Women have long felt the confusing split between their call to leadership and the constraints of church, job, family, and self-doubt. In this book, Dr. Angie Ward, pastor’s wife and longtime leader, goes deep into a woman’s call to leadership, especially in the church. She first defines calling as “a God-given conviction about your life’s direction,” then addresses how women can discern that call. She talks about the calling process comprising preparation and discernment, and how God uses supernatural and natural means, including human agents, gifts, experiences, circumstances, God’s Word, and prayer.
Ward compels on the topic of authority, separating it from authorization, or human permission. “I want to reframe and expand the conversation by redefining authority not in terms of authorization but of accountability,” she writes. Ward has chapters titled “Calling and Marriage,” “Calling and Money,” and “Calling and Challenges.” Her chapter on “Calling and Seasons of Life” addresses the many “seasons” women travel, saying, “Don’t expect calling and season of life to always fit neatly together.”
Each chapter ends with “Continue the Conversation” questions to help readers dig deeper into how the call to leadership is lived out daily. This book answers a deep need in women to learn how to hear, understand, and live out their calling to leadership in the church and in the world at large. (NavPress)
About the Author
Ann Byle is author of Chicken Scratch: Lessons on Living Creatively from a Flock of Hens. She is a freelance writer and author of several other books, magazine articles, and reviews. She lives in Grand Rapids, Mich.