Special Guest: Chris Adams

Topic:
How to Begin AND Build a Women's Ministry in Your Church

Introduction:

My responsibilities here at Lifeway Christian Resources are in area of Women's Enrichment Ministry. I help train leaders so they can equip the women of their church to know how to reach out and touch the lives of others.

Discipleship is a big part of what I'm involved in. I spent 12 years on a church staff in the area of Women's Ministry and Missions Education and it was out of that background that God called me a little over 5 years ago to provide direction across our convention and to work with all evangelical churches who really have a heart for reaching and discipling women. We provide resources for leaders and Bible Studies for small groups as well as our training and women's events.

I am so excited about what is happening among women today, there is a movement of God all across the nation today, unlike any that I've seen before. I am excited that God has called all of us on this call to somehow be a part of that. Today women are stressed and they are being offered "a lot of spiritual things" that aren't necessarily truth. So many of these women have bought into the worlds lies of what brings peace, joy and satisfaction in life and we know according to John 14:6, Jesus says " I am the way, I'm the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father but by me". But they have been given these other answers and Christian Women have the right answer and I believe that one of our responsibilities is to be out there on the front line with the truth of God and His word through Jesus Christ.

The heart of Women's Ministry and really a strategic direction for us here at Lifeway is a thing called "Spiritual Transformation", something that impacts all of a women's life. It really means to experience God to the fullest and find our place in His Kingdom. I think Women's Ministry can help in this, it can help in the process of growth, in the process of discipleship. Discipleship is not a program it is a process. We can help women really how to begin make Christ their priority in life. We can help shatter the myth of that super women that has to have it all, do it all and be it all, and then what happens when she doesn't make it, she feels guilt. We need to help her see she wasn't created to be superwomen. She was created to be a Godly Women. I believe another part of what we can do is help women not just survive life today but to thrive through life as they grow spiritually in a world that is really telling them just the opposite of what God says.

I think needs have to be met sometimes so we can reach these women, they are not going to always come to what we have just because we have it. We are going to have to really find out what their needs are and help them grow through those needs, help meet those needs so they in turn can meet someone elses needs. We minister so they can learn to minister.

It's going to have to be an intentional ministry when it comes to discipleship to really get them to move from study to service. Quite often when we meet their needs and help them heal from hurts and then into Bible Study those are hooks that will get women involved, but we want to move them beyond being fed into feeding others.

This is part of the process I was talking about, and mainly because I believe ministry is not an option for a Christian it's really a part of who we are in Christ, it's finding out place in His Kingdom.

When we talk about building balanced ministries I like to refer to what Dr. Gene Mimms here at Lifeway refers to as the One, Five, Four Principle.

The one of that principle is the driving force behind our ministry, which of course is the Great Commission.

The five in that principle are the five essentials of a growing ministry and those five things are: discipleship, worship, evangelism, fellowship and ministry.

Those are five essentials and as we look at those things we can see where are we strong in our ministries and where are we weak and we can begin to help balance it out by becoming stronger in the areas where we are weak.

In the four of that principle are the results which are: numerical growth, spiritual growth, ministries expansion and missions development. Those are things that will happen as you begin to build a balanced ministry.

When we begin to build a ministry with women in the church there are a lot of things that happen. This is something I like for leaders to see, and I like for pastors to see this because Women's Ministry is not just having a tea party, it's not just about fluff. There is nothing wrong with adding fluff to what we do, but I believe there has got to be meat to it also. Some of the things that will happen when we are really ministering to women are, first of all they are going to grow spiritually, there is going to be outreach that is going to happen if they reach out their neighbors and draw them into a Christian fellowship.

I believe through Women's Ministry today we can appeal to who today's woman is, she is not the same as she was 30 and 40 years ago. That means we are going to have to have different kinds of activities, different times of the day or evening or days of the week to reach a variety of women that God has brought into our churches.

I believe that Women's Ministry can help women who join find their place. Where do they belong, where is God really calling them to be a part of a body where they can grow and they can serve. Strong relationships build between women. Women who maybe have not had the opportunity to be with this particular group of women, maybe it's a different age of a woman or different lifestyle and yet as she comes together in fellowship and study she gets to know different kinds of women.

I believe one of the main things that happen is that women have other women to relate and share emotions with, things that men can't really understand and don't need to, that's not what God created them to do, but because we are so short on time today it's very difficult for women to find the time to build those kinds of relationships with other women so again it's going to have to be an intentional part of our ministry to encourage that.

I think mentoring is a good part of what needs to happen in Women's Ministry. I think women need to be able to discover what their spiritual gifts are and develop those so they can use them in ministry, and women's ministry can help pull together scattered groups throughout the church that maybe are taking place but there is no one place to go to find out what these things are and maybe women's ministries is just one of those things that comes along and pulls the information together so that if a women comes into the church she can see the big picture of what is available for her. It pulls the different groups together under a united purpose which of course is to reach more women.

Last but not least the family is really strengthened as she grows in the Lord. All the relationships will be changed, whether it's her co-workers, her children, her husband, her parents whatever relationships she has in her life are going to be different because of how she is changing and growing the Lord.

The basics of beginning this are:

Beginning has to be with prayer, that is where we have got to start, if we're not on our knees before the Father ourselves and with other leaders who have a vision for reaching women, then the things we plan and do aren't necessarily going to be what He would want. We have got to come before Him so we can know who He is, so we can know where He is at work among the women of our church and our community, so we can then join Him where He is inviting us to be a part of that. To me that is key in women's ministry because we may be planning this wonderful ministry over here on one side, but God is over here on the other side working and we haven't joined Him yet and through prayer we can begin to see where is He working.

The second step has to be sharing your vision, your heart, with your staff, your pastor, with whoever you would relate to on the staff because in Women's Ministry we feel like that has to come under the authority of the church and even if they quite don't understand where you're at I believe that when God is ready to break down those barriers that is going to happen through prayer and your sharing the vision. I believe that is an important step in there which is to help them to see what you are all about and get their encouragement and support when it's time.

A purpose statement is very important for Women's Ministry. You have got know what you are all about. Why do you exist and when people ask you why you exist you have something you can tell them.

We have to access the needs. Assessing the needs is so important because we an create a ministry but it's not what the women need so they aren't going to be compelled to be apart of it. Once we assess those needs then you can take the priorities from the assessment, prioritizing what is the most needed and build around that issue, having the ability to add new things and create other ministries. Start with what's most important and one of the most important things they are going to tell you is they want to study God's word. There is a hunger for it today that is just incredible, Gods word is absolutely a focus we have to stay on. We have to evaluate where we are, where to we have to go, what is God doing.

Develop a ministry that will get women to grow, we want them to contribute, we want them to give back, that is where fulfillment comes in, the Christian life is really being a part of God's Kingdom. The center is always on God and His word and we need the other needs around that central purpose.

QUESTIONS:

In reference to the 1, 5, 4, principle, what were the 4 results?

Chris: The four results are numerical growth, spiritual growth, ministries expansion and missions development

Question: Do you advise a Women's Ministry to put out a survey to go out to all the Ladies Sunday School Classes?

Chris: I don't have all the answers and don't want to make you think that, but in hearing from leaders from across the country so I get to share some of the things they have learned to. Regarding that I think the best way to do that is through the Sunday School with the permission of your minister of Education. That is when you have most of the women there at church is in Sunday school and if you can do it two Sundays in a row you can maybe catch those that you missed the week before. You need to keep it short and to the point. On your assessment tool, you need to have mostly places they can make check marks. Women don't have time to fill in lines and lines, but check marks and you can always leave a space where they can make other suggestions where if you have left something off they can add to it. You can take it to the ladies Sunday school class, say we know we aren't reaching all the women of our church but we need your help to know what you need, we need your feedback would you take just a moment to fill the survey out, give them a moment and pick them back up. Don't leave without them because they stick them in Bibles and forget, but if your standing there waiting you will get the best feed back.

Question: We have adopted a non traditional model for our church start. We are using small groups rather then traditional bible study. We have discipleship groups meeting in peoples homes. We have a number of women who are participating in a small group with their husbands that are asking for a Women's Bible Study to give them a chance to come along side with other women. What have been your experiences with other churches who are using a small group model, developing a women's ministry and having those two come along side one another without undermining the women's participation in the small group with their husbands?

Chris: Without undermining their participation as a couple?

Caller: Yes, because we are concerned about the time element, if they are having a weekly small group meeting as a couple and then they want to do something separately as women what suggestions do you have for making sure that one or the other doesn't suffer.

Answer: I think there are times when we need to be in couples. I do think it is good to do small groups with women because you can really address female issues. I think we are freer to share and I don't see it as undermining, I see it as an asset because as that women grows through that small group with other women her relationship with her husband is going to be building too and she is going to be growing spiritually.

To me small groups of discipleship is anytime during the week that they can meet. There is not a set time, it's when ever you can get a group of women together. The small group part is important because if you get to be a big group then sometimes it's intimidating for some women and they won't share, they don't have time to share because there are to many women. I see small groups of women as the way women really begin to grow in discipleship.

Caller: I'm just not certain, you made mention of the fact that time is so critical for women, I'm not sure how we can accommodate their time to participate in a couples group and a women's group. Have you had experiences with other churches and how they have resolved that?

Chris: I work mostly in the area of discipleship for women rather than Sunday School.   Sunday School is in a different group from discipleship than mine and it is the backbone fo the church.  Discipleship usually takes place at other times besides Sunday morning, but that does not mean you cannot offer a discipleship class then.

Your situation is different than that with the kind of church start you are doing. What I would do first of all is ask the women. I would approach the women, is this something they want, if so when would be an opportune time. If there is not another opportune time, in addition to what your doing for your couples class, I would do a variety, a couple's class a few weeks and then break apart and do separate classes and come back together, that way you are getting both at different times. But if works out that they can come together another time of the week to meet that would be the more ideal time.

Comment: One of the things I have observed is that if we can bathe our ministry in prayer so that we are being lead by the spirit, often times we can recognize what women are doing anyway. They have to eat, the women that stay at home have to run errands, they have to take care of their children, so if you can with real wisdom and creativity plug into activities that women are already involved in so it is not taking them away, and therefore you can add that discipleship dimension to whatever that activity is, you can begin to build a foundation of fellowship and spiritual growth, sometimes I think that's a wise way to begin and then their hunger grows for it and therefore they are more able to make the sacrifice of time require to implement it in a more strategic fashion.

Chris: Thank you, that's very true, even if you have women employed outside the home if we can equip them to do something on a lunch hour, possible a small group that meets together in a downtown area or in a business office or come together from two or three locations to a central location over a lunch hour that begins and ends promptly and have small group discussion there. Find out what they do and where they are and how you can maybe plug in that way.

Question: I have been the director for discipleship training for several years and now doing it on a smaller scale and mentoring women. There are several women who are in ministerial calling who want to know there specific direction for that particular calling. On that point we have also incorporated a marriage and family ministry. If the people can come together for one local theme then you can get your discipleship message out, but distinctively a women's ministry is specifically for the needs of women to be incorporating of the two will pose some problems if it's not distinctively made.

Chris: Incorporating the Women's Ministry and what?

Caller: Incorporating the Women's Ministry with co-ed ministry. Women have needs, how can I be more submissive to my husband, specific needs. I wanted to add that to the lady who called about the time with the couples, the co-ed and the women. Perhaps more time can be given more time once a month for a marriage family emphasis or vise versa with the women's ministry.

Chris: I agree there is a need for both, I do feel there are times when women just need to be with women because men just don't understand what there is to know about us they can't experience all the same things that we experience any more then we can experience all the things they can because we aren't man. There are times when women need to sit with other women and communicate with other women and hear how has God worked in your life and marriage and how can I look to you as a Godly role model. The men cannot be Godly role models for women.

Question: What are your thoughts on conducting all ladies activities through the individual Sunday School classes and perhaps have maybe 4 times a year have all the ladies come together and do joint activities. Also the assessment/evaluation, is that in your book Women Reaching Women?

Chris: Yes, what I usually recommend on that is you look at it, your are welcome to photocopy that, on the survey, it's rather comprehensive, look and fine tune it for your needs. Gear it to your needs and your women.

In regard to your meetings. Are your only women's activities during Sunday School, part of your Sunday School or do you have other things outside of that?

Caller: What we have done so far is to combine all of our ladies together to do activities and those are various times, not just in Sunday School. We have never assigned individual leaders to take care of their ladies activities. That is the route I was thinking of going, but I'm not sure if that is a good one or not.

Chris: I think that it is a good starting place, because that is when you have most of your women there is in Sunday School and that is when you will really find out the needs of these women. I would gear things around those specific needs as you assess those needs. You may be able to combine a couple classes. I think you occasionally need to have some type of event that pulls all women together, if not you have will have sporadic groups that could become clicks and they won't ever get to be with the other people. At times you could have something with a general type topic, a spiritual growth topic that would appeal to a wide variety of women and bring them together and maybe find a way to make sure they don't sit with their own group, that they can get to meet new folks. I know some groups that do discipleship other days during the week. If they are having several groups meet on a particular day or night, they will open with a time of praise and worship together so they are having that interaction with the other group.

Question: After we have evaluated what the hearts of the women are, do we decide to have like a kick off, is that the best way to do it?

Chris: You take those needs that you find out, you decide with your leadership folks, those that you have been praying with, and see what you can feasible do to begin with and do well. Take that idea, make sure your leadership is in place and if God hasn't raised up a leader for a particular area that you feel strong about, I think you need to wait upon God's timing. If not you put people into positions who don't have a passion for that ministry, they aren't called to that ministry, that is really not going to be effective leadership.

You need to pray God's person into that place. As that comes together you have got to publicize it, you need to communicate with the church, letting them know the results, you told us what you needed and here is where we are going to start, we are going to build from here, get them excited about it. Do something special as a kick off that would bring lots of women together to share the purpose of the ministry, the heart of the ministry, the scope of the ministry of what is available for a women in your church and community.

Caller: Then do you share the ministries that seem to be prominent and make those available?

Chris: Yes, at that point what I would do for your kick off is say here is what we are offering to begin with, here are the leaders and how to contact them and let the leaders share the heart of that particular area of ministry and let them sign up.

Question: Do you have any suggestions for a kick off and the second question is a meeting schedule. Realizing that time is a factor would you suggest meeting two times a month or three times a month?

Chris: Almost every year we used to have "Mugs and Muffins" . They would bring a mug and we would fill it with something and give them muffins at the pastors home. The pastors wife enjoyed being the hostess, and in every room of the house we had one of our leaders stationed who represented one of the areas of ministry. The leader would share about that ministry as they came to see the room. They would get a hand out and ask questions, so by the time they went through the whole house they could see the big picture of women's ministry and what was available. We did it from 11 to 1 so those employed outside the home could come on their lunch hour.

Another idea is to have a banquet. Have a humorist speaker but would also have an opportunity to share the different areas of ministry. One time we had women wear a hat that they had made that portrayed their area of ministry. The Christian speaker may talk about the many hats women wear and how to stay focused on Christ during it all.

The meeting schedule would depend on a feed back from your women as you do your assessment. I think the goal should be weekly on going discipleship. It may not be able to start there but the weekly meetings are what keeps them growing. Your different ministries, missions, outreach, they may have to be a once a month meeting, the week that you meet for your Bible Study instead of meeting for that you meet for a mission project so that you are encouraging women to look outside of themselves and see others needs and get involved in ministry. It's going to be the assessment and prayer that really help you decide what will work for your women in your church.

Question: In an evangelistic effort, what are your suggestions, as well as how to network with other Women's Ministries within your area.

Chris: On the community ministries, missions those type of things there are some good resources for that. On the last Tele-forum you had Jane Martin, her area is women's evangelism she does have resources and that would be available on the Web-site information on how to get that. You need to access your community and see what is available and what are the needs out there that aren't being met already met by other churches or community ministry. The needs are there, there are so many needs in the community you could go to.

Networking, in our second leadership book called "Transformed Lives, Taking Women's Ministry To The Next Level", the who basis for that is now we have the ground work laid, we started the ministry, how do we really get women to minister. One of the issues we dealt with is networking. One of the things you do is to call churches or a regional office for a denomination, and find out who the contact person is at the church, find out what they are doing, find out if there is a need there, would they like to get together and discuss some of the needs of women and how they could be met. Have a brainstorming, what are some things that haven't worked what are some things that have worked. Coming together to share those ideas is a very important thing in developing as a leader yourself because you need to know you aren't alone, there are lots of others who are struggling like you are. Also you can learn from others experiences, not so you can take their ministry but you can take the ideas back and pray over them and let God help develop the ones He wants you to use. You could do it once a quarter, twice a year, it depends on what the leaders are needing and available to do.

Let me say one other thing about schedules. We have to let women today pick and chose, we cannot make women feel guilty that they don't come to everything we do. Because they are busy, they are going to weigh the sacrifice with the benefic for them at any given time. That sounds selfish, but they have to spend time with their family, they are working, so they have to make sure it's worth while, either it's going to be life changing for them or they are going to have the opportunity to change someone elses life through whatever it is they are doing. Let God direct them to the places where they need to be.

Question: We have done a Women's Bible Study which was opened to the community. Because we are reaching a different segment of people that are seeker, some never having been to church, other having different denominational background, can you suggest new literature ideas. I have found some things that you can jump into at any point that is very effective but if you could give me some new resource ideas and also speaker ideas that could address seeker congregations.

Chris: We all need to remember we have seekers in our groups, not everyone who attends is going to know Christian language. I think it is something we have to watch and remember that we have folks coming in who do not have our denominational background, they may not even have a church background at all and they come in and hear us speak this language and they are lost. This is just a warning to all of us as we do groups.

On seeker ideas I think we have to offer different levels of Bible study. For some it is like the seeking Christian taking the next step or what is the Christian world all about and taking them one level at a time into deeper studies to where they are to the in-depth studies.

There are resources I would be happy to send you a catalog that would have all kinds of resources in it that are on different levels. Some of the things we have been producing this past year are shorter, less in-depth 6 week studies.

One group said that what they do, when they break into their small groups and one of the small groups is made up of just new Christians. The facilitator for that group walks them through how to look up scripture, how to find passages, how answer questions. There are some things available that would appeal to someone who does not have a strong background in studying the Bible.

Barb: This would be a good time to give us your contact information

Chris: Let me give you my e-mail address, you can e-mail me and I would be happy to get you on our mailing list and send you a packet of information on what we do here at Lifeway for Women's Ministry. chris.adams@lifeway.com
I would be happy to help you individually with any other needs or send you a catalog for you to browse through. My web-site is, www.lifeway.com/discipleplus/wemindex.htm

You can also reach me at 615-251-2810

Conclusion:

Thank you for this opportunity, it is my heart and passion to share with other women leaders. It's just a calling God's put in my life and it's fulfilling and appreciate the opportunity to do that today.

The most important thing is the leader. It is not going to be the how to's the why's all of that. The most important thing for us as leaders is to always remember that we cannot do anything if we are ourselves are not spiritually transformed, I mean daily on going. Our debt is going to be reflected in those we lead. If we are not transformed spiritually how can we lead others to be that. We have got to remember our relationship to Christ is the absolutely number one leadership skill that we have to develop and then the ministry becomes overflow ministry. That's the kind of ministry women are needing and women want to share, is what God is doing in their life that overflows into the world.

Closing prayer:

Father, I thank you so much for the opportunity to come together as Christian Sisters Lord, sharing with each other our heart to reach and disciple women and help them to grow to be all that you want them to be. Father I pray that each of us will walk one step at a time with you, seeking your face in everything that we do. Father in our life and in the lives of the women around us thank you for the privilege of serving you and for your son, oh Father has given us the reason to serve, and it's in his name that we pray. Amen