As a woman of influence, God has given you the opportunity to challenge and encourage others to grow in their faith. He placed a passion in your heart to inspire them to pursue righteousness. You may have a speaking ministry, write articles, author books, or post blogs. You may even serve in a leadership ministry position. When those within your circle of influence face obstacles and difficulties, you strive to speak words of wisdom, compassion, understanding and Godly instruction to help them weather their life storms. But when you face obstacles and difficulties, who challenges and encourages you? Who comes along side of you and helps you weather your own life storms?  Who speaks words of wisdom, compassion, understanding and Godly instruction to your heart?

In Romans 1:12, Paul is speaking to the church of Rome. I’ve often imagined that Paul was the Billy Graham of his day, or even envisioned (for the sake of women’s ministry) that this gathering at the church of Rome, was a women’s conference event and Paul was the key note speaker—AKA, the Beth Moore of this special occasion! Many may have waited in anticipation of Paul’s arrival—excited to see this man in person and hear the Holy, inspired words God impressed upon his heart. He begins in verse 11 by saying, “For I long to visit you so I may share a spiritual blessing with you that will help you grow strong in the Lord.” Paul’s many ministry experiences and the sufferings he endured for Christ’s sake, had earned him a reputation as an authentic follower of Jesus Christ. Yet, with complete humility, Paul continues in verse 12 by admitting to his audience that he needs encouragement from them as well. “I’m eager to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours. In this way, each of us can be a blessing to the other.” Paul fully recognized that he was not above the need for spiritual encouragement from fellow believers.

Throughout my years of serving in women’s ministry, I often sensed that some assumed I held my leadership position because I had my “act” completely put together. I honestly believe there were those who truly thought my husband and I never squabbled, that my children arose each morning and called me blessed, that my leadership team always agreed with me and the decisions I made, and that I never had days when I looked in the mirror, questioned my abilities, and seriously doubted if God was really calling me to do what I was doing. Therefore, the apparent lack of issues in my life is why I held the position I did. In actuality, I needed to be encouraged in my daily walk just as much as those who I was trying to encourage.

When I held my women’s ministry position on our church staff, I would often hear comments about how nice it must be to have a stress-free job. Stress-free!? Are you serious? I would think to myself. I often wanted to say, “I don’t think I knew what stress was UNTIL I had started working at a church!” When I hear statements like, “I just knew God was calling me to do (fill in the blank) because doors opened and everything fell into place,” I can’t relate to that either. In fact, if I used that statement as criteria for proof that I was doing what God called me to do, I’d have very little (if any) ministry experience, and I think I’d probably still be waiting around for His call! Although, I’m pretty sure I could write a book about what doors closing and everything seeming to fall out of place looks like. At no other time in my life did I feel I needed more encouragement than when I was in the thick of ministry. Can I hear an, “Amen, Sister!”?

Oh, dear women of Godly influence, you are a valuable and precious commodity. The world we live in is in desperate need of hearing the truth of God–which you can be sharing through your ministry. When you are pouring into others, never lose sight of the fact that you too need to be replenished. Find those who are solid and mature in their relationship with Christ, who can help refill your spiritual tank. When the obstacles and challenges of doing ministry (and life in general) come your way—and they will—it’s necessary to have those around you who can build you up and encourage you so you can continue to share the Good News. Like Paul, never underestimate your need for spiritual encouragement and never hesitate to seek it from others.