A Great Time in History to be a Woman in the Church

By Carol L. Doyel –

We had a wonderful event this week at CBS Studios, the Connections Event for CWIMA West Coast/Hollywood of which I serve as the Regional Director. The purpose of our event is to bring Christian women in media together to inspire, equip, and encourage them. It seems we always have a slightly different message and dynamic depending on the group and speakers. We typically have a panel discussion and a keynote speaker as well as table discussions. 

We talked about a number of things but the main topic that we landed on was, what makes us unique as women, and how has God used us as women in media.

Photo: Christine Caine

The panel discussion, led by Karen Covell of the Hollywood Prayer Network, included some interesting questions that I think the panel members, Brenda Epperson, Nan McNamara and Norine Rae, took extra time to think about and respond to. The questions consisted of what do they like about being a woman, how has God used them as women – including sharing a story about a time when God specifically used them or they had favor as a woman.

I think the audience’s reaction was somewhat similar to the panel members, at least it was for me and from what I could see from the expressions, we had to stop and really ponder the questions. Hum, what does make me unique as a woman? How has God specifically used me as a woman or given me favor because I’m a woman? Now I don’t want to come across as a feminist, because I do believe that as a woman I experience both unique opportunities and favor at times, but I have to admit and I think most of us would agree that as women we are limited in our roles as women in the church.

I believe Karen’s heart for the panel discussion was to emphasis the positive aspects of being a woman, particularly a Christian woman in media. I believe Karen wanted us to begin to think about and have conversations about the positive aspects of being a woman and to celebrate those things versus the limitations that we often experience in the church. To focus on the advancements we’ve made as women and the favor we receive as women. It was a discussion that we had not had before, which led me to think more about it following the event.

Personally, as a woman I have enjoyed my role as a woman, wife, and mother and I thank God that I am a woman. There are many qualities of a woman that make us unique, because we are physiologically and psychologically different from men. One of the women on the panel shared that the fact that we can multi-task gives us the ability to juggle many things at the same time. Another shared a funny story of when she was in the military many years ago as the only woman on a mission with 300 men, and how if something needed to get done the men would come to her because of her strong administrative skills and ability to negotiate with their superiors – and she said she never slept with one person to get what she wanted.

I believe as a woman, this may be possibly the best time in history to be a woman. When we look around at what women are doing and accomplishing, we have many reasons to celebrate. Women represent 57% of students in postsecondary education are women, we are seeing increasing numbers of women graduating from seminary, nearly 37% of all new entrepreneurs in the United States in 2014 were women according to The Kauffman Index – Start-Up Activity 2015, and although women still earn approximately 79% compared to what men are paid – but if we compare that to the 49% in 1974, we are heading in the right direction.

What excites me more as a woman in ministry is our advancement in the church in America and around the world and the fact that more women are becoming involved in ministry, and leading or heading up large thriving organizations that are serving millions of people around the world. I know of one woman who converted from Islam to Christianity and started a small satellite show that is now reaching millions of Muslim women. God used her mightily – one woman, in a role that could not have been filled by a man.

In an article about Christine Caine in RelevantMagazine.com titled “How Christine Caine Is Becoming the Face of a Movement” it stated that:

“As a speaker, Caine exists in a unique space. She’s an Australian woman leading within the male-dominated American evangelical sphere. She’s gaining an audience in schools, churches and arenas where her predecessors never stood. And she reaches streams of the Church like no other female leader before her.”

In addition the article adds that, “she may just be one of the most important leaders in the evangelical landscape right now.”

Below is a link where you can preview an excerpt of a message given by Christine Caine at Bethel Church in Redding CA, on Sunday Sept. 1, 2015 titled, “The Broken Pieces Between the Miracles”:

http://www.bethel.tv/watch/3759/the-broken-pieces-between-the-miracles-sunday-am1/2015/08/09

As a Christian we know that in ministry or a “movement” that there are those who came before us that led the way and who in many cases made huge sacrifices. We are standing on the shoulders of our forefathers, or in the case of women, our foremothers of our faith who came before us, laying a foundation of which we can now stand on.

There are many women of faith who have done great things that opened doors to new opportunities for women in ministry. Women like the founder of the Foursquare Church, Aimee Semple McPherson, or the great preacher Catherine Booth who along with her husband William founded the Salvation Army.

And of course, the many contemporary women of today who are spreading the Gospel and who head up large ministries like Joyce Meyers, Beth Moore, Bernice King – daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., and of course Ann Graham-Lotz – who was shunned by a room full of pastors when she took the stage to speak at a pastor’s convention in 2008 – you can read an article she wrote for LivingBetter50.com titled, Evangelical Feminism. I could go on about the many amazing women in ministry, but I know we still have a long way to go for equality in the church.

However, I believe we are coming into a season where women will experience greater opportunities in and out of the church and in leading powerful ministries all over the world – I firmly believe that as women, as God created us, we will experience and see all that God has ordained for us if we are willing to accept and step into the role and calling that God has for each one of us. We each have a part to do, whether it’s in the home, in our community, in corporate America, or in the Church – and if we are seeking, listening and obeying God we will see the fulfillment of our role as women in the Kingdom of God.

Carol Doyel is Editor-in-Chief and Founder of LivingBetter50.com. She is a graduate of The Full Gospel Bible Institute and has a passion for women’s ministries, issues and lives. She and her husband of 26+ years have three grown kids and four grandchildren. They currently reside in southern CA. Her desire is to inspire women to live better physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually.