being a feminist? Are there really open spaces for women who preach?
Honestly, it’s still strange to be on the other side of these questions, having finally cleared the credentialing process, found my pulpit, and even my unique role within our denomination’s district. It wasn’t always like this. In the beginning, I recall being pressed to articulate my call again and again. My very presence in ministry circles dared men to believe that God might call me: a woman, a wife and mother, to pastor people. And I’m not alone in this: every lady minister I know has similar war stories. We’ve all had to prove ourselves over and over; handling questions and bias and prejudice with equal parts grace and competency. We’ve each had to show ourselves able in the pulpit and prayer closet and ministerial meeting and hospice center, one by one winning over those opposed to women answering God’s call. A few have remained unconvinced and when we part ways, it always hurts. They usually say something like “It’s nothing personal, it’s just that you are a woman.” I wonder, how much more personal can it get?
I can remember in the beginning feeling very much like a pioneer charging my wagon across the Great Plains of ministry. Many folks had gone before me (even my mother in her own denomination thirty years prior!) but very few of them had been of the fairer sex. Over and over again in my ministry adventure, I have seen myself as a trail-blazer for the next generation of called women. So when I sat in that session on Friday, I was especially encouraged by the ladies falling into the wagon train behind me, my own beautiful daughter among the ranks. When Sarah is credentialed next year, she will be the third generation lady pastor in our family tree. I’ve gotta believe my mom is smiling down from her home in heaven as she watches her pursue her calling.
This verse in Hebrews was shared during our discussion that day: how Jesus marked out this race for us and far more than that, He has already scouted the route. Jesus has considered every crossroad, overcome every hardship and scaled every hill long before He calls us along. Women aren’t blazing a trail apart from our Guide, we are responding to the gentle but urgent tug of our Savior. “Come this way. Follow Me.” Scripture lets us know: He was the primary Pioneer of our faith and in His generosity, He has invited us ladies along the journey.
I have appreciated pioneer women since learning about them in the first or second grade. According to history.com, women on the trail often had it rougher than their male counterparts. Some women weren’t allowed a say in the matter: they carried westward by insistent husbands. Household duties didn’t cease because they were on the road, they complicated. All the necessary cooking and cleaning was done trailside and in the early and late hours of the day while the wagons were still. This made for very long hours for wives and mothers alike. They cared for the ill or injured, as well as tending to their own children and babies. Many women even learned to drive the team, to boot. These pioneer ladies pulled their weight and they did so with grace.
Laura Ingalls Wilder paints an incredible picture of pioneer life because she lived it. Mrs. Wilder is a personal hero of mine: I think I’ve read every word she’s ever published. I well-recall her descriptions of burly, rough and tumble frontiersmen calmed considerably by the mere presence of women in their midst. These ladies in wagons headed West with delicate china teacups, gingham curtains and lace doilies, but they also came with feminine strength. They tempered their men with courage, empathy and vision for the future. Female pioneers insisted on schools and churches in the shantytowns of the emerging western civilization. They simply made the new world a kinder and more wholesome place.
Friends, ministry needs a feminine touch. Ladies bring something unique and wonderful to the wilderness. It may be challenging, but it’s an adventure well worth the effort.
“In the last days, God says I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on My servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days and they will prophecy.” (Acts 2:17-18 NIV)
Here are the Assemblies of God position papers on women in ministry. Our denomination has been ordaining women since it’s inception in 1914.
Lord, we thank You for pouring Your Spirit out on all flesh. Thank You for including women in Your call and for pioneering the way ahead for each of us. May we be faithful to follow You in all things, tight on Your heels wherever You lead. Amen.