Seminary Wives: You Are Not Wasting Your Lives
Every year I see a new crop of seminary students, eager to jump into their studies and to prepare for ministry. But, behind the scenes, there is another story that often goes untold. The story of the seminary wives.
Of course, I recognize that there are also seminary husbands, but there is a unique challenge for seminary wives as they sometimes struggle to find their own calling in the midst of their husband’s pursuit of ministry.
Seminary can be a wonderful, exciting time, full of fresh spiritual growth. But it can also be a struggle–financially, spiritually, and relationally. In the mist of these struggles, it is easy for wives to … Continue reading...
How Early Christianity was Mocked for Welcoming Women
I recently received a question on Twitter about where in our patristic sources we see early Christianity mocked for being a religion filled with women. The short answer: lots of places.
But before we get there, we should begin by noting that early Christianity received this criticism precisely because it was so popular with women during this time period. Sociologist Rodney Stark estimates that perhaps 2/3 of the Christianity community during the second-century was made up of women. This is the exact opposite of the ratio in the broader Greco-Roman world where women only made up about 1/3 of the population.
This means that women intentionally left the religious systems … Continue reading...
An Exciting New Book on Mentoring
The answer is almost always the same. Whenever I ask young believers—Christians who are godly and mature beyond their years—how they grew so rapidly in the faith, I know what they are going to say. An older, wiser believer invested in them.
In short, they were mentored.
As I look back on my own life, I can see this was true for me. Key spurts of Christian growth often coincided with older, wiser Christians in my life who invested in my life—a soccer coach, an upperclassman in college, a young pastor. The friendships with these men played a big role in who I am today.
Such a pattern should … Continue reading...
A Quick Preview of The Gospel Coalition Women’s Conference 2020
I am very excited to see that The Gospel Coalition Women’s Conference 2020 has just opened registration. It takes place June 11-13, 2020 in Indianapolis and the theme will be “Steadfast: A Study of the Book of James.”
The website design looks fantastic and they have a great lineup of speakers including the likes of Jen Wilkin, Tim Keller, Nancy Guthrie, Paige Brown, Karen Ellis, and Ligon Duncan.
My wife Melissa and I will be doing a breakout session with Tim and Kathy Keller on “Navigating the Realities of a Ministry Marriage,” hosted by Collin Hansen. That should be a lot of fun and Collin always does an incredible job … Continue reading...
Was Early Christianity Hostile to Women?
Since we live in a culture that is obsessed with gender identity and gender issues, it is not surprising to find Christianity on the receiving end of serious criticisms regarding its view of women.
Christianity–particularly if it embraces a complementarian theology–is viewed by many in our culture as oppressive and harmful to women. It does not provide, we are told, a friendly and welcoming environment where women can grow and thrive.
But, this is not just a problem for modern Christianity. The oppression of women, it is argued, was especially a problem in early Christianity. After all, in the first few centuries of the church, critics insist that the Christian … Continue reading...