Women & Work: Stepping into Kingdom Productivity

Erica P., Missionary & Widow

Erica P.  is a graduate of Auburn University where she pursued a degree in electrical engineering. During that time, the Lord gave her a passion for Himself and a burden for the nations. He specifically called her to serve amongst East Asia. 

She married her husband David in 2002 and joined the International Mission Board in 2004 with plans to serve an unreached people group in East Asia. David and Erica, along with their three children, served this people group for 16 years before being forced to leave due to security issues in March of 2020. Little did they know that the Lord would use this to prepare Erica for the loss of David suddenly and unexpectedly in October 2020. 

 

Since then, the Lord has also continued to place the call of international missions on Erica’s heart and reminded her that though her circumstances had drastically changed, her God and her calling had not. Erica and her children will serve overseas later this year.

You will love hearing from Erica. In this episode, she discusses with Missie and Courtney:

– How the Lord led her to put down her electrical engineering degree and follow His call to the mission field

– Recommendations for discerning your own call and preparation for a life in missions

– How she met David, how they navigated challenges as missionaries, and how she has dealt with his sudden death

– What married women can do now to prepare if their husbands pass unexpectedly 

– How she has found the resilience and faith to now go back to the mission field as a widow with her three children

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Hudson Taylor: The Classic Autobiography
• Gladys Aylward: The Little Woman
• Lottie Moon: Giving Her All for China
• Perspectives Class
• Receive Updates from the Mission Field

Thank you for listening. If this content is helpful to you as you seek to live out your God-given calling to His glory, please donate today to help us continue to produce more inspiring content!

Ask Anything with Courtney Moore & Missie Branch, Fall Season Launch

On this episode of the Women & Work podcast, Courtney Moore and Missie Branch kick off the fall 2023 podcast season answering some questions the Women & Work community asked over the summer. On this episode we discuss: 

• The importance of balancing work and family responsibilities.
• The challenges and rewards of being a stay-at-home parent.
• Navigating societal expectations and cultural perceptions of women's roles.
• The value of friendships and community in supporting and encouraging one another.
• Finding purpose and contentment in one's current season of life.

And so much more. We can't wait for this season of the Women & Work podcast. Learn more about the mission of Women & Work at womenwork.net. 

 

Want to support our team and help develop more resources? Give today at womenwork.net/give.

 

 

Justin Whitmel Earley, The Common Rule Book Disucssion

In 2021, Justin Earley joined the Women & Work team for a live disucssion about his book The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction.

Justin Earley provides concrete, doable practices, such as a daily hour of phoneless presence or a weekly conversation with a friend. These habits are “common” not only because they are ordinary, but also because they can be practiced in community. They have been lived out by people across all walks of life―businesspeople, professionals, parents, students, retirees―who have discovered new hope and purpose.

In this Q&A, Courtney Moore, founder and president of Women & Work, and Courtney Powell, Ministry Content Director covered topics with Justin such as:

• His transition from full-time missionary to lawyer
• Habits as Formation
• A Theology of Work
• How our Daily Habits Redeem Our Work and Reorient our Minds
• The Freedom of Daily Habits
• Rhythms of Rest
• Boundaries and Limitations in our Work
• Habit and Heart Formation in the Home 

Dr. Jim Hamilton, Work and Our Labor in the Lord Book Discussion

We are nearing the end of this Summer Podcast season - we hope you have enjoyed these book club discussions.

 

Work has been a part of God's good creation since before the fall―created to reflect His image and glory to the world. What are we to make of this when work today is all too often characterized by unwanted toil, pain, and futility? Dr. Jim Hamilton, Professor of Biblical Theology at @southernseminary and senior pastor at Kenwood Baptist Church, joined the Women & Work team to talk about his book Work and Our Labor in the Lord.

Dr. Joanne Jung and Dr. Richard Langer, The Call to Follow Book Discussion

Dr. Joanne Jung and Dr. Richard Langer wrote "The Call to Follow: Hearing Jesus in a Culture Obsessed with Leadership" and we interviewed them in the fall of 2022.

 

How often have you thought about or been trained in how to be a better follower? We hear so much about leadership and its importance but almost nothing about being a better follower.

 

Of course, as Christians, we know our main identity is marked by "followership" and we seek to follow Jesus. Some of the topics discussed in this fascinating episode:

 

-Followers are not failed leaders, as culture tends to think

-The best followers thrive under mission-centered organizations instead of leader-centered environments

-Jesus Himself repeatedly chose to live as a follower.

-How the Holy Spirit enables us to be good followers and live with an awareness of God's presence in our work, making the most mundane tasks, divine.

-The soul rhythms that help us become good, virtuous followers.

 

Resources mentioned:

The Call To Follow

The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

Hannah Anderson, Made for More Book Discussion

Hannah Anderson is an author and Bible teacher who lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with her husband, Nathan, and three children. Her books include All That’s Good: Recovering the Lost Art of Discernment and Turning of Days: Lessons from Nature, Season, and Spirit. She also cohosts the Persuasion podcast, which addresses cultural, theological, and more mundane issues from a Christian perspective. Hannah’s goal is to encourage believers to think deeply and broadly about how the gospel transforms every area of life.

In this episode, Hannah discusses:

• What image-bearing has to do with work
• Why non-income-producing work is just as important as paid work
• The purpose of learning and knowledge
• How we can love our neighbor through our work
• How the providence of God works hand in hand
  with the sovereignty of God and why that matters regarding our work

To purchase a copy of Made for More click here. 

J.D. Greear, What Are You Going to Do with Your Life? Book Discussion

J.D. Greear is lead pastor of The Summit Church, a multi-site congregation in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. He holds an M.Div. in International Church Planting and a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Greear also lived and worked among Muslims in Southeast Asia for two years and wrote Breaking the Islam Code. He and his wife have four children. 

In this episode, JD discusses:

• Callings/assignments and how we can leverage our gifts to be significant in God's kingdom
• Women's gifting's and how those can be used inside and outside the home
• How the Great Commission can inform where you work and what you do
• Radical Obedience to Christ is costly
• Beth Moore and the Southern Baptist Convention
• How the church can help promote giftings of women

 

Purchase a copy of What Are You Going to Do with Your Life? here. 

 

Resources mentioned:

• John Piper: Don't Waste Your Life
• Rosaria Butterfield: The Gospel Comes with a Housekey
• Amy Whitfield: SBC FAQ
• The Summit Church Document: The Role of Women at The Summit Church
• The Summit Church: GoNow

#51 J.T. English, Pastor of Storyline Church

J. T. English, PhD, is an author and teacher, and currently serves as the lead pastor of Storyline Church in Arvada, CO. Previously, J.T. served as a pastor at The Village Church in Flower Mound, TX, where he founded and directed The Village Church Institute, which is committed to theological education in the local church. He received his ThM in Historical Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and PhD in Systematic Theology from Southern Seminary. He is married to Macy English, and they have two children, Thomas and Bailey.

J.T. Also co-hosts the Knowing Faith Podcast with Jen Wilkin and Kyle Worley. 

In this episode, J.T. joins Courtney Moore and Missie Branch to discuss: 

• The importance of men and women working together as allies
• Insecurity and leadership
• Highest calling as Christians
• Complementarianism and the role of men and women in the church
• Utilizing every individual's gifts in the church

Thank you for listening. If this content is helpful to you as you seek to live out your God-given calling to His glory, purchase Women & Work: Bearing God’s Image and Joining in His Mission through our Work, or donate today to help us continue to produce more inspiring content!

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Women & Work: Bearing God’s Image and Joining in His Mission through our Work
• Episode 17 with Macy English
• Knowing Faith Podcast

#50 Amy Whitfield, Summit Church Executive Director of Communications, Contributing Author, Women & Work

Amy Whitfield is Executive Director of Communications at The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham. Prior to that, she served in various roles within the Southern Baptist Convention for twenty years. She co-authored the book SBC FAQs: A Ready Reference and is the co-host of the podcast SBC This Week. In 2019, she helped launch the SBC Women’s Leadership Network, and she serves as chairwoman of the board of directors of Women & Work. Amy and her husband Keith have two children and live in Wake Forest, North Carolina.

 

In this episode, Amy discusses with Courtney the chapter she authored in Women & Work. Chapter 10 is entitled, “Developing and Growing Your Gifts.” Here she shares:

– Why she is passionate about the topic of growth and development in Christian women

– How personal development is part of our design as image bearers

– The objections and hesitations many women feel toward growing in leadership

– Her encouragement to reluctant woman to move forward in personal development and leadership

– The most important advice she’s received as a woman in this area

– How the Holy Spirit is leading her own development in this season of life  

 

Thank you for listening. If this content is helpful to you as you seek to live out your God-given calling to His glory, donate today to help us continue to produce more inspiring content!

 

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• Women & Work: Bearing God’s Image and Joining in His Mission through our Work
• Episode 13 of the Women & Work Podcast

#49 Joanna Meyer, Contributing Author to Women & Work

Joanna serves as Denver Institute’s Director of Public Engagement and oversees the Women & Vocation Initiative. Prior to coming to the Institute, she worked in global telecom, nonprofit consulting, and campus ministry with Cru. She served as associate faculty at Denver Seminary and as a sewing instructor at Fancy Tiger Crafts. She has an MA in Social Entrepreneurship from Bakke Graduate University and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

 

Joanna wrote chapter 8 in Women & Work, entitled, “The Grief and Grace of an Unexpected Career.” In this episode, she and Courtney discuss:

• Effects of the Pandemic
• What is the Faith and Work movement?
• Women's Role in the Kingdom of God
• The Grief of an Unexpected Career
• Caring for Women without Children

 

Thank you for listening. If this content is helpful to you as you seek to live out your God-given calling to His glory, purchase Women & Work: Bearing God’s Image and Joining in His Mission through our Work, or donate today to help us continue to produce more inspiring content!

 

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Women & Work: Bearing God’s Image and Joining in His Mission through our Work
• Joanna' Podcast with the Denver Faith Institute, The Faith & Work Podcast
• Episode 23 of the Women & Work Podcast
• Called Together: A Biblical Look at Gender in the Workplace