Life as a Christian Woman

Obedient women are never remembered in history.
Seen on a Bumper Sticker

I saw this bumper sticker on a car, and my mind raced. Imagine what a surprise this statement would be to such obedient women as the Virgin Mary, Ruth, Naomi, Esther, Elisabeth (mother of John the Baptist), Miriam, on and on. These women were both obedient and are revered to this day.

The assumption is that an obedient woman has no mind of her own, cannot think or choose. She is obedient because she doesn’t think, doesn’t care to think, never will think. The assumption is also that an obedient woman cannot lead. Nothing could be further from truth.

Let’s look at Queen Esther. She was obedient to God, which meant bucking the rules and appearing, unbidden, in front of her husband, the king. She interceded for her people, the Jews, and not only saved them. She was instrumental in changing the law, allowing Jews to defend themselves against their enemies.

I’d call that unforgettable!

Do you need a more “modern-day” example? How about Beth Moore, the ubiquitous Christian women’s writer. Remember the story of her experience at the Knoxville airport, when God told her to brush a man’s hair? (click here to read). This woman has been obedient to our God, going where He told her to go, and writing the words that He has laid on her heart. Her books and teachings have brought thousands of women to the Father, and millions more into closer communion with Him. Because of her obedience, God has used her to further His kingdom.

Finally, what about female missionaries, located around the world, including in Muslim countries. These women follow our Lord, bowing before Him and leaving the comfort of their lives to enter into danger, all in the name of obedience. Yet, while their names may not be known worldwide, their actions will be remembered by the ones that they lead to the Lord, souls that would have been lost had they not been obedient to His call. And their names are written upon His heart for eternity.

We should all be so forgettable!

One week ago Sarah Palin was introduced as John McCain’s running mate, much to the surprise of everyone. But that was only the beginning.

It was announced yesterday that Palin’s 17-year-old unmarried daughter, Bristol, is pregnant. She is keeping the baby, and will be marrying the father sometime in the future.

Added to this family scenario is five-month-old son, Trig, who has Down’s Syndrome.

You could see the journalists and political pundits salivating at the stories being laid at their feet. But here is the real story:

Sarah Palin and her husband, Todd, chose to have their son, despite being informed of his condition in utero. They could have taken chosen an easier path, but knew that their son was a gift from God, just like their other four children. According to various studies in the late 1990’s, more than 80% of prenatal diagnoses of Down Syndrome end in abortion.

But the Palins, staunchly pro-life, never considered the alternative. On April 18, 6-pound, 2-ounce son Trig Paxson Van Palin was born.

“We’ve both been very vocal about being pro-life,” Palin told the Associated Press, speaking of herself and her husband, Todd. “We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential.”

The day after the birth, the Palins released the following statement: “Trig is beautiful and already adored by us. We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives. We have faith that every baby is created for good purpose and has potential to make this world a better place. We are truly blessed.”

Now, they are face the world with a pregnant teenager. Yet their answer to all of the questions is the same. Every baby is a gift from God. Yes, there will be challenges and we wouldn’t have chosen this road for our daughter. But these are our facts, we love our daughter and we will love and support her through this.

Conservatives have come out in full force, commending the family for “talking the talk and walking the walk.” No less than James Dobson of Focus on the Family has backed the Governor from Alaska. While Dobson is a proponent of mothers staying at home with their children, he has welcomed Palin’s candidacy and wholeheartedly endorsed her reaction to her daughter’s pregnancy.

“The media are already trying to spin this as evidence Gov. Palin is a ‘hypocrite,’ but all it really means is that she and her family are human,” Mr. Dobson said.

I don’t know where I stand on her candidacy, and that is not the discussion I am trying to start. I do wonder if any of this would even be an issue if a man was the candidate and the same issues were in his family. Sometimes it seems like women are expected to toe two different lines in today’s world. Supermom/wife and captain of industry.

For better or for worse, a dialogue has been opened regarding these issues. Our local tv station was on campus today interviewing female college freshmen for their opinions on the Palin family situation. My own step-daughter was interviewed, although I won’t know what she said until I watch the news at 11.

Take this opportunity to talk to your kids. Keep communication open on all fronts.

Sweet, Sweet Spirit
Words and Music by Doris Akers

There’s a sweet, sweet spirit in this place,
And I know that it’s the Spirit of the Lord.
There are sweet expressions on each face,
And I know that it’s the presence of the Lord.

Sweet Holy Spirit, sweet Heav’nly Dove.
Stay right here with us, filling us with your love.
And for these blessings, we lift our hearts in praise.
Without a doubt we’ll know that we have been revived,
When we shall leave this place.

When I was young, we ended every service at my church with this song. Growing up, it never really meant much to me, other than it was time to go to lunch!

But this past year we sang it at the church I now attend, and the words have stayed with me and given me reason to stop, to pause and reflect on their meaning.

The song is a celebration of the Holy Spirit and it’s role in our lives. The opening verse is a reflection of this emotion of gratefulness and praise that the Spirit is within us and among us. There is a spirit here, the song says, and we know it is the Spirit of the Lord, that He is in our presence. We look around at our friends, our brothers and sisters in Christ. We see in them the presence of our Lord.

How wonderful a sentiment!

As the song moves into the chorus, the words implore the Holy Spirit to stay, to fill us up in love. But the song doesn’t stop there. It goes on in thankfulness and praise, knowing the Holy Spirit will remain, and in response we “lift our hearts in praise.” And finally, the blessed assurance that through God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, when we leave we will know that we have been revived, restored to life through Christ.

Doris Akers (pictured above), the writer of Sweet, Sweet Spirit, as well as Sweet Jesus, I Cannot Fail the Lord, and other songs, was born in 1923, and began praising God in music almost from birth. In 1958, she co-wrote “Lord, Don’t Move the Mountain” with the legendary Mahalia Jackson, her close friend. The song won a Manna Award for more than one million copies sold.

That same year, Akers, who was African-American, began the Sky Pilot Choir. The racially-mixed group featured African-American gospel music, and was known world-wide for their style. It was with this group that the song Sweet, Sweet Spirit was born.

As she told Lindsay Terry in an interview in the late 1980’s:

She related to me that one Sunday morning in 1962, while directing the Sky Pilot Choir, she said to her singers, “You are not ready to go in.” She didn’t believe they had prayed enough! They were accustomed to spending time with her in prayer before the service, asking God to bless their songs. She said, “I feel that prayer is more important than great voices.” They had already prayed, but this particular morning she asked them to pray again, and they did so with renewed fervor.

As they prayed, Doris began to wonder how she could stop this wonderful prayer meeting. She said, “I sent word to the pastor letting him know what was happening. He was waiting in the auditorium, wanting to start the service. Finally, I was compelled to say to the choir, ‘We have to go. I hate to leave this room and I know you hate to leave, but you know we do have to go to the service. But there is such a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place.’”

Doris explained to me, “Songwriters always have their ears open to a song. The song started ‘singing’ to me. I wanted to write it down but couldn’t. I thought the song would be gone after the service. Following the dismissal, I went home. The next morning, to my surprise, I heard the song again, so I went to the piano and began to put it all down.” She had been given the now-famous “Sweet, Sweet Spirit.”

I find it inspirational to know that a song that has filled me and blessed me was born out of inspiration!

Akers’ songs have been recorded by many artists, including Bill Gaither, George Beverly Shea, and even Elvis Presley. Millions of church-goers have sung her songs. In 2001, she was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Akers, who died in 1995, was honored by the Smithsonian Institute, which labeled her songs and records “National Treasures.

But I’m quite sure that the award she now enjoys, that of eternal life singing in the greatest choir of all, is the one award that matters!

To listen & View Sweet Sweet Spirit on YouTube, click here.

Time for the Williams family to hit the road for one last trip before school starts. Today we head to visit my friend, Stefanie.

I met her Stef when she was a 17 year old high school senior trying out for the college cheerleading squad that I coached. But over the four years that she cheered for me, we clicked. Our relationship moved from coach/cheerleader to friendship.

After she graduated, Stefanie became my assistant coach. When I opened my own business, she was the first person I hired (I use the term loosely, since very little pay was involved). When I met Doug and moved from the area, she was the one person I missed the most.

We have been through some rough patches, but our friendship never faltered. Email became a lifeline for us. She was the person I knew I could rant and rave, or sob and cry to, and she would get it.

When we were both newlyweds and living about five hours apart, we would meet once a year to go to a Tennessee football game. Then kids came along. When my daughter was just a couple of months old, we loaded up and headed south so Emilee could meet her “Aunt” Stefanie. You see, my mother died while I was pregnant, and Stef and her family “adopted” me. Her mom (who is only three years older than I am!) sends my daughter cards and signs them “Grandma Doris.

Now Stef has two girls, and this trip will be a chance for them to get together and build what we hope will be a friendship that will grow over the years.

If you were to see the two of us walking down the street, you might not think we would be candidates for a strong friendship. You see, I am (ouch) 50 and Stef is 33. I’m white, she is African-American. But our friendship is priceless.

You see, friends are a special gift from God. Friendships are set apart from family, a fact that is acknowledged in scripture:

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity” Proverbs 17:17

Friendships must be maintained and nurtured, or they wither and die. Jesus valued his friends, he needed to lean on them just as we must at times lean on our friends. He also knew how to be a friend. He held his friends accountable, he laughed with them, he worried about them. I guess you could say that, in addition to everything else he did, Jesus set the standard for friendship, too.

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you”
John 15:13-15

I once heard a saying: There are three types of friends, 1) Friends for a season, 2) Friends for reason, and 3) Friends for a lifetime.

I am blessed with so many great friends (and you all know who you are!). Some have come into my life for a short time, others for longer periods. Some came, left, and came back again. But very few friends are with you for years. Life changes, we move on.

When I first met Stefanie, I had no idea that God was placing her in my life to help me through times I would never dream of. But He knew. In fact, long before either of us was born, He knew that our friendship would defy the odds and last for nearly two decades (and still going strong!).

I guess I am a little more sentimental than usual because I am watching my own daughter at the early stages of building friendships… she is learning how she must treat people, and how she wants to be treated. It is all trial and error. And every night when I say a prayer for her, I pray that God surrounds her with Godly friends who will be with her through the storms and parties that life brings.

And somewhere along the way, I hope she has a friend like Stefanie.

We adults can take the simplest things and make them into huge deals; mountains out of mole hills, as my mom used to say.

Look at weddings… what should be a happy union in front of family and friends becomes a stress-fest: what dress are you wearing, will the tuxes match (and fit!), how many are you inviting, what will you serve, what will the music be, traditional or more modern, etc., etc., etc.

Recently I got a lesson in keeping it simple from my daughter. This year at church, her age group has been studying missions and missionaries. I have enjoyed talking with her about it, because I remember (barely!) being her age and being in Mission Friends. I remember meeting missionaries, hearing their stories of exotic places, people and animals. It was all so National Geographic comes to Tennessee.

My daughter has been having the same experiences this year, although with a twist. The missionaries that she has met are members of our church who have given their lives in service to the Lord. She met two separate young couples, one couple serves in Niger, Africa, and the other couple in Southeast Asia. They tell the children stories of the people that they share the Lord’s love with, and the relationships they are building.

Then came the news…

One of our closest friends, a young woman I will call Karen (not her real name), was leaving to go overseas as a missionary. She would be serving in a country that does not welcome missionaries, where it is a crime to renounce the religion of the nation to become a Christian. A country where women are second-class citizens, yet she (and others like her) were called to talk to the hearts and minds of these people.

This didn’t come up suddenly. The entire process takes about two years (from application through training). But suddenly the day was here. Karen sat down with Emilee and explained she would be leaving and wouldn’t be able to see her for several years. She told her we could email and Skype (camera phones to talk to the other side of the world!), but there wouldn’t be any more playdates for awhile. And she told her why she was going, that God had called her into service.

There were a few tears, then the goodbyes.

That’s a lot for ad four year old to understand, isn’t it? Well, not really. It seems that Emi grasped the message quite well, thank you!

I was prepared for questions later that night; after all, when Karen had told me where she was going, I was filled with questions (is it safe, what will you take with you, how will you communicate with the native people, what will you wear, where will you live, is there a McDonalds nearby, etc.).

But Emi didn’t have any questions. I worried she was holding it all in (when was the last time a four year old held ANYTHING in?).

So I kept prodding her, gently, over the next day or two. Finally, I guess she got tired of me giving her the third degree. She turned to me, sighed, and in her very grown up four year old voice, said, “Mommy, it’s really very simple. God told Karen to go tell the people about Jesus, so they can go to heaven.”

Hmmm…I guess it really was pretty simple after all.

Shelby Kandle is a beautiful 16-year-old young woman. She has the same dreams a lot of teenage girls have of wanting to be fashion model or maybe becoming a teacher. She enjoys sports, photography, and playing the guitar. What makes Shelby special is that she also has a desire to help raise money to aid medical research. Shelby Kandle has Cystic Fibrosis, a disease for which there is no cure and the average lifespan is mid- to late-30’s.

Through the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Shelby has become a team leader in raising money for awareness and research, hoping a more effective treatment or even a cure can be discovered. Great Strides is an annual national fund-raising walk, and Shelby has organized her own team of walkers to help her meet a goal of raising $6,000.00.

This remarkable high school sophomore sometimes struggles with going to school, having to miss days or leave early because of severe stomach aches or pain in her lungs, in addition to her numerous surgeries and hospitalizations. Frequent trips to the restroom frustrate both Shelby and her teachers. She has also faced the emotional struggles of dealing with CF. Shelby said, “There have been many times when I have gotten really depressed because of my CF. I felt different from others and I was scared of dying at a young age. It was hard for me to help myself from feeing that way.”

Shelby’s faith and support from family and friends give her the strength to cope with the chronic problems of having CF and to try to make a difference for herself and others. “I used to not believe there was a God because I wondered why God would make some people go through the things they did,” said Shelby. But now, faith “gives me the strength to not give up. And it has made me think more positively about things. I find myself always trying to make myself a better person in some way.”

Shelby does have some advice for parents of chronically ill children. “It’s always nice to have a supportive parent. I think all parents should be understanding with what the child is going through. They should try to help the child feel better. And some parents might need to realize that when a child seems depressed, they usually really are depressed. I hate to think that some parents would just think the child is acting just to get attention.”

In a letter to the public featured on her Cystic Fibrosis Foundation webpage, Shelby explains about CF, its effects on young people, and how you can help.

Hey there! My name is Shelby Kandle. I am 16 years old and I am the daughter of Luanne Stone and Paul Kandle. I have struggled with a lung condition called Cystic Fibrosis (CF) ever since I was born! And now I feel like I need to really start fighting back before CF takes my life away from me.

Cystic Fibrosis is a devastating genetic disease that affects about 30,000 children and young adults in the United States and about 70,000 worldwide. A defective gene and its protein product cause the body to produce unusually thick, sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and leads to life-threatening lung infections, it obstructs the pancreas and stops natural enzymes from helping the body break down and absorb food, and the sticky mucus also clogs up the sinuses, making horrible sinus infections.

Not everyone has it as badly as someone else. Even though I have had 8 sinus surgeries, and I have been hospitalized many times for lung infections and coughing up pure blood, I am one of the lucky ones! There are kids as young as 10 that are waiting for lung transplants right now! The median age for CFers to live to is only 37 years old. The Cystic Fibrosis Foundations needs all the help they can get to help come up with advances in treatments and medicines. That’s why I am asking for your help and donations. Every dollar counts and too many young lives depend on this vital research to let it go unfunded!

This is my second year participating in a fund-raising event called Great Strides. It is the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s largest and most successful national fund-raising event. This year, I am walking in the Great Strides event in Dothan [Alabama] at the West Gate Park site on 05/17/2008. Please help me meet my fund-raising goal of $6,000 by sponsoring me.

Making a donation is easy and secure! Just click on the link below to make a donation to my fund-raising page where your donation will be credited to my team. Any amount you can donate is greatly appreciated! You’ll feel confident in knowing that your generous gift is used efficiently and effectively: nearly 90 cents out of every dollar you contribute goes directly toward supporting research and specialized care that improves the quality of life for those with CF. And, it’s tax-deductible.

Shelby’s Great Strides Donation Site

Donating to GREAT STRIDES is such a simple and effective way for you to show your support for this important cause. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of those with CF! Once again, thank you for supporting the mission of the CF Foundation!

Thank you,

Shelby Kandle

View My Personal Invitation!

Visit the CF Foundation Web Site

If you encounter a problem with a link, please visit my GREAT STRIDES Home Page at http://www.cff.org/Great_Strides/ShelbyKandle!

NOTE: If the link looks broken, cut and paste ENTIRE link into address bar. If you are presented with a “Find A Walker” page, enter my first and last name and click on “Find Walker.” Then click “View Walker” by my name in the results list to go to “My GREAT STRIDES Home Page.”

Thank you,
Shelby Kandle

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Since the time when Christ engaged in His ministry here on earth, women have participated as missionaries. Some work alongside their husbands, while others choose to never marry and work alone. Jesus’ mother Mary, and the sisters Mary and Martha can probably be counted as the first women workers for Christ. The jobs we can do for the Christian faith are many, beginning in the home with our own families. But for those who choose to travel the world, the dangers, hardships, and rewards give fascinating glimpses into just what can be accomplished by women in God’s name. Mary Slessor is one of those women who left her home and family behind to enter the “wilds” of Africa. Her steady work, unfaltering courage, and absolute trust in God made her one of the most respected and revered women missionaries.

Mary Slessor 1848-1915

“Mother of All the Peoples”

Mary Slessor was born on 2nd December 1848 in Gilcomston, a suburb of Aberdeen, the second of seven children, only four of whom survived childhood. Her father, Robert Slessor, originally from Buchan, was a shoemaker to trade. Her mother, from Oldmeldrum, was a deeply religious woman of sweet disposition, who had a keen interest in missionary work in the Calabar region of Nigeria.

In 1859, the family moved to Dundee in search of work. Mrs. Slessor became a member of the Wishart Church, named after the nearby Wishart Arch from which Protestant martyr George Wishart had reputedly preached to plague victims during the epidemic of 1544.

Mary’s father became an alcoholic and was unable to continue his shoemaking work. He finally took a job as a mill labourer. Mrs. Slessor was determined to see her children properly educated, and the young Mary not only attended Church but, at the age of eleven, began work as a “half timer” in the Baxter Brothers’ Mill. Mary spent half of her arduous day at a school provided by the mill owners, and the other half in productive employment for the company. Thus began a harsh introduction to the work ethic which was to dominate her life.

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Today is the last day to enter the comment contest to win Beth Moore’s book Breaking Free: Making Liberty in Christ a Reality in Life. For guidelines and more about the contest, see the original post. In conjunction with this contest, we are adding Beth Moore to our list of Successful Christian Women.

Ms. Moore was born in 1957 in Wisconsin and raised in Arkansas. She married her husband Keith in 1978 and together they have two daughters. Her website states she felt the call of God at the age of 18. Her early years of serving the Lord consisted of speaking at luncheons and retreats and teaching Christian aerobics classes. She also worked at Mother’s Day Out.

Ms. Moore founded Living Proof Ministries in 1994. She is a member of Houston’s First Baptist Church where she continues to teach a Tuesday night interdenominational ladies Bible study. She has become famous for animated teaching style and brings to life stories and characters with drama, humor, poetry, and passion.

She is regular guest on LIFE Today with James Robinson, travels the country speaking at conferences and conventions, and produces Bible studies including the series Breaking Free. Thanks to missionaries and travelers carrying her books and message to other countries, there are Beth Moore Bible Study groups popping up all over the world. In 2004, she began a radio ministry called Living Proof with Beth Moore.

Living Proof Ministries is serving God’s people around the world. For updates, pictures and slideshows, visit the blog. You can find a complete list of her products at the online store.

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Thank you, April, for allowing me to join you on your blog. I’m hoping we can have lots of input from your readers, and that during the discussion, someone will find words of encouragement that will help them navigate their own situation or become a source of real inspiration and support to someone else.

The issue of domestic violence among Christians is an emotionally charged subject, fraught with conflicting convictions and opinions. My stance begins and ends with the conviction that the Bible teaches that life should be chosen over any possibility, however remotely, of being theologically incorrect.

I believe in God. I have chosen to place my faith and eternal destiny in the hands of his risen son, Jesus Christ. My relationship with my Savior is the most important relationship in my life. In my own life and practice, I hold the Word of God in the highest esteem. Without qualification, I believe the Bible is God breathed. And I believe every word it says.

But I also recognize that my understanding and interpretations of certain biblical passages concerning roles between husbands and wives are simply theology.

So are everyone else’s, as the Bible does not speak as plainly on the subject as some are convinced it does, but rather invites thoughtful study and gives plenty of latitude for husbands and wives to stay within biblical bounds concerning their marriage relationship without being forced into the more traditional roles if that is not what they both choose to do.

If any of us are ever called upon to choose between a woman’s life and well being over our own, possibly faulty, theology concerning sex-roles within marriage, then we had better choose the life.

Life, is always more important than theology.

Without fail, in every interview I grant, I am asked about the doctrine of submission and how I feel it may relate to abuse and domestic violence within Christian marriages. The subject is a veritable powder keg. Anyone who broaches the subject with an untraditional view is practically begging for an explosion, but I will volunteer to strike the match today.

I see wifely submission as the Holy Grail of many evangelical leaders and husbands. Wives and husbands are frequently assured, by their spiritual leaders, that if the wife will submit properly to her husband, then most problems within the marriage will magically disappear.

This solution is like searching for the Holy Grail. The Grail cannot be found. Even if a wife may adopt, or is coerced through scripture abuse into adopting a subordinate role in the relationship to that of her husband’s, the wife can never submit enough.

This approach to dealing with marital discord can and does lead to violence and even death when paired with a man who has anger issues and violent tendencies. Studies have shown that submissive behavior in battered wives, does not deflect violence at all, but rather seems to exacerbate it.

I have personally spoken with pastors who espouse such a strict view of wifely submission, they blame wives for their husband’s violent behavior. In varying degrees, this is not an uncommon attitude among evangelical pastors. In some congregations, wives are subjected to church discipline when they begin to take responsibility for their own safety and well-being.

I received an email from a woman who recently divorced (only a few years ago). She shared that although her church leaders were aware that she was being battered, no church discipline was undertaken on the part of her church leadership against her violent husband. However, she was immediately placed under church discipline when she finally divorced him for beating her.

I was fortunate to have a supportive pastor when I divorced my violent husband. But during the years prior to that time, I found there was no escaping what I call the “church sanctioned oppression” most abused, church-going, Christian wives are usually required to endure–either overtly through the situation being ignored as they are instructed to stay and submit to the abuse, or covertly by being forced to deal with poorly concealed negative attitudes towards her for being married to an abusive man to begin with.

Along with multitudes of other abused wives, Christian or otherwise, I found myself withdrawing into silence and even beginning to shy away from developing new relationships due to the contempt and shame I experienced whenever someone rejected my friendship because of the abuse or became disgusted with me for not leaving the marriage.

The good news is, that with God, all things are possible.

When it became apparent that my husband was not going to seek help or change, wisdom entered into my heart and knowledge became pleasant to my soul, and God was more than able, at that time, to deliver me from the relationship–not only physically but emotionally as well.

We are challenged in the Bible to take responsibility for our own safety and eventual deliverance from the oppression of violence and abuse. At the same time, I know that we cannot do it ourselves, or, as a formerly battered friend so aptly phrased it, we would have gotten out the first time we were battered.

This opening statement leaves a great deal unsaid and by no means even comes close to dealing with the subject in depth. But it is my hope that we can round out the discussion during our time of questions and comments today.

April, thanks again for allowing me to visit your blog.

~~jocelyn andersen

Available now at www.Amazon.com or a bookstore near you
Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence
A Book That Could Save Lives
http://WomanSubmit.net

Joni Eareckson was born in 1949 in Baltimore, Maryland. She gave her heart to Jesus at a youth conference in 1964. In 1967, she was paralyzed during a dive in the Chesapeake Bay. At the young age of 17, Joni found herself facing the rest of her life in wheelchair. Two years of rehabilitation gave Joni new skills needed to live that life. She began to learn how to paint by holding the brush with her mouth. She became an accomplished artist and began showing her artwork at art fairs. A local television station did a feature on Joni, which resulted in an interview with Barbara Walters, which then led to a publisher asking her to write a book and Billy Graham’s film ministry producing a movie. Thousands of letters were received from others with disabilities, and thus began Joni and Friends International Disability Center in 1979. Joni married Ken Tada in 1982.

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I am going to be writing a periodic post on successful Christian women. I would like some reader input on who your inspirations and role models are. They can be from any time period, any part of the world, any denomination, and successful at anything. I am looking for women who exemplify a Christian spirit and who, through life, work, or life’s work, set an example that women have vital roles to play in God’s kingdom and we can make a difference through Christ.

You can send your ideas to me through the “contact” link or leave a comment. Just give me the woman’s name and a few sentences about why she should be featured, and I will do the research. Any resources you may already know about, though, would be appreciated. Leave a link to your own blog or website, and if I use your idea I will include your link in a special thank you in the post.

Never stop learning, either from history or from each other! When we believe we know all we can know is when we miss out on important lessons. God has an uncanny ability to lead us to those people we need in our lives at that specific time. Your role model might just be the inspiration someone else needs to hear right now.

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