Sharon Jaynes - Building an Effective Womens Ministry: Develop a Plan, Gather a Team, and Watch God Work

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

EUGENE, OREGON

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Cover by Garborg Design Works, Minneapolis, Minnesota

BUILDING AN EFFECTIVE WOMENS MINISTRY

Copyright 2005 by Sharon Jaynes

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Jaynes, Sharon.

Building an effective women's ministry / Sharon Jaynes.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-7369-1609-7 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-7369-3561-6 (eBook)

1. Church work with women. I. Title.

BV4445.J39 2005

259'.082dc22

2005001516

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C ontents

I n my work as a writer and speaker, I have had the privilege of traveling from coast to coast participating in various ministry events. Over the years I have seen a variety of womens ministries, from thriving organizations that run like well-oiled machines to fledgling groups groping around in the dark trying to figure out what in the world to do to a huddle of five weary women who have determined to reach out to the women in their church despite little direction or support. Many, by the time they figure out what works and what doesnt, are too exhausted to do the ministry their hearts longed to do in the first place.

For those who have a thriving womens ministry in place, this manual will be like walking through a tour of homes. I hope you will see something you can incorporate into your home that will spruce things up a bit and bring new life to an already lovely structure.

For those who are just beginning the journey of building a womens ministry, this manual will serve as a generic blueprint. Feel free to pick and choose what will work for your church family and community. My hope is that this manual will alleviate the stress of trying to discover where to begin and help you get your creative juices flowing.

For those who have a struggling womens ministry, you may need to knock down a few walls, clean out some closets, apply a fresh coat of paint, and do some intense remodeling. Dont let change make you fearful. Our God is all about change! Take a deep breath and pray that He will show you what needs to go and what needs to stay the same.

For those who have inherited a womens ministry that is simply not meeting the needs of your church and community, you may have to begin at ground zero. My prayer is that this manual will help you avoid common pitfalls of demolition and help make reconstruction as painless as possible.

Lets grab our hard hats and get to the business of building an effective womens ministry.

W hen a builder constructs a house, he has two optionsa spec house or a custom home. A spec (speculative) house is one in which the builder selects the plan, chooses the materials, and designs the interior to his liking. When the project is complete, he puts up a For Sale sign in the hope that someone will fall in love with the house, put their name on the mailbox, and take over the mortgage payments. On the other hand, a custom home is one built especially for the person or persons who will be living there. The family chooses a plan that will suit their specific needs, selects the materials that fit within their budget, and designs the interior with each family member in mind.

There is little to no risk in building a custom home because the family who will be living there has been involved in the process all along. However, there is great risk in a spec house. Just because the builder thinks his plan is a good one does not mean that it is. I have known builders who have gone bankrupt because they did not do the proper research to build according to a communitys need, but plowed ahead with what they thought would sell.

Likewise we have two options when building a womens ministrya spec ministry or a custom ministry. The first option is very risky and may leave women spiritually bankrupt, but the second option promises a ministry that women will be glad to call home. Before we begin, lets answer two important questions: Why do we need womens ministry? What is the purpose of womens ministry?

I was flipping through my local newspaper one day and noticed a calendar of events for the week. For the first time I perused the list to see what was happening in my fair city. Then a stark reality hit me and I began to count. In that one week, there were 146 support group meetings scheduled. There was everything from Alcoholics Anonymous to Codependents Anonymous to Recovery from Food Addiction. Then over to the side a note read, If youre looking for a support group not listed here, call Once again I was struck with how desperately people need encouragement and support, and how they will go just about anywhere to get it.

Women need encouragement as never before. Because of the trends in our society, women feel isolated, disconnected, and stressed. They no longer have the family support and sense of community support prevalent just a few generations ago. Each year, 44 million people relocate. Thats 20 percent of the population. We once sang, Over the river and through the woods to Grandmothers house we go. But because we live in such a transient and mobile society, Grandmothers house, in many incidences, is no longer over the river and through the woods , but across several state lines. And when you get to Grandmas house, shes probably not at home, but out with her Rollerblading club, on an Alaskan cruise, or at a water aerobics class. Grandmothers today live very busy and active lives of their own.