Part 2 Roll! Roll! Roll! (Work)

Do You Want to Build a Women's Ministry? Series

Julia Bettencourt

Originally posted January 27, 2016

Alright, we have our foundation for our women's ministry in place with the Word of God, prayer, some founding traditions, and we've set some ground rules in place. Next, we are going to "roll" our women's ministry.

Have you ever rolled a snowball to make a snowman? It is really hard to get those snowflakes to stick at first. You almost have to carry that small snowball along and add snow to it with your hands before you can actually lay it on the ground and begin to roll it.

You have to be gentle with it too or it will easily fall apart. You have to be persistent as you guide it along. Once the flakes start sticking, the easier it becomes.

Learn that Small is Okay

Just like a snowman starts out as a small snowball, our women's ministry will start out small. At first there might only be a few ladies that attend. Don't get discouraged. Small groups can really be a big blessing. Count it a joy to get to know those ladies on a more personal basis than you would have otherwise.

We have to realize that sometimes our groups are going to stay small. Some of you may be in a situation where there may never be huge numbers or big programs. That's okay. Huge growth is not always a part of God's plan. Just because you have a small group doesn't mean you can't do big things. It doesn't mean you can't make a big impact. And aren't you thankful that it doesn't mean you can't have some big faith?

Sure we want our groups to grow in number, but don't get hung up on it. Attendance is something I think we should always work on, but other things are important as well.

Growth manifests in a lot of ways

Growth is not just numbers. There is spiritual growth to look for in our women's groups. Are your ladies bearing spiritual fruit? That's growth! Are they encouraging each other? That's growth! Are they ministering to each other by the things they do and say? That's growth! Look for specific areas that your ladies have improved on over time.

There are things you can do to publicize your women's groups. There are things you can do to motivate more ladies to come. I encourage you to do some of those, but don't get discouraged by numbers. Just keep on keeping on and doing things to the best of your ability as a leader.

Continue gently guiding and walking your women's ministry along and be persistent. You have to keep moving and rolling along. You have to keep working at it.

Keep an eye out on what attaches itself to your women's ministry

One of the things you have to be careful about when rolling a snowball is where it goes and what gets attached to it. It is not just snowflakes that will attach itself to a snowball as you roll it to build a snowman.

Dirt, leaves, and debris will grab hold of that snowball as it comes rolling along. We have to be careful to not hit any loose leaves that are sticking up out of the snow or places where there is exposed dirt. As we roll along we have to avoid those patches of ground where the snow has melted.

All those things that don't belong on our snowman will cause it to be dirty looking. When it is finally finished it won;t look so good.

In our women's ministry there are things that we don't want clinging and stuck to us either. Several years ago on the website I did a Training Camp session and one of the handouts I gave covered six "sneaky invaders" that come into our women's groups.

Gossip
Bitterness
Pride
Bad Attitudes
Rebellious Spirits
Complaining

Act Quickly and Decisively

The above six things can cause such havoc in women's ministry. It is kind of like when we roll our snowball through the bad patches of ground and debris gets stuck to the clean snow and makes such a mess. We have to be careful about what direction we are rolling our snowball.

We have to be careful in our women's ministries to avoid those "sneaky invaders". They can be so detrimental. Each of them has their own way of causing harm.

When you see these things crop up in your women's ministry you will need to deal with them quickly and decisively. You will see them when they come up too because they do have a tendency to stand out and be noticed. It's just like the dirt or old leaves that get stuck to the snowman. It's very noticeable. Dirt is hard to hide.

Use Help to Give your women's ministry shape

Not only do we want our women's ministry to be clean of debris and the bad things that stick to it, but we also want it to take shape as we are rolling along. That means we will need helpers, prayer warriors, and ladies that are willing to attend our meetings and activities. It doesn't matter if it is a large ministry or a small ministry, help is always needed.

You could build a snowman by yourself. It might even look okay and stand up on its own. However, you will miss out on the fun you could have had by building it with your friends.

In women's ministry, if you try to build it by yourself, you will miss out on blessings you could have enjoyed, fellowship you could have shared, and encouragement you could have gained.

What about the reach of the Gospel? With more involved, the reach is longer and wider. We have to think about what we are and what we are not accomplishing for Christ.

Help Makes the Work Easier

Have you ever made a snowman by yourself? It's okay while you are rolling it along on the snow until those snowflakes start building up and it gets bigger. Then it gets harder to push those big snowballs along in the snow.

In women's ministry when we go rolling along and working by ourselves, we can get burnt out, frustrated, and discouraged so quickly.

When it is a snowman you are building, you don't have to worry about lifting that first big snowball because it sits on the ground, but what about when you want to build the body of the snowman? How are you going to lift it by yourself?

It's much easier to lift a big snowball with friends. You need their help. You need their strength. You need many hands to get the job done. You don't want to be left out in the cold all alone with a big job to do.

If you don't have help, that snowman can get ruined so easily. Some of the flakes may fall off of it. The body of it may start losing its round shape and become distorted. It may become unstable because it has become uneven and isn't sitting level.

Because you weren't able to lift easily by yourself, you may have pushed and prodded the big snowballs to where you think they should be. You may have stuck your hands in where they didn't belong. You might have pushed when you should have pulled.

Look what can happen when we try to build a women's ministry on our own. Things can quickly start falling apart when we try to do things all by ourselves. Things can become unstable and start leaning over when we don't rely on the help and support of others and when we are not looking to the Lord for guidance.

There are so many things that we can gain from other women in the body of Christ when we open ourselves up to it.

Their prayer support
Their help in general
Their input
Their opinions
Their wisdom
Their fellowship
Their encouragement
Their friendship
Their stability
Their strength
Their willingness
Their joy

We need all those willing hands for all the lifting that needs to be done in women's ministry. Sharing the burdens and joys of women's ministry can be such a blessing. What are we missing out on when we don't allow others to help?

Consider what is being reflected in your women's ministry

Besides being a lot of work on our own and missing out on some wonderful things, one other thing that happens when we try building a women's ministry on our own, is that it will begin to reflect only what we think and say.

When we build a snowman, most likely our friends will know we built it whether it stands in our own yard or not. That snowman will take on our looks and personality. It could be because we've dressed it with our own accessories like a scarf or a hat. Or maybe it just looks like something we would make. People can tell we built the snowman because it will reflect our character.

Building a women's ministry shouldn't be about a leader's vision alone. It should reflect the church and the women in it as a whole and ultimately Christ.

Can you have an impact as a leader? Yes. Can you take things in your hands and guide them? Yes. Can you head the women in your group in the right direction? Yes.

As a leader that's what you do, but you do not make it all about you. I encourage you as a leader you get your direction from spending time in prayer and in the Word. You will need the strength and guidance that spending time with the Lord gives as you begin to work together with other women to keep women's ministry rolling along in your church.

Ministry is a team sport

Women's ministry is all about ministering. If you don't know it by now, ministering requires work. It requires caring. It requires encouraging others. It requires meeting needs. It requires rolling along and being in movement.

I know sometimes it seems like you as the leader are the heavy lifter. Sometimes it cannot be avoided, but I encourage you to take the time to seek out help. Look for volunteers. Pray for helpers. Don't try to overdo. Ease your load in some way.

Some of us have to work at becoming a little more open to accepting help. It will not only take some of the load of of you, but it will allow other ladies to use their spiritual gifts and the talents that God has given them. Allowing others to serve will help them find their place in the body of Christ.

Face it. No one can do women's ministry all by themselves. It's a team sport. As leaders, when we do accept some help we will have a lighter burden and accomplish more as we roll! roll! roll!

Read Part 3 - Make a Face! of this article series next!!

Find the links to all of this series here.

Find more training helps in the Leader Training Index.

See the Leader Essentials.