Hi there,
I want to give a little update on the life of our Girls Ministry. What a whirlwind of a semester! Or is it just me that feels that way? It has flown by and it’s already time for Christmas party planning to start! What?!
I wanted to let you all know that I’m very thankful for each of you that are involved in our girls’ lives. It means so much that they have you walking through life with them, caring for them, listening to them. I hear stories from so many of our girls of what an impact our small group leaders are making on their lives. So if they don’t always say so to you, let me tell you on their behalf that you matter and are making a difference in their lives. I know we tell you all the time, but we really couldn’t do ministry without you all. It would be impossible for the us to know all the students the way that you all do. So thank you!
I got a text today from one of our 11th grade girls that made my heart sing. It led me to realize that you all might want to be updated on some things I’ve seen God do in our girls this semester. So much! He is so good and faithful, even when the days seem crazy or darker than usual.
So here are a few ways that the Lord is moving in our girls:
Girls desiring to know Scripture – This has shown up several times over the past few weeks. One girl told me in the text mentioned earlier, “BG I really need to get to learn the stories of the Bible better. I think they’re super interesting.” What?! This is a dream text to get. Usually I get texts about boy drama, or fights between girls…but no, this girl desires to know scripture more. And it’s not just her. I’ve had conversations with several students desiring to know how to know the Bible better. This is a cool way that God is moving in their hearts. I can’t tell you how exciting it is to know that they want to know God better. Yay!
Community built – I’ve seen so many instances this semester where our girls are finding true friendships. I think for a while our students would come, know some people on surface levels, and then go home and hang out with school friends. I’ve seen over the past semester friendships form that go beyond schools and the church. They call each other out when they miss church or are not walking the right path. They have sleepovers without prompting from adults; they are doing life together and encouraging each other in their relationships with Christ. I think some may see it as “cliques” but I don’t know that they’re exclusive. Sometimes they are, but I think our students have grown over the past semester in accepting new people. This is cool to me! These friendships share something greater than many school friendships do – they share Christ. Those who play basketball together share basketball and once basketball season ends, they might have a few things in common, but many times those friendships fade. Church friendships seem to last, or at least what I’ve noticed, because they share a relationship with Christ.
Another aspect of community is that girls will go to their small group leaders or other members of their small groups before other people when there’s a problem. They have trust and security within our ministry. There are also girls sticking up for other girls in hard situations, the love and support they show – and you show – when things get tough for families or friends. Within our community, they laugh together, hurt together, cry together, are goofy together, and move on together. This is really encouraging to be part of and to see.
Girls on the fringe – I made a list this year of all the girls active in our ministry. Whoa, there’s a lot! And we’ve grown throughout the semester, with new people. With this list, I started to sort of mark off the ones that I knew well or have conversations with regularly, and that hit a good number of them, but definitely not all. So then I started to look at who they were and reach out to them and what I learned was that many of the ones I considered “on the fringe” –because I didn’t necessarily know them – were actually plugged in with other girls or with their small groups. And many of them have just gotten plugged in this semester. Some that were coming with their boyfriends actually have friends among other girls. And many of the new girls have come, stuck, and gotten very plugged in. Like several of the girls in the middle school worship team; they are new-ish and already leading. There are still some that are probably “on the fringe,” but this semester has been one of community. I can’t reach them all, but with your help and with the help of our girls, they can be known and cared for. Cool.
The counseling room – anyone know what I’m talking about? Yup. The bathroom. Can I just tell you how many times I’ve walked in awkwardly to the bathroom only to find girls crying or hashing out drama? One particular Wednesday night I walked in on two girls, one was sobbing with the other trying to comfort her. I stopped to listen and help, but then a visitor walked in on them and the awkwardness continued. Not to say that this is bad. It opened up a good conversation later with the visitor. But the cool thing about this moment was that I wasn’t needed to help this sobbing girl. The friend had it all under control. And this bathroom is a place of comfort to the girls. I asked a small group Sunday how they felt about it, and they all agreed that it was the safe place to cry, collect themselves, and deal with drama. In the bathroom. Nice. This happened with some middle schoolers one Sunday morning too. The bathroom drama stories could be endless, and I’m sure many of you know what I’m talking about. It is cool that our girls are at a place where they are able to help one another, comfort each other, and walk in life together.
As a side note, I’m thinking of painting the bathroom a happier color and putting Bible verses of comfort around. Any ideas are welcomed!
Called to Ministry – so many conversations this semester have revolved around our girls wanting to do ministry. There are several girls feeling the call to ministry. God is at work, people! I love hearing girls come to know Christ, and I love when they make friends, and I love that they have a desire for Scripture. But for some reason, maybe because it’s impacted me personally, when I hear girls tell me or others that they want to do ministry for life, I get giddy. I think that this reflects the fruit of their relationship with Christ more than some other things. It means that they really get what Christ is calling us to do and are being selfless enough to understand giving their lives, hopes and dreams to Christ. There are girls that want to do girls ministry, student ministry, missions, and beyond. Some are already doing this. I know a 9th grader that is leading FCA at Wakeland. She’s teaching senior football players the Bible. Not just the happy stories either; she told me she’s teaching on “getting out of the boat,” being connected to the vine (John 15), and calling them all out on the type of language they use. Awesome! Others are leading in their schools or within the ministry. I can’t wait to see how God uses so many of them the rest of this year, and beyond high school and college.
I know that you all have so many stories of what God is doing in your small groups and in your ministries. I would LOVE to hear them! We only see a glimpse of what is happening, and so we love to hear your stories. So be encouraged that God is at work. He is doing great things in our ministry, and will continue to use you and our girls. I’m thankful that God has put me in this church, this ministry, and that He is moving in the lives of our girls.
Love,
Brittany
bluegirlsministry 