How have you been doing with your

 New Year’s Resolutions?

Earlier this month, we mentioned the “Empty Shelf Challenge” that John Acuff came up with (see his post here). Many of you have resolved to read more this year, and hopefully our posts this month are helping you accomplish that goal!

Today, we want to re-introduce you all to one more resource that can help you read more in 2014.

Ladies, the Women’s Life Office is proud to present:

THE WLO LIBRARY

We hope you will stop by to check out some of the resources that are available to you! You can also find a list of our resources here.  (Just be sure to choose WLO Library on the “Collections” drop down list.)

Ladies, the new semester starts NEXT WEEK!  Have you registered for your BWI classes? Check out the list of course descriptions below if you are still trying to decide what to take.  But HURRY!  Time is running out and classes are filling up!

What is your favorite class that you've taken so far? Let us know in the comments!

I love, love, love (you get the idea!) teaching women the Scriptures.  It is one of my passions and brings me great joy.  To see women understand Scripture and have it change their lives is an indescribable thing.  Since the moment I received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, I’ve wanted to be a part of something that would change people, especially women, to the core of who they are.  Back home in Florida, I was blessed to have small group leaders who recognized that God has gifted me in this area, and they gave me opportunities to teach on multiple occasions. 

Since moving to N.C. last summer, starting school, trying to meet new people, and attend a new church haven’t left me much time to put this gift into practice.  This semester, though, God has given me two different opportunities to exercise the gift of teaching.  I have the privilege of being a D-group leader to three beautiful Southeastern college women, and I am a member of the LEAD{women} team. Since you can read about D-Groups here, I am going to tell you about LEAD{women}!

Ladies Engaging and Discipling women is a ministry of Southeastern that serves the women in North Carolina’s local churches while providing valuable, practical ministry experience for Southeastern’s female students.  As churches call the Women’s Life Office with requests for women to lead upcoming women’s events, the Women’s Life office contacts the LEAD team and works with the team to select the appropriate person(s) to fulfill each church’s request.  The churches benefit from the passionate, well-trained women who staff the event, and the LEAD team benefits from the experience of hands-on ministry involvement.

My first opportunity to serve through LEAD{women} was at a WMU meeting for the women of Norlina Baptist Church in Norlina, NC.  I was asked to share about a recent mission trip and how the Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong offerings impact missions.  This past summer, I participated in a trip to Indonesia that Southeastern offered, so I was able to share about my experiences, lessons learned, and the challenges I faced on that trip. 

Leslie Hildreth, the Women’s Ministry Coordinator at SEBTS, went with me for support and to provide feedback on my talk.  We had the opportunity to eat with the women before I spoke and to get to know the pastor and his wife.  All of the women made me feel very special; they even had corsages for Leslie and me to wear! 

The event at Norlina Baptist Church was a learning experience for me.  Since I did not grow up in a Baptist church, my understanding of Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong were limited to what I had learned through the Cooperative Program class Southeastern requires.  It was so much fun to research and learn a little more about these women and to share what I learned with the women of Norlina Baptist.  

This teaching opportunity came at just the right time in my life.  Though I was struggling emotionally with some things, our ever gracious and loving Father used the very lessons I had learned in Indonesia to remind me all over again of His grace, strength, and love.  He reminded me that He will never leave me and that carries me through rough patches of fear and doubting in my relationship with Him.  The Lord also challenged me through this talk to stay committed to praying for those serving on the field.  I was reminded to pray about why I should stay, about how I give to missions, and about being intentional to live missionally every day, right where I am.   

I am so blessed to be a part of this team, and I am thankful that Southeastern has provided such an incredible opportunity to grow and develop my skills while preparing for ministry!

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.  As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”  For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?  And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?  And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?  And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?  As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”  Romans 10:10-15 (NIV)

According to Merriam-Webster, a mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person.

As a new student's wife, new mom, new to Wake Forest, with a new job and with no friends or family nearby, I needed someone I could talk to.  I needed someone who had been through the things I was going through, both past and present.  

I came across an email from the Women's Life Office of SEBTS.  The email mentioned that they had a mentorship program.  I looked into it and read through the list of faculty wife mentors available, wondering Do I really need this?  God kept pressing on my heart, Yes, Stephanie, you do.  Yet I decided to pray about it for a few days.

I did pray about it and found myself sending an email to set up a time to talk about the mentorship program.  God led me to pick the faculty wife who had been a missionary.  Why God would want me to pick the person with missions experience was beyond my understanding at the time.  But I did as God told me, all the time saying, Really God?  Missions?  Okay God.  You're gonna have to show me this one.  

Little did I know that it wasn't because of her mission experience that God crossed our paths this way; it was because of her "other" experiences that God allowed our paths to cross.  She had been where I was and was still dealing with them at the same time.  AMAZING how God works things out.

The mentorship program was exactly what I needed at that time.  Without it, I'm not sure where I would be today.  My mentor and I would set up times to meet over coffee, lunch, frozen yogurt, dinner.  It gave me a time to talk, to ask questions, tell her what I was struggling with (which is a hard thing for me . . .  I'm sure it's hard for most people to admit that they are struggling!), to ask for prayer, and to know I was truly being prayed for.  Not only did it help me with the things I was struggling with at the time, but I gained a new friend.  

Almost three years later, I'm still friends with my mentor.  Even though my family and I have moved more than 6 hours from SEBTS and I'm no longer a part of the program, I know that because of our mentorship, I have a forever friend.

Would you like to know more about the Thrive Mentoring program?  Contact Women's Life at 

919-761-2340 or womenslife@sebts.edu 

to see how you can be involved!

Have you ever wondered about a program offered by the Women's Life Office? There are so many things going on around here that it can be hard to keep track! As the fall semester draws to a close, we have asked a few ladies who have been involved with the Women's Life Office to talk to us about their experiences. In the coming weeks, we will have guest bloggers writing about:

Thrive is a mentoring program available to female students and student wives who attend churches that do not offer mentoring opportunities.  A dedicated team of mentors, women associated with SEBTS, have offered to spend intentional time with Southeastern ladies on a personal basis with the specific goal of encouraging practical and spiritual growth. Stephanie Bates, our guest blogger, will share her experience as a mentee and help you understand what such a relationship can look like.       

The LEAD{women} ministry was established by Southeastern Seminary in an attempt to serve the women in North Carolina churches while providing practical ministry experience for our female students. The LEAD{women} ministry team includes women pursuing degrees at Southeastern who seek to serve women in a speaking or teaching capacity. Kiersten Griffith will share her experience at a LEAD event this semester. 

D-Groups: Ladies from all over campus are involved in D-Groups through the Office of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation.  Over the years, the WL office has served as a meeting place for a few of these groups.  We love being a part of students' lives through these groups.  This year, Leslie Hildreth co-leads a group with Mrs. Faye Dunbar, who has written a wonderful post on her experience.
    

Connecting Point exists to foster fellowship and spiritual maturity among women of Southeastern. Connecting Point events are held 4-5 times per academic year. Each has its own unique flavor and is designed to encourage fellowship among the Southeastern women.  Our guest blogger will share from her experience attending one of this semester's Connecting Point events.

We can't wait to share these posts with you! The first post will be available next Tuesday, November 12 at 9am. 

Comment below and let us know what else you would like to hear from us!