The Center for Leadership Excellence, in partnership with COSROW, is pleased to lift up the voices of women in ministry encouraging fellow women in ministry. Please enjoy this month’s Encouragement from the Rev. Laura Dunlap, pastor at Walnut UMC in Hurdle Mills. Anyone can sign up to receive Encouragement emails here.
“And not only that, but we boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.“
Romans 5:3-5, NRSV
One of my most formative spiritual moments as a youth was entering a Catholic church for the first time with a dear lady (friend of the family) attending mass. Our families were on vacation
together. My family is Protestant. Her family is Catholic. Devout in her faith, Saturday night mass was on her schedule, even on this trip away. I had not been to mass much outside of first communion celebrations or weddings. I didn’t typically attend church on Saturday night. I was told I wouldn’t have to dress up, so I tagged along willingly.
We entered the church, La Iglesia de San Martín. It was a small church in the center of Colonial Tovar. Colonial Tovar is a quaint town once known as the “Germany of the Caribbean,” with picturesque German architecture nestled in the Andes Mountains in Venezuela. Walking inside the church was the first time I remember seeing a crucifix. The family friend made the sign of the cross on her forehead and went to kneel down on one of the church’s kneelers. I followed along pretending I knew when to stand, kneel, and what to say. I found I couldn’t stop staring. There was Jesus who died on the cross. There was Jesus who died for the
sins of the world.
I grew up knowing John 3:16 since my Sunday school teacher offered extrinsic motivation. Anyone who memorized the verse of the week was rewarded with picking a treat from the high-quality Oriental Trading Company treasure box. Seeing the crucifix though awakened my heart to good news as I fought back tears. The visible drama pierced my heart with the crucifix showing tears painted on his eyes, the blood drops, the crown of thorns, his body broken and nailed to the cross.
When we enter Lent, we take up the cross. We deny ourselves by fully living into the image of God. We journey to Golgotha. We live into this redemptive suffering. We find assurance in these words from Romans when suffering changes our lives from tragedy, pain, or unspeakable grief. At times, in our calling as clergywomen, we take on the boldness of suffering with risks to follow the Spirit where we serve. We are entrusted to make difficult and holy decisions in pivotal moments. We speak prophetically; we act pastorally.
March celebrates Women’s History Month and continues the journey of Lent. We automatically equate the forty days of Lent with suffering. Prayerfully, Women’s History Month reminds us of
Spirit-filled women of God persevering against all odds as pioneers and even martyrs in the faith. In our own journeys, we might have stories that depict this nuance of suffering and hope. We
give thanks Dr. Anna Holleman’s scholarship on clergywomen and resiliency (see this one-page summary with prompts for discussion or the full article).
We embody suffering at times, at times hope, and at times we persevere with character leading us back to hope. We have and share this extraordinary hope that never fails us as the Holy Spirit remains our steadfast guide no matter where we find ourselves in life’s journey. Holy Spirit, sustain us as we lift high the cross, the love of God we proclaim, in the name of the suffering
servant and our greatest hope, all praises be to our Lord and Savior.
Take Action: As we give thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit who offers perseverance leading to character and character to hope, check out these opportunities from COSROW and the Center for Leadership Excellence to empower us with a hope that does not disappoint.
In partnership,
Center for Leadership Excellence and the Commission on the Status and Role of Women