Hi friends,
Today I’m excited to share some ideas about how to lead women well.
Over the years I have discovered a very important key that will really help you to be a great leader of women. You must love them. Whenever I am interviewing a woman for a role on our staff, or even in a volunteer leadership position, I consider these four questions:
Does she like women?
Can she see the potential in other women?
Does she enjoy their company?
Does she have a mother’s heart?If I can answer yes to these questions, I’ve found myself a leader and a team player. When you love women, you will be able to serve them with great compassion, lots of joy and a sense of great purpose.
Now here are some tips for building a great ministry to women:
Help Them Overcome Isolation. Everyone wants to belong to something that is bigger than themselves. This is the core foundation of what it means to be a part of a family. There are three institutions of authority in the world: family, church, and government. We gain identity and a sense of belonging as we place ourselves within the authority structures that God has ordained. Make your gatherings inviting, relational and safe so that they will want to participate. Talk openly and often about the bigger picture and let them take ownership as a part of your family.
Consider What Makes You/Your Church Unique - And Talk About It! What has God called you to do? Who has he called you to reach? What are the hallmarks of your ministry? Now communicate that. Sometimes it will take awhile for you to identify your core values. Just pick one or two and begin to share them often and consistently. Here are a few values of Pink- Gateway Women for you to consider as an example.
o
We are for one another. We are going to cheer each other on. We are committed to demonstrating love and developing people in a grace filled environment.
o We believe women are valuable and an important part of the total picture.
o We are always reaching for the younger woman and inviting her to be a part. (Titus 2 mandate.) These core values (and several others) shape every gathering and communication we have with women. When you know what you are about, it will help you to build on your unique values.
Build Momentum. A sense of momentum will create energy, interest and enthusiasm for the work. Maximize what is working and keep your focus on where you are going. Better to do one or two things well than to do many things average. Be merciless with yourself and with your programs. Eliminate what is tired or wasteful and embrace something new.
Raise Up Leaders. There is a pressure on us to raise up and equip leaders quickly and effectively for service – in and out of the house. You can’t be in all places at all times. You will have to raise up others who you trust to carry vision. Make room for other’s gifts. Develop a tolerance for some measure of chaos. People must practice and have room for improvement in order to really mature. Remember how you became a leader - someone saw potential in you and dared to let you try. Speak to your people from the position of how God sees them. Often we talk down to people, rather than calling them up to higher ways of thinking. If they are leaders, talk to them like leaders. Give away as much responsibility as you can and don’t forget to release the appropriate authority to get the job done.
Be Flexible. In ministry, you will often have to change your leadership responsibilities. I don’t mean that you change your character or your personality. I simply mean that you have to be willing to change your own role in leadership in order to lead more people. Consider the following scenarios and how they might impact the choices you are making as you lead.
Sometimes you are among the people. In this environment, you model ministry. This is a follow me style. You attend functions and events that are important to your followers. You are the one who is ministering. You lay hands on the sick. You preach. You teach. You serve. You work. You are about the work of the ministry. This is a very similar model that Jesus used with his apostles. He said come follow me.
Sometimes you are in front of the people. When more people are being influenced and when you want to develop additional leaders, you will have to appoint others full of the Holy Spirit to help. Now you lead more by delegation and influence. You raise up and appoint other leaders to serve the people. You move from teacher to coach. You lead the ministry, verses always doing the ministry. You can see an example of this in Acts when the apostles raised up other believers to serve the people so that they could focus on the preaching of the word.
Sometimes you are above the people. I don’t mean that you are better than the people, I simply mean you have to see farther than the people. You have to have a bird’s eye view of where you are going. You focus on the vision, destination and calling of the ministry. You stand guard over the people, praying for them, sending directional vision, setting the broad boundaries and plans. In this environment, you release responsibility to key leaders who are engaged in building other leaders for the work. An example of this style of leadership can be seen when Moses climbed to the top of the mountain to see the battle below. As he held his arms high, the enemy was defeated. If his arms slacked, the enemy would gain momentum. Being able to see the bigger picture gives you a distinct advantage over the enemy and an opportunity to release more people into their own gifts and callings.
I hope these thoughts help you as you go about the privilege of leading women. I've made the title of this blog link directly to the Pink (Gateway Women) department. I'd be honored if you checked out some of the opportunities available.
Next week I'll post my final blog in this series. We'll talk about how to lead your oversight well. I hope you'll join me again.
Blessings,
Jan
