Last week a few of us attended the (annual) Leadership Summit via live satellite at LCC in Greece. I was very inspired as always.
I notice something this year though that was different than all the years I've been attending.
The Conference really spoke to women! In all the years I've been attending, it's the first time I felt truly appreciated, accepted & encouraged as a woman leader! Praise God, it felt sooo good!
Yeah Bill Hybels! I am so proud of you for taking this stand as I know it is not without cost! I'm sure the critics are beating down your door.
A few months ago, I got to sit and talk with one of Bill Hybels personal friends (nickname Super Dave). I asked him if he'd give Bill a message for me and he said SURE! My message was a simple "THANK YOU!" from a female church planter in upstate NY.
The reason was for something very courageous he did last winter at the national church planters conference held in Florida. I wasn't there, but I heard about it. Mark Driscoll made a movie for church planters that was very disrespectful to women church planters. In the movie, he spoke only to men & as far as I'm concerned, acted like women church planters & pastors were non-existant.
One of the worst things any of us can do to another human being is simply to not acknowledge their existance. Have you ever experienced this? Been completely ignored to the point of complete disrespect & rudeness? This is what so many male pastors do to women & female pastors. To not even be acknowledged is one of the most disrespectful things any of us can ever experience.
I've experienced this a lot since I became a pastor. I attended a conference once in the Fingerlakes & the speaker kept addressing the audience as 'men.' He'd say, men, stand up. Men, sit down. Men, praise God. Men, let's pray! It was an awful feeling since there were so many women in the room! We had to sit at tables of 8 & almost all the men at the table completely ignored me & were not even close to being polite.
What kind of Christian acts this way? Christ would NEVER act that way! He showed such incredible respect for women--even breaking all the 'rules' to talk to them & show them loving respect. Sometimes I wonder what Bible these guys are reading??? What Jesus are they following???
As I looked around at the conference, I wondered if I should just leave. Then God sent someone to my rescue. Seated late, but right next to me was Pastor Steve Harling. Steve was the previous senior pastor of Browncroft Community Church. What an awesome man of God! Steve's son & mine had been on the same soccer team at one time.
Steve clearly saw the rude message being sent to the women who were there & I could tell he was embarassed as a man! He kept apologizing to me & I could see how much it bothered him! Praise be to God, here was a real, Spirit-led man! There's hope after all! :-)
I love Rick Warren & am very sold out on being a purpose driven church. But there is one thing I don't agree / don't like about Rick Warren: He doesn't believe in women leaders / pastors in the church. This grieves me! Our church has been a purpose driven church since it began. For years, Rick Warren & Saddleback Church handed out 'church health awards' and every year I'd watch male after male go up & receive their award. Not a woman in sight!
Yet, Rick Warren would so proudly proclaim that the Purpose Driven Church Philosophy worked regardless of denomination, style of worship, country, black or white or whatever. But what He doesn't get is that it also works despite what gender the senior pastor is!!!
I do the same exact work in church planting & being a senior pastor as any male. The work is exactly the SAME!!! The work-load is the same! The Gospel message is the same! We serve the same God. And truth be told, the RESULTS are the same! People hear the gospel message & they repond to Christ & receive eternal life! We've baptized over 40 people since this church began!
It matters not whether the senior pastor is male nor female. Women Pastors are just servants to the Living God the same as men. It's the work of God that's important. It's the results for the Kingdom of God that is important. Gender is not important. The servant is not all that important. Paul said it matters not........why don't people get that?
Galations 3:27 -28
And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have been made like him. 28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians you are one in Christ Jesus.
Colossians 3:11In this new life, it doesn't matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
Christ is all that matters INDEED! And Christ LIVES in this female pastor!!! Halleluiah!
Bill Hybels gets it. Thank you Bill! I encourage you to take an even greater stand for women & perhaps that will be your greatest contribution to the world ever! Perhaps that is meant to be your greatest legacy! Oh yeah, you will be criticized for it. Oh yeah, you will suffer for taking such a stand. But maybe, just maybe, this is what God has called you to do more than anything else!
Imagine what would happen to this country if the women would FINALLY begin to RISE UP & take their place in the Kingdom of God!!! We'd double the army of God! More and more people would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ! Eternity would be changed FOREVER!
Rise up women! Rise up daughters of the King! Take your place & become a true history maker for the One True God for all eternity!
One with you in Christ Jesus,
Pastor Lin
www.ChristDrivenWomen.com