Being a Leader
Do you have a heart for encouraging young women in their roles as wives and mothers?
Perhaps you remember how challenging those times were for you, and you appreciate women who were further along the journey and offered you encouragement and advice. Or maybe this was a great void in your life, and you don’t want to see young women struggle alone now.
God desires for young women to live out their roles in a fulfilling and effective manner. His plan is for older women to share their experiences with younger women, as they strive together to live out the instructions found in Titus 2: 1, 3-5.
As we read this scripture, we see that God gives some basic requirements for older women who would serve in a mentoring capacity:
“Teach what accords with sound doctrine”. The Ornaments of Grace study includes various scriptures
Which expound upon the Titus 2 topics of:
- Love their husbands
- Love their children
- Be self-controlled and pure
- Conducting the work of the home
- Being kind
- Being submissive to their own husbands
“Be reverent in behavior.”
“Not slanderers or slaves to much wine.”
You may feel inadequate to be a mentor, either because of mistakes you made as a wife and mother or because your children have made poor choices in life. But perfectly obedient and successful children are not the acid test of good parenting. Consider that even God, the only perfect parent experienced great rebellion in His own children (Isaiah 1:2).
Perhaps you disqualify yourself from leadership because the biblical teachings for women are hard to live out even today. Then you are in good company, as Jesus’ own disciples found His teachings difficult to understand and accept (See John 6:60). But God does not require perfection in those of us who might feel drawn to mentoring, not in the past nor the present. In fact, He is most glorified when He shows His strength in our weakness. (Matthew 23).
Jesus reserved his harshest criticism for the Pharisees who were self-righteous, hypocritical leaders, all about outward appearances. They administered God’s word with a heavy-handed insensitivity and did not practice self-examination and repentance.
One of the best biblical examples of a great mentor, after Jesus Himself, was the Apostle Paul. He readily acknowledged his imperfections while confidently serving as one qualified by God (Ephesians 3:8, I Corinthians 15:10). Paul referred to himself as “the least of the Apostles” and one not even deserving to be called an Apostle (I Corinthians 15:9), and as the “worst sinner” (I Timothy 1:15). Finally, he admitted to experiencing an intense struggle with his sinful nature (Romans 7:14-25).
So, do you identify more with the Pharisees or with the Apostle Paul? If the former, then you are not ready for leadership. But if you relate more to Paul’s struggles and are committed to allowing God to continue to work in and through you, if you love God and have a heart for young women, then now is the time to prayerfully consider leadership.
What God desires is a heart to love Him and these women, and a willingness to share openly and vulnerably with them. Young women benefit from our real-life experiences, our strengths and our weaknesses.
The Ornaments of Grace class is intended to be held in the small, intimate setting of a home of one of the class mentors. The study questions, which each participant prepares in advance of class, are intended to probe the minds and hearts of all the women in the class, students and mentors alike. Learning and encouragement rises out of the weekly discussions. Are you ready to take the plunge? We trust you will be blessed as much as the young women!