Reno Project #3: Offerings

Our renovation project continues.

Today we’re going to take a close look at what your Women’s Ministry is offering.

Take out sheet of paper, if you would please, and jot down the answers to these four questions:

1. What types of events, activities, and ministries do you offer?
2. Where do they take place?
3. When do you make them available?
4. Why you do what you do

Got it? Okay, let’s start by looking at the “what”.

Whether your list of offerings is long or short, ask God to give you fresh eyes to see what He wants you to see.

Just as Jesus is the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20), Bible study must be the foundation of your Women’s Ministry. Girls, I hope and pray that was on your list (even if another ministry arm runs your church’s Bible study/discipleship program).

If you can only offer one thing, it needs to be God’s Word. A dose on Sunday mornings is not enough nourishment to survive the week.

Prayer and a really good survey should guide your group’s decision in what else to offer.

Have a large group of young moms? Offer a daytime and/or evening MOPS or other mom’s group. Are women looking for help with budgeting, cooking, discipline, marriage, prayer? Meeting the physical needs of your women will free up their time to meet their spiritual needs. Teach a woman to make a weekly meal plan with some quick, healthy recipes and suddenly she’s got an extra 15 minutes to spend in prayer or Bible study.

It is better to do little well, than to offer too much done poorly or without purpose.

Where should your Women’s Ministry activities take place? Everywhere!

If we want the church to grow, we must take the church to the people. Meet in homes, parks, restaurants, conference rooms, nursing homes, and apartment complexes.

Consider the purpose of your event before selecting the location.

Scheduling events and activities is just plain hard. You will never please everyone. It’s just not possible.

• Keep your in-house competition to a minimum. I.E. Don’t schedule your event during choir/praise band practice.
• Change it up – if you always have your fellowship on the third Thursday there is a group of women that will never be able to come (whether it’s due to work or another scheduling issue).
• Coordinate the times of your offerings based on your survey results. If most of your women work during the day you may need to meet early morning, over their lunch hour, or in the evenings. Many churches offer the same Bible study twice a week – once in the morning and once at night.
• Consider your community. Our town in Kentucky was a college town. Fall events fared much better when the home football schedule was taken into consideration. Basketball huge in your area? Schedule around March Madness.
• Provide on-line opportunities when and if you can. Set up an online Bible study. Video tape your conference (if your speakers agreeable) and offer it to your women to view after the event. Perhaps your church has the ability to stream live events. Consider the caretakers, homebound, and young moms that aren’t able to attend and find ways to include them.

Last, but certainly not the least, take some time to honestly examine why you are doing the events and activities that you are.

1. Did it seem like a good idea?
2. Is there an empty spot on the calendar you were trying to fill?
3. Is it a tradition?
4. Have you always done that?
5. Was it a cute idea on Pinterest or gleaned from another church?
6. Is it part of your mission statement?
7. Did God lay it upon someone’s heart?

I know from personal experience how hard it can be to tweak, change, or even remove a long-standing women’s ministry event. Sometimes it’s necessary to gradually make changes. Other times it’s helpful to let your women know you’re going to take a “break” and what you’ll be doing instead of that event.

Chances are you already have a fabulous selection of offerings.

God may be calling you to tweak the time or the location.

Perhaps He wants you to expand what you are doing into the community.

He may even be asking you to let something go.

Before making any changes, please do these three things:

1. Pray and seek God’s will.
2. Check and make sure your events match your Women’s Ministry Mission Statement.
3. Get pastoral approval on any necessary changes.

Is your women’s ministry doing too much? Not enough? Leave a comment with your thoughts.

You may also want to read:
What area of ministry is God asking you to renovate?
Reno Project #1: Excessive Decorations
Reno Project #2: Your Mission Statement
Reno Project #4: Updating Your Publicity
Reno Project #5: Technology
Reno Project #6: Providing Better Training