Standing Strong … Together
Verse: “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” (Hebrews 13:7)
I firmly believe in Titus 2:3-5, which says that the work, or calling, of older women within the church (and, at 75, I am one!) is to teach younger women what a Christ-loving wife and mother looks like. And so, several years ago I began praying for an ongoing women’s mentoring ministry especially suited for the women of Burnt Hickory.
It turns out there were at least two other women praying the same prayer – CJ Crenshaw and Hazel Osborne. Talk about God’s perfect timing! Two years ago, we formed a mentoring leadership team with several other women with similar hearts and began praying and working together. We spent a year planning, reading books, studying other mentoring programs in other churches, and praying about the right combination for our church and for our women.
Our time together as a team was amazing. I had served on other planning committees and always been annoyed and disappointed by the time lost to differences, disagreements, and seemingly endless petty discussions. This experience has been so different - a delightful blessing! God’s Holy Spirit has so permeated our meetings that we have all remarked at the unity of the group - though we are of differing backgrounds, ages and experiences. It has truly been a joy to watch the relationship-building effects of Acts 1:14, when “all with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer.”
The fruits of our labor and God’s direction resulted in the Standing Strong Women’s Mentoring Ministry. We are now approaching the end of our first year-long mentoring program. What a great year it has been. I have continued to serve on the leadership team and have been blessed by the bonds of friendship we have formed. I have also served this year as the facilitator of one of our mentoring groups – The Real 6. We chose that name because our group of six had a desire to be open, honest and yes, real, with each other. What FUN, sweet, sometimes tearful, precious times we have shared.
We love that we vary in ages from 29 to 75; this gives us fresh perspectives on our individual situations. We share wisdom – and sometimes we share ignorance; after all, we are all on our first journey as Christ-loving women! We have definitely found 2 Corinthians 1:4 to be true: “God comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others with His comfort.”
We love Standing Strong and want others to love it, too. Applications for next year’s mentoring program are now available in the media center and on the church website, and are due by noon on Tuesday, October 1.
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to reach out and ask. Click here to email me directly stop by the media center to talk to some of our facilitators and group participants any Sunday in September before or after services, we would love to chat!
God bless!
Ginger Anderson
Interested in becoming a Women’s Ministry blog contributor? Contact Jenn Dennard ( ) for details.
Interested in joining the Women’s Ministry team? Visit our Teams page to discover our various committees and which one might be the best fit for you.
In need of prayer or a fellow woman in Christ to chat with? The Women’s Ministry team would love to be there for you. Email Kim Edde ( ) to connect with one of our team members.
Connect with the Women's Ministry via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/bhbcsistersoftheheart).