The Good Book Company

If there isn't a women's ministry initiative in your church at the moment but you have a sneaking suspicion that there could be one in the future, how can you go about setting one up?

Here are our top tips:

1. Pray

Unless the Lord builds the house, the labourers labour in vain.

2. Check your motives

Anger at the minister, frustration at lack of ministry opportunities or a desire to separate from the men are really bad reasons to start a women's ministry initiative! Make sure you are focused on Jesus, his glory and the growth of his Kingdom.

Women's ministry will only flourish in the local church if women are willing to get involved. And that means giving time to it. And that often means asking people to step out of their comfort zone. But what kind of women can get involved in women's ministry?

The short answer to that question is: any woman who believes in Jesus!

But the slightly longer answer is: any woman to who believes in Jesus and is willing to work in his strength, for his glory and in accordance with the gifts that he has given.

Like most forms of ministry, women's ministry is Jesus-centred. It's all about helping other women to come to Christ and grow in Christ. It's about encouraging people to understand the gospel, respond to the gospel and apply the gospel to every aspect of life. And that happens when women engage with God through his Word and prayer, in the community of the local church. Beyond that - there are many forms that women's ministry can take!

Christians have been on the back foot on issues of sex for far too long. Whether that's questions of sexual identity, homosexuality or gender roles, we have increasingly appeared to be out of date, out of touch and out of ideas. Which is a massive shame, because the Bible's understanding of all these issues is truly liberating and part of the "life in all its fulness" that Jesus promises to those who follow him.

These big issues were the theme of this year's London Men's Convention which packed out Westminster Chapel in London last Saturday. The three talks on Maleness, Sexual temptation and Marriage were not just about helping Christians understand for themselves these important issues. They were also to help the assembled brothers think about how they can articulate the good news we have about sexuality and sexual purity to others.

Titus 2 is very clear. Older women are called to spur on the younger women in the Christian community. They are to be role models, encouragers, motivators for those who are less mature - either in calendar years or spiritual years. Women are also called to be part of the great commission, reaching out to their female friends with the message of salvation. There's an exciting mission field on most doorsteps.

And I hope in your church, as in mine, you see evidence of that discipleship and evangelism happening naturally week by week. It's a sign of spiritual health when more mature Christians are getting alongside less mature Christians or non-Christian neighbours, not because they've been asked to but because they love to help others grow. Every church needs women who see a need, pray about the need and then roll up their sleeves to meet that need without any fuss.

1. New Series: Questions Christians Ask

In case you missed it, check out our new series, Questions Christians Ask.

2. New Release: Hero

A new book from London Men's Convention 2013 speaker Jonty Allcock, Hero. A lively and engaging retelling of the story of Gideon.

3. Just Do Something Study Guide

A free study guide for Kevin DeYoung's book Just Do Something.

4. 5 apps to help you share the gospel

Be equipped to explain the good news wherever you are with these five apps.

5. And finally…

Our video of the week, 'An Interview with Sam Allberry' on same-sex attraction and his new book, Is God anti-gay?:

Found something that you think should make it on to the On to a Good Thing round-up? Send it to: ontoagoodthing@thegoodbook.co.uk

There’s something wonderful, and weird, about watching more than 400 11-14-year-olds sit in a church and sing about Christ.

Weird, because this isn’t meant to happen anymore. The statistics about 11-14s leaving the church are startling, and depressing. More are leaving than ever before. That matters because they are part of the church of today, as well as the church of tomorrow. Yet here were hundreds of them—normal, fashionably-dressed tweens and teens—at Sorted:Nano, a morning event held at St Helen’s Bishopsgate in central London.

I will plant her for Myself in the land;
I will show My love to the one I called ‘Not My loved one.’
I will say to those called ‘Not My people,’ ‘You are My people’;
and they will say, ‘You are my God.’

Hosea 2:23

After becoming a Christian in my second term at uni, the first question I asked myself was “What am I doing here then?” I’d given my life to Christ. Should I then leave university and go on the mission field?

Lady Huntingdon was a highborn woman with significant means at her disposal. At the time of her life and death, in the early eighteenth-century, religion was utterly despised by the privileged upper classes. It was a thing for the small-minded ‘little people,’ as it’s often thought of still today. Lady Huntington was an exception. She became a Christian upon hearing George Whitefield speak in 1739 and threw herself wholeheartedly into supporting his preaching campaigns.