What a wonderful time we had last Tuesday, kicking off our next year of ministry to and through CRBC women! Besides having a great time, we also introduced a very important theme for this next year: Going Deeper with God.
Why should we go deeper with God?
The simple truth is this: No matter where we are in our journey with God, there is more of Him to experience. That is why, as a Women’s Ministry we don’t just gather to have fun or do the latest Bible study. We continually strive to equip and encourage one another to experience more of God and to allow Him to have more of us. Here are some of the ways we are seeking to do this in the coming year…
EVENTS
We have a lot of fun at events like our annual Fall Launch and our seasonal Sunday Brunches, but they are very much planned with purpose in mind. We almost always sit at round tables instead of rows and often use table hostesses to facilitate questions to help us contemplate how to better connect with God. Speakers and music are intentionally chosen with this in mind as well. Mark your calendars now for our Spring Retreat on March 4-5. We started planning for it last year!
CRBC INSTITUTE
New to Council Road this Fall, a lot of prayer, dreaming, and work has gone into creating this fantastic opportunity to provide discipleship training for every member. CRI is dedicated to train people to not just know about God, but to help us experience a deeper personal relationship with Him, to better interpret and apply His Word to our everyday lives, and to become disciple-making disciples. Although this training is church-wide and not just for women, the groups will be divided into gender specific cohort groups to promote deeper sharing. Info is at www.councilroad.church/cri.
BIBLE STUDIES
The Bible study curriculums we use are theologically sound and have homework specifically written to help us look deeper into God’s Word than we might otherwise. Discussion groups help us get to know, learn from, and support one another as we try to live out what we are learning. We start a new study every Fall and Spring. This Fall, our Thursday morning group will be studying Kristi McLelland’s Jesus & Women: In the 1st Century and Now study. Kristi’s goal is to help us see the Bible through the Middle Eastern lens it was written in and I can’t wait for the deeper layers of insight this will bring! To register for this study beginning September 9th, go to www.councilroadwomen.org/calendar.
IF:TABLE GROUPS
These are small groups of six women that meet in homes monthly for a simple meal and very intentional spiritual conversation. You don’t have to plan, prepare, or pay anything to participate in these six month commitments from October-March, but it is the one thing we do that we assign a mix of ages to each group and our women have loved the insights this had added. We have daytime, evening, and Saturday groups and our next round of groups begin in October. Register now at www.councilroadwomen.org/calendar.
SUMMER BOOK CLUBS
We carefully choose a non-fiction book each summer that will help us better relate to God and others. This easy, short term, weekly commitment is fun but also helps ensure we read good material that makes us think more deeply about God.
SUPPORT GROUPS
Our Single Moms Group and their kids meet for dinner free of charge every Wednesday at church, then the moms meet together while their children are cared for in our quality preschool, children, and youth ministries. These women are a great support for each other and enjoy reading books and doing Bible Studies together as they seek to honor God in challenging circumstances.
Celebrate Recovery groups meet every Friday night throughout the year to deal with hurts, habits, and hang-ups. They have women’s 12 Step and other recovery groups. See https://www.councilroad.church/celebraterecovery for info.
BLOG
Our weekly blog posts are written by our own CR women. Filled with articles, interviews, and book reviews, they are our best avenue to offer a year long source of inspiration. We have tackled a wide variety of issues from race, health, suicide, depression, spiritual disciplines, marriage, parenting, singleness, listening, infertility, anxiety, sex, home-work balance, ethics, holidays...and so much more, always looking to help us connect faith to life. Culturally relevant and spiritually engaging, these post every Monday on our www.councilroadwomen.org website. You can also sign up on that site to receive them via email. Do yourself a favor and sign up now if you haven’t already!
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow @councilroadwomen on Facebook and Instagram! We post three times a week with a Monday blog, Wednesday quote or Bible verse, and something fun on Fridays. We use social media to promote upcoming events and ongoing ministries, as well as to alert and celebrate, so it is a great way to stay up to date on what is going on with CRBC women. Since we don’t meet regularly as an entire Women’s Ministry, following us on socials keeps you in the loop!
Ladies, as you can see, we are very purposeful with the events and activities we offer. Regardless of how much time you have and when you are available, there is something for you in our Women’s Ministry. My prayer for each of us as we launch our next year of ministry is that we would experience more of God and we would allow Him to have more of us. Let’s all commit to going deeper with God.
Meet the Author!
Bible teacher, author, inspirational speaker and disciple-maker, Vickey Banks is passionate about helping women connect the dots between God’s Word and their everyday lives. She loves serving as Women’s Ministry Director at Council Road, celebrating her people, playing with her puppy and getting lost in a good story.