If you are involved in ladies ministry, you know all the things about keeping such a ministry up and running. It involves a lot of work, inviting and encouraging participation, organizing events, and more. This is why you should definitely NOT have a ladies ministry. Well, that is unless you want to encourage fellow Believers to grow in their walk and reach unbelievers with the beautiful hope of the Gospel. If that is your desire then you’ll find that the inviting, organizing, and work are well worth your time and energy, and the effectiveness of hosting a ladies event is quite a blessing.

However, with all it takes to have a successful – meaning God-honoring and Kingdom-furthering – ladies ministry, we do want to make sure we are efficient and effective with how we go about it. Here are a few thoughts to consider in an effort to focus your various ladies ministry opportunities.

  • Be intentional about the goal of each activity/event. What is the goal? Who are you reaching/serving? What are the desired results?
  • Consider establishing a simple monthly or bimonthly meeting to keep church ladies informed and connected. Stay consistent and don’t let attendance discourage you. For instance, we meet the third Monday of every month at 6:30. We’ve had months where there were just a few attending and months with more, but we have continued on and have seen great results. Keep them simple and time conscious. The purpose of our monthly meeting is to encourage our ladies, plan any upcoming opportunities, and stay in touch with our missionaries. Without these meetings, we would have gaps in meeting our goals.
  • Have some events that are specifically geared to reaching your community. A lost person in your community may not attend a day of speaking sessions, but perhaps they will do a Christmas cookie exchange or ladies night out type event with vendors. Such events will encourage and uplift your church body while lending to easy invite opportunities to those you all wish to reach.
  • Be purposeful, but also make sure you HAVE FUN! Not many people want to attend an event where they sit at a table the entire time, eat dry food, and listen to a speaker. Sitting at a table talking, eating, and listening to a speaker is great, but make sure it’s fun and engaging. Ask yourself if you would enjoy attending such an event. Would you be excited and look forward to it? Or would you go out of obligation and just have an OK time?
  • Don’t forget your missionaries, those hurting, and those who can’t participate. At each of our ladies meetings, we write a card for each of our missionaries. We also sign birthday and anniversary cards for our missionaries and their children, send notes to those who need encouragement, and plan for ways we can serve all.
  • Encourage all ages to attend! Encourage your older ladies to not stop being a part of the ladies ministry. Maybe they can’t hang décor, but can they call and invite, write cards, stir beans? Allow junior high and high school girls to be involved. We can’t expect them to suddenly want to be a part of ladies ministry when they graduate college. For your young mamas, encourage them to find a sitter, plan ahead, and be encouraged by being involved. Let each age group of your church know how important and needed they are.

Ladies ministry is a balance. Sometimes it can be so detailed it becomes bigger than what is effective. At the same time, it can be so far on the back burner opportunities are missed and events are half-hearted. Our ladies ministry goal is “to please the Lord by encouraging, serving, and equipping those within our church body, within our community, and around the world.” What an opportunity we have to serve these various groups of ladies, and what a Faithful Savior who guides and directs the ministry. Thankfully our job is to simply be faithful and move as God leads. I Corinthians 15:58 encourages us, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” We can trust Him to take our feeble efforts and bless them for the furtherance of His kingdom. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.” As we commit what we do to the Lord, he will give us ideas and an understanding of how we can best serve those around us and see Believers continuing in their walk and unbelievers introduced to salvation. Stay faithful, friends, and keep “pressing toward the mark.” “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” I Thessalonians 5:17.