And then we prayed

And then we prayed.  A group of 9 ladies, ranging in age from 21-80, ranging in experience from weekly volunteer, ministry lead, church staff, and pastor’s wife, ranging in their season from contentment to needing a change, ranging vastly in their church history, church experience, wounding and healing.  We gathered together and asked God to speak… words of wisdom for moving forward, name inspiration, mission/vision clarification, financial provision and above all for a clear yes or no on pursuing the foundation of a new ministry.

The words that God spoke in that prayer meeting were so affirming… over and over as each woman shared the scriptures and pictures she received we heard a clear message… Go.  We got some direction to feel and name and heart and character.  Who we wanted to be and who we didn’t want to be.  The most memorable moment, as we were gathered sipping on some wine, snacking on some food and discussing what God had spoken, was when one of our young ladies shared the scripture she felt God had spoken… Eccl. 9:7 “Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do.”  A heartfelt  joy pierced us… we were on track.

Finances began to be discussed, finding financial supporters so that services and support can be made available at minimal cost or even free.  And God showed up, first in the committed giving of the initial circle and then in larger commitments as the vision and mission was shared with others around us.  We are still building this, but in April 2019, God had confirmed and made a way for a new ministry to be born.

We had one more milestone to reach… finding a name.

The Dream

In November of 2018, one of our ladies had a dream.  We were organizing a retreat, but it wasn’t the usual women’s retreat or youth retreat, or even staff retreat we had all been part of in the past…  This was different.  We were focused and solemn and determined.  They need this, they need hope, they need life, they need to remember that Jesus has something special for them.  It was a retreat specifically designed for women who actively serve in ministry.  Staff women, volunteer leads, pastor’s wives, missionaries.  Women who spend their lives serving others, were coming to a place where nothing was expected of them.  Where their own encounter with Jesus, time set apart was offered.

The dream stayed with us.  Throughout the day, the week, even the month.  It took shape, solidified in form, and began to whisper of visions and missions and names.  We started talking about it over lunch and coffee, in group chats and one on one messages.  We began to call it Speak Life… that was our goal to speak life over women who spend all day offering life to others and often forget to stop and find their own.

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Awakening…

In the fall of 2018 a group of women committed to the ministry of the church came together to discuss the challenges we each face.  Some were paid staff, some were volunteer staff, some worked full-time in the world and volunteered for their local church.  We all faced challenges.  

The biggest challenge for all of us, we recognized, was the attack on our identity and our value. Church Staff felt isolated in the Christian bubble, overwhelmed by the needs of the people they serve, and unable to fully share their frustrations at the risk of discouraging others.  Non-church staff felt less than, unheard, and unconsidered in the daily church administration, which affected their ministry, but they were unable to be present in the daily.

What all of us were feeling was undervalued, overworked, and tired.  All of us had hearts that were fully in line with the vision and mission of our respective ministries, but the constraints of time, lack of focus on self-care, and fear kept us silent and lonely.

Forming the Circle…

During this season, a core group of women committed to caring for each other, offering a safe space, and being more intentional in the pursuit of walking with each other.  Whether that meant encouraging, challenging, grieving along side, or celebrating, the key was regular intentional check-ins.  As usual when people come together beautiful things began to happen, and hard things began to happen.  Over the course of the following months a number of the women experienced an end to the ministries that had driven the need for the original conversation.  Some roles changed, some resigned ministry positions, some stepped out of volunteer positions, some stepped more into ministry.  In each of those transitions, there was so much room for the enemy to continue to speak the lies over each of us, but the beautiful intentional encouragement and support we had committed to, proved a lifeline in a season of transition.

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