Let Her Lead is a writing project designed to encourage and champion the full participation of women in the life and leadership of the Church.

It’s time for the Church, especially its men, to take up this banner.

Here, I’ll share my journey, explaining how and why I’ve come to this position. I invite you to follow along–whether you agree or not.

Thanks for reading!

Read every post in the series.

• How I Changed My Mind on Women’s Roles in MinistryMay 11, 2021
  We must not only permit but encourage and champion the full participation of women in the life and leadership of the Church.
• Interlude: Why I’m Writing About Women NowMay 12, 2021
  If the Church keeps putting “women” in their “place,” we lose. Every single time. Why? Because Jesus never did. And that is where this all starts.
• Defining Terms in the Gender ConversationMay 13, 2021
  There are primarily two words we often hear in the gender conversation that need defining. They are: complementarianism and egalitarianism.
• How Being a Complementarian Pastor Changed EverythingMay 18, 2021
  My complementarian foundation began to crumble, ironically, while I was a complementarian pastor.
• The Gift of Strong WomenMay 24, 2021
  Strong women aren’t a problem to be managed or eliminated. They are a gift to the church, especially its men.
• Finally Seeing the Blind SpotsMay 25, 2021
  Any system designed to keep one group in power and another in submission doesn’t reflect the spirit of Christ.
• Genesis 1: Male and Female He Created ThemMay 31, 2021
  Genesis shows us that men and women, as God’s kings and priests, are equal in status, function, and authority.
• Genesis 2: Coworkers in the GardenJune 2, 2021
  Genesis 2 doesn’t lead us to strict gender roles but to the mutuality of man and woman in the Garden.
• Interlude: Answering Questions on Creation & GenderJune 5, 2021
  Isn’t there such a thing as “biblical” manhood and womanhood? And other important questions.
• Genesis 3: The Birth of PatriarchyJune 8, 2021
  The Fall did not bring a harmful kind of hierarchy, but the first hierarchy the world had ever known.
• Women Who Flipped the Patriarchal ScriptJune 17, 2021
  God worked through several exceptional women in the Old Testament to subvert cultural gender expectations.
• Jesus and Women (Part 1)June 29, 2021
  Jesus’ radical departure from Jewish gender norms must influence how we see women in ministry today.
• Jesus and Women (Part 2)July 12, 2021
  Three specific interactions with women help us see how Jesus breaks social norms to elevate, empower, and restore women back to the original status they had in the Garden.
• The Difference of PentecostJuly 16, 2021
  Because the Spirit now dwells with God’s people, both men and women represent God and speak authoritatively for him.
• How Paul Helped Elevate the Status of WomenJuly 25, 2021
  We need to give the Apostle Paul more credit for putting women on an even playing field with men in early Christianity.
• Prominent Women in the Life and Ministry of PaulJuly 30, 2021
  If we start with Paul’s endorsement of women in leadership, we’ll be in a better place to understand his controversial texts on women.
• Interlude: When is a Teaching Cultural or Transcultural?August 5, 2021
  Application isn’t as simple as the Bible apps make it out to be.
• Why 1 Timothy 2:11-15 Isn’t a Universal Restriction on Women in the ChurchAugust 7, 2021
  7 Reasons in the Text and 5 Big Picture Questions We Need to Ask
• The Context of 1 Timothy 2August 12, 2021
  The cultural context of Ephesus can help us better understand what Paul is prohibiting and why.
• 1 Timothy 2:11-15: Dealing with Deception in the ChurchAugust 19, 2021
  Paul’s infamous restriction of women wasn’t meant to be a universal command for all time, but his way of dealing with a unique problem in the church at Ephesus.
• How Should We Apply 1 Timothy 2:11-15 Today?August 21, 2021
  Learning with a humble posture, not restricting women, should be the goal for applying 1 Timothy 2:11-15.
• 1 Timothy 3:1-7: For Men Only?August 26, 2021
  Why the overseer and elder qualification lists do not prevent women from church leadership.
• 1 Corinthians 11:2-16: Hairstyles, Head Coverings, and…Authority?September 17, 2021
  Paul’s cares about how men and women distinguish themselves during worship, not who leads it.
• 1 Corinthians 14:34-35: Should Women Be Silent in Church?October 20, 2021
  Two alternative ways of seeing this strange passage show that Paul didn’t intend to keep women from speaking.
• What About Marriage?November 13, 2021
  A closer look at Ephesians 5 reveals that Paul cares more about marital unity than a husband’s leadership.
• Interlude: The Women of ChristmasDecember 17, 2021
  History tells us men should announce the good news of God’s kingdom. But God doesn’t play by those rules.
• Final ThoughtsFebruary 14, 2022
  The official end to the series that will (probably) never end.

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