What Women CAN do in the church

Well, I'm in a rather large church and I run the media center. We have almost 30,000 volumes between books, audios, and videos. It takes 40-60 volunteers weekly depending on how much each volunteer is willing to do. It could be a full time job, but I love the volunteer aspect of it. I select, purchase, catalogue the books, supplies, etc. I've got a small group of volunteers that helps me process them. I have an assistant (also a woman) who recruits, trains, and schedules the volunteers. We do have a few men volunteers, but not many. We also have a committee (chaired by another woman) that has reading times for preschoolers, plans special events for homeschoolers, and takes books to homebound. They do other things as special circumstances arise. Her committee is all women.

(Is this what you wanted Tom? or am I off base???)

 

We have women who teach Sunday School classes, especially the Girl's Teen classes (older women teaching the younger.) We also have a thriving ministry called "Little Ladies" that one lady started in order to give something special for the little girls from Kindergarten through 6th grade. They have activities once a week through one of the summer months, such as cooking, crafts, "date with Daddy", and "Time with Preacher". They just love it, and now it has evolved into a singing group as well.

We also have Ladie's Retreats that we host, where the leading ladies of our church teach sessions and special things to the rest of us.

We have Secret Sister Society, a Ladie's Prayer Meeting that meets once a month, the Hannah Society which is an emergency prayer chain, the NURSERY! (can you imagine the men doing that all the time? )...there's so many different things the ladies are responsible for I could go on and on.......

Oh, and we try to get as many ladies involved in all these different things as we can.

 

This is what I do in our church:

Play the piano for all the special music and for Kid's Club.
Play the piano for the children's Sunday School opening.
Work in the nursery.
Work in the kitchen when we have meals.
Sing for special music.
Sing and play for funerals/weddings
Subsitute teach for some Sunday School classes.
Lead the girls (Maidens of Virtue) part of our Kid's Club and instruct them on being a Godly young lady, being a homemaker, witnessing, giving their testimony, etc... I also arrange for other church ladies to teach the girls something they have to offer (drawing, quilting, etc...)
Make up and type up weekly Bible reading questions for our Kid's Club and anything else I need for my girls or my husband needs for his boys.
Disciple ladies that my pastor has asked me to.
Help my husband get ready for Sunday School rallies and other programs.
Teach a class during Bible School week.
Arrange and plan homeschooling events.

Most (but not all) everything I do is with my husband or under his leadership. I didn't realize that until I made up this list.

My husband:
Is a deacon.
Is the church maintenance man--fixing everything that needs to be repaired.
Organizes once a month church work day.
Leads the singing.
Leads the choir and handbell choir.
Plans special music.
Sings special music.
Sings for funerals/weddings
Is a substitute Sunday School teacher.
Leads the children's Sunday School opening.
Leads and organizes Kid's Club.
Preaches/teaches the Bible lesson for the entire Kid's Club group.
Leads the boys part (Men of Valor) of Kid's club and instructs the young boys in spiritual leadership, how to be Godly men and someday husbands, knot tying, survival skills etc...
Assists the Sunday School Superintendent with rallies.

I am not sure if I got everything or not.
We are usually the first ones to get there and the last ones to leave so I guess you could add locking the doors of the church too.

 

Ive been thinkin' on this more for a long time. And the activities we run and participate in are so important, but I think the ladies have another responsibility as well. I think we ought to be the ones leading the way in greeting those visitors that walk in our door, and discipling the new ladies that are being saved and sort of on the fringes. The men are quite hampered in this area, as they cannot/ought not do much in discipling young and/or single new ladies and still remain appropriate. But someone needs to take the new ladies under their wing, and befriend them and teach them as they are willing to learn, and so on. It's got to be us ladies who are already in our churches.....otherwise they fall by the wayside.

So often I think the men concentrate on the men of the family (as I think they should) but the women sort of stand by and watch the men in leadership do all the work. The women's contribution to this sort of thing is just as important, imo.

 

99.9% of churches would have to close without the work of faithful ladies serving in various types of ministry.

 

Agreed Pastor. Without the women serving in our churches, we'd have to close the doors.

 

First of all---what Joshua says is probably true---but its also a crying shame.

But thinking more upon the statement----just a question for Bro. Joshua(and I don't mean it in a flaming way)

Can your statement be proved true in every case???

 

Technically I am sure there is no way to prove the statement true. However every church I have been a part of from just a small boy has been in this situation. And from talking to other pastors and church members it appears that this is the case in most churches. In fact, I do not think I have talked to one church or person that would say otherwise. I am definitely not saying this is right or ideal. Churches should not have to depend on the women. But it is a reality most places.

 

Probably not, blackbird. I wouldn't presume to try. But in the 5 churches I've been a part of since junior high, this has been true. I agree it's not right. The women have stepped up in many cases where the men will not or cannot. I should have chosen my words better. Sorry.

 

Pastor - I respectfully disagree with your statement that Churches should not have to depend on the women. God has given women spiritual gifts to build up the body in the same way that he has given men spiritual gifts. The women I have know are more attune to thier spiritual gifts and are more likely to excercise those gifts. I would agree that women cannot be the senior pastor - but I think that all other roles are open to them.

Of course we dont have any stats, but my guess is that well over 90% of SBC churches rely on their women to fill vital roles in thier churches - and no matter how tough the talk on this forum is to the contrary, the reality is that women always have and always will fill a vital role.

 

Maybe I did not make myself clear, if I didn't I apologize. I have no problem at all with women serving and doing the work the Lord has gifted them in. My only point is that the majority of churches rely so much on women because many of the men are AWOL. The church should be depended on both men and women to serve faithfully.

 

In church work, no duty is small and insignificant.

IMHO, without the women's work in our church, it would fade away in no time.

 

I agree. I think the church needs both men and women to function. We have different roles, but both are important. The body needs all parts to function properly whether it is the head or just the piggy toe nail.

Just as in a marriage, men and women's roles in the church should complete and complement each other. It seems that the man's role is more pronounced and out in the open and the woman's role is more of a behind-the-scenes, supportive role, but still, both are good and both are important.

 

If you want to know who runs the church then get to know the women. The women will clearly show who does. So many wives run their husbands at home and deacons at church while the husbands think it is they who are doing the leading. Many pastors that that in reality it is the wives who twist the arms of the deacons at home and give their husbands advice.

 

'Tis true, in too many cases!