Read this article series from the beginning here.

Originally posted January 30, 2016

We have been working hard building our women's ministry. The foundation is laid. The basic pieces are in place with all the work it takes. The face is on and the arms are outstretched. Now what?

Well, now we create some character. When we are building a snowman, he can look great but adding a scarf, stringing some mittens around his neck, or popping a hat on his head can make that snowman have some personality.

What about your women's ministry? Does it have some character? You are going to have to add some things to it to warm it up, to add some color, to make its personality come alive. Planning in women's ministry is kind of like putting accessories on a snowman. We have to plan and choose the best things we can find to enhance it and bring it to life. We have to build it to have some character.

What is important about planning though is that it should be a tool for your women's ministry to help teach your ladies. I know I mention this a lot but teaching is what we should be doing. I'm not talking about just Bible studies here, although we can teach through that, but I'm talking about teaching through our behavior and example.

What accessories we choose, or what activities, studies, and events we put on our calendars should be there to ultimately teach our women. And even when we plan for something just for fellowship, we are teaching that we should enjoy that fellowship with each other as Christian women. Christian fellowship is a Bible principle that we need to teach so badly because finding time for our fellowship and friendships to grow is important.

We don't want to just throw on anything just to accessorize. What we do in women's ministry should be thought out, prayed over, and done in a way that honors Christ.

What is the best way to build Christian character? Go back to the character that Jesus had. He is our ultimate example. I think a good way to go about our planning in women's ministry is to plan things that bring out the character of Christ in us and in our ladies.

I wrote a devotional for leaders on Pursuing Character and I talked about just five of the character traits that Christ had. We are going to start out with those five things but also I'm adding some other traits that Jesus portrayed.

The traits of Jesus are some of the things we should be teaching.

Teach Compassion.

When I think about the character of Jesus the first thing that comes to my mind is His compassion. He just looked at people and had real compassion for them.

For some of us it doesn't come so easily. Our hard hearts get in the way of that compassion. We have learn to really see people as Jesus did. He cared for people's souls.

Teach Love.

Jesus was all about love. He embodied love. He was love.

It is one of those traits we need to saturate our women's ministry with regularly. Ever notice how much loving people accomplish? Love can be a strong motivator. It can push through anything. It can have remarkable power.

Our ladies need to be taught the necessity of love. That's what Christ said we will be known by as Christians. It should be a big part of our make-up and our character.

Teach Service.

Jesus had a servant's heart. Remember how He washed the disciples feet? He did that as an example for us. It is not about the feet washing but about being able to do the lowest thing to serve other people.

Our ladies need to learn to serve. They need opportunities to serve. They need to find the joy that serving others gives.

Teach Humility.

I'm sure you all know what the Bible says about pride. It goes before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18) Pride can do such damage to a women's ministry group. The ladies in our groups should be taught the importance of humility.

We have to get over ourselves and take on the humility of Jesus. Look what Christ did for us. He "...made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant..." Philippians 2:7

Teach Forgiveness.

Jesus is the supreme example of forgiveness. He made a way to forgive our sin by His suffering on the cross. How much more should we be forgiving of each other.

Our women's groups should be full of forgiving spirits, not grudges, bitterness, and hostile attitudes.

Teach Obedience.

Jesus was obedient to His Father. Obedience is a key thing to master in the Christian life. Being obedient keeps our lives in tune with Christ.

Our women need to be taught that obedience is necessary. We can't move forward without it.

Teach Gentleness.

Gentleness is something that Jesus portrayed. I think we need more gentle women. I know some people think that being gentle means you have to be a girly girl, love pink, flowers, and glitter.

Gentle doesn't mean that. Gentleness is something we all want to have. It's a fruit of the spirit after all. (Galatians 5:22)

Gentleness means you are kind, compassionate, and caring. It's the opposite of crass, hard, and overbearing.

Remember what the Bible says about gentle words? "A soft answer turneth away wrath; but grieveous words stir up anger." Proverbs 15:1

We need to teach our women how to talk, act, and behave like a gentle Christian lady.

Teach Honesty.

Jesus was truth so it was definitely part of His character. He didn't distort things, twist the truth, or lie.

Our ladies should be taught the value of honesty and truth.

Teach Wisdom.

Jesus was always wise in what He said and did. Just think about the parables He shared. There are so many nuggets of truth and wisdom throughout those.

The women in our groups need to be shown that wisdom can help them make decisions and discern.

Teach Holiness.

Jesus was holy. We have a holy God. It is one of the things we are told to be. "...Be ye holy; for I am holy." 1 Peter 1:16.

Our women need to develop holiness. Unfortunately, I don't think people, and by people I mean Christians, don't take being holy seriously enough.

Holiness is what we should be walking in daily. We are commanded to be holy. How can we live a pleasing life to the Lord if we aren't holy?

Character Building is Important for Our women

The characteristics above are the perfect thing to develop the character of our women's ministry to be like Christ. When our ladies work these into their lives, it will help add that pleasing personality.

Just like the scarf, mittens, and other things we find to create some life on our snowman, these characteristics will bring out the best in us as women. It will brighten our appearance as a Christian. Our demeanor, attitude, and disposition will reflect Christ like it should.

Make Your Planning Intentional

We have to work on our planning to incorporate the character of Christ into our women's ministry. To go about that we may need to plan some things to heighten awareness of them. I'm not talking just about Bible studies on these characteristics, although you may find you want to do that, but I'm talking about planning things to encourage our women to be like Christ.

For instance, maybe you want to work on compassion in your group. You may want to plan some things that really show your ministry cares about people. Perhaps that could be some projects that help a needy family or some type of mission project.

You can inject an attitude of serving by doing things that require participation. Get your ladies involved in serving others. Maybe you want to do some group projects.

Work on forgiving attitudes by not allowing disagreements to fester within your group. Getting along in our women's groups has to be a priority. We have to learn to work together in the body of Christ.

There are all kinds of things you can do to encourage your women's group to embody the character of Christ. It just may take a little tweaking when planning.

Planning is one of the parts of women's ministry that I have always enjoyed. There are so many activities that we can try. There are so many directions we can go in where women's ministry themes and ideas are concerned.

We need to be teaching the importance of Christ's character as we plan and prepare Bible studies, events, and activities. It's all about teaching our women to become more like Christ if we want to add some character.

Read The Conclusion of this article series next!!

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