Wrestling with a Call

When I started college in the fall of 2002, I had no idea what God had in store for me.

I had been wrestling with a call to ministry for five years at that point but was determined not to heed it.  Instead, I focused on enjoying my college experience without worrying about what was to come next. 

Sophomore year, I fell in love and started dating a boy that I was sure was “the right one.”  He was cute, funny, and popular.

There was just one problem.

 He was from a Christian tradition that adamantly opposed women in pastoral leadership and I was still grappling with a calling to pastoral ministry in the silent spaces of my heart.

Dialogues & Debates

I worked my way through the Bible with him, his church, and my Bible Study group.  I began dialoguing with friends and family about the meaning of particular passages of the Bible used to keep women out of leadership in the Church.  Then the dialogues turned into debates about the historical experiences of women in regard to Church History and Doctrine.

I had already decided on marrying this college sweet heart. There was a ring on my finger and  we were making plans for our life together. I had a desire to stay doggedly true to my own plans of marriage and children, but something in me could not shake the terrible feeling that I was putting what I wanted above the will of God.  

What path should I choose?

 

I wanted to be married, to have a career, and have a family.  I couldn’t be sure that I would find someone else, especially not if I accepted the call to ministry.  Who would want to marry a woman pastor!? But…what was this nagging feeling inside me that I could not shake?  It didn’t seem right that I would be considering marriage to a person whose faith tradition was so contrary to the calling I was beginning to accept.

Making a Tough Choice

God’s grace, in that time, was less like a beautiful rainbow or an awe-inspiring burning bush – Like Noah and Moses had been blessed with-and  much more like a leaky faucet. It just dripped, small and quiet-like.  This was an Elijah moment for me (1Kings 19:9-13). Over time the almost silent noise of God’s call to lean into pastoral leadership became a deafening pounding in my ears.

Finally, I decided to give up my way and turn toward God’s call.  It was hard though, VERY hard.  It involved a break up, and fear of the unknown but… 

It was absolutely, 100% WORTH IT. 

 

So Many Reasons

In my journey to embracing God’s call to ministry I have had many scriptures, doctrines, and misogynistic arguments thrown at me.  This, sadly, is not unique to my experience.  I have never met a woman in ministry who has not faced some, or much, of this. 

 If you google “why women can be called to ministry,” or anything similar, you will find a load of reasons why people believe that women should not be leaders in ministry. 

In response to this, I want to focus on the scripture and reasons that women can and should look for support when they feel the call to pastoral leadership.  

 Here are the 7 key points that I’ve found to be most helpful in explaining the legitimacy of women’s roles in pastoral leadership:

• Jesus calls upon multiple women to serve as leaders in his group of disciples: Martha, Mary, Mary Magdalene etc.   If our savior deemed women worthy of ministry and leadership, who are we to argue?
• It’s a woman, Martha, that first hears and understands that Jesus will be resurrected and is the Savior of the world ( John 11: 1-27). 
• It’s a woman that is with Jesus when he takes his first and his last breaths ( Mary, Jesus’ mother ).
• It’s a woman, Mary Magdalene, that Jesus chooses to appear to first after the resurrection. ( Matthew 28, Mark 15, Luke 24, John 19- 20)
• It’s a woman, Mary Magdalene, that is the first to share the good news that Jesus is Risen from the dead.  ( Matthew 28, Mark 15, Luke 24, John 19- 20)
• In multiple letters, the apostle Paul declares that there is no differentiation for disciples of Christ that matters beyond their salvation and call to share the good news.  “There is no Jew nor Greek, no Male nor Female….”  ( Galatians 3:28, Colossians 3:11)
• Complementarianism is the theological equivalent of “separate but equal.”  History, ethics, and personal experience have proven that “Separate but equal” is neither equal nor just.  
• The Holy Spirit of God, in both the Old and New Testaments, appears and works through both men AND women.  Equally, it is important to note that the Spirit of God (part of the Holy Trinity)- Sophia– as well as the breath of God – Ruach– are feminine pronouns.  

Remember This

There might be plenty of people throwing negative and unsupportive words at a woman when she experiences the call to ministry, but I have found that nothing matters to a persons call more than the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  

Application:

L1:  Share your own questions or thoughts on women’s call to leadership at the RevWren Facebook Page.

L2: Do you know a woman who is a pastoral leader?  Ask her about her calling. If you don’t know a woman in a pastoral role, seek one out to experience them leading worship and introduce yourself after worship.  Say something encouraging with them.  

L3: Work to identify some young women who you think God might be calling into ministry.  Share this with them and tell them why.  

May the Road Rise Up to Meet Y’all,

Rev.Wren