Recent Articles
Written By Women
Life lessons from being a single person at church
By Eli Withers
“It was a particularly lonely moment in my life the first time I joined a church on my own. I had joined several churches up to that point (I am a pastor’s kid) but this was the first time without my family. Without them at my side, it was a jolt I didn’t see coming. Actually, as I think about it, simply visiting a church completely on your own can be an overwhelmingly and intimidating experience.“…
To whom are you listening?
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.”…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC?
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
“The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse.
This is more than just sin.
The efforts of survivors and advocates to bring the truth to light was called, “a satanic scheme to completely distract us from evangelism. It is not the gospel. It is not even a part of the gospel.”
This is more than just sin.”…
We’re still terrified and amazed
By Brittany Stillwell
“I think I know why the women were too terrified to say anything that first Easter morning. It’s the Gospel of Mark’s year in the Lectionary, which means this Easter we were left with an unsatisfying ending to the resurrection story. You know Mark, always in a hurry to get to the point, leaving us with an ending so abrupt that scribes had to come in later and add a double “PS” at the end to tie it all up in a pretty bow.”…
The leader-mother quandary
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“Kim Caldwell was introduced by the University of Tennessee as the new head coach of the women’s basketball team April 7, 2024. Long before Caitlin Clark’s extraordinary shooting and passing abilities brought unprecedented exposure to women’s college basketball, the UT Lady Vols set the standard for excellence. Under longtime coach Pat Summit, the Lady Vols won eight NCAA championships between 1987 and 2008. The Tennessee job, then, was a big promotion for Caldwell, who had been rising through the ranks at lower-profile schools.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.“…
The ministry of buttons
By Grace Sosa
“As a part of my church ministry, I often have opportunity to visit our church members in the hospital, in rehab or in their homes. Most visits are similar: “How have you been feeling?” “What are your next steps?” “Let’s pray together.” But one visit I had recently stuck with me. “Will you button my shirt for me? These old fingers”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so. From excellent opinion pieces calling for repentance to recognition and a call for action at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly, the outcry over the report has been well deserved. The report shows women in Baptist life continue to lag behind men in pastoral placements, pay and basic human dignity. The clergywomen surveyed relate common stories of being interrupted, overlooked and denied the authority given to men in the same positions.”…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
“Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in. Turning Red is a coming-of-age story surrounding Mei Lee, a 13-year-old Chinese Canadian living in Toronto. One day Mei wakes up to discover that when she feels strong emotions, she turns into a giant red panda.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Robb-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship. I will admit, that first Easter after the shutdown — which was only supposed to last two weeks — got to me. Holy Week is a central time in the life of the church, and for me, missing the in-person delight of both Easter and Pentecost was a punch to the soul.”…
Being single isn’t a sin
By Maddie Rarick
“Several months ago, I was riding in the passenger seat of a hearse from the funeral home to the cemetery to officiate a church member’s funeral. The driver kindly asked me about myself: Where I went to school, how long I had been a pastor, and if I was married and had children. When I said I wasn’t married, he responded carefully, “Do you mind if I ask? A single female pastor — that’s pretty different, isn’t it?” I laughed and said, “I think so!””…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety. The new James Webb Space telescope and advances in quantum physics brought into brilliant focus our planet’s miniscule place in the cosmos and our corresponding insignificance in the expanding timeline since the Big Bang, drastically changing our worldview in more dramatic ways than Copernicus’s discovery of the solar system disrupted the order of his day.”…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia Myers
“I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant. At the time I was pregnant with my first child, we were looking for a church home in Dayton, Ohio. When my husband and I would approach a church building, visiting for the first time, doors would rush open and joyous faces would greet us as I waddled in.”…
Female pastors: Princesses of the Most High?
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“I have been called a lot of things in my life. Some nice and some that would make my mother gasp. One I liked the least was when my senior pastor, who denied my call to ministry, attempted to relate to me, a young woman. He called me “a princess of the Most High King.” Do not get me wrong, I have four nieces and feel comfortable being situated in princess lore. I love the idea of being a princess when I read romance books, paint my fingernails stereotypically pink and desire a mental escape from reality.”…
Get ready for the Kamala backlash
By Andrea Huffman
“Like many in our country, the political events of the past few weeks have left me stunned and cautious. I feel as if I’m in the middle of a dystopian novel, wondering what unanticipated turn will happen next. In the most recent plot twist, the citizens of the United States have learned the 2024 presidential election will not simply be a repeat of the 2020 election. The dismal energy surrounding our Nov. 4 choices has been buoyed by President Biden’s decision not to seek reelection.”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.”…
On women’s issue, the SBC reminded us who they are
By Nikki Hardeman
“As an ordained Baptist minister, I always knew I was unwelcome at the Southern Baptist Convention. But after my experience at their annual meeting this month, my body will always carry with it the sting of knowing I am not only unwelcome to them, I am unacceptable.“…
Responding to the militarization of immigration policy
By Rosaly Guzman
“On Nov. 18, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced plans to declare a national emergency and deploy the military to enforce mass deportations as soon as he’s back in office.
For many, this decision feels unprecedented, a stark departure from the norms of domestic policy. Yet, like the mythical story of the boiling frog, where gradual increases in temperature go unnoticed until it’s too late, this moment may signify the normalization of unilateral executive decisions and militarized solutions to societal challenges.“…
The political pulpit
By Rosaly Guzman
“Last Sunday, on my way to a neighboring church,I was struck by the sea of political signs lining the road — billboards and bumper stickers promoting candidates for every conceivable office. It’s that time of year again — campaign season.“…
Upholding the Great Commission amid sociopolitical turmoil
By Rosaly Guzman
“In today’s increasingly polarized world, Christians often find themselves grappling with the challenge of maintaining a healthy balance between their commitment to the Great Commission and their engagement in politics.“…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
Trump has a women problem
By Julia Goldie Day
“As former President Donald Trump sits in criminal court racking up criminal contempt of court orders, the world gets a sordid view into the behind-the-scenes behavior of the former president..”…
Breasts of Advent
By Julia Goldie Day
“For Jesus to live, he had to nurse from his mother’s breast. The mouthpiece of the incarnation is the open mouth of the infant Jesus rooting for his mother’s breast. Mary’s body sings back to her baby son the song of the kin-dom of God. The poor will be lifted up. The young, the helpless, the weak, will be made strong.”…
Gerontocracy
By Jennifer Brown
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about gerontocracy. It’s hard to miss in our current news. Many debates are raging about President Biden’s age. Sen. Mitch McConnell has had a couple of super public uncomfortable health scares. Both leaders are part of the Silent Generation. There is deep tension around whether either should be in power. Most folks do not want to be ageist in their criticism and personally know seniors who are sharp and vibrant. Yet, this nagging worry about their competency and ability will not fade.”…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
“These are all reasons I’ve heard when people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.I started off at my church as the children’s minister, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was asked to transition to lead the youth ministry.” …
This is why people are leaving the church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Recently I was surprised to see a post from one of my former seminary professors quoting leadership advice from John Ortberg. Perhaps he did not know what caused John Ortberg to resign from his church.”…
For the love of literature: How book bans are whitewashing America
By Laura Ellis
“It’s back to school time and, in the latest effort of book banning, new state legislation will restrict literature allowed in Texas schools based on a vague rating system about sexual content. House Bill 900, which goes into effect Sept. 1, completely bans books that are “sexually explicit” and restricts books that are “sexually relevant” by requiring parental approval before a student can access the literature.” …
Farming is ministry: 5 ways your congregation can start today
By Heather Franklin
“Two years out of seminary and a year into the pandemic, I walked away from my full-time nonprofit position and onto a farm. Far from walking away from ministry, I found farming to be a ministry. One that embodies unique opportunities to foster connection and agency that can be vital to the modern congregational context.” …
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.”…
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.”…
Baptists, football and women who changed the game
By Eileen Campbell-Reed
“Baptists love football. How many college and pro football illustrations did I hear in sermons preached in my childhood Southern Baptist church? How many Baptists are just as likely to don college colors and spend Saturdays watching the game as Sundays in church?”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.””…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
Her Church
By Jennifer Brown
“I haven’t been able to get the book Her Country by Marissa Moss out of my brain since reading the “State of Women in Baptist Life,” released in 2022. The book explores the decline of women on country radio through the lens of Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton’s respective careers. If you are an outsider to country music, you may not realize women have it much worse today in country music, specifically radio, than they did in the 1990s.”…
My new favorite disciple of Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“My favorite disciple used to be Peter. I loved how much Jesus loved and trusted him even though Peter often missed the mark, speaking and acting without remembering what Jesus taught him.”…
To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“The physical health of congregants is, of course, a concern for pastors, just as their spiritual health is. If congregants suffer a broken limb, a stroke, a heart attack or cancer, the pastoral staff will be there to walk alongside them as they receive treatment and heal.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.” …
Misogyny is in your church too
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special soliloquy in his own dialect, that hilariously pokes fun at our culture that intertwines religion with misogyny.”…
Three images to remember Tyre Nichols
By Julia Goldie Day
“The video has been released. Seven officers have been terminated and five charged. The Scorpion Unit has been disbanded. Two EMTs have been terminated along with a supervisor. The district attorney says more charges may be forthcoming. The attorney for Tyre Nichols’ family says never again can authorities stall releasing footage.”…
Queen Elizabeth was a role model for women in faith and leadership
By Chrystal Cowen
“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.”
Teaching my grandson about sacred curiosity and Epiphany
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“The soft light seeping around the edges of the blinds gave me the mistaken impression that the sun was rising. I arose from my bed and headed toward the living room to begin my day by journaling. Stepping into the dark hallway, I noticed a square of light on the floor. Moonlight, not sunlight, was streaming through the windows. The wolf moon, the first full moon of 2023, was putting on a spectacular display in the predawn hour.”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): Mary, did you know?
By Julia Goldie Day
“A few years ago, I preached on the Sunday after Christmas, low attendance Sunday, a regular occurrence for an associate pastor (and a woman) like me. In that sermon I shared that my least favorite Christmas song is ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ In sharing that sentiment, I offended several congregants who had long held it as their favorite. They teased that I ruined it for them.”
Tim Tebow, male leadership and the ‘feminine,’ ‘weak’ church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Lately we have seen much talk about ‘real’ biblical manhood vs. the ‘feminization’ of the local church. The church is weak because the men are weak, the critics say. Blame the decline of church attendance and the decline of Christian values on the weakness of men.”
Moderates are an endangered species in the pews, but they aren’t completely extinct at the ballot box
By Laura Ellis
“Moderates are such an endangered species that even when you see one in the wild, they’re easy to miss.”…
The pandemic is not over for those with long COVID
By Michelle Carroll
“’The pandemic is over.’ President Biden’s words a few weeks ago are dangerously false. They are also short sighted.”…
What The Great British Baking Show teaches us about life and politics
By Laura Ellis
“A new season of The Great British Baking Show just hit Netflix, meaning 10 episodes of brand-new bakes are in our future.”…
Dear Tucker Carlson: Women are not afraid, we are angry
By Julia Goldie Day
“Last week, a young mother named Eliza Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tenn., not too far from where I live.”…
When the door closes: Tips for transitioning out of a ministry role
By Amy Brundle
“Last August, I was called into a meeting with my associate pastor to discuss the direction of my role within the church staff. I had been leading the music ministry of that church for six years, but the last two had been especially hard. Leading worship through a pandemic came with a myriad of challenges I’d never faced before. We had to seamlessly balance safety and ministry, handle our own tragedies and fears and deal with a congregation full of scared, judgmental people.”…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.”…
I pray for a day when the ordination of women is no longer a concern
By Amanda Clark
“It is encouraging and difficult to digest the information in the report on the State of Women in Baptist Life.”…
How a verbally abusive male pastor derailed a young woman from ministry
By Madison Boboltz
“I can’t tell you how many Monday mornings I cried in the bathroom not wanting to go to work because I was so terrified of what the senior pastor was going to say to me when he came into the church office. I just knew he was going to berate me with a long list of things I had done wrong the day before.”…
Here’s what’s wrong with the new Hardin Simmons Statement of Faith
By Madison Boboltz
As a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University’s class of 2019, I recently became aware of the board of trustees newly released Statement of Faith, which was adopted on May 19, 2022. Of particular note is the trustee’s declaration on sexuality and marriage…
No one else is coming, so do something
By Hannah Coe
Today I write to you from three places in my soul: parent, prophet and pastor…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”…
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina…
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women…
‘Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!”…
On the anniversary of the Atlanta shootings, a call for empathy, intimacy and holistic racial reconciliation
By Amanda Clark
It’s been a year. A full 365 days have passed since the day of the shooting in Atlanta where eight people were killed, six of whom were Asian-American women….
Women need more than your affirmation
By Laura Ellis
A networking community called The Pastor’s Common, whose council is made up entirely of men, drafted three resolutions for the Baptist General Convention of Texas on advocating for leadership among young ministers, unity across divides and the affirmation of women…
Kneeling by wildflowers
By Eli Withers
“As a general rule, I believe in attempting to live out of a mentality of abundance over scarcity. However, there are two things that seem to highlight areas of lack in my time on sabbatical — time and space. Ruth Haley Barton — author, spiritual formation guru and founder of the Transforming Center in Wheaton, Ill. — says sabbatical is an extension of sabbath practice. Thus, if we’re already observing sabbath — whatever that looks like — a time of sabbatical should flow naturally out of that. But if we’re not, there may be a bit of struggle in the transition.“…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations. This has been our church’s longstanding practice for Holy Week, but the lessons learned here may carry well beyond Easter Sunday. There are calls to prayer all around us, if we have eyes to see them.“…
BGCT: Listen to the women
By Meredith Stone
“One week after election day 2024, I found myself in another room where I needed to cast my vote. As a messenger to the 2024 Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meeting, I would need to vote on a motion for the BGCT to affirm the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message. For those unfamiliar with the nuances of the various Baptist groups in Texas, the Baptist General Convention of Texas is one of the few Baptist state conventions that refrained from adopting the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message when it was first introduced by the Southern Baptist Convention.“…
Think you’ve ‘decided’ about women in ministry? Here’s why there’s more to do
By Meredith Stone
“In my work advocating for women in ministry for more than a decade, there have been many instances in which a conversation with a male pastor or religious leader has included some form of the following: “Our church/organization decided about women in ministry a long time ago. It is not an issue for us anymore.”“…
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
“During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter. The main theme of the posts was that if we want to be biblical, then women should be preaching the Easter sermon and sharing the good news that Jesus is alive just as they did the first Easter morning.“…
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven. “Wilderness” feels like an appropriate theme for BWIM’s first 40 years. Our history is one of wilderness wanderings.“…
Loneliness in clergywomen — its causes and impacts and what we can do about it
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“A 2022 Barna study found 65% of Protestant pastors in the United States feel lonely at least sometimes, with 18% experiencing isolation frequently. These numbers are up significantly from Barna’s 2015 research. In addition, a 2020 survey revealed that 20% of Protestant pastors cannot name anyone beyond their churches or families who knows them well. There are many reasons for this loneliness.“…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.“…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
““I could never work with youth — I just can’t deal with all those hormones!”
“I’ve done my time when my kids were that age.”
“They won’t think I’m cool enough.”
“What if they ask questions about sex?”
These are all reasons I’ve heardwhen people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.“…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
“Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees. Aniol wrote, “Theological seminaries should not be giving women degrees in pastoral ministry. Full Stop.” It seems that Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary awarding a bachelor of arts degree in pastoral ministry to a woman irked him.“…
The unrecognized grief of adoption
By Sara Robb-Scott
“I’ve been working at an affordable senior living complex for almost a year. The role includes serving as pastor of the church that meets on site as well as creating initiatives to nurture spiritual wellness within the community and the staff team. In every monthly meeting with my supervisor, she asks, “What are you passionate about right now?” Most of the time my answer has something to do with grief support. I’m passionate about the grief groups I lead for residents and staff and about creating a space to tend to the many ways grief shows up in our lives.“…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.“…
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.“…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think. Not only have the rights of women to make private decisions about their own bodies become fiercely debated again surrounding the Supreme Court’s decision, the continued sexual abuse of women by religious authorities, the uptick in sexual trafficking of women and girls and the ongoing silencing of women’s voices in the pulpit simmer ever more hotly in the background of so much of our public discourse.“…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.“…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?“…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
“As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day.”…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
“One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. These words held not only the weight of the word of God but were something of a household code for my family, as well as a fitting guideline for the youth group I attended where “impure” thoughts were something we were told to guard against.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.“…
Christians and the fight for justice after Trump’s return
By Rosaly Guzman
“As we reflect on the state of our nationafter the results of the 2024 election, we are confronted with a renewed sense of division, uncertainty and urgency. Donald Trump’s rise to power once again has raised profound questions about the direction of our country, its values, its character and its future.“…
Passing the mantle: Lessons for today’s leadership transitions
By Rosaly Guzman
“Leadership transitions are critical occasions that call for insight, humility and wisdom. The choice to relinquish power and hand it to a successor has a big impact on continuity and legacy, whether it’s in politics, ministry or any other institution. Leaders must strive to live a self-sufficient, secure and contented existence.“…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured. Even so, each successive generation of Christians confronts a unique set of challenges, shaped by worldly opposition and spiritual deception, with the intent to silence or distort this word of truth and liberty. For centuries, Christian leaders have resolutely stood their ground, preserved the integrity of the gospel and nurtured their communities through preaching, love and service.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.“…
A new vision of Mary Magdalene and Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“I awoke Easter Sunday morning to the following quote on X from Jacqui Lewis: “The first resurrection was proclaimed by women, and the church repaid them with centuries of lies that God didn’t want us to preach. For Jesus’ movement of love and justice to live, the crucifying realities built within the church must die. This morning the tomb is empty.”.”…
Pain of Advent
By Julia Goldie Day
“For Jesus to become flesh, word incarnate, he had to be born. Like each of us, his journey began in the body of a woman. His flesh had to enter the world through the waters of the birth canal of a woman named Mary.”…
Tell me about your Christian tattoo
By Madison Boboltz
“In the evangelical subculture I was raised in, we were taught to cover most of our bodies for the sake of modesty. I was told repeatedly, “Your body is a temple.””…
Jim Jordan shows us the danger of eating our own children
By Julia Goldie Day
“Donald Trump, in a prerecorded statement released Oct. 15, said: “The Republicans eat their young; they really do, and it’s a terrible statement but it’s true.” He added: “And that’s the problem with so many in our party; they just don’t have the loyalty and the strength to stick together.”” …
‘Nobody wants to be an addict’
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“During a recent Spirituality in Recovery group at Costello House, a recovery living ministry for men, I asked residents if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experiences with addiction and recovery. September is National Recovery Month, and I knew their stories would communicate far more than statistics ever could.” …
Women crying out in the wilderness in Tennessee
By Julia Goldie Day
“Runners gathered Sept. 1 to participate in “Let’s Finish Liza’s Run” in Memphis to honor the life and remember the death of Eliza Fletcher. She was killed one year ago, allegedly by Cleotha Abston Henderson, who will stand trial.”…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured.” …
Can Barbie help us create justice?
By Val Fisk
“I remember the moment I got my first Barbie. It was 1993, I was about to turn 4, and I was waking up from my third ear tube surgery. My reward for such bravery was a Bedtime Barbie whose eyes shifted from open to closed. She was dressed in a fuzzy pink nightgown with lace cuffs, matching slippers, with washcloth, toothbrush and plastic hairbrush included.” …
On women, aliens and when power usurps love
By Julia Goldie Day
“My mother-in-law and her brother often use a repeating trope: “When the aliens come” we’ll be ready or not ready because we did this thing or neglected to do this other thing. They, like I, have consumed a lot of science fiction.”…
Women’s leadership in the church is a primary issue
By Hannah Coe
“As an associate pastor, I made weekly hospital visits. The church’s size meant it was not unusual for me to meet church members for the first time in the hospital, which was what happened one Thursday morning when I knocked on a hospital door and heard, “Come in!””…
Jesus said it: The ministry of women is good news
By Andrea Corso Johnson
“This week, certain disciples of Jesus Christ called their meeting to order and promptly forgot themselves — bad news! At this summer’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers voted to forget their fundamental Baptist value of congregational autonomy.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.”…
On graduation and the priesthood of all believers
By Val Fisk
“Each year on the first Sunday of May, University Baptist Church of Charlottesville, Va., honors our graduates and reads a litany of blessing as we commission them “to tend to the world and help set it right once again.””…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations.”…
Christian nationalism runs rampant as Christians and cult leaders alike believe Trump was chosen by God
By Laura Ellis
“The road to the Waco, Texas, airport was littered with tents called patriot stores selling MAGA merchandise last Saturday. They had been out since Wednesday in preparation for Donald Trump’s rally. Trump 2024 flags flew next to Confederate flags, “F*** Biden” flags, Gonzales flags with “Come and Take It” written under an AK-47 and flags that read “Jesus is my Savior, Trump is my President.””…
Three years ago today, our world changed
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Three years ago today, when the pandemic hit, I was barely shy of nine months pregnant. We knew our daughter, George, would be born with Turner Syndrome. She faced open heart surgery at a day old in April 2020, a GI surgery in June 2020 and two heart catheterizations in September 2020.” …
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
By Carlisle Davidhizar
“I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them.”…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Rob-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship.”…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?”…
This Christmas season, let’s not kill Jesus before he’s even born
By Laura Ellis
“As Christmas nears, one of my favorite things to do is look at Christmas lights. Nothing feels more festive than driving around that one neighborhood in town with the large historic homes decorated immaculately with twinkling lights and Christmas cheer.”…
Jesus scares or Jesus cares?
By Julia Goldie Day
“After the violent attack on her husband Paul, Nancy Pelosi released a statement saying she and her family are heartbroken and traumatized but are grateful for the prayers and warm wishes they have received. Her husband is improving. Then she quoted the following verses from Isaiah: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’”…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.”…
Justice Sated in the Handmaids Tale
By Julia Goldie Day
“The much-anticipated return of The Handmaid’s Tale, a TV series based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Margaret Atwood, was just released.”…
How will you observe International Overdose Awareness Day?
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“On a summer afternoon, we gathered in the chapel of the addiction treatment center to grieve and remember lives lost to overdoses. Every client knew someone who had died from an overdose; most had lost several friends or family members.”…
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
“‘Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?’ my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, ‘We need to be revived.'”…
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me.”…
This is my body
By Hannah Coe
“The traumas and burdens inflicted by COVID-19 are borne in our bodies, brains, hearts and communities.”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so.”…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?”…
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media…
The consent of mothers
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the wake of the news that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, I am reminded of Luke 1:26-38 in which Mary learns she will be mother to Jesus. ‘The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia D. Myers
I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant….
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter…
From the war in Ukraine to the slap in Hollywood, violence plagues our world
By Laura Ellis
It’s time we rethink our definition of violence. As the war rages in Ukraine, many people’s attention this past week shifted to the moment of violence at the Academy Awards…
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were…
Sexual harassment at 30,000 feet
By Meredith Stone
I recently got on an airplane for a trip to preach at a Baptist Women in Ministry partner church despite some hesitations I had about flying. My hesitations were because of health concerns related to the current Delta variant spike, but also because of the regular reports of more hostility on airplanes. As a matter of fact, just a few days before this trip, I saw a report on one of the morning news shows about the dramatic increase in incidents of aggression on airplanes in the past year…
A sabbatical gift of grace and rest and exploration
By Eli Withers
“I have been in full time ministry for 24 years. Wow. That doesn’t seem possible. Actually, that is almost half my life. Mostly, I am grateful for every second — even the most challenging moments have taught me more about myself, others and most importantly about the grace, mercy and love of our Creator through the person of Jesus Christ than I ever could have imagined.” …
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
““Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?” my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, “We need to be revived.” Don’t we all?” …
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.” …
Introducing BWIM Month of Advocacy
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry researches and publishes the State of Women in Baptist Life Report to provide statistics and analysis for women in ministry among Baptists that might serve as a metric and motivator for progress. The most recent report, released in June, has provided both.” …
Lesson learned: While lifting up women we unwittingly put down those who cannot stand
By Meredith Stone
“On March 1, the first day of Women’s History Month, Baptist Women in Ministry introduced a new name for its monthly donor program, the Salome Community. The initiative is named in honor of Salome, a disciple of Jesus who is mentioned by Mark as a faithful follower of Christ who was present at Jesus’ crucifixion although others abandoned him, and who was among those who went to the tomb to find Jesus resurrected. But despite her exemplar discipleship, Salome’s name is not included in the other three Gospels.” …
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever. It was Transfiguration Sunday, and as part of my sermon I made them go on a “bear hunt” with me. You know the children’s rhyme: “We’re going on a bear hunt, we’re going to catch a big one, can’t go over it, can’t go under it, we’ll have to go through it!”” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.” …
No one ever talks about how hard it is to come back from sabbatical
By Courtney Stamey
““You should go on sabbatical more often,” said Marijane on her way out of church last Sunday. She noticed what others had too. I was preaching with more energy, like back when I was first called to Northside six years ago. Congregants have shared with me how they feel a movement of the Holy Spirit in our congregation since I returned from sabbatical, and I am so grateful to God’s faithfulness to us.” …
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
“If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were.” …
What is a woman?
By Anna Sieges
“Late Tuesday of this week, Sen. Marsha Blackburn asked Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to define “woman.” Everyone watching the Supreme Court nominee’s confirmation hearings knew it was a loaded question. Judge Jackson stated that she wasn’t a biologist and did not feel qualified to answer. This question from Sen. Blackburn came among national conflict over LGBTQ rights and a sudden national interest in collegiate women’s swimming.” …
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.” …
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
“I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina. A birth heritage of Mexican descent always has felt like an important piece of who I am. I was adopted at birth to two wonderful parents who encouraged questions about my adoption and cultivated a relationship built on trust. I knew I was loved by my family and that I had a missing piece.” …
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me. As the woman on my screen speaks, I hear her stress and worry as she describes two opportunities that have opened up before her. She is on the cusp of transition and in the middle of discernment. I sit and listen for the ways God is moving in her life. I ask her questions to help her think through this decision. We listen for the Spirit — for wisdom — together.” …
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
“With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media. The interviews from mass shootings in Uvalde, Buffalo and Tulsa; the coverage of survivors from Russian bombings in Ukraine; and the footage of desperate immigrant flights, Baptist predators’ victims and women protesting restrictions on their health care —all are filled with the same despair, disillusionment grief and anger.” …
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
“Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women. Many churches seek to silence women who demonstrate gifts for ministry, believing the Bible limits such roles to men. But what about women in churches that do allow women to be ordained? Might some of them also remain silent about issues related to their ministry in an effort to keep the peace and to keep serving?” …
Do we want to see?
By Cheryl Kimble
“Last week as I was preparing my sermon for Sunday, I was reading the passage in Mark where the blind man, Bartimaeus, asks Jesus to heal his blindness. Unlike other places in Scripture where someone asks Jesus to heal them of blindness, Jesus doesn’t ask Bartimaeus anything except what he wants. The answer is he wants to see.” …
Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
“On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!” …
Dear men who support women in ministry.
By Nikki Hardeman
Many years ago, a senior pastor said to me: “We don’t have a Sunday to celebrate women in ministry at our church because we already support women in ministry. It’s a nonissue for us.”
At the time, I accepted his statement at face value. I was young, eager to please and anxious to be seen as a team player. Over the years, I’ve come to realize the inherent flaw in his logic.” …
How should we respond to the tragic death of Brian Thompson?
By Rosaly Guzman
“In the Book of Judges, we encounter a verse that encapsulates a time of moral chaos in Israel: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
This haunting statement captures the unbridled lawlessness of a people without guidance, structure or a shared moral foundation. Tragically, such lawlessness echoes in our modern context. The recent killing of Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, brings this verse into sharp focus.” …
Today, it’s Puerto Ricans; tomorrow it will be you
By Rosaly Guzman
“In a world increasingly divided by hate and prejudice, the recent remarks by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe at a Trump rally in New York City remind us of the urgency with which we must confront racist ideologies.
His comments, describing Puerto Rico as a “floating garbage island” and perpetuating harmful stereotypes about Latinos, are not merely misguided jokes, they reflect a broader societal problem that calls for a robust response from the church. As Christians, we are challenged to stand firm against such divisive rhetoric, guided by our faith and the example of those who have spoken out against injustice before us.” …
A call to Christian discernment: Faith, politics and divine protection
By Rosaly Guzman
“In the wake of the recent attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, a storm of emotions and reactions has swept across our nation. As Christians, we find ourselves at a crossroads, challenged to view this event not through the lens of partisan politics, but through the prism of our faith and the teachings of Jesus Christ.” …
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.” …
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
“For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it.” …
The Tears of Advent
By Julia Goldie Day
“Mary went through a great deal just to get to this point. She hears from an angel of her own virginal conception of a holy child, misses her period, grows a child in her body, travels to Bethlehem, gives birth away from family without the safety of a birth plan, and she nurses her infant son to keep him alive. So much depended on her” …
Blood of Advent
By Julia Goldie Day
“Ever hear the phrase, “Behind every successful man, there is a woman?” Jesus is the successful man; Mary is the woman.” …
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven.” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.”…
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.””…
What was I made for? Not to be pretty or skinny
By Brianna Childs
“Analysis of Google search data by online fitness resource Total Shape has revealed that searches for “Margot Robbie diet” have exploded by 1364% in the United States, following the release of the Barbie movie on July 21.”…
The voice of Sinead O’Connor
By Julia Goldie Day
“It was announced July 26 that Sinead O’Connor has died. An artist who journeyed in her own faith, struggles and personal growth right alongside us.” …
That’s not even the most interesting thing about me
By Val Fisk
I’m not usually the person who walks around every day wearing Pride merchandise. In fact, I tend to wear all black clothing the majority of the time, a holdover from the “emo kid” fashion influence of my teens. So standing at the full length mirror in my hotel room on the first morning of CBF General Assembly, I was surprised to be asking myself, “Am I wearing too many rainbows?””…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.”…
The cost of being comfortable is too high
By Felicia Caid Smith
““Men are the primary theologians in their family.” The words sent a jolt through my brain, and my back straightened as I stared up at the guest preacher behind the podium. I scanned the room. Heads were nodding in agreement, both male and female, as the preacher continued his sermon. He declared a husband is the primary theologian for his wife and a father is the primary theologian for his children.”…
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.”…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
It’s time to ditch the drive-by Communion and linger a while
By Laura Ellis
“Churches should win awards for their innovation during COVID, as they created new ways to be church together while apart. Pastors responded to the needs of the community in a time when caring for community meant being separated from one another.”…
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever.”…
How I realized I had been shaped by patriarchal views of pastors
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“When I read Victoria Robb Powers’ story describing the confusion she felt when she encountered a Baptist female senior pastor for the first time, I recalled two similarly disorienting experiences. One incident was completely understandable, in light of my Southern Baptist upbringing; the other was deeply embarrassing and less comprehensible to me. Let’s begin with the embarrassing story, shall we?”…
An invisible wall: How to support your pastor through mental health challenges
By Amy Brundle
“I’ll never forget walking into my annual staff evaluation meeting and encountering a roomful of awkward looks. The head of our church’s personnel committee started the meeting off with, ‘So, do you feel that your … um … anxiety issues have limited your competence in your ministry role?'”…
This Galentine’s Day, make new friends but keep the old ones
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“In February 2010, the writers of Parks and Recreation introduced a new holiday to American pop culture: Galentine’s Day.”…
TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest
By Laura Ellis
“We’re a month into 2023, and you know what that means. People are starting to abandon their new year’s resolutions.”…
Mary, Our Mother (For Baptists): Blessed is she
By Julia Goldie Day
“One of my children asked me the other day, ‘What’s the big deal about access to birth control?’ My answer was, ‘If your mother had not had access to birth control, you would have many more brothers and sisters and I never would have been able to work, go to seminary or follow my calling in ministry.’”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): I don’t think that word means what you think it means
By Julia Goldie Day
“I, like many of you, was in at least one Christmas pageant as a child growing up in the Baptist church. Sadly, I can distinctly remember I was not chosen to play the Virgin Mary. I was an angel.”…
Mary, our mother (for Baptists): There’s something about Mary
By Julia Goldie Day
“There’s something about Mary, the mother of Jesus, that Baptists don’t quite know what to do with. I’ve noticed we tend to avoid Mary.”
What I’ve learned from Evolving Faith
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“October always has been my favorite month of the year. I celebrate my wedding anniversary and my only child’s birthday in this memory-filled month.”…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse.”…
Keep your Bible where is belongs
By Julia Goldie Day
“When I took my first Bible class in college, I was required to memorize the books of the Bible. A lot of people in my class found that exercise of writing out the books of the Bible from memory in list form very difficult. The spelling of the Old Testament books was especially difficult. But it wasn’t difficult for this Baptist. I can still easily recite all 66 books in order, with a little refresher on the minor prophets.”…
Jesus would turn over tables in this Crisis Pregnancy Center
By Julia Goldie Day
“During my first stint in seminary, I visited a Crisis Pregnancy Center to write a paper for a class on health and spirituality.”…
What absurdism and a parody conspiracy theory tell us about why Gen Z is sleeping in on Sundays
By Laura Ellis
“Gen Z has the lowest church attendance of any generation and is frequently dubbed as the least religious generation. In a time when churches are struggling to fill their pews, Gen Z is sleeping in on Sunday mornings.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.”…
When love does not conquer all
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“As a teen, I dreamed of marrying someone who would be my best friend and confidante. I dreamed of someone who would make me laugh and share my joy. I dreamed of lifelong companionship, shared goals and happily ever after. I thought if I brought my best self into the relationship and continued to work on self-improvement and personal growth, any marriage would succeed.”…
To whom are you listening
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.?…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think.”…
In response to Uvalde, the church can learn from the murder of George Floyd
By Laura Ellis
May 25 was the two-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. It’s a date that can easily slip our minds, especially with the more recent stories of horror that have captivated our attention…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day….
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it…
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience at the Senate felt a lot like being a Baptist woman in ministry
By Brianna Childs
“She has a vast practical experience, something that I think is a real plus. I will vote no.”…
Where I found acceptance as a woman, others now find rejection
By Madison Boboltz
I was sitting at a table on the first floor of the library at Hardin-Simmons University when a fellow classmate from Logsdon School of Theology approached me with a smile. He sat down across from me and slid the rough draft of his paper over for me to review. I worked in the Writing Center and regularly tutored students who needed help with theology papers…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in….
Gerontocracy
By Jennifer Brown
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about gerontocracy. It’s hard to miss in our current news. Many debates are raging about President Biden’s age. Sen. Mitch McConnell has had a couple of super public uncomfortable health scares. Both leaders are part of the Silent Generation. There is deep tension around whether either should be in power. Most folks do not want to be ageist in their criticism and personally know seniors who are sharp and vibrant. Yet, this nagging worry about their competency and ability will not fade.”…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
“These are all reasons I’ve heard when people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.I started off at my church as the children’s minister, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was asked to transition to lead the youth ministry.” …
This is why people are leaving the church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Recently I was surprised to see a post from one of my former seminary professors quoting leadership advice from John Ortberg. Perhaps he did not know what caused John Ortberg to resign from his church.”…
For the love of literature: How book bans are whitewashing America
By Laura Ellis
“It’s back to school time and, in the latest effort of book banning, new state legislation will restrict literature allowed in Texas schools based on a vague rating system about sexual content. House Bill 900, which goes into effect Sept. 1, completely bans books that are “sexually explicit” and restricts books that are “sexually relevant” by requiring parental approval before a student can access the literature.” …
Farming is ministry: 5 ways your congregation can start today
By Heather Franklin
“Two years out of seminary and a year into the pandemic, I walked away from my full-time nonprofit position and onto a farm. Far from walking away from ministry, I found farming to be a ministry. One that embodies unique opportunities to foster connection and agency that can be vital to the modern congregational context.” …
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.”…
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.”…
Baptists, football and women who changed the game
By Eileen Campbell-Reed
“Baptists love football. How many college and pro football illustrations did I hear in sermons preached in my childhood Southern Baptist church? How many Baptists are just as likely to don college colors and spend Saturdays watching the game as Sundays in church?”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.””…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
Her Church
By Jennifer Brown
“I haven’t been able to get the book Her Country by Marissa Moss out of my brain since reading the “State of Women in Baptist Life,” released in 2022. The book explores the decline of women on country radio through the lens of Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton’s respective careers. If you are an outsider to country music, you may not realize women have it much worse today in country music, specifically radio, than they did in the 1990s.”…
My new favorite disciple of Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“My favorite disciple used to be Peter. I loved how much Jesus loved and trusted him even though Peter often missed the mark, speaking and acting without remembering what Jesus taught him.”…
To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“The physical health of congregants is, of course, a concern for pastors, just as their spiritual health is. If congregants suffer a broken limb, a stroke, a heart attack or cancer, the pastoral staff will be there to walk alongside them as they receive treatment and heal.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.” …
Misogyny is in your church too
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special soliloquy in his own dialect, that hilariously pokes fun at our culture that intertwines religion with misogyny.”…
Three images to remember Tyre Nichols
By Julia Goldie Day
“The video has been released. Seven officers have been terminated and five charged. The Scorpion Unit has been disbanded. Two EMTs have been terminated along with a supervisor. The district attorney says more charges may be forthcoming. The attorney for Tyre Nichols’ family says never again can authorities stall releasing footage.”…
Queen Elizabeth was a role model for women in faith and leadership
By Chrystal Cowen
“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.”
Teaching my grandson about sacred curiosity and Epiphany
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“The soft light seeping around the edges of the blinds gave me the mistaken impression that the sun was rising. I arose from my bed and headed toward the living room to begin my day by journaling. Stepping into the dark hallway, I noticed a square of light on the floor. Moonlight, not sunlight, was streaming through the windows. The wolf moon, the first full moon of 2023, was putting on a spectacular display in the predawn hour.”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): Mary, did you know?
By Julia Goldie Day
“A few years ago, I preached on the Sunday after Christmas, low attendance Sunday, a regular occurrence for an associate pastor (and a woman) like me. In that sermon I shared that my least favorite Christmas song is ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ In sharing that sentiment, I offended several congregants who had long held it as their favorite. They teased that I ruined it for them.”
Tim Tebow, male leadership and the ‘feminine,’ ‘weak’ church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Lately we have seen much talk about ‘real’ biblical manhood vs. the ‘feminization’ of the local church. The church is weak because the men are weak, the critics say. Blame the decline of church attendance and the decline of Christian values on the weakness of men.”
Moderates are an endangered species in the pews, but they aren’t completely extinct at the ballot box
By Laura Ellis
“Moderates are such an endangered species that even when you see one in the wild, they’re easy to miss.”…
The pandemic is not over for those with long COVID
By Michelle Carroll
“’The pandemic is over.’ President Biden’s words a few weeks ago are dangerously false. They are also short sighted.”…
What The Great British Baking Show teaches us about life and politics
By Laura Ellis
“A new season of The Great British Baking Show just hit Netflix, meaning 10 episodes of brand-new bakes are in our future.”…
Dear Tucker Carlson: Women are not afraid, we are angry
By Julia Goldie Day
“Last week, a young mother named Eliza Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tenn., not too far from where I live.”…
When the door closes: Tips for transitioning out of a ministry role
By Amy Brundle
“Last August, I was called into a meeting with my associate pastor to discuss the direction of my role within the church staff. I had been leading the music ministry of that church for six years, but the last two had been especially hard. Leading worship through a pandemic came with a myriad of challenges I’d never faced before. We had to seamlessly balance safety and ministry, handle our own tragedies and fears and deal with a congregation full of scared, judgmental people.”…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.”…
I pray for a day when the ordination of women is no longer a concern
By Amanda Clark
“It is encouraging and difficult to digest the information in the report on the State of Women in Baptist Life.”…
How a verbally abusive male pastor derailed a young woman from ministry
By Madison Boboltz
“I can’t tell you how many Monday mornings I cried in the bathroom not wanting to go to work because I was so terrified of what the senior pastor was going to say to me when he came into the church office. I just knew he was going to berate me with a long list of things I had done wrong the day before.”…
Here’s what’s wrong with the new Hardin Simmons Statement of Faith
By Madison Boboltz
As a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University’s class of 2019, I recently became aware of the board of trustees newly released Statement of Faith, which was adopted on May 19, 2022. Of particular note is the trustee’s declaration on sexuality and marriage…
No one else is coming, so do something
By Hannah Coe
Today I write to you from three places in my soul: parent, prophet and pastor…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”…
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina…
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women…
‘Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!”…
On the anniversary of the Atlanta shootings, a call for empathy, intimacy and holistic racial reconciliation
By Amanda Clark
It’s been a year. A full 365 days have passed since the day of the shooting in Atlanta where eight people were killed, six of whom were Asian-American women….
Women need more than your affirmation
By Laura Ellis
A networking community called The Pastor’s Common, whose council is made up entirely of men, drafted three resolutions for the Baptist General Convention of Texas on advocating for leadership among young ministers, unity across divides and the affirmation of women…
Tell me about your Christian tattoo
By Madison Boboltz
“In the evangelical subculture I was raised in, we were taught to cover most of our bodies for the sake of modesty. I was told repeatedly, “Your body is a temple.””…
Jim Jordan shows us the danger of eating our own children
By Julia Goldie Day
“Donald Trump, in a prerecorded statement released Oct. 15, said: “The Republicans eat their young; they really do, and it’s a terrible statement but it’s true.” He added: “And that’s the problem with so many in our party; they just don’t have the loyalty and the strength to stick together.”” …
‘Nobody wants to be an addict’
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“During a recent Spirituality in Recovery group at Costello House, a recovery living ministry for men, I asked residents if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experiences with addiction and recovery. September is National Recovery Month, and I knew their stories would communicate far more than statistics ever could.” …
Women crying out in the wilderness in Tennessee
By Julia Goldie Day
“Runners gathered Sept. 1 to participate in “Let’s Finish Liza’s Run” in Memphis to honor the life and remember the death of Eliza Fletcher. She was killed one year ago, allegedly by Cleotha Abston Henderson, who will stand trial.”…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured.” …
Can Barbie help us create justice?
By Val Fisk
“I remember the moment I got my first Barbie. It was 1993, I was about to turn 4, and I was waking up from my third ear tube surgery. My reward for such bravery was a Bedtime Barbie whose eyes shifted from open to closed. She was dressed in a fuzzy pink nightgown with lace cuffs, matching slippers, with washcloth, toothbrush and plastic hairbrush included.” …
On women, aliens and when power usurps love
By Julia Goldie Day
“My mother-in-law and her brother often use a repeating trope: “When the aliens come” we’ll be ready or not ready because we did this thing or neglected to do this other thing. They, like I, have consumed a lot of science fiction.”…
Women’s leadership in the church is a primary issue
By Hannah Coe
“As an associate pastor, I made weekly hospital visits. The church’s size meant it was not unusual for me to meet church members for the first time in the hospital, which was what happened one Thursday morning when I knocked on a hospital door and heard, “Come in!””…
Jesus said it: The ministry of women is good news
By Andrea Corso Johnson
“This week, certain disciples of Jesus Christ called their meeting to order and promptly forgot themselves — bad news! At this summer’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers voted to forget their fundamental Baptist value of congregational autonomy.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.”…
On graduation and the priesthood of all believers
By Val Fisk
“Each year on the first Sunday of May, University Baptist Church of Charlottesville, Va., honors our graduates and reads a litany of blessing as we commission them “to tend to the world and help set it right once again.””…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations.”…
Christian nationalism runs rampant as Christians and cult leaders alike believe Trump was chosen by God
By Laura Ellis
“The road to the Waco, Texas, airport was littered with tents called patriot stores selling MAGA merchandise last Saturday. They had been out since Wednesday in preparation for Donald Trump’s rally. Trump 2024 flags flew next to Confederate flags, “F*** Biden” flags, Gonzales flags with “Come and Take It” written under an AK-47 and flags that read “Jesus is my Savior, Trump is my President.””…
Three years ago today, our world changed
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Three years ago today, when the pandemic hit, I was barely shy of nine months pregnant. We knew our daughter, George, would be born with Turner Syndrome. She faced open heart surgery at a day old in April 2020, a GI surgery in June 2020 and two heart catheterizations in September 2020.” …
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
By Carlisle Davidhizar
“I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them.”…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Rob-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship.”…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?”…
This Christmas season, let’s not kill Jesus before he’s even born
By Laura Ellis
“As Christmas nears, one of my favorite things to do is look at Christmas lights. Nothing feels more festive than driving around that one neighborhood in town with the large historic homes decorated immaculately with twinkling lights and Christmas cheer.”…
Jesus scares or Jesus cares?
By Julia Goldie Day
“After the violent attack on her husband Paul, Nancy Pelosi released a statement saying she and her family are heartbroken and traumatized but are grateful for the prayers and warm wishes they have received. Her husband is improving. Then she quoted the following verses from Isaiah: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’”…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.”…
Justice Sated in the Handmaids Tale
By Julia Goldie Day
“The much-anticipated return of The Handmaid’s Tale, a TV series based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Margaret Atwood, was just released.”…
How will you observe International Overdose Awareness Day?
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“On a summer afternoon, we gathered in the chapel of the addiction treatment center to grieve and remember lives lost to overdoses. Every client knew someone who had died from an overdose; most had lost several friends or family members.”…
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
“‘Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?’ my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, ‘We need to be revived.'”…
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me.”…
This is my body
By Hannah Coe
“The traumas and burdens inflicted by COVID-19 are borne in our bodies, brains, hearts and communities.”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so.”…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?”…
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media…
The consent of mothers
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the wake of the news that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, I am reminded of Luke 1:26-38 in which Mary learns she will be mother to Jesus. ‘The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia D. Myers
I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant….
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter…
From the war in Ukraine to the slap in Hollywood, violence plagues our world
By Laura Ellis
It’s time we rethink our definition of violence. As the war rages in Ukraine, many people’s attention this past week shifted to the moment of violence at the Academy Awards…
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were…
Sexual harassment at 30,000 feet
By Meredith Stone
I recently got on an airplane for a trip to preach at a Baptist Women in Ministry partner church despite some hesitations I had about flying. My hesitations were because of health concerns related to the current Delta variant spike, but also because of the regular reports of more hostility on airplanes. As a matter of fact, just a few days before this trip, I saw a report on one of the morning news shows about the dramatic increase in incidents of aggression on airplanes in the past year…
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven.” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.”…
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.””…
What was I made for? Not to be pretty or skinny
By Brianna Childs
“Analysis of Google search data by online fitness resource Total Shape has revealed that searches for “Margot Robbie diet” have exploded by 1364% in the United States, following the release of the Barbie movie on July 21.”…
The voice of Sinead O’Connor
By Julia Goldie Day
“It was announced July 26 that Sinead O’Connor has died. An artist who journeyed in her own faith, struggles and personal growth right alongside us.” …
That’s not even the most interesting thing about me
By Val Fisk
I’m not usually the person who walks around every day wearing Pride merchandise. In fact, I tend to wear all black clothing the majority of the time, a holdover from the “emo kid” fashion influence of my teens. So standing at the full length mirror in my hotel room on the first morning of CBF General Assembly, I was surprised to be asking myself, “Am I wearing too many rainbows?””…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.”…
The cost of being comfortable is too high
By Felicia Caid Smith
““Men are the primary theologians in their family.” The words sent a jolt through my brain, and my back straightened as I stared up at the guest preacher behind the podium. I scanned the room. Heads were nodding in agreement, both male and female, as the preacher continued his sermon. He declared a husband is the primary theologian for his wife and a father is the primary theologian for his children.”…
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.”…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
It’s time to ditch the drive-by Communion and linger a while
By Laura Ellis
“Churches should win awards for their innovation during COVID, as they created new ways to be church together while apart. Pastors responded to the needs of the community in a time when caring for community meant being separated from one another.”…
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever.”…
How I realized I had been shaped by patriarchal views of pastors
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“When I read Victoria Robb Powers’ story describing the confusion she felt when she encountered a Baptist female senior pastor for the first time, I recalled two similarly disorienting experiences. One incident was completely understandable, in light of my Southern Baptist upbringing; the other was deeply embarrassing and less comprehensible to me. Let’s begin with the embarrassing story, shall we?”…
An invisible wall: How to support your pastor through mental health challenges
By Amy Brundle
“I’ll never forget walking into my annual staff evaluation meeting and encountering a roomful of awkward looks. The head of our church’s personnel committee started the meeting off with, ‘So, do you feel that your … um … anxiety issues have limited your competence in your ministry role?'”…
This Galentine’s Day, make new friends but keep the old ones
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“In February 2010, the writers of Parks and Recreation introduced a new holiday to American pop culture: Galentine’s Day.”…
TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest
By Laura Ellis
“We’re a month into 2023, and you know what that means. People are starting to abandon their new year’s resolutions.”…
Mary, Our Mother (For Baptists): Blessed is she
By Julia Goldie Day
“One of my children asked me the other day, ‘What’s the big deal about access to birth control?’ My answer was, ‘If your mother had not had access to birth control, you would have many more brothers and sisters and I never would have been able to work, go to seminary or follow my calling in ministry.’”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): I don’t think that word means what you think it means
By Julia Goldie Day
“I, like many of you, was in at least one Christmas pageant as a child growing up in the Baptist church. Sadly, I can distinctly remember I was not chosen to play the Virgin Mary. I was an angel.”…
Mary, our mother (for Baptists): There’s something about Mary
By Julia Goldie Day
“There’s something about Mary, the mother of Jesus, that Baptists don’t quite know what to do with. I’ve noticed we tend to avoid Mary.”
What I’ve learned from Evolving Faith
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“October always has been my favorite month of the year. I celebrate my wedding anniversary and my only child’s birthday in this memory-filled month.”…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse.”…
Keep your Bible where is belongs
By Julia Goldie Day
“When I took my first Bible class in college, I was required to memorize the books of the Bible. A lot of people in my class found that exercise of writing out the books of the Bible from memory in list form very difficult. The spelling of the Old Testament books was especially difficult. But it wasn’t difficult for this Baptist. I can still easily recite all 66 books in order, with a little refresher on the minor prophets.”…
Jesus would turn over tables in this Crisis Pregnancy Center
By Julia Goldie Day
“During my first stint in seminary, I visited a Crisis Pregnancy Center to write a paper for a class on health and spirituality.”…
What absurdism and a parody conspiracy theory tell us about why Gen Z is sleeping in on Sundays
By Laura Ellis
“Gen Z has the lowest church attendance of any generation and is frequently dubbed as the least religious generation. In a time when churches are struggling to fill their pews, Gen Z is sleeping in on Sunday mornings.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.”…
When love does not conquer all
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“As a teen, I dreamed of marrying someone who would be my best friend and confidante. I dreamed of someone who would make me laugh and share my joy. I dreamed of lifelong companionship, shared goals and happily ever after. I thought if I brought my best self into the relationship and continued to work on self-improvement and personal growth, any marriage would succeed.”…
To whom are you listening
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.?…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think.”…
In response to Uvalde, the church can learn from the murder of George Floyd
By Laura Ellis
May 25 was the two-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. It’s a date that can easily slip our minds, especially with the more recent stories of horror that have captivated our attention…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day….
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it…
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience at the Senate felt a lot like being a Baptist woman in ministry
By Brianna Childs
“She has a vast practical experience, something that I think is a real plus. I will vote no.”…
Where I found acceptance as a woman, others now find rejection
By Madison Boboltz
I was sitting at a table on the first floor of the library at Hardin-Simmons University when a fellow classmate from Logsdon School of Theology approached me with a smile. He sat down across from me and slid the rough draft of his paper over for me to review. I worked in the Writing Center and regularly tutored students who needed help with theology papers…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in….
Gerontocracy
By Jennifer Brown
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about gerontocracy. It’s hard to miss in our current news. Many debates are raging about President Biden’s age. Sen. Mitch McConnell has had a couple of super public uncomfortable health scares. Both leaders are part of the Silent Generation. There is deep tension around whether either should be in power. Most folks do not want to be ageist in their criticism and personally know seniors who are sharp and vibrant. Yet, this nagging worry about their competency and ability will not fade.”…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
“These are all reasons I’ve heard when people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.I started off at my church as the children’s minister, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was asked to transition to lead the youth ministry.” …
This is why people are leaving the church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Recently I was surprised to see a post from one of my former seminary professors quoting leadership advice from John Ortberg. Perhaps he did not know what caused John Ortberg to resign from his church.”…
For the love of literature: How book bans are whitewashing America
By Laura Ellis
“It’s back to school time and, in the latest effort of book banning, new state legislation will restrict literature allowed in Texas schools based on a vague rating system about sexual content. House Bill 900, which goes into effect Sept. 1, completely bans books that are “sexually explicit” and restricts books that are “sexually relevant” by requiring parental approval before a student can access the literature.” …
Farming is ministry: 5 ways your congregation can start today
By Heather Franklin
“Two years out of seminary and a year into the pandemic, I walked away from my full-time nonprofit position and onto a farm. Far from walking away from ministry, I found farming to be a ministry. One that embodies unique opportunities to foster connection and agency that can be vital to the modern congregational context.” …
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.”…
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.”…
Baptists, football and women who changed the game
By Eileen Campbell-Reed
“Baptists love football. How many college and pro football illustrations did I hear in sermons preached in my childhood Southern Baptist church? How many Baptists are just as likely to don college colors and spend Saturdays watching the game as Sundays in church?”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.””…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
Her Church
By Jennifer Brown
“I haven’t been able to get the book Her Country by Marissa Moss out of my brain since reading the “State of Women in Baptist Life,” released in 2022. The book explores the decline of women on country radio through the lens of Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton’s respective careers. If you are an outsider to country music, you may not realize women have it much worse today in country music, specifically radio, than they did in the 1990s.”…
My new favorite disciple of Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“My favorite disciple used to be Peter. I loved how much Jesus loved and trusted him even though Peter often missed the mark, speaking and acting without remembering what Jesus taught him.”…
To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“The physical health of congregants is, of course, a concern for pastors, just as their spiritual health is. If congregants suffer a broken limb, a stroke, a heart attack or cancer, the pastoral staff will be there to walk alongside them as they receive treatment and heal.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.” …
Misogyny is in your church too
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special soliloquy in his own dialect, that hilariously pokes fun at our culture that intertwines religion with misogyny.”…
Three images to remember Tyre Nichols
By Julia Goldie Day
“The video has been released. Seven officers have been terminated and five charged. The Scorpion Unit has been disbanded. Two EMTs have been terminated along with a supervisor. The district attorney says more charges may be forthcoming. The attorney for Tyre Nichols’ family says never again can authorities stall releasing footage.”…
Queen Elizabeth was a role model for women in faith and leadership
By Chrystal Cowen
“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.”
Teaching my grandson about sacred curiosity and Epiphany
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“The soft light seeping around the edges of the blinds gave me the mistaken impression that the sun was rising. I arose from my bed and headed toward the living room to begin my day by journaling. Stepping into the dark hallway, I noticed a square of light on the floor. Moonlight, not sunlight, was streaming through the windows. The wolf moon, the first full moon of 2023, was putting on a spectacular display in the predawn hour.”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): Mary, did you know?
By Julia Goldie Day
“A few years ago, I preached on the Sunday after Christmas, low attendance Sunday, a regular occurrence for an associate pastor (and a woman) like me. In that sermon I shared that my least favorite Christmas song is ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ In sharing that sentiment, I offended several congregants who had long held it as their favorite. They teased that I ruined it for them.”
Tim Tebow, male leadership and the ‘feminine,’ ‘weak’ church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Lately we have seen much talk about ‘real’ biblical manhood vs. the ‘feminization’ of the local church. The church is weak because the men are weak, the critics say. Blame the decline of church attendance and the decline of Christian values on the weakness of men.”
Moderates are an endangered species in the pews, but they aren’t completely extinct at the ballot box
By Laura Ellis
“Moderates are such an endangered species that even when you see one in the wild, they’re easy to miss.”…
The pandemic is not over for those with long COVID
By Michelle Carroll
“’The pandemic is over.’ President Biden’s words a few weeks ago are dangerously false. They are also short sighted.”…
What The Great British Baking Show teaches us about life and politics
By Laura Ellis
“A new season of The Great British Baking Show just hit Netflix, meaning 10 episodes of brand-new bakes are in our future.”…
Dear Tucker Carlson: Women are not afraid, we are angry
By Julia Goldie Day
“Last week, a young mother named Eliza Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tenn., not too far from where I live.”…
When the door closes: Tips for transitioning out of a ministry role
By Amy Brundle
“Last August, I was called into a meeting with my associate pastor to discuss the direction of my role within the church staff. I had been leading the music ministry of that church for six years, but the last two had been especially hard. Leading worship through a pandemic came with a myriad of challenges I’d never faced before. We had to seamlessly balance safety and ministry, handle our own tragedies and fears and deal with a congregation full of scared, judgmental people.”…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.”…
I pray for a day when the ordination of women is no longer a concern
By Amanda Clark
“It is encouraging and difficult to digest the information in the report on the State of Women in Baptist Life.”…
How a verbally abusive male pastor derailed a young woman from ministry
By Madison Boboltz
“I can’t tell you how many Monday mornings I cried in the bathroom not wanting to go to work because I was so terrified of what the senior pastor was going to say to me when he came into the church office. I just knew he was going to berate me with a long list of things I had done wrong the day before.”…
Here’s what’s wrong with the new Hardin Simmons Statement of Faith
By Madison Boboltz
As a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University’s class of 2019, I recently became aware of the board of trustees newly released Statement of Faith, which was adopted on May 19, 2022. Of particular note is the trustee’s declaration on sexuality and marriage…
No one else is coming, so do something
By Hannah Coe
Today I write to you from three places in my soul: parent, prophet and pastor…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”…
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina…
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women…
‘Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!”…
On the anniversary of the Atlanta shootings, a call for empathy, intimacy and holistic racial reconciliation
By Amanda Clark
It’s been a year. A full 365 days have passed since the day of the shooting in Atlanta where eight people were killed, six of whom were Asian-American women….
Women need more than your affirmation
By Laura Ellis
A networking community called The Pastor’s Common, whose council is made up entirely of men, drafted three resolutions for the Baptist General Convention of Texas on advocating for leadership among young ministers, unity across divides and the affirmation of women…
Tell me about your Christian tattoo
By Madison Boboltz
“In the evangelical subculture I was raised in, we were taught to cover most of our bodies for the sake of modesty. I was told repeatedly, “Your body is a temple.””…
Jim Jordan shows us the danger of eating our own children
By Julia Goldie Day
“Donald Trump, in a prerecorded statement released Oct. 15, said: “The Republicans eat their young; they really do, and it’s a terrible statement but it’s true.” He added: “And that’s the problem with so many in our party; they just don’t have the loyalty and the strength to stick together.”” …
‘Nobody wants to be an addict’
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“During a recent Spirituality in Recovery group at Costello House, a recovery living ministry for men, I asked residents if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experiences with addiction and recovery. September is National Recovery Month, and I knew their stories would communicate far more than statistics ever could.” …
Women crying out in the wilderness in Tennessee
By Julia Goldie Day
“Runners gathered Sept. 1 to participate in “Let’s Finish Liza’s Run” in Memphis to honor the life and remember the death of Eliza Fletcher. She was killed one year ago, allegedly by Cleotha Abston Henderson, who will stand trial.”…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured.” …
Can Barbie help us create justice?
By Val Fisk
“I remember the moment I got my first Barbie. It was 1993, I was about to turn 4, and I was waking up from my third ear tube surgery. My reward for such bravery was a Bedtime Barbie whose eyes shifted from open to closed. She was dressed in a fuzzy pink nightgown with lace cuffs, matching slippers, with washcloth, toothbrush and plastic hairbrush included.” …
On women, aliens and when power usurps love
By Julia Goldie Day
“My mother-in-law and her brother often use a repeating trope: “When the aliens come” we’ll be ready or not ready because we did this thing or neglected to do this other thing. They, like I, have consumed a lot of science fiction.”…
Women’s leadership in the church is a primary issue
By Hannah Coe
“As an associate pastor, I made weekly hospital visits. The church’s size meant it was not unusual for me to meet church members for the first time in the hospital, which was what happened one Thursday morning when I knocked on a hospital door and heard, “Come in!””…
Jesus said it: The ministry of women is good news
By Andrea Corso Johnson
“This week, certain disciples of Jesus Christ called their meeting to order and promptly forgot themselves — bad news! At this summer’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers voted to forget their fundamental Baptist value of congregational autonomy.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.”…
On graduation and the priesthood of all believers
By Val Fisk
“Each year on the first Sunday of May, University Baptist Church of Charlottesville, Va., honors our graduates and reads a litany of blessing as we commission them “to tend to the world and help set it right once again.””…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations.”…
Christian nationalism runs rampant as Christians and cult leaders alike believe Trump was chosen by God
By Laura Ellis
“The road to the Waco, Texas, airport was littered with tents called patriot stores selling MAGA merchandise last Saturday. They had been out since Wednesday in preparation for Donald Trump’s rally. Trump 2024 flags flew next to Confederate flags, “F*** Biden” flags, Gonzales flags with “Come and Take It” written under an AK-47 and flags that read “Jesus is my Savior, Trump is my President.””…
Three years ago today, our world changed
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Three years ago today, when the pandemic hit, I was barely shy of nine months pregnant. We knew our daughter, George, would be born with Turner Syndrome. She faced open heart surgery at a day old in April 2020, a GI surgery in June 2020 and two heart catheterizations in September 2020.” …
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
By Carlisle Davidhizar
“I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them.”…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Rob-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship.”…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?”…
This Christmas season, let’s not kill Jesus before he’s even born
By Laura Ellis
“As Christmas nears, one of my favorite things to do is look at Christmas lights. Nothing feels more festive than driving around that one neighborhood in town with the large historic homes decorated immaculately with twinkling lights and Christmas cheer.”…
Jesus scares or Jesus cares?
By Julia Goldie Day
“After the violent attack on her husband Paul, Nancy Pelosi released a statement saying she and her family are heartbroken and traumatized but are grateful for the prayers and warm wishes they have received. Her husband is improving. Then she quoted the following verses from Isaiah: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’”…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.”…
Justice Sated in the Handmaids Tale
By Julia Goldie Day
“The much-anticipated return of The Handmaid’s Tale, a TV series based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Margaret Atwood, was just released.”…
How will you observe International Overdose Awareness Day?
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“On a summer afternoon, we gathered in the chapel of the addiction treatment center to grieve and remember lives lost to overdoses. Every client knew someone who had died from an overdose; most had lost several friends or family members.”…
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
“‘Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?’ my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, ‘We need to be revived.'”…
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me.”…
This is my body
By Hannah Coe
“The traumas and burdens inflicted by COVID-19 are borne in our bodies, brains, hearts and communities.”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so.”…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?”…
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media…
The consent of mothers
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the wake of the news that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, I am reminded of Luke 1:26-38 in which Mary learns she will be mother to Jesus. ‘The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia D. Myers
I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant….
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter…
From the war in Ukraine to the slap in Hollywood, violence plagues our world
By Laura Ellis
It’s time we rethink our definition of violence. As the war rages in Ukraine, many people’s attention this past week shifted to the moment of violence at the Academy Awards…
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were…
Sexual harassment at 30,000 feet
By Meredith Stone
I recently got on an airplane for a trip to preach at a Baptist Women in Ministry partner church despite some hesitations I had about flying. My hesitations were because of health concerns related to the current Delta variant spike, but also because of the regular reports of more hostility on airplanes. As a matter of fact, just a few days before this trip, I saw a report on one of the morning news shows about the dramatic increase in incidents of aggression on airplanes in the past year…
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven.” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.”…
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.””…
What was I made for? Not to be pretty or skinny
By Brianna Childs
“Analysis of Google search data by online fitness resource Total Shape has revealed that searches for “Margot Robbie diet” have exploded by 1364% in the United States, following the release of the Barbie movie on July 21.”…
The voice of Sinead O’Connor
By Julia Goldie Day
“It was announced July 26 that Sinead O’Connor has died. An artist who journeyed in her own faith, struggles and personal growth right alongside us.” …
That’s not even the most interesting thing about me
By Val Fisk
I’m not usually the person who walks around every day wearing Pride merchandise. In fact, I tend to wear all black clothing the majority of the time, a holdover from the “emo kid” fashion influence of my teens. So standing at the full length mirror in my hotel room on the first morning of CBF General Assembly, I was surprised to be asking myself, “Am I wearing too many rainbows?””…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.”…
The cost of being comfortable is too high
By Felicia Caid Smith
““Men are the primary theologians in their family.” The words sent a jolt through my brain, and my back straightened as I stared up at the guest preacher behind the podium. I scanned the room. Heads were nodding in agreement, both male and female, as the preacher continued his sermon. He declared a husband is the primary theologian for his wife and a father is the primary theologian for his children.”…
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.”…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
It’s time to ditch the drive-by Communion and linger a while
By Laura Ellis
“Churches should win awards for their innovation during COVID, as they created new ways to be church together while apart. Pastors responded to the needs of the community in a time when caring for community meant being separated from one another.”…
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever.”…
How I realized I had been shaped by patriarchal views of pastors
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“When I read Victoria Robb Powers’ story describing the confusion she felt when she encountered a Baptist female senior pastor for the first time, I recalled two similarly disorienting experiences. One incident was completely understandable, in light of my Southern Baptist upbringing; the other was deeply embarrassing and less comprehensible to me. Let’s begin with the embarrassing story, shall we?”…
An invisible wall: How to support your pastor through mental health challenges
By Amy Brundle
“I’ll never forget walking into my annual staff evaluation meeting and encountering a roomful of awkward looks. The head of our church’s personnel committee started the meeting off with, ‘So, do you feel that your … um … anxiety issues have limited your competence in your ministry role?'”…
This Galentine’s Day, make new friends but keep the old ones
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“In February 2010, the writers of Parks and Recreation introduced a new holiday to American pop culture: Galentine’s Day.”…
TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest
By Laura Ellis
“We’re a month into 2023, and you know what that means. People are starting to abandon their new year’s resolutions.”…
Mary, Our Mother (For Baptists): Blessed is she
By Julia Goldie Day
“One of my children asked me the other day, ‘What’s the big deal about access to birth control?’ My answer was, ‘If your mother had not had access to birth control, you would have many more brothers and sisters and I never would have been able to work, go to seminary or follow my calling in ministry.’”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): I don’t think that word means what you think it means
By Julia Goldie Day
“I, like many of you, was in at least one Christmas pageant as a child growing up in the Baptist church. Sadly, I can distinctly remember I was not chosen to play the Virgin Mary. I was an angel.”…
Mary, our mother (for Baptists): There’s something about Mary
By Julia Goldie Day
“There’s something about Mary, the mother of Jesus, that Baptists don’t quite know what to do with. I’ve noticed we tend to avoid Mary.”
What I’ve learned from Evolving Faith
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“October always has been my favorite month of the year. I celebrate my wedding anniversary and my only child’s birthday in this memory-filled month.”…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse.”…
Keep your Bible where is belongs
By Julia Goldie Day
“When I took my first Bible class in college, I was required to memorize the books of the Bible. A lot of people in my class found that exercise of writing out the books of the Bible from memory in list form very difficult. The spelling of the Old Testament books was especially difficult. But it wasn’t difficult for this Baptist. I can still easily recite all 66 books in order, with a little refresher on the minor prophets.”…
Jesus would turn over tables in this Crisis Pregnancy Center
By Julia Goldie Day
“During my first stint in seminary, I visited a Crisis Pregnancy Center to write a paper for a class on health and spirituality.”…
What absurdism and a parody conspiracy theory tell us about why Gen Z is sleeping in on Sundays
By Laura Ellis
“Gen Z has the lowest church attendance of any generation and is frequently dubbed as the least religious generation. In a time when churches are struggling to fill their pews, Gen Z is sleeping in on Sunday mornings.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.”…
When love does not conquer all
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“As a teen, I dreamed of marrying someone who would be my best friend and confidante. I dreamed of someone who would make me laugh and share my joy. I dreamed of lifelong companionship, shared goals and happily ever after. I thought if I brought my best self into the relationship and continued to work on self-improvement and personal growth, any marriage would succeed.”…
To whom are you listening
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.?…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think.”…
In response to Uvalde, the church can learn from the murder of George Floyd
By Laura Ellis
May 25 was the two-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. It’s a date that can easily slip our minds, especially with the more recent stories of horror that have captivated our attention…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day….
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it…
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience at the Senate felt a lot like being a Baptist woman in ministry
By Brianna Childs
“She has a vast practical experience, something that I think is a real plus. I will vote no.”…
Where I found acceptance as a woman, others now find rejection
By Madison Boboltz
I was sitting at a table on the first floor of the library at Hardin-Simmons University when a fellow classmate from Logsdon School of Theology approached me with a smile. He sat down across from me and slid the rough draft of his paper over for me to review. I worked in the Writing Center and regularly tutored students who needed help with theology papers…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in….
Gerontocracy
By Jennifer Brown
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about gerontocracy. It’s hard to miss in our current news. Many debates are raging about President Biden’s age. Sen. Mitch McConnell has had a couple of super public uncomfortable health scares. Both leaders are part of the Silent Generation. There is deep tension around whether either should be in power. Most folks do not want to be ageist in their criticism and personally know seniors who are sharp and vibrant. Yet, this nagging worry about their competency and ability will not fade.”…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
“These are all reasons I’ve heard when people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.I started off at my church as the children’s minister, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was asked to transition to lead the youth ministry.” …
This is why people are leaving the church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Recently I was surprised to see a post from one of my former seminary professors quoting leadership advice from John Ortberg. Perhaps he did not know what caused John Ortberg to resign from his church.”…
For the love of literature: How book bans are whitewashing America
By Laura Ellis
“It’s back to school time and, in the latest effort of book banning, new state legislation will restrict literature allowed in Texas schools based on a vague rating system about sexual content. House Bill 900, which goes into effect Sept. 1, completely bans books that are “sexually explicit” and restricts books that are “sexually relevant” by requiring parental approval before a student can access the literature.” …
Farming is ministry: 5 ways your congregation can start today
By Heather Franklin
“Two years out of seminary and a year into the pandemic, I walked away from my full-time nonprofit position and onto a farm. Far from walking away from ministry, I found farming to be a ministry. One that embodies unique opportunities to foster connection and agency that can be vital to the modern congregational context.” …
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.”…
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.”…
Baptists, football and women who changed the game
By Eileen Campbell-Reed
“Baptists love football. How many college and pro football illustrations did I hear in sermons preached in my childhood Southern Baptist church? How many Baptists are just as likely to don college colors and spend Saturdays watching the game as Sundays in church?”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.””…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
Her Church
By Jennifer Brown
“I haven’t been able to get the book Her Country by Marissa Moss out of my brain since reading the “State of Women in Baptist Life,” released in 2022. The book explores the decline of women on country radio through the lens of Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton’s respective careers. If you are an outsider to country music, you may not realize women have it much worse today in country music, specifically radio, than they did in the 1990s.”…
My new favorite disciple of Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“My favorite disciple used to be Peter. I loved how much Jesus loved and trusted him even though Peter often missed the mark, speaking and acting without remembering what Jesus taught him.”…
To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“The physical health of congregants is, of course, a concern for pastors, just as their spiritual health is. If congregants suffer a broken limb, a stroke, a heart attack or cancer, the pastoral staff will be there to walk alongside them as they receive treatment and heal.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.” …
Misogyny is in your church too
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special soliloquy in his own dialect, that hilariously pokes fun at our culture that intertwines religion with misogyny.”…
Three images to remember Tyre Nichols
By Julia Goldie Day
“The video has been released. Seven officers have been terminated and five charged. The Scorpion Unit has been disbanded. Two EMTs have been terminated along with a supervisor. The district attorney says more charges may be forthcoming. The attorney for Tyre Nichols’ family says never again can authorities stall releasing footage.”…
Queen Elizabeth was a role model for women in faith and leadership
By Chrystal Cowen
“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.”
Teaching my grandson about sacred curiosity and Epiphany
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“The soft light seeping around the edges of the blinds gave me the mistaken impression that the sun was rising. I arose from my bed and headed toward the living room to begin my day by journaling. Stepping into the dark hallway, I noticed a square of light on the floor. Moonlight, not sunlight, was streaming through the windows. The wolf moon, the first full moon of 2023, was putting on a spectacular display in the predawn hour.”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): Mary, did you know?
By Julia Goldie Day
“A few years ago, I preached on the Sunday after Christmas, low attendance Sunday, a regular occurrence for an associate pastor (and a woman) like me. In that sermon I shared that my least favorite Christmas song is ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ In sharing that sentiment, I offended several congregants who had long held it as their favorite. They teased that I ruined it for them.”
Tim Tebow, male leadership and the ‘feminine,’ ‘weak’ church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Lately we have seen much talk about ‘real’ biblical manhood vs. the ‘feminization’ of the local church. The church is weak because the men are weak, the critics say. Blame the decline of church attendance and the decline of Christian values on the weakness of men.”
Moderates are an endangered species in the pews, but they aren’t completely extinct at the ballot box
By Laura Ellis
“Moderates are such an endangered species that even when you see one in the wild, they’re easy to miss.”…
The pandemic is not over for those with long COVID
By Michelle Carroll
“’The pandemic is over.’ President Biden’s words a few weeks ago are dangerously false. They are also short sighted.”…
What The Great British Baking Show teaches us about life and politics
By Laura Ellis
“A new season of The Great British Baking Show just hit Netflix, meaning 10 episodes of brand-new bakes are in our future.”…
Dear Tucker Carlson: Women are not afraid, we are angry
By Julia Goldie Day
“Last week, a young mother named Eliza Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tenn., not too far from where I live.”…
When the door closes: Tips for transitioning out of a ministry role
By Amy Brundle
“Last August, I was called into a meeting with my associate pastor to discuss the direction of my role within the church staff. I had been leading the music ministry of that church for six years, but the last two had been especially hard. Leading worship through a pandemic came with a myriad of challenges I’d never faced before. We had to seamlessly balance safety and ministry, handle our own tragedies and fears and deal with a congregation full of scared, judgmental people.”…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.”…
I pray for a day when the ordination of women is no longer a concern
By Amanda Clark
“It is encouraging and difficult to digest the information in the report on the State of Women in Baptist Life.”…
How a verbally abusive male pastor derailed a young woman from ministry
By Madison Boboltz
“I can’t tell you how many Monday mornings I cried in the bathroom not wanting to go to work because I was so terrified of what the senior pastor was going to say to me when he came into the church office. I just knew he was going to berate me with a long list of things I had done wrong the day before.”…
Here’s what’s wrong with the new Hardin Simmons Statement of Faith
By Madison Boboltz
As a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University’s class of 2019, I recently became aware of the board of trustees newly released Statement of Faith, which was adopted on May 19, 2022. Of particular note is the trustee’s declaration on sexuality and marriage…
No one else is coming, so do something
By Hannah Coe
Today I write to you from three places in my soul: parent, prophet and pastor…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”…
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina…
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women…
‘Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!”…
On the anniversary of the Atlanta shootings, a call for empathy, intimacy and holistic racial reconciliation
By Amanda Clark
It’s been a year. A full 365 days have passed since the day of the shooting in Atlanta where eight people were killed, six of whom were Asian-American women….
Women need more than your affirmation
By Laura Ellis
A networking community called The Pastor’s Common, whose council is made up entirely of men, drafted three resolutions for the Baptist General Convention of Texas on advocating for leadership among young ministers, unity across divides and the affirmation of women…
Tell me about your Christian tattoo
By Madison Boboltz
“In the evangelical subculture I was raised in, we were taught to cover most of our bodies for the sake of modesty. I was told repeatedly, “Your body is a temple.””…
Jim Jordan shows us the danger of eating our own children
By Julia Goldie Day
“Donald Trump, in a prerecorded statement released Oct. 15, said: “The Republicans eat their young; they really do, and it’s a terrible statement but it’s true.” He added: “And that’s the problem with so many in our party; they just don’t have the loyalty and the strength to stick together.”” …
‘Nobody wants to be an addict’
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“During a recent Spirituality in Recovery group at Costello House, a recovery living ministry for men, I asked residents if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experiences with addiction and recovery. September is National Recovery Month, and I knew their stories would communicate far more than statistics ever could.” …
Women crying out in the wilderness in Tennessee
By Julia Goldie Day
“Runners gathered Sept. 1 to participate in “Let’s Finish Liza’s Run” in Memphis to honor the life and remember the death of Eliza Fletcher. She was killed one year ago, allegedly by Cleotha Abston Henderson, who will stand trial.”…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured.” …
Can Barbie help us create justice?
By Val Fisk
“I remember the moment I got my first Barbie. It was 1993, I was about to turn 4, and I was waking up from my third ear tube surgery. My reward for such bravery was a Bedtime Barbie whose eyes shifted from open to closed. She was dressed in a fuzzy pink nightgown with lace cuffs, matching slippers, with washcloth, toothbrush and plastic hairbrush included.” …
On women, aliens and when power usurps love
By Julia Goldie Day
“My mother-in-law and her brother often use a repeating trope: “When the aliens come” we’ll be ready or not ready because we did this thing or neglected to do this other thing. They, like I, have consumed a lot of science fiction.”…
Women’s leadership in the church is a primary issue
By Hannah Coe
“As an associate pastor, I made weekly hospital visits. The church’s size meant it was not unusual for me to meet church members for the first time in the hospital, which was what happened one Thursday morning when I knocked on a hospital door and heard, “Come in!””…
Jesus said it: The ministry of women is good news
By Andrea Corso Johnson
“This week, certain disciples of Jesus Christ called their meeting to order and promptly forgot themselves — bad news! At this summer’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers voted to forget their fundamental Baptist value of congregational autonomy.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.”…
On graduation and the priesthood of all believers
By Val Fisk
“Each year on the first Sunday of May, University Baptist Church of Charlottesville, Va., honors our graduates and reads a litany of blessing as we commission them “to tend to the world and help set it right once again.””…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations.”…
Christian nationalism runs rampant as Christians and cult leaders alike believe Trump was chosen by God
By Laura Ellis
“The road to the Waco, Texas, airport was littered with tents called patriot stores selling MAGA merchandise last Saturday. They had been out since Wednesday in preparation for Donald Trump’s rally. Trump 2024 flags flew next to Confederate flags, “F*** Biden” flags, Gonzales flags with “Come and Take It” written under an AK-47 and flags that read “Jesus is my Savior, Trump is my President.””…
Three years ago today, our world changed
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Three years ago today, when the pandemic hit, I was barely shy of nine months pregnant. We knew our daughter, George, would be born with Turner Syndrome. She faced open heart surgery at a day old in April 2020, a GI surgery in June 2020 and two heart catheterizations in September 2020.” …
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
By Carlisle Davidhizar
“I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them.”…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Rob-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship.”…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?”…
This Christmas season, let’s not kill Jesus before he’s even born
By Laura Ellis
“As Christmas nears, one of my favorite things to do is look at Christmas lights. Nothing feels more festive than driving around that one neighborhood in town with the large historic homes decorated immaculately with twinkling lights and Christmas cheer.”…
Jesus scares or Jesus cares?
By Julia Goldie Day
“After the violent attack on her husband Paul, Nancy Pelosi released a statement saying she and her family are heartbroken and traumatized but are grateful for the prayers and warm wishes they have received. Her husband is improving. Then she quoted the following verses from Isaiah: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’”…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.”…
Justice Sated in the Handmaids Tale
By Julia Goldie Day
“The much-anticipated return of The Handmaid’s Tale, a TV series based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Margaret Atwood, was just released.”…
How will you observe International Overdose Awareness Day?
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“On a summer afternoon, we gathered in the chapel of the addiction treatment center to grieve and remember lives lost to overdoses. Every client knew someone who had died from an overdose; most had lost several friends or family members.”…
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
“‘Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?’ my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, ‘We need to be revived.'”…
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me.”…
This is my body
By Hannah Coe
“The traumas and burdens inflicted by COVID-19 are borne in our bodies, brains, hearts and communities.”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so.”…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?”…
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media…
The consent of mothers
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the wake of the news that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, I am reminded of Luke 1:26-38 in which Mary learns she will be mother to Jesus. ‘The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia D. Myers
I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant….
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter…
From the war in Ukraine to the slap in Hollywood, violence plagues our world
By Laura Ellis
It’s time we rethink our definition of violence. As the war rages in Ukraine, many people’s attention this past week shifted to the moment of violence at the Academy Awards…
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were…
Sexual harassment at 30,000 feet
By Meredith Stone
I recently got on an airplane for a trip to preach at a Baptist Women in Ministry partner church despite some hesitations I had about flying. My hesitations were because of health concerns related to the current Delta variant spike, but also because of the regular reports of more hostility on airplanes. As a matter of fact, just a few days before this trip, I saw a report on one of the morning news shows about the dramatic increase in incidents of aggression on airplanes in the past year…
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven.” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.”…
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.””…
What was I made for? Not to be pretty or skinny
By Brianna Childs
“Analysis of Google search data by online fitness resource Total Shape has revealed that searches for “Margot Robbie diet” have exploded by 1364% in the United States, following the release of the Barbie movie on July 21.”…
The voice of Sinead O’Connor
By Julia Goldie Day
“It was announced July 26 that Sinead O’Connor has died. An artist who journeyed in her own faith, struggles and personal growth right alongside us.” …
That’s not even the most interesting thing about me
By Val Fisk
I’m not usually the person who walks around every day wearing Pride merchandise. In fact, I tend to wear all black clothing the majority of the time, a holdover from the “emo kid” fashion influence of my teens. So standing at the full length mirror in my hotel room on the first morning of CBF General Assembly, I was surprised to be asking myself, “Am I wearing too many rainbows?””…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.”…
The cost of being comfortable is too high
By Felicia Caid Smith
““Men are the primary theologians in their family.” The words sent a jolt through my brain, and my back straightened as I stared up at the guest preacher behind the podium. I scanned the room. Heads were nodding in agreement, both male and female, as the preacher continued his sermon. He declared a husband is the primary theologian for his wife and a father is the primary theologian for his children.”…
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.”…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
It’s time to ditch the drive-by Communion and linger a while
By Laura Ellis
“Churches should win awards for their innovation during COVID, as they created new ways to be church together while apart. Pastors responded to the needs of the community in a time when caring for community meant being separated from one another.”…
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever.”…
How I realized I had been shaped by patriarchal views of pastors
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“When I read Victoria Robb Powers’ story describing the confusion she felt when she encountered a Baptist female senior pastor for the first time, I recalled two similarly disorienting experiences. One incident was completely understandable, in light of my Southern Baptist upbringing; the other was deeply embarrassing and less comprehensible to me. Let’s begin with the embarrassing story, shall we?”…
An invisible wall: How to support your pastor through mental health challenges
By Amy Brundle
“I’ll never forget walking into my annual staff evaluation meeting and encountering a roomful of awkward looks. The head of our church’s personnel committee started the meeting off with, ‘So, do you feel that your … um … anxiety issues have limited your competence in your ministry role?'”…
This Galentine’s Day, make new friends but keep the old ones
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“In February 2010, the writers of Parks and Recreation introduced a new holiday to American pop culture: Galentine’s Day.”…
TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest
By Laura Ellis
“We’re a month into 2023, and you know what that means. People are starting to abandon their new year’s resolutions.”…
Mary, Our Mother (For Baptists): Blessed is she
By Julia Goldie Day
“One of my children asked me the other day, ‘What’s the big deal about access to birth control?’ My answer was, ‘If your mother had not had access to birth control, you would have many more brothers and sisters and I never would have been able to work, go to seminary or follow my calling in ministry.’”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): I don’t think that word means what you think it means
By Julia Goldie Day
“I, like many of you, was in at least one Christmas pageant as a child growing up in the Baptist church. Sadly, I can distinctly remember I was not chosen to play the Virgin Mary. I was an angel.”…
Mary, our mother (for Baptists): There’s something about Mary
By Julia Goldie Day
“There’s something about Mary, the mother of Jesus, that Baptists don’t quite know what to do with. I’ve noticed we tend to avoid Mary.”
What I’ve learned from Evolving Faith
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“October always has been my favorite month of the year. I celebrate my wedding anniversary and my only child’s birthday in this memory-filled month.”…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse.”…
Keep your Bible where is belongs
By Julia Goldie Day
“When I took my first Bible class in college, I was required to memorize the books of the Bible. A lot of people in my class found that exercise of writing out the books of the Bible from memory in list form very difficult. The spelling of the Old Testament books was especially difficult. But it wasn’t difficult for this Baptist. I can still easily recite all 66 books in order, with a little refresher on the minor prophets.”…
Jesus would turn over tables in this Crisis Pregnancy Center
By Julia Goldie Day
“During my first stint in seminary, I visited a Crisis Pregnancy Center to write a paper for a class on health and spirituality.”…
What absurdism and a parody conspiracy theory tell us about why Gen Z is sleeping in on Sundays
By Laura Ellis
“Gen Z has the lowest church attendance of any generation and is frequently dubbed as the least religious generation. In a time when churches are struggling to fill their pews, Gen Z is sleeping in on Sunday mornings.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.”…
When love does not conquer all
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“As a teen, I dreamed of marrying someone who would be my best friend and confidante. I dreamed of someone who would make me laugh and share my joy. I dreamed of lifelong companionship, shared goals and happily ever after. I thought if I brought my best self into the relationship and continued to work on self-improvement and personal growth, any marriage would succeed.”…
To whom are you listening
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.?…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think.”…
In response to Uvalde, the church can learn from the murder of George Floyd
By Laura Ellis
May 25 was the two-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. It’s a date that can easily slip our minds, especially with the more recent stories of horror that have captivated our attention…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day….
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it…
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience at the Senate felt a lot like being a Baptist woman in ministry
By Brianna Childs
“She has a vast practical experience, something that I think is a real plus. I will vote no.”…
Where I found acceptance as a woman, others now find rejection
By Madison Boboltz
I was sitting at a table on the first floor of the library at Hardin-Simmons University when a fellow classmate from Logsdon School of Theology approached me with a smile. He sat down across from me and slid the rough draft of his paper over for me to review. I worked in the Writing Center and regularly tutored students who needed help with theology papers…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in….
Gerontocracy
By Jennifer Brown
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about gerontocracy. It’s hard to miss in our current news. Many debates are raging about President Biden’s age. Sen. Mitch McConnell has had a couple of super public uncomfortable health scares. Both leaders are part of the Silent Generation. There is deep tension around whether either should be in power. Most folks do not want to be ageist in their criticism and personally know seniors who are sharp and vibrant. Yet, this nagging worry about their competency and ability will not fade.”…
Middle schoolers are cooler than you think — and other reasons to volunteer in your church’s youth group
By Grace Sosa
“These are all reasons I’ve heard when people explain why they don’t volunteer in the youth ministry. And I get it.I started off at my church as the children’s minister, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was asked to transition to lead the youth ministry.” …
This is why people are leaving the church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Recently I was surprised to see a post from one of my former seminary professors quoting leadership advice from John Ortberg. Perhaps he did not know what caused John Ortberg to resign from his church.”…
For the love of literature: How book bans are whitewashing America
By Laura Ellis
“It’s back to school time and, in the latest effort of book banning, new state legislation will restrict literature allowed in Texas schools based on a vague rating system about sexual content. House Bill 900, which goes into effect Sept. 1, completely bans books that are “sexually explicit” and restricts books that are “sexually relevant” by requiring parental approval before a student can access the literature.” …
Farming is ministry: 5 ways your congregation can start today
By Heather Franklin
“Two years out of seminary and a year into the pandemic, I walked away from my full-time nonprofit position and onto a farm. Far from walking away from ministry, I found farming to be a ministry. One that embodies unique opportunities to foster connection and agency that can be vital to the modern congregational context.” …
Our common call: How historic Baptist theology affirms my call to pastoral ministry
By Maddie Rarick
“I am more confident in my call to pastoral ministry because I know historic Baptist theology. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the common anointing for ministry are basic to Baptist thought and have helped me be more affirmed in my call from God as a woman serving as pastor of a Baptist church.”…
Ways to care for God’s creation this summer
By Rosaly Guzman
“Summer made its welcome arrival, marking a pleasant shift in our everyday habits. Some of us bid adieu to early morning alarms, rigid timetables, homework assignments and daily commutes. All of us may greet the comforting winds, tart lemonade and unplanned escapades of the summer with open arms.”…
Baptists, football and women who changed the game
By Eileen Campbell-Reed
“Baptists love football. How many college and pro football illustrations did I hear in sermons preached in my childhood Southern Baptist church? How many Baptists are just as likely to don college colors and spend Saturdays watching the game as Sundays in church?”…
We’re helping women and churches hear God’s call in Texas
By Jill Hudson
“I’ve been gone from Texas 15 years. Fifteen years of moving about the country and experiencing life in different churches and in different communities. Before I left Texas, I lived all over this great state — East Texas, West Texas, Central Texas — but then my husband and kids and I went sojourning across the U.S. before God tapped us on the shoulder late last year and said, “Hey, it’s time to go home.””…
Is Rick Warren reviving the fight against the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC
By Meredith Stone
“Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to speak. He released a series of videos and a website, SBC Stand, which detail the reasons for his argument against the SBC Executive Committee’s decision. Further, he published an open letter to Southern Baptists.”…
Her Church
By Jennifer Brown
“I haven’t been able to get the book Her Country by Marissa Moss out of my brain since reading the “State of Women in Baptist Life,” released in 2022. The book explores the decline of women on country radio through the lens of Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton’s respective careers. If you are an outsider to country music, you may not realize women have it much worse today in country music, specifically radio, than they did in the 1990s.”…
My new favorite disciple of Jesus
By Julia Goldie Day
“My favorite disciple used to be Peter. I loved how much Jesus loved and trusted him even though Peter often missed the mark, speaking and acting without remembering what Jesus taught him.”…
To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“The physical health of congregants is, of course, a concern for pastors, just as their spiritual health is. If congregants suffer a broken limb, a stroke, a heart attack or cancer, the pastoral staff will be there to walk alongside them as they receive treatment and heal.”…
The rest we must have
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“My 9-year-old son has formally declared sleep his nemesis. “It’s so boring,” he complains. “I have too much I want to do.” He is, and always has been, wide awake and ready to play or create by 5:00 a.m. He uses every tactic at his disposal to delay bedtime. Meanwhile, I just hope to stay upright until I can drift off on the couch after dinner.” …
Misogyny is in your church too
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special soliloquy in his own dialect, that hilariously pokes fun at our culture that intertwines religion with misogyny.”…
Three images to remember Tyre Nichols
By Julia Goldie Day
“The video has been released. Seven officers have been terminated and five charged. The Scorpion Unit has been disbanded. Two EMTs have been terminated along with a supervisor. The district attorney says more charges may be forthcoming. The attorney for Tyre Nichols’ family says never again can authorities stall releasing footage.”…
Queen Elizabeth was a role model for women in faith and leadership
By Chrystal Cowen
“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.”
Teaching my grandson about sacred curiosity and Epiphany
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“The soft light seeping around the edges of the blinds gave me the mistaken impression that the sun was rising. I arose from my bed and headed toward the living room to begin my day by journaling. Stepping into the dark hallway, I noticed a square of light on the floor. Moonlight, not sunlight, was streaming through the windows. The wolf moon, the first full moon of 2023, was putting on a spectacular display in the predawn hour.”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): Mary, did you know?
By Julia Goldie Day
“A few years ago, I preached on the Sunday after Christmas, low attendance Sunday, a regular occurrence for an associate pastor (and a woman) like me. In that sermon I shared that my least favorite Christmas song is ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ In sharing that sentiment, I offended several congregants who had long held it as their favorite. They teased that I ruined it for them.”
Tim Tebow, male leadership and the ‘feminine,’ ‘weak’ church
By Julia Goldie Day
“Lately we have seen much talk about ‘real’ biblical manhood vs. the ‘feminization’ of the local church. The church is weak because the men are weak, the critics say. Blame the decline of church attendance and the decline of Christian values on the weakness of men.”
Moderates are an endangered species in the pews, but they aren’t completely extinct at the ballot box
By Laura Ellis
“Moderates are such an endangered species that even when you see one in the wild, they’re easy to miss.”…
The pandemic is not over for those with long COVID
By Michelle Carroll
“’The pandemic is over.’ President Biden’s words a few weeks ago are dangerously false. They are also short sighted.”…
What The Great British Baking Show teaches us about life and politics
By Laura Ellis
“A new season of The Great British Baking Show just hit Netflix, meaning 10 episodes of brand-new bakes are in our future.”…
Dear Tucker Carlson: Women are not afraid, we are angry
By Julia Goldie Day
“Last week, a young mother named Eliza Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tenn., not too far from where I live.”…
When the door closes: Tips for transitioning out of a ministry role
By Amy Brundle
“Last August, I was called into a meeting with my associate pastor to discuss the direction of my role within the church staff. I had been leading the music ministry of that church for six years, but the last two had been especially hard. Leading worship through a pandemic came with a myriad of challenges I’d never faced before. We had to seamlessly balance safety and ministry, handle our own tragedies and fears and deal with a congregation full of scared, judgmental people.”…
Glimpses of grief reveal reality for women in ministry
By Sara Robb-Scott
“During the summer of my Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, all eight of us in the cohort experienced many deaths and sleepless on-call shifts. One day during education, we were noticeably and collectively “out of it.” Our supervisor, Martha, made a plan for us to gather at her home on the lake for a day of rest and silent retreat.”…
I pray for a day when the ordination of women is no longer a concern
By Amanda Clark
“It is encouraging and difficult to digest the information in the report on the State of Women in Baptist Life.”…
How a verbally abusive male pastor derailed a young woman from ministry
By Madison Boboltz
“I can’t tell you how many Monday mornings I cried in the bathroom not wanting to go to work because I was so terrified of what the senior pastor was going to say to me when he came into the church office. I just knew he was going to berate me with a long list of things I had done wrong the day before.”…
Here’s what’s wrong with the new Hardin Simmons Statement of Faith
By Madison Boboltz
As a graduate of Hardin-Simmons University’s class of 2019, I recently became aware of the board of trustees newly released Statement of Faith, which was adopted on May 19, 2022. Of particular note is the trustee’s declaration on sexuality and marriage…
No one else is coming, so do something
By Hannah Coe
Today I write to you from three places in my soul: parent, prophet and pastor…
What happens when the good news of therapy and the good news of Scripture conflict?
By Rebecca Hewitt-Newson
One of the Scriptures I memorized growing up was Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”…
Gifts of hospitality in the midst of grief
By Sara Robb-Scott
I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina…
Women in ministry: Strategically silent?
By Melody Maxwell
Growing up in the South, I learned that “children should be seen and not heard.” In too many cases, the same maxim is true about women…
‘Deconstruction’ is not a dirty word
By Andrea Huffman
On a fateful day during my third-grade year, my family was playing a board game and I was nearing victory. I rolled the dice and landed on a square that read, “Go back 17 spaces.” My family all laughed, as did I, and I jokingly cried, “Aw, dammit!”…
On the anniversary of the Atlanta shootings, a call for empathy, intimacy and holistic racial reconciliation
By Amanda Clark
It’s been a year. A full 365 days have passed since the day of the shooting in Atlanta where eight people were killed, six of whom were Asian-American women….
Women need more than your affirmation
By Laura Ellis
A networking community called The Pastor’s Common, whose council is made up entirely of men, drafted three resolutions for the Baptist General Convention of Texas on advocating for leadership among young ministers, unity across divides and the affirmation of women…
Tell me about your Christian tattoo
By Madison Boboltz
“In the evangelical subculture I was raised in, we were taught to cover most of our bodies for the sake of modesty. I was told repeatedly, “Your body is a temple.””…
Jim Jordan shows us the danger of eating our own children
By Julia Goldie Day
“Donald Trump, in a prerecorded statement released Oct. 15, said: “The Republicans eat their young; they really do, and it’s a terrible statement but it’s true.” He added: “And that’s the problem with so many in our party; they just don’t have the loyalty and the strength to stick together.”” …
‘Nobody wants to be an addict’
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“During a recent Spirituality in Recovery group at Costello House, a recovery living ministry for men, I asked residents if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experiences with addiction and recovery. September is National Recovery Month, and I knew their stories would communicate far more than statistics ever could.” …
Women crying out in the wilderness in Tennessee
By Julia Goldie Day
“Runners gathered Sept. 1 to participate in “Let’s Finish Liza’s Run” in Memphis to honor the life and remember the death of Eliza Fletcher. She was killed one year ago, allegedly by Cleotha Abston Henderson, who will stand trial.”…
When artificial intelligence finds its way into the church
By Rosaly Guzman
“Throughout history, the gospel has been subjected to scorn, disbelief and persecution, yet its transformative message, thriving under God’s Spirit, has endured.” …
Can Barbie help us create justice?
By Val Fisk
“I remember the moment I got my first Barbie. It was 1993, I was about to turn 4, and I was waking up from my third ear tube surgery. My reward for such bravery was a Bedtime Barbie whose eyes shifted from open to closed. She was dressed in a fuzzy pink nightgown with lace cuffs, matching slippers, with washcloth, toothbrush and plastic hairbrush included.” …
On women, aliens and when power usurps love
By Julia Goldie Day
“My mother-in-law and her brother often use a repeating trope: “When the aliens come” we’ll be ready or not ready because we did this thing or neglected to do this other thing. They, like I, have consumed a lot of science fiction.”…
Women’s leadership in the church is a primary issue
By Hannah Coe
“As an associate pastor, I made weekly hospital visits. The church’s size meant it was not unusual for me to meet church members for the first time in the hospital, which was what happened one Thursday morning when I knocked on a hospital door and heard, “Come in!””…
Jesus said it: The ministry of women is good news
By Andrea Corso Johnson
“This week, certain disciples of Jesus Christ called their meeting to order and promptly forgot themselves — bad news! At this summer’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers voted to forget their fundamental Baptist value of congregational autonomy.”…
What I learned when I invited a friend to church who processes the world differently than me
By Debby Haralson
“I love my church. Inviting my friend to join me for Pentecost Sunday and lunch afterward was an easy, uncomplicated act. The service that day was jubilant; our people warmly inviting. There was much shaking of hands and a few hugs as the members of our congregation connected with their new visitor. Having fewer new people these days, they were clearly very pleased to meet her.”…
On graduation and the priesthood of all believers
By Val Fisk
“Each year on the first Sunday of May, University Baptist Church of Charlottesville, Va., honors our graduates and reads a litany of blessing as we commission them “to tend to the world and help set it right once again.””…
Enduring lessons from Holy Week
By Eli Withers
“The sanctuary is still and the lights are out. The afternoon sunlight filters in through the ample windows along each side of the church. Every few minutes someone enters quietly and begins the journey of these seven stations.”…
Christian nationalism runs rampant as Christians and cult leaders alike believe Trump was chosen by God
By Laura Ellis
“The road to the Waco, Texas, airport was littered with tents called patriot stores selling MAGA merchandise last Saturday. They had been out since Wednesday in preparation for Donald Trump’s rally. Trump 2024 flags flew next to Confederate flags, “F*** Biden” flags, Gonzales flags with “Come and Take It” written under an AK-47 and flags that read “Jesus is my Savior, Trump is my President.””…
Three years ago today, our world changed
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Three years ago today, when the pandemic hit, I was barely shy of nine months pregnant. We knew our daughter, George, would be born with Turner Syndrome. She faced open heart surgery at a day old in April 2020, a GI surgery in June 2020 and two heart catheterizations in September 2020.” …
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
By Carlisle Davidhizar
“I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them.”…
Amid quantum leaps of change, we’re experiencing enlightenment despair
By Stephanie Nash
“For the past several decades, our world has experienced quantum leaps of change on its perspective of itself and the universe in greater degrees than ever before in human history, and we are reacting with whiplash anxiety.”…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
By Sara Rob-Scott
“I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship.”…
This Christmas, the Holy Spirit sounds like an oxygen machine to me
By Joy Martinez-Marshall
“Don’t let my name fool you. One of my most redeeming qualities is being a realist, often named by others as pessimist. In the spirit of that title, or misplaced naming, I am unsure how I will stomach Christmas this year. What could possibly save it?”…
This Christmas season, let’s not kill Jesus before he’s even born
By Laura Ellis
“As Christmas nears, one of my favorite things to do is look at Christmas lights. Nothing feels more festive than driving around that one neighborhood in town with the large historic homes decorated immaculately with twinkling lights and Christmas cheer.”…
Jesus scares or Jesus cares?
By Julia Goldie Day
“After the violent attack on her husband Paul, Nancy Pelosi released a statement saying she and her family are heartbroken and traumatized but are grateful for the prayers and warm wishes they have received. Her husband is improving. Then she quoted the following verses from Isaiah: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’”…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would interest us both. I never had picked up a comic book of any kind. Even so, the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and I have (more willingly) seen almost every MCU offering since.”…
Justice Sated in the Handmaids Tale
By Julia Goldie Day
“The much-anticipated return of The Handmaid’s Tale, a TV series based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Margaret Atwood, was just released.”…
How will you observe International Overdose Awareness Day?
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“On a summer afternoon, we gathered in the chapel of the addiction treatment center to grieve and remember lives lost to overdoses. Every client knew someone who had died from an overdose; most had lost several friends or family members.”…
When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead
By Eli Withers
“‘Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?’ my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he said, ‘We need to be revived.'”…
Spiritual direction provides a path for personal healing and a way forward for the church
By Emily Phillips Davis
“It’s evening, and I’m sitting at my home desk in front of a computer screen. I have a Zoom room opened up. Once again. I have been here a million times before, except this time, the lights are dim, the salt crystal lamp glows and the candle burns beside me.”…
This is my body
By Hannah Coe
“The traumas and burdens inflicted by COVID-19 are borne in our bodies, brains, hearts and communities.”…
On women in church leadership: When you know better, you do better
By Anna Sieges
“The report on The State of Women in Baptist Life is only a couple of weeks old and already has caused quite a stir. And rightly so.”…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
By Molly Brummett Wudel
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?”…
We have ‘soft targets’ of war here at home too
By Stephanie Nash
With the news of so many tragic events over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the thread that seems to run through so much of the carnage-filled images continuously in the media…
The consent of mothers
By Julia Goldie Day
“In the wake of the news that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, I am reminded of Luke 1:26-38 in which Mary learns she will be mother to Jesus. ‘The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”…
This is more than just sin
By Meredith Stone
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee refused to act on hundreds of reports of abuse…
On this Mother’s Day, will churches act more like Rome or Christ?
By Alicia D. Myers
I’ve never been as welcomed at a church as when I was pregnant….
If you’re glad women were the first Easter preachers, what are you doing about it now?
By Meredith Stone
During Easter weekend this year, my social media feed was filled with posts about women preaching on the first Easter…
From the war in Ukraine to the slap in Hollywood, violence plagues our world
By Laura Ellis
It’s time we rethink our definition of violence. As the war rages in Ukraine, many people’s attention this past week shifted to the moment of violence at the Academy Awards…
I am good! Teaching children they are made in the image of God
By Grace Sosa
If you ask people who grew up in church why they left, you’ll get a variety of answers. Maybe they were hurt by someone they trusted. Or they couldn’t reconcile an all-powerful and good God with the evil in the world. But the answer I hear the most, both from friends and online communities, is they were tired of hearing what terrible people they were…
Sexual harassment at 30,000 feet
By Meredith Stone
I recently got on an airplane for a trip to preach at a Baptist Women in Ministry partner church despite some hesitations I had about flying. My hesitations were because of health concerns related to the current Delta variant spike, but also because of the regular reports of more hostility on airplanes. As a matter of fact, just a few days before this trip, I saw a report on one of the morning news shows about the dramatic increase in incidents of aggression on airplanes in the past year…
I am a child of the wilderness
By Brittany Stillwell
“As Baptist Women in Ministry kicked off its 40th anniversary celebration, we were reminded by Executive Director Meredith Stone that “40 is a significant number in the biblical text.” The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, and after his resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples for a period of 40 days before ascending into heaven.” …
Let’s talk about those clergy resume ‘gaps’ for mothers
By Laura Stephens-Reed
“There are a lot of ways to approach the delights and demands of ministry and motherhood. Some clergy take a break from paid work when their children are young. Some accept part-time roles, whether because their households need the income, they want to keep a foot in the ministry world or they cannot find full-time positions that fit their family situations. Some go on parental leave from their full-time jobs and then return to work afterward. All these are good choices. Mothers should go the route that suits them best.”…
Reflecting upon a new opportunity to minister to senior adults
By Sara Robb-Scott
“In every job interview since I graduated from seminary, when asked the question, “What are your long-term career goals?” I have always answered, “Directing a spiritual care program with older adults at a retirement community or in a memory care facility.””…
What was I made for? Not to be pretty or skinny
By Brianna Childs
“Analysis of Google search data by online fitness resource Total Shape has revealed that searches for “Margot Robbie diet” have exploded by 1364% in the United States, following the release of the Barbie movie on July 21.”…
The voice of Sinead O’Connor
By Julia Goldie Day
“It was announced July 26 that Sinead O’Connor has died. An artist who journeyed in her own faith, struggles and personal growth right alongside us.” …
That’s not even the most interesting thing about me
By Val Fisk
I’m not usually the person who walks around every day wearing Pride merchandise. In fact, I tend to wear all black clothing the majority of the time, a holdover from the “emo kid” fashion influence of my teens. So standing at the full length mirror in my hotel room on the first morning of CBF General Assembly, I was surprised to be asking myself, “Am I wearing too many rainbows?””…
Why I’m investing my inheritance in women in ministry
By Carol McEntyre
“Eleven years ago, when I became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., my cousin wrote on my Facebook page, “You have shamed our family.” I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction. After all, my extended family was deeply engaged in conservative Baptist life in Tennessee. My paternal grandfather, Bransford England, was a bivocational pastor in churches of that persuasion for 50 years.”…
The cost of being comfortable is too high
By Felicia Caid Smith
““Men are the primary theologians in their family.” The words sent a jolt through my brain, and my back straightened as I stared up at the guest preacher behind the podium. I scanned the room. Heads were nodding in agreement, both male and female, as the preacher continued his sermon. He declared a husband is the primary theologian for his wife and a father is the primary theologian for his children.”…
The Southern Baptist Convention is wrong
By Meredith Stone
“Baptist Women in Ministry is grieved by the actions of the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. Today, the vote was announced in which the SBC upheld its Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., where Linda Barnes Popham serves as pastor, and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., for appointing women to serve in pastoral roles.”…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
By Rosaly Guzman
“For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently sped up the deportation process. Journalists, politicians and community leaders passionately debated the merits and drawbacks of terminating this law.”…
It’s time to ditch the drive-by Communion and linger a while
By Laura Ellis
“Churches should win awards for their innovation during COVID, as they created new ways to be church together while apart. Pastors responded to the needs of the community in a time when caring for community meant being separated from one another.”…
Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership
By Brittany Stillwell
“My first encounter with Baptist Women in Ministry’s Month of Preaching was during my first year of seminary. I was asked to preach in a local congregation — my second sermon ever.”…
How I realized I had been shaped by patriarchal views of pastors
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“When I read Victoria Robb Powers’ story describing the confusion she felt when she encountered a Baptist female senior pastor for the first time, I recalled two similarly disorienting experiences. One incident was completely understandable, in light of my Southern Baptist upbringing; the other was deeply embarrassing and less comprehensible to me. Let’s begin with the embarrassing story, shall we?”…
An invisible wall: How to support your pastor through mental health challenges
By Amy Brundle
“I’ll never forget walking into my annual staff evaluation meeting and encountering a roomful of awkward looks. The head of our church’s personnel committee started the meeting off with, ‘So, do you feel that your … um … anxiety issues have limited your competence in your ministry role?'”…
This Galentine’s Day, make new friends but keep the old ones
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“In February 2010, the writers of Parks and Recreation introduced a new holiday to American pop culture: Galentine’s Day.”…
TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest
By Laura Ellis
“We’re a month into 2023, and you know what that means. People are starting to abandon their new year’s resolutions.”…
Mary, Our Mother (For Baptists): Blessed is she
By Julia Goldie Day
“One of my children asked me the other day, ‘What’s the big deal about access to birth control?’ My answer was, ‘If your mother had not had access to birth control, you would have many more brothers and sisters and I never would have been able to work, go to seminary or follow my calling in ministry.’”…
Mary, Our Mother (for Baptists): I don’t think that word means what you think it means
By Julia Goldie Day
“I, like many of you, was in at least one Christmas pageant as a child growing up in the Baptist church. Sadly, I can distinctly remember I was not chosen to play the Virgin Mary. I was an angel.”…
Mary, our mother (for Baptists): There’s something about Mary
By Julia Goldie Day
“There’s something about Mary, the mother of Jesus, that Baptists don’t quite know what to do with. I’ve noticed we tend to avoid Mary.”
What I’ve learned from Evolving Faith
By Tambi Brown Swiney
“October always has been my favorite month of the year. I celebrate my wedding anniversary and my only child’s birthday in this memory-filled month.”…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse.”…
Keep your Bible where is belongs
By Julia Goldie Day
“When I took my first Bible class in college, I was required to memorize the books of the Bible. A lot of people in my class found that exercise of writing out the books of the Bible from memory in list form very difficult. The spelling of the Old Testament books was especially difficult. But it wasn’t difficult for this Baptist. I can still easily recite all 66 books in order, with a little refresher on the minor prophets.”…
Jesus would turn over tables in this Crisis Pregnancy Center
By Julia Goldie Day
“During my first stint in seminary, I visited a Crisis Pregnancy Center to write a paper for a class on health and spirituality.”…
What absurdism and a parody conspiracy theory tell us about why Gen Z is sleeping in on Sundays
By Laura Ellis
“Gen Z has the lowest church attendance of any generation and is frequently dubbed as the least religious generation. In a time when churches are struggling to fill their pews, Gen Z is sleeping in on Sunday mornings.”…
Travel as a theological practice
By Savannah Green
“Three countries. Four trips. Twelve flights. And more hours in vehicles than I can count (seriously, I tried on my phone calculator and gave up). This summer has been filled with my favorite pastime: traveling.”…
When love does not conquer all
By Geneece Goertzen-Morrison
“As a teen, I dreamed of marrying someone who would be my best friend and confidante. I dreamed of someone who would make me laugh and share my joy. I dreamed of lifelong companionship, shared goals and happily ever after. I thought if I brought my best self into the relationship and continued to work on self-improvement and personal growth, any marriage would succeed.”…
To whom are you listening
By Evelyn Webster Ofong
“The world is aware of the ongoing Congressional hearings about Jan. 6, 2021. As Christ-followers, we must be among those who watch (and pray). We cannot afford not to pay attention to what is being said and ask challenging questions to determine the facts for ourselves.?…
The equality of all people is indeed inalienable
By Stephanie Nash
“The recent Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade has reminded us that the state of women in our country is more disturbing than we might at first want to think.”…
In response to Uvalde, the church can learn from the murder of George Floyd
By Laura Ellis
May 25 was the two-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. It’s a date that can easily slip our minds, especially with the more recent stories of horror that have captivated our attention…
Sadly, I agree that a complementarian seminary shouldn’t offer women degrees in pastoral theology
By Anna Sieges
Twitter was abuzz last week when Scott Aniol took to the platform to dump cold water on a woman who was celebrating her pastoral ministry degrees…
Here’s how to make Mother’s Day more honest at church
By Andrea Huffman
As I sat around a table with a group of women, all of whom were either clergy or clergy wives, we began discussing the difficulties of creating a life around ministry. We all had different stories, different moments in our vocational lives that stuck out to us as beautiful or terrible or annoying. As we swapped stories, we discovered one moment every single one of us agreed upon — one Sunday that elicited a moan and an eyeroll from the entire group of women. That day was Mother’s Day….
The Oscars slap and the scapegoating of women
By Jennifer Garcia Bashaw
For the last week, the now infamous Oscars slap has reverberated throughout our lives, providing endless fodder for late-night shows, Twitter feeds, podcasts and memes (so many memes!). No demographic has escaped the sensational story — my elementary school son has heard the jokes, my college students have their own hot takes, and even older folks on Facebook who had no idea who Chris Rock or Will Smith were — have given their social commentary. Everybody has something to say about it…
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience at the Senate felt a lot like being a Baptist woman in ministry
By Brianna Childs
“She has a vast practical experience, something that I think is a real plus. I will vote no.”…
Where I found acceptance as a woman, others now find rejection
By Madison Boboltz
I was sitting at a table on the first floor of the library at Hardin-Simmons University when a fellow classmate from Logsdon School of Theology approached me with a smile. He sat down across from me and slid the rough draft of his paper over for me to review. I worked in the Writing Center and regularly tutored students who needed help with theology papers…
We don’t talk about periods, no no
By Anna Sieges
Disney made a movie about menstruation and — surprise, surprise — American evangelicals got upset. The movie, Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (a Chinese Canadian filmmaker), is the first full-length Pixar film to be directed by a woman. Let that sink in….