Women's MinistriesFall 2008 E-Network Newsletter An "Awful Mess of Preaching"I grew up in southeastern Kentucky at a beautiful place called the Red Bird Mission. The closest electricity pole was 30-some miles away--on the other side of the mountain. The area was pretty primitive. The people who had settled this area were of Scottish descent, and because of their remote location, little had changed in their world over the past 150 years. As my parents often explained, it was like going back in time. My dad was the agricultural missionary for the Red Bird Mission, but he was also assigned to lead the ministry of the Bear Creek church. The small congregation met in the schoolhouse, which was a building with no electricity or running water. A potbellied stove provided heat in the winter. The creek ran nearby and had a wonderful swimming hole; it would be perfect for baptizing new believers, something that happened in the mountains when a preacher delivered an especially strong sermon. After his first sermon, Dad didn't think that he'd gotten off to the best start. Two mountain men came to him after his first try at leading the services. They said, "Little preacher, that was an awful mess of preaching this morning." My father was heartbroken--an "awful mess," and he had worked so hard at writing a wonderful sermon. So the next week he really put his heart into creating what he thought was the best sermon he had ever written, and he delivered it with conviction! But after the service, out there by the creek, three mountain men said the same thing to him: "Little preacher, that was an awful mess of preaching." On Monday morning, Dad went to the mission director's office and explained that he simply wasn't cut out to be the preacher of the Bear Creek church. They thought his preaching was terrible! The director asked my father why he thought that. When Dad told him what the men were saying, the director started to smile, and then laugh, and then--to my dad's amazement--really started to laugh, a tears-running-down-your-cheeks kind of laugh. You see, the people of the mountains still retained some of the language they brought over with them from Scotland. So "awful" is the combination of "awe" and "full." And a "mess" is a banquet! These mountain men thought Dad's sermons were an awesome banquet--Dad had misinterpreted their language. How often do we misinterpret what someone is doing or saying because we view the situation or the words through our own lens? This September I attended a meeting where, in a matter of moments, two opposing views on the ordination of women were presented. Both speakers were adamant in their positions. Sadly, the real losers in the conversation will be the women of their churches, women who need spiritual nurture and encouragement. Women, whether or not they are ordained as elders and deacons, need to lead in the areas to which God has called them, in their congregations and beyond. According to RCA polity, a church isn't required to ordain women. However, I believe we do have a responsibility to offer the spiritual nurture that is necessary to building strong disciples for Christ, women who can follow our Savior with confidence in any context where God places them. Many believe the ordination of women is no longer an issue in the RCA. After all, it's been 30 years and we have a female president of General Synod this year. But that is not the case in many churches. We would be very wrong and ungracious if either side of this discussion was closed to the concerns and opinions of the other. We are the women of the church--let's take the lead on these difficult questions and listen with our hearts and our minds, remembering that our voice can be one of unity as we agree to disagree. Together we can build the awe-filled banquet to which Christ calls us for the generations to come. Mary Clark, coordinator of RCA women's ministries Regional Coordinator: Synod of the Mid-Atlantics We are very glad to bring you the news that Kirsten Shepler-Ross has begun her work as the regional coordinator of women's ministries for the Synod of the Mid-Atlantics. She brings to us her international experience in ministry and passion for Christ's church. As you read Kirsten's words, please remember to commit her to your prayers. We pray for her to help keep us connected in holy community through the fellowship of the Spirit. Words from Kirsten Shepler-RossMy name is Kirsten Shepler-Ross. I am the daughter of RCA missionaries and spent my formative years in Caracas, Venezuela. After graduation from high school I served as a short-term RCA missionary in Latin America, Europe, and Canada. I graduated from Cook College and Theological School in Tempe, Arizona, and received my M.Div. from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. For the past year I have served as student pastor at Trinity Reformed Church in Old Tappan, New Jersey. When God first began to lead me into ministry, it was not a mountaintop experience, complete with the booming voice of God; rather, it was through influential persons who affirmed me in this new "call"--the Western Seminary professor who allowed an 11-year-old to attend a Children and Worship training event, the youth counselor from Project Timothy who recognized my gifts for ministry, the director of volunteer missions who urged me to get more training for ministry, the term papers at Cook College that I received back with "Go to seminary!" written in red, and the supervising pastors who affirmed my gifts during my internship. I received so much from my family, my church, my countries--both host and home--and my God that I have a longing to give back. It is not necessarily a life I would have chosen; God chose me and therefore I serve. My husband, Keith, and I have been married for eight years and are the proud parents of our two-year-old son, Kai Phoenix. I like to laugh and play my piano too loudly; I put a great deal of my life energy into silly times with children; I am still crossing cultural, generational, and faith boundaries on my journey; and every day I thank God for picking me to do the most wonderful thing in the world--ministry to and with God's people. Blessing BoxesThis is a critical time in the lives of women living in North America. The percentage of women who attend church is declining, and yet women continue to be the parent that provides spiritual nurture for future generations; women are more inclined to attend church, participate in a Bible study, and pray. Women have been the fuel that kept many of our congregations running. But for some, the tank is becoming empty. Your commitment to help fund a regional women's ministry coordinator through our Blessing Box offering will make a difference by providing fresh ideas and resources to keep women of faith spiritually healthy and equipped to serve. A regional coordinator will also encourage women to think beyond their community of faith to offer the gospel of Jesus Christ to women and girls seeking spiritual answers in this complicated world in which we live. Your regional synod has a vision and mission. The Reformed Church in America has a vision and mission. Thank you for joining us in making those missions and visions a part of your life. In the past, we've instructed you to send your offering to the address listed on the bottom of your Blessing Box. Now we would like you to send your offerings to: Reformed Church in America, P.O. Box 19381, Newark, NJ 07195-1938. In Canada, send donations to Regional Synod of Canada--RCA, 201 Paradise Road N., Hamilton, ON L8S 3T3. Please remember to put a note on the memo line telling us that your offering is for the Blessing Boxes. Thank you! Devotion and Meditation...in a Nail Salon?A while ago, I was invited to a girl's night out with women from work. The plan was to meet at a salon, then go to the Applebee's across the road for dinner. Not being the salon type, I went with the expectations of just having my fingernails done. It turned out that, while some women did have their fingernails done, others opted for pedicures or even short massages. The best part of the outing was that we got to talk to each other as we compared notes about what we were having done, as we made our way through the stations, and as we waited for people to finish up. In the end, we had a really nice time together. A few weeks ago, one of the lectionary verses was Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." The nail salon popped into my head. I started thinking that if salons are where women are going for rest and relaxation these days, maybe that's where we should be holding short devotions, Bible studies, or possibly prayer groups that would refresh their spirits as well as their bodies. I'm not suggesting that we open "Christian nail salons" or interfere with a salon's day-to-day business. It could be as simple as moving the meeting spot of a Bible study to where the people are, hopefully engaging others along the way. Kathleen Barker, women's ministries advisory team Sister Share: A Message from Stuart ClarkThis summer Mary and I were in Holland, Michigan, where I was finishing my book on ethics. It was a time of sabbatical, and I realized that I was back where she and I had brought all of our children into the world. It was a place of deep relationships and a city full of old friends. My birthday was coming up, so we decided to have a big barbeque in the back yard and invite as many old friends as we could find to come and celebrate with us. As we were thinking about it, one of the foremost thoughts in my mind was that I wanted to have fun while also doing something meaningful with the celebration. Did I need presents, knowing that my closets were full, the boat was on the trailer, and I had one more car than Mary and I could drive if each of us reached for car keys? We didn't want something for ourselves from the celebration. It would be much better if we could benefit others through a gathering of our friends.  So we sent out an invitation that said, first, that no one was allowed to bring any presents for me or any garden-variety, sappy birthday cards. Everyone was to bring the funniest card they could find. It had to bring tears to your eyes while you were laughing. The second part was that we were going to bless families who live below the lowest rung of the caste system in India. RCA Women's Ministries, along with Global Mission, had recently started a program called Sister Share. This program sponsors five different projects through which women can help support their sisters around the world. I chose the Indian project because a $125 sewing machine and the training to use it would provide the means for one Indian woman to support her entire family, helping to free them from the oppressive and crushing weight of the caste system. Through a $125 machine, one woman can receive the keys to freedom for her entire family. So 53 friends came to celebrate my birthday; along the way, we helped liberate eight families from a squalid life in an oppressive society. I didn't need another shirt, or a tie, or, quite frankly, anything else for my personal life. I did need to make a step in my life that made a difference in the world! Please take the time to think out your next birthday. What do you really need? Wouldn't you feel wonderful if you had a part in making a lasting impact on the least advantaged? Plan a party. Invite your friends. Look up Sister Share under the Women's Ministries section of the RCA website, www.rca.org/women. Choose a project that touches your heart and invite your friends to come share in the joy of a celebration that has a real impact. I don't know what sorts of presents my friends might have brought, but I do know that they would not have made the same impression as knowing that eight families are now living in a new world, made possible for them because some of us had a celebration that set them free! Happy birthday! Stuart Clark If you are interested in a Sister Share Bulletin Board packet, please contact the women's ministry office at (800) 722-9977, ext. 3233, or tbyrnes@rca.org. The packets include a CD with files of the different Sister Share logos, a full-color poster, and a set of Sister Share flyers. A Word on Prayer"Prayer is not eloquence, but earnestness;
Not the definition of helplessness, but the feeling of it;
Not figures of speech, but earnestness of soul." --Hannah More "Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." --Philippians 4:6 To learn more about prayer in the RCA, visit the RCA website's prayer area. Bible Study: Jubilee! Luke's Gospel for the PoorIt is now the fall; has your circle chosen a Bible study yet? Let us make a suggestion. As Dale Lindsay Morgan explains in the introduction to her book Jubilee! Luke's Gospel for the Poor: The word jubilee is from the Hebrew yobel, meaning ram's horn or trumpet blown at the beginning of the fiftieth year as slaves and debtors were released from bondage and debt...In Luke's Gospel...jubilee came to describe the beginning of the Messianic Age, the "year of the Lord's favor" (4:19), the time when the Messiah would come and turn the world upside down.
This nine-lesson study focuses on how Jesus did just that--turned the world upside down, first by simply following in the tradition of the Hebrew prophets, then by going beyond that role and proving himself to be the anointed one of God, the Messiah. Morgan points out that a central theme in Luke's gospel is the exaltation of the poor, the forgiveness of sin and debt, the inclusion of the outcast and outsider, and the reconciliation of people to God and to each other. Within the framework of Luke's narrative, Morgan offers wonderful insights into the time in which Jesus lived, giving new meaning to things which often seem culturally remote to us. The study includes a thorough introduction, a guide for group leadership, and suggestions for mission and outreach. Please consider using Jubilee! Luke's Gospel for the Poor, by Dale Lindsay Morgan, in your fall Bible study this year. You can order the study through Faith Alive Christian Resources, (800) 333-8300. Church HeraldDid you know that 71 percent of Church Herald readers are women? Your continued support--through readership, story suggestions, financial contributions, and prayer--is vital to the continuation of this print ministry of the Reformed Church. Encourage your whole church to subscribe, or subscribe as an individual. Information is available on the Church Herald's website, herald.rca.org, or by contacting the magazine's staff at (616) 698-7071.
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