10 Helpful resources to empower pastors' wives
Becoming a pastor’s wife is a magnificent calling from God. They are called to support God-given servants to fulfill their responsibilities to the church and His people.
However, they need resources that could empower them in doing their role as a pastor’s wife.
Pastoral Care Inc. reveals that the Scripture does not tackle the involvement of a pastor’s wife in any ministry.
It means the couple must discuss how active the pastor’s wife should be.
Ephesians 5:22-24 discussed that the primary role of any wife is to help and submit to her husband. If God called a man to serve in the ministry, He called the whole man, including his whole family.
There is no specific approach to the actual function of a pastor’s wife. She does not do the work of the pastor. Together with her husband, they become a team who are yoked together to do God’s mission.
As a pastor’s wife, she will often keep her husband’s long work time, shoulder his pressures, and feel his disappointments. They are the ones who would also suffer in his defeats.
Becoming a pastor’s wife takes a unique and crucial role in the church and the pastor’s life.
Pastor’s wives also often analyze their husband’s sermons and check their grammatical errors.
They are the ones who smile in the face of judgments and negative feedback about their husband and children.
Helpful Books to Empower Pastor’s Wives
With all these responsibilities, pastors’ wives need resources to help them be empowered and firm while doing their roles for their husbands, children, and the church.
Most of the time, they tend to feel very alone without personal and wish they could get ministry support.
Here are some helpful resources to empower the pastor’s wife.
Letters to Pastor’s Wives by Meredith Sheppard
Meredith Sheppard wrote letters she hoped someone had given her at the start of her journey as a pastor’s wife.
It contains wisdom and lessons she learned through life experiences and prayer.
Letters to Pastor’s Wives intake things Sheppard learned “on the job and her knees.”
The letter has significant merits for all women of faith, which was written expressly intended for pastors’ wives.
She divided the letters into five sections.
At the beginning of the book, she covered how pastors’ wives are seen and how they often see themselves.
Upon closer inspection, she tackled how they could deal with their duties and dilemmas in ministry life.
As the pastor’s wives finished the book, they could get hope while dealing with their battles of having the “good fight of faith.”
Sheppard features personal takes as an honest look within and emphasizes growth while serving others.
It has a sweet surprise in the end.
Oh No! I married the Pastor! by Clara Molina
Clara Molina’s Oh No! I Married the Pastor! : The Do’s and Don’ts of a Pastor’s Wife is regarded as a practical and challenging book.
She intended to minister to all pastors’ wives, regardless of denomination, age, or culture.
Molina’s book is based on the Bible and contains full of truths.
It opens the eyes of pastors’ wives and gives them the challenge to be better in everything they do.
Moreover, the book would help wives of ministers and pastors to enhance their godliness.
It would teach them how to become better helpmates to their husbands, who is a pastor.
Also, reading this book could allow them to attain their divine calling as a pastor’s wife.
Molina’s book would challenge pastors’ wives to have more time with God.
At the same time, they empower their commitment to the high calling of becoming a pastor’s wife.
Uninvited by Lysa TerKeurst
Lysa TerKeurst shared her struggles of rejection and pain in her book, Uninvited.
She also wrote about how she adopted healthy ways to win over her feelings.
It included how she entered into the design of God’s love that He has for everyone.
Pastor’s wives who feel left out, lonely, and not enough could read this book to help them recover from accepting rejections and walking into God’s plan.
In Terkeurst’s book, they could learn the secret of belonging. This could help them keep rejections in perspective and be better qualified to nurture healthy bonds in their relationships.
You Can Still Wear Cute Shoes by Lisa McKay
You Can Still Waer Cute Shoes book by Lisa Mckay, would be for pastors’ wives who think that she is going insane.
She shares her testimonies of being a pastor’s wife without losing her identity.
Her husband is a senior pastor, and she knows all the struggles of being a senior pastor’s wife.
Mckay says that most women think of a pastor’s wife in her book.
Wives get described as so holy that she seems not human.
It also pertains to being a woman without fun, fashion, and friends.
The book is utterly genuine, charmingly witty, and based on the Bible.
It would be helpful as a guide for every minister’s wife who desires to serve the church and support her husband without losing her identity.
The Emotionally Healthy Woman by Geri and Peter Scazzero
Cover page of The Emotionally Healthy Woman by Geri & Peter Scazzero. (Photo taken from Amazon’s website)
Pastors’ wives do not need to pretend that everything is fine. Geri and Peter Scazzero might help you to stop covering up your situation as a pastor’s wife.
The Emotionally Healthy Woman discusses eight toxic things for a pastor’s wife to think about, including faulty thinking and being afraid of others’ opinions.
Geri says she is tired of being a pastor’s wife and has started the best walk for her marriage and herself.
Her book said pastors’ wives would discover more genuine and experience significant freedom in Jesus.
It is a workbook and has an available DVD.
Support Resources for Pastor’s Wives
Aside from excellent and helpful books, there are some programs or ministries that you can participate in to understand and accept God’s calling of becoming a pastor’s wife.
Here are some programs pastors’ wives could join to empower themselves.
Lois Evans Pastors’ Wives Ministry
Lois Evans Pastors’ Wives Ministry provides a great website with assistance, motivation, and tools to help pastors’ wives.
They have a state-by-state list of suggested counselors in the country.
Evans was married for almost 50 years to her favorite pastor and teacher, Dr. Tony Evans, the Senior Pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship.
Her ministry offers webinars and a safe place for pastors’ wives.
They provide opportunities for them to connect and discuss subjects and share wisdom.
Alongside: A Ministry to Pastors’ Wives
The Alongside: A Ministry for Pastors’ Wives desires to empower women to be efficient and influential ministry partners with their husband pastors.
They aim to strengthen, develop, and empower women by helping them thrive in their journey in ministry with their husbands and their families.
The website features impressive articles to help pastors’ wives in their calling.
Moreover, the minstry provides cohorts and small groups of 10 pastors’ wives.
Two of its coaches facilitate each lesson to help these wives navigate and accept their role as pastor’s wives.
They also help in becoming better ministry partners with their husbands.
Pastors Wives WorkOut-WorkThrough-WorkWithin
Pastors Wives WorkOut-WorkThrough-WorkWithin could be for pastors’ wives who felt alone.
They provide coaching, empowerment, and motivation.
Pastor’s Wife, Cledra Gross, leads this community on Facebook. They give a community for those who want to live “in health.”
Care for Pastors
Care for Pastors is an organization that is passionate about supporting pastors’ wives.
They provide some fantastic tools for them to be empowered in their role.
Their website offers programs such as on-site and virtual care for pastors’ wives.
In addition, they also offer a private Facebook group to give a safe place for pastors’ wives.
They can post their questions, prayer requests, and struggles on this Facebook community.
The group wants to create an open room for pastors’ wives to be empowered and act as confidantes for other wives like them.
The Great Commandment Network
The Great Commandment Network provides support and resources for pastors and their families.
The network desires to witness pastors, and their families succeed in faith, wellness, vocation, and finances.
Moreover, It offers tools to help couples have a great relationship, just as what created humans have.
They teach Top Ten Relational Needs for pastors and their wives to have a God-designed partnership.