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That’s a great question and I think, obviously, these promoting women’s issues, our conference this year is about addictions. We had the pre-conference about domestic abuse. There’s an example where women need to be coming alongside. How do you get them to do that?
A lot of it is because women are talking to one another and in my workshop on “Living with an Angry Husband” I encourage the ladies to come alongside and ask questions if they see bruising, for example. Just in a loving way, “Could you help me understand what’s happening in your life because I care about you.” That’s happening on the one-on-one level in the church, and then those women are the ones who might be the people to encourage the ladies, the wives, to go to the leadership with domestic abuse or domestic violence issue.
I’m encouraged by reading 1 Thessalonians 5:11, which says, “Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up just as you are doing.” As preachers, you’re preaching from the pulpit that we should do the one another care. It should be happening individually in the church, but those ladies will need training, a lot of them, that’s why they’re at this conference.
Mainly, they were attracted to the topic or know somebody or they’re already involved in counseling and these issues are coming into the office. The pastor could encourage from the pulpit by preaching one another care and then organizations like IBCD, which bring counseling into the church is what we need to encourage women to take advantage of.
Not everybody has to get a masters of arts in Christian counseling, but they can do one another care and they’re called to. Older women are called to help younger women to love their husbands, for example. This is what the goal is, I know, of IBCD, and this is what we need to be reminded of. I wish that the pastors hearing this podcast will take that into account.
It could be that the culture of the church could be changed by that teaching. As it comes up in scripture, to just bring it out that even cross-generational, I’m not talking about even your pals, but looking out for the other women in the church, keeping an eye on building relationships with people outside of your category of age, and experience.