2 of My Ministry Flops & Why You Should Keep Leading

The fear of failure in ministry is huge, and sometimes we flop. Failure can set you up for future success, so here is why you should keep leading. #WomenLivingWell #Leadership #OnlineBiblestudy #GoodMorningGirls

I am about to share 2 of my flops in ministry. I have many more but for brevity sake – I chose these two to focus on.

Flop #1

 

Good Morning Girls began in my home church in 2007.  I was leading a Women’s Bible Study and felt like I needed accountability so I started a 6am club.  11 women signed up.  Every morning we emailed each other at 6am for 3 months…but it was unrealistic for this group of moms who were nursing babies and waking with toddlers.

So we renamed our group the “Good Morning Girls” (and added in grace – no more 6am emails) but 6 of the ladies dropped out.

We were down to 5 Good Morning Girls. You know what this means?

The ministry of Good Morning Girls was born out of a failure. The 6am “idea” was a flop.

Going from 11 women to 5 is clearly a loss…had I given up on this idea based solely on numbers…the Good Morning Girls ministry would have never been born on-line.

*******************************

Flop #2

6 years ago, when the ministry of Women Living Well was BRAND new and I had done no speaking outside of my church –  the Outreach Pastor at my church organized a Health Expo as an outreach to our community.  He invited me and Clare from Peak313 to speak at this Expo.  We were excited!  She and I went out on a snowy January day and delivered flyers at local businesses, restaurants, and Dr. Offices inviting those in the community to join us.

The big day arrived and I went to the room where I was scheduled to speak and got organized.

I had ordered pink Women Living Well pens and placed one lovingly on each chair along with my fill-in-the-blank hand out.

I had my podium ready with my 45 minutes of speaking notes, my object lesson and Bible.

Then I watched the clock as time ticked on…

and on…

and on…

right past the time I was scheduled to speak.

And the chairs…sat empty.

I peeked out in the hallway to see if anyone was coming –

empty.

I walked back into the room and wondered what I should do.  I waited a few more minutes.

Nobody came.

So I began cleaning up my pens and papers…feeling like a loser…I had prayed, prepared, and practiced but NOBODY showed up.

The excitement of the possibilities were gone and I was a wee bit embarrassed. Clare had people show up for her session…I did not.

***************************

Based on numbers alone – my first Good Morning Girls group was a failure and the first time I attempted to be a speaker – outside of my church was a failure.

I will talk about the issue of struggling with numbers in a later post but for today – I want to focus on the fear of flopping – or when you actually DO flop.

Then what?

My answer – you pray. You regroup. You try again.

I focused on those faithful five in my original Good Morning Girls group.  We emailed for years and then I introduced the Women Living Well community to the idea of GMG. I could not have ever imagined the way it would soar on-line!

God’s timing was not even close to my timing.  The idea and passion behind it was right but it would be multiple years before I would see God expand the GMG ministry. And when God did – it was beyond what I could ever have imagined!

God clearly gets all the glory.  He has done an Ephesians 3:20 here:

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

As far as speaking goes, I have a lot of anxiety.  Making youtubes is a breeze – but speaking in front of an audience is a gazillion times harder for me.

In 2013, I decided to try again in my hometown and host a Women Living Well Conference.

In the weeks leading up to the conference, we sold out but then suddenly people began backing out at the last minute – asking for refunds. Even the night before I received 3 emails from women saying they would not be making it. Every time this happened – it rattled me.

I got anxious. What if the room is half empty – what if hardly anyone shows up?

Anxiety reared its ugly head.

Fears.

Memories of past flops.

Then the morning arrived.  The Women Living Well pens and hand-outs were at every seat…just like years earlier.  The chairs were empty.

We were hustling and bustling around and as the sound man attached my mic –they opened the doors…and I was SHOCKED as women poured through the doors filling most of the seats very quickly!!!!

They came! They showed up!

It was a good day.   But I can’t say that it was a success just because a lot of women showed up – God doesn’t use numbers as his measuring stick…God looks at the heart.

All God asks is that we follow Him where he leads.

Is He laying something on your heart to lead today?

Are you fearful because you have flopped???…ME TOO.

That doesn’t mean you should stop trying. We must remember there is a spiritual force – the enemy of God –  that wants to stop us, discourage us and make us want to give up!

God tells us in his word –

be bold,
take courage,
be a light,
you are the salt of the world,
put on the full armor of God,
stand firm, and
overcome!

Do not be surprised when trouble comes in leadership – I’ll write about this in a later post as well.

But for now, my closing thoughts, do not be afraid to take the initiative or try new things!  I have been blessed tenfold by my efforts  to serve God and His people in a place leadership.

When your idea flops – pray, revamp, regroup and try again!  Do not give up!

Galatians 6:9 became my life verse long before I started this on-line ministry.   The Lord has used it over and over to keep me going. I pray you will write it out and keep it near you for days when you are discouraged as a leader.

Galatians 6:9 says:

 Do not grow weary in doing good, for in due season you will reap a harvest, if you do not give up.

Keep leading. Do not give up!

**Chime In**

Have you flopped?  How did you get back up?

Walk with the King,

Courtney

** A special message to my GMG Leaders**

Have you led a group and it flopped?

Pray, revamp, regroup and try again.

Have you started a GMG group and half the women dropped out?

ME TOO! You are not alone.  Keep going. My small group of 5 turned into a huge blessing…years later my personal group grew to 11 once again…but it took a looooooooong time for that to happen. Be patient and remember God’s timing is not ours.  Serve those God has entrusted you today and let God handle the growth in His timing.

Have you thought about starting a GMG group but you are afraid?

I have lived that fear.  Fear is not your friend.  Let that fear drive you to complete dependence on God and intense prayer.  I pray you follow God’s lead and in His time, He does an Ephesians 3:20 in your life too!

44 Comments

  1. Thanks, Courtney, for the sweet encouragement! I love Galatians 6:9 and have memorized it too so I can encourage myself in the Lord when the going gets tough.

    I am so thankful God helped me overcome my fear of leading a GMG group! It has been such a blessing to lead women in the study of God’s Word.

    Thank you for your faithfulness in leading us!

    Walking in His Grace,
    Laurie

    1. Thanks Courtney this is very encouraging. I started an unofficial Good Morning Girls group on Facebook and by email.
      I also lead a nonprofit ministry called the Homeless Relief Campaign Initiative. I have flopped a number of times in ministry and been discouraged but I am still trying again.
      Please keep me in your prayers.

  2. I needed this!! I started a Moms Ministry at my church after feeling LEAD to, forgot the part about having to actually lead it. 😉 Our year Anniversary is this January and my numbers are down and I a leadership member bowed out. So lately I have felt a lil like a flop, but I pray it shall pass and I’ll keep pressing on!

  3. Courtney, you cannot imagine how timely this is for me! My husband and I began pastoring a church this past June, and the numbers have been a bit discouraging. We have lost several key people that we were sure were in our court. However, the Holy Spirit has reminded me in my heart many times to not “despise small beginnings.” Great things are happening, but it is easy to get caught up in the perceived failures. I have been leading a women’s Bible study in my home for the last three years also, and I have several flop stories of my own too! I really needed the encouragement you have given today. Thank you!

    Shari

  4. Excellent post. Thank you for your faithfulness. You are appreciated and I thank God for you and this ministry.

  5. I was at the 2013 WLW Conference 🙂 It was SUCH a blessing to me and I’m pretty sure I’m not the ONLY one who wishes you’d do it again 😉 except this time maybe make it a weekend retreat type thing 😀 I’d LOVE to get away for the weekend and fellowship with my Sisters in Christ. I met a lady at the 2013 conference, Faith, and we are still in touch to this day 🙂

  6. This has come at the PERFECT time!! I really, really needed this tonight. There is something I have been needing to start…..been dragging my feet for YEARS. We had a business that went under and the sting from that failure is still in effect. 🙂 It’s hard to put myself out there again with such a big cloud hanging over my head. It’s time to move on. Thanks for this.
    Blessings to you~

  7. Just wanted to say thanks to you, Courtney! This was such an encouragement to me. I am a sophopmore in High School and lead a Girls Bible Study group. We meet once a week before school and have daily devotions, prayer, etc. We started out with around 15-20 each week and it was such a blessing. The past three weeks, we have had 4 girls. Those girls continue to be a wonderful blessing and inspiration, but I find myself growing impatient as I pray, pray, and continue to pray for more girls to have a burning desire to share Christ in their school. I keep getting disappointed. So thankful for God’s perfect timing and a reminder that he has this under control and there is no need for me to grow weary or impatient. Thank you! God Bless

  8. God bless you!!! What an extremely timely encouraging message! I have been leading women’s ministry in my church for over 6 years. I have loved it! I can’t believe I am so blessed that God would allow me to serve in a ministry that I just absolutely enjoy so much! I struggle with the part when hardly anyone shows up, sometimes those even who are in my inner circle, I tend to take it very personally. I’ve struggled for a little while now about whether I should step aside and give someone else a chance, whether this is it for me for a while. Our last gathering consisted of 7 of us, one of which was my daughter (11), and the other was my co-ministry partner – my pastor’s wife and their daughter (12). As we gathered to begin singing praise to the Lord, my pastor’s wife says this is silly, rather than stand at this podium I’m just going to lead us in singing right here at the table. I said well if you think it’s silly for you to lead us singing at that podium, I feel even sillier getting up there to lead us in a study…LOL! I said let’s just all gather together at this one table and we’ll sing as best we can and begin our study! Well low and behold God took over and the time in God’s word with these young ladies was so timely and we all walked away feeling like it was the BEST Women’s Fellowship we ever had! How about that! Needless to say, it was quite encouraging, even our lil 7! God keeps showing me that it is not about me, it is all about Him! I have my moments of weakness, and succumb to the “I can’t believe no one came and I’m a flop”! But, I tell you God is in control! I thank you so much for your testimony and experience leading, it is encouraging for me to know that I am not the only one who feels this way and it encourages me to keep on pressing on and move forward, God is in control and He has a plan, I just need to stay faithful where He has placed me! I look forward to hearing more from you! Blessings and Love!

  9. I totally needed to hear this today! At the direction of the Holy Spirit, I started blogging about a year and a half ago but have recently felt like giving up. How do you go from clearly hearing His voice to wondering if you’re wasting yours?

    I’ve been discouraged but I’ve done what you said–regroup, pray, try again. In fact, I even shared my struggle with my readers and it was so refreshing!

    Thanks for your ministry and your obedience to follow God’s leading. Here’s a link to the post of my ministry confession.
    Jessie
    https://notmyownblog.wordpress.com/2015/01/06/just-obey/

  10. Good morning Courtney…just wanted to offer you some encouragement this morning. I was at the conference you hosted in 2013 and you were wonderful! Please know that we as listeners would not know how nervous you were. You spoke with such grace and poise and spoke truth to all of us who needed to hear. Please know how much your encouragement touches me and many more wives, mothers and women!! God bless! P.S. Would love for another Women Living Well conference to happen???

  11. Thanks so much for this post. Now I have a new phrase: I need a 3:20!
    I’m the Children’s Director in my Community Bible Study class, and it’s my first year, so you know I’ve had some pretty big newbie flops 🙂 But it’s all good, and my class members are awesome, I have a great group of teachers…He works it all out and keeps us humble.
    I’m enjoying your book, Courtney. Thank you for stepping out and being a leader <3

  12. Oh my, I needed that. There is so much in my heart to do but I have such great fears. This series is great timing for me. Love you & your willingness to share!

  13. Great encouragement to not give up!! When Woman to Woman Ministries began almost 4 years ago, I had big dreams of conferences and speaking engagements. But almost 4 years later, the thought of speaking in front of someone sends me into panic mode!! I can hardly speak at church. Like seriously, giving announcements in front of the adults makes my world spin! As a children’s pastor, speaking to the kids is a breeze! But tall people, nope! 😉

    Not yet anyway….maybe God will choose to change that one day…. 😉

  14. Hi Courtney,

    Thank you for such a great post. I am now just starting something that I feel God wants me to lead. I am a bit scared to do so, there is a lot of opening myself up and sharing pain, betrayal, and so many more feelings. I know this is what God wants me to do but it is so scary.

    I am taking that step out even though it is really scary for me. I know God will be there for me and help through it all.

    Thank you for such great words of encouragement!

    Stop by my blog sometime!

    http://homewhereh.blogspot.com/

  15. Courtney!!! God’s timing is impeccable. I have been wrestling with my role in leadership at our church, and felt pushed aside and discouraged when I brought certain ideas to leaders and friends. But I know that the Holy Spirit’s lead is never a mistake, and that the enemy would love for me to stay in flop-mode. I have felt like past ideas have flopped (evangelism ministry at our old church before we moved, leadership in kids ministry), and that past hurt/disappointment can discourage me…

    But God has brought the Ephesians 3:20 back to me (He used it in a season preceding great change three years ago), and this is the third time in three days I have read it. I’m listening LORD!

    Thank you for your faithfulness to God, Courtney! It is such a testament to His great love for us.

  16. Just the right message at just the right time! Thank you for the encouragement and for your obedience to do God’s work even when “no one showed up”.

  17. Hi Courtney,
    I must have missed something, forgive me for my analytical mind, but how was the 6am idea a flop for it was not until the name change along with the new requirement, that the 6 women dropped out. And was it your idea to start this ministry and then try and add accountability or the Lord”s? And after your second flop did you go back to access what may have gone wrong; just curious?

    Thanks!!

  18. Courtney, I am so glad that I am not in this alone. Oh how I’ve flopped so many times. I know in my heart God is leading me to do something but everything I try, I fail. I have this longing/hunger to do street ministry but haven’t quite figured out what it is God wants me to do. I’ve done everything from Clown Ministry (5yrs) to teaching quilting classes for free just to share the bible stories that go along with the quilt blocks we would be making. I started a Family Military Support Group when my son went to Afghanistan and at the same time my daughters husband was in Iraq. I come from a long line of Veterans being a daughter, wife, mother, mother-in-law, and a veteran myself I know how important it is to have people around who understand what your going thru. No one showed up. I was there faithfully every week for months on the off chance someone would come. This was about 6 years ago now I hear someone else sees a need and is trying to start a support group. (So grateful for a Loving God that was there for me when I
    needed that support). Timing right! I think God is growing me with each failure and success and I know that someday I’ll get it right and God will smile and say “See I told you it would all work out.”

  19. Thank you for this! I needed to hear this today. I am having a difficult time navigating some audio/ visual tools to try and incorporate a new element to a Bible study group that I lead and this was just a good reminder that The Lord will provide in His time exactly what I need. God is using you in such a great way! I hope you have a Blessed day today!

  20. Oh Dearest Courtney!

    This word of encouragement is so timely. I, too, have had some HUGE flops (in ministry, family, employment, etc.). And just as I am feeling the push to go forth, the pressure mounted through untimely traumatic and other unfortunate experiences. Nevertheless, I am thankful for your reminder that I can regroup and revamp. That is exactly what I am doing. It is not easy. But today you have encouraged me to just do the work and go the distance. And God will meet me at the finish line! Many blessings to you for sharing this!!!

  21. Thank you so much Courtney. I am doing the 3rd GMG group. The first time was so scary. Only 1 person joined. She is “in” with me for the 3rd time. Such a blessing!!

  22. Courtney,

    Thank you for allowing The Lord to speak through you and directly to my heart. I have flopped more times than I can count, and am still floppimg.

    It’s hard at times to not grow discouraged or even doubt if what you are doing is really what God’s want you to be doing.

    I too, have had my blog which I still write on start strong, only to decrease tremendously.

    A Bible Study that started with 30 end up with 5. And a Sunday School class filled full of 25 women in the beginning to only 8.

    As you said, it’s not about the number. It’s about the heart. And my heart is filled with a passion to teach women the Word of God.

    So I press on, not for attention or praise or a huge following, but for Him!

    But today, in this moment I am struggling. So thank you for your words of encouragement and for sharing your heart.

  23. I am so glad to know that I am not alone in the “it flopped” side of ministry. I feel and believe with all my heart that God has called me into women’s ministry. I have three retreats behind me know and one coming up in April. It isn’t the things outside of my church family that flop it is the things in the church that flop. Two years ago I led a Bible study and began with 21 women the last night we had 26 in attendance. This is not the norm.

    I am working on a website-blog combination and hope to have it up soon. God has been wanting me to do this for years and the time is right. Satan keeps trying to throw in derailements but My God is bigger.

    I am so excited to be a part of the Empty Nester on GMG. This is a group that tends to be left out in modern day ministries and website-blog communities. We need to be fed just like the new stay-at-home moms and to be part of a fellowship of fellow Christians.

    Thank you and God bless,

  24. Courtney,
    I am fairly new to your website and I found you through TimeWarpWife, and I am SOOOOO glad I did!!! I have been following your GMG Bible studies since September of last year, and they have been so wonderful!
    As for this post…you have absolutely no idea how God used you to speak directly to my heart. My husband and I are worship leaders for the college/twenties ministry at our church, and another guy speaks/teaches. The past several months, the spiritual maturity and depth of our ministry has absolutely plummeted. My husband and I are just beside ourselves. We see the issue clearly; however, we’re not sure our speaker does, and the group has been consistently “going through the motions” for months. We can’t seem to find any solutions to this problem. We have prayed and fasted numerous times over the past 4 months, and still we have seen no results. While I wish your post had given us the fail-safe answer to all our problems (haha), you really encouraged me to not give up and to persevere and to “keep on keeping on” in prayer and fasting. If you have any other practical ideas for us, I would REALLY love to hear them! Again, thank you so much for allowing God to use you in such a mighty way!
    ~Kristen

  25. I’m so grateful this post is well timed for me as well as so many other women. I sooooo much want to serve God. I have done so in the past and there was so much critisism and hurt from others. My desire was to serve theirs I’m not sure. Recently God reignited the fire inside to serve. Mind you it follows words such as “are you sure your meant to lead?”. These words ring in my ears but God calls and I answer. I love God I want to be obedient to God no more fear of man. Here I Am Lord Use Me. I take steps forward into the direction he leads. I breathe I trust. I succeed I fail Gods beside me. I listen I pray and I thank him for each new day. So thank you God speaks through his obedient servants. Praise God. He loves us so.

  26. Like so many others, I just want to say thanks for this message of challenge & encouragement. You can’t imagine how well-timed it is. It’s reminded me to stop looking at the “giants” and focus on the Lord and … just get on with it!

  27. What an encouraging word to share today! I can see that it’s resonated with many others as it has with me. Boy, Satan would love to keep us down from the get-go and never even follow after God’s leading to further His kingdom work. Right exactly where I am and this is another word from the Lord. I’m studying and teaching through Nehemiah right now and gleaning so much for the life of this man who battled so much opposition to God’s work. xoxo and blessings to you today Courtney!

  28. I can certainly relate to a flop.I’ve had flops in home based businesses and flops in church ministry with lack of engagement. So last year when I launched my personal ministry I was very fearful. In fact, I sat on it for 3 years before launching. God told me I had to let go of my fears and walk on water. Everyday I have to speak His truth regarding this ministry. My word for 2015 is COURAGE. I’m determined to be strong and of good courage.

  29. I think you wrote this just for me. My husband and I moved our church membership in August to the church where our daughter goes. I joined the Senior Choir and one of the ladies asked if I’d come to Mary Martha WMU group. I had visited the group with my daughter when she was looking for a group. There are 5 groups in the church and she chose to join one that meets at night. Anyway, I said yes. Things didn’t work out for me to attend right away but I visited in October and again in December. Their leader had moved away and they needed a new one. I felt that I had a calling but was afraid they would resent me, being new and all so I waited and prayed. This month when we met with the mission leader, she said someone has to step up and lead. They said maybe we can just take turns but she said no we need just one person to be in charge and then you can all help her. Finally, I spoke up and they were overjoyed. They say, maybe God placed me in their group at just this time for this purpose. They have promised to help me whenever I ask. Still it is a big task since I’ve never been in WMU before. I was in GAs as a girl and taught GAs twice when I was a young woman so I’m familiar with the program.
    Thanks for the encouragement.
    Mama Bear

  30. Ahh yes! the health conference! LOL!! God has certainly blessed your “flops”! Thank you for persevering!! What a blessing to many!!!
    xo
    Clare

  31. Just finished reading this email this evening and it struck a cord with me. I feel like I have had tons of flops in the last year or two. It definitely gets very discouraging to keep pressing on and saying yes and then “flop.” I decided to lead a GMG online group a year or so ago because I didn’t know anyone who wanted to do it and so I figured I would. I had about 10 ladies join and I was so excited, but quickly, as soon as they came, they left. It is always a good 1st week and then everyone has different reasons why they just can’t keep up. So I end up with 1 maybe 2 on a somewhat continues bases and that is it. It is so hard to be encouraged. In fact I stopped doing them a couple of months ago because of no interest. I tried to doing a book study too, and same results. In fact, ended the study a few weeks early because no one showed up 🙁
    I usually start these because I really want to share and be in a group with others to go deeper into the Word, but no one else seems interested after a few sessions. Maybe I am just not praying enough about it before hand, or I am pushing my agenda and it is God’s way of telling me to stop. I don’t know. Clearly still frustrated about it since I am nearly in tears when typing this and feeling like such a loser and failure.
    I guess it is time to get on my knees and figure out what God has for me. Thank you Courtney for the encouragement and for being transparent enough to share your life’s ups and downs with us. God bless you and your family!
    Serving Him,
    Jennifer

  32. Courtney, thank you so much for sharing this! I’m still in recovery mode from a recent flop and your comments about God’s perfect timing is just the thing I need to read.

    Three years ago when God called me to begin my on-line ministry, He also called me to a new church. I really felt His plan for the at my new church was to become involved in it’s Women’s Ministry. So I volunteered and began to form relationships with the women of the church.

    After watching the videos of your church event with Darlene and Karen (and others) I was inspired to promote a full day women’s event at our church. It took a bit to convince the decision makers, but with their yes I began planning, determined to deliver a wonderful day of worship for our ladies. With my group of volunteers, we planned and organized and had everything all ready to go.

    Then the week prior to the event, the church cancelled! Augh, I was heartbroken and terribly discouraged. Like Moses, I challenged God with “why did you even send me?” and questioned if God had even called me to ministry or if I was just kidding myself and filling my time. That was this past October.

    In December, they asked me if I could put the event back together for this February. I had several people advise me not to, you can imagine the remarks. But I prayed and felt God leading me to step out in faith and to trust in His timing, not my own. So the planning is in full swing and I am expectantly waiting to see how God will move within the women of our church.

    Blessings, Jana

  33. Hi Courtney. I just wanted to point out that failure is not just a matter of no shows or silence from the seats. Sometimes people seem to be receptive to the Word yet their commitment to live it out never takes root. About ten years ago, I joined a new church and-after some time- began teaching an Adult Sunday Sunday School class.Attendance grew every week and I was, I will be honest, titling towards being prideful about it – at least until a bit of a scandal erupted and I learned that two of the core class leaders (both married to others) were romantically involved.

    I felt like such a failure, I did not teach again for years.

  34. Thank you for being so honest! I have agreed to lead (for the first time) a ladies Bible study at my church this Spring and I am terrified no one will show up! But, as you said, I will pray, prepare and practice. I will do my part. 😉

  35. This was so an on time word for me. The other night I woke up and was feeling down because last year I had started a small group at church, and for the last half of the year people stop coming. So the class was cancelled right before Christmas. Really couldn’t enjoy my Christmas because I was so focused on what I should have done better, and why people stop coming.

    My phone beeped for my email, so I decided to check the email to read a devotion. And lo and behold this was the word I needed to hear. The devotion gave me hope to regroup in God’s time. Just not sure how to go about it since they cancelled the class. I know in God’s time it will blossom and flourish. Thank you for being a willing vessel for God to use!

  36. Courtney, thank you for this reassurance! You are such a wonderful example to us all. Isn’t it terrific to see so many women in these replies who are following your example and starting ministries and study groups of their own! You are helping God touch our hearts and learn what His will is for each of us.
    I have recently started a scripture study website for women in my church, and it’s always nerve wracking waiting for someone (anyone) to leave a comment, just so I know my message is getting out there. I had been thinking about starting this site for a couple of years but didn’t really know how to do it, and didn’t have anyone to help me. Then last summer, God touched my sister’s heart, and she suddenly wanted to help me get things going! We’re being richly blessed as we study our scriptures and encourage our fellow sisters to do the same, and we pray that God will continue to touch hearts and make His will happen.

  37. Thank you so much for this post! I have said no to God on leading for so long and I allowed excuse after excuse to hinder me. It is all about being obedient to Him even when it takes me out of my comfort zone! My word for this year is Courage. Joshua 1:6 “Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.”

  38. Funny, I was scrolling through your blog and wished for a post about what happens when leadership doesn’t go well… And here is it! In my experience, however, I haven’t found a way to pick myself back up. I spent a year after college in a Christian internship, and they warned me I was going to a place with intensive spiritual warfare– but I didn’t realize that the worst warfare I would face was the passive aggressive attitudes in the ministry there. Long story short, at the end of the year in ministry, I was a huge wreck, felt like I had failed God because everything I had to offer was rejected, and a month before the end of my internship, my boss (the director) sat my down and told me all these things he felt I had been doing wrong the entire time… And told me this with only one month left, when if he had brought it up sooner, I would have addressed the issues immediately! I was more than broken by the experience, and it’s a year since the internship ended, but I have no idea how to pick myself up. Add to that moving three times last year with the husband and not being able to get another job since… I feel like God has shut down my life. I know that’s wrong, but I haven’t been the same since my awful ministry experience, and I don’t know how to recover. Courtney, maybe you could write a post on how to actually recover from when ministry goes awry and damages the leader. I know I could use some guidance in this area!

  39. Hi Courtney,

    I have felt God call me to reach out to college girls. I recently created a blog: AChristianCollegegirlsblog.blogspot.com/ and I’m not sure what plans the Lord has for me, however I want to follow the plans that He has for me, and if I can help in this way, than I am happy to.

    Thank you Courtney for sharing Galatians 6:9 I wrote it down, and I believe this is one that will be a great blessing in my life.

    God bless you and your family.

    Sincerely,

    Jessica Medina

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I accept the Privacy Policy

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.