There is nothing like finding a home to make me ask, “How deep? How wide? How much?”
As I sat in the sanctuary of First Baptist Church of Decatur, Georgia, on June 25, worshiping alongside women and men who passionately, fervently, deeply believe that God can and does call both women and men into ministry, I was overwhelmed with hope. Listening to the stories of faithful women like Addie Davis, Shelley Woodruff, Erica Whitaker, Racquel Gill, and Sue Fitzgerald, I felt a distinct sense of belonging–I felt like my story, too, meant something. Celebrating together each year at the Baptist Women in Ministry gathering, I know that I have found a home, and that it matters.
How much has BWIM meant to me? How wide do I want to see this movement extend its reach? How deep is my hope that BWIM can make a difference?
Can I answer these questions with a number on the blank line in my checkbook? What impact will my small gift have anyway?
Last year, I pulled out my checkbook and wrote, “Thirty and 00/100” on that little line, pledging to give $30 a month for twelve months in celebration of BWIM’s Thirtieth Anniversary. The amount seemed doable. I knew plenty of other people were doing the same thing, so I figured the impact would be larger if I joined them.
Each month, I pulled out my checkbook and handed over my $30 check without much thought. I made a commitment, and I was sticking to it, simple as that. It became such a routine for me that I did not even realize how quickly I was running through checks until I ripped out my very last check in the book during this year’s BWIM worship service.
My year was over. My commitment fulfilled. I didn’t have to give anymore. I had kept my promise, and BWIM was $360 better off because of it. Writing that last check on June 25, I realized that I was actually looking forward to the day my obligation was up. I was now free to go to Starbucks six more times a month or go out to lunch three more days.
But the sense of “finding home” challenged me. A call to give to BWIM challenged me, and I was confronted with the need to answer my own questions: “How deep? How wide? How much?” I am twenty-seven years old. Committing to continuing giving $30 a month for the next twelve months was not something I particularly wanted to do. I have a future to plan for. I have places I want to go. I have things I want to do. Think of what I could do with $360!
And, honestly, I know that the resources BWIM offers will still be there for me whether I give this week, this month, this year or not. So, why? Why do I need to give? No one expects it of me because of my age, and I don’t get any special benefits when I do. And what kind of impact will my small gift make anyway?
As I sat in the sanctuary on June 25, I knew that I have found a home, and that it matters.
And I realized that that’s the “why.” Because BWIM matters. It doesn’t just matter for me. BWIM matters for Addie Davis and Shelley Woodruff, for Erica Whitaker and Raquel Gill, for Sue Fitzgerald and for the young girl who has yet to sense God’s call on her life. BWIM matters, and it is a movement that is filled with hope and promise. It’s a movement of people asking, “How deep? How wide? How much?”
So I give because I have a future to plan for. Not necessarily my own, but a bright future none-the-less. And we have places to go. We have things to see. We have a world waiting for us.
Baptist Women in Ministry welcomes you to be one of our monthly givers! Monthly gifts provide dependable income for our work and allow BWIM to continue being an advocate, a network, and a connection for Baptist women ministers! Small monthly gifts of $10 or $20 or larger monthly gifts of $50 or $75 make a significant difference!
Emily Holladay is communications associate at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Decatur, Georgia.
To join Emily in supporting the work of Baptist Women in Ministry by becoming a monthly giver, fill out the form below.