In your new Church Plant, as the Pastor’s wife, you many times have the responsibility for Women’s Ministries. What will you do? I believe you must answer the question, “What do your women need to function in today’s world?” Is it a greater knowledge of the Word of God? Is it fellowship? Is it learning a new skill? Or, is it all of the above? In all of our Church Plants I have always started with the teaching of the Word of God. Somehow or other, everything else seems to fall into place from there.
I believe…
1. Women need to know the Word of God. When faced with today’s problems, they must have a foundation of the Word of God in their lives from which to draw. They must know how God worked yesterday – that He can work today, and that He will continue to work tomorrow. Understanding that God hears and cares and loves them is what they need to know, so teach your women the Word of God.
You may think that you are not capable of doing this. I don’t buy that. Heavy doctrinal teaching is not what’s needed. Just sit down with the Bible in your hand, read a few scriptures and talk about them. You do not need to have a study written by someone else or require an hour of homework from them – young Mothers do not necessarily have that kind of time. Sometimes it’s more meaningful to share what God is teaching you in the here and now. The Holy Spirit will minister to them.
2. Women need to be intellectually challenged. After being surrounded by mind- numbing TV shows and repetitious video games, it’s a wonderful respite to think about something else.
I did a six week series once called, “Table Talks with Toni.” In this series, I introduced topics that I knew were unfamiliar to them & led in a guided discussion. It was a huge success. I covered everything from Historical missions to present day missions. I touched on the ethical problems that Dietrich Bonhoeffer faced and how he dealt with them. We talked about how we make decisions and the broad ranging effects of our decisions on those we influence. Each session ended with a challenge for them to evaluate their lives & think about what they’d learned.
This is where I focused and continue to focus my energy. Many other things are useful, and but in a world of fast decaying standards, meeting women’s real needs are what’s most important.
