Life as a ministry wife doesn’t always look like radical revivals. Often it’s staying home while your husband leaves to minister to others or answers nonstop phone calls that interrupt family time. Unless you’re constantly lifting your eyes heavenward, it can be difficult to see eternal reward in the daily grind. Grace VanMaanen joins me today to share how prayer, intentionality, and a heavenly perspective protect her from bitterness as a ministry wife.
EPISODE GUIDE“I think that’s what we forget: there is eternal blessing in the sacrifice. It’s that John 12:24 principle of a kernel of wheat falls to ground and dies and it produces many seeds. There’s fruit that’s born from that death, Christ being the perfect example of that. But I feel like for a wife, we don’t always recognize that sacrifice. There’s a death in our time, even in the comforts and pleasures of having your husband around. And in that death, we often forget that there is blessing. There’s an eternal reward.”
-Grace VanMaanen
“You’ve had intentional conversations with your husband, and then you’re intentional with your time when your husband is called away. You’re using that time to serve where the Lord has you. I think that can apply to any situation for husband and wife: be intentional about your decisions. For wives who feel like they’re sharing their husband with the church and starting to become resentful instead, maybe flip it on its head and say, ‘This is giving me time and opportunity to do something of my own.'”
-Christine Hoover
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Q & A With Christine and Kyle Hoover
Practical Wisdom for Serving with Brothers in the Church (an interview with Amy Petersen)
The Life of a Lay Elder’s Wife (an interview with Caroline Cobb)
Creating a Culture of Welcome in Your Church (an interview with Jen Oshman)
Embracing Biblical Lament (an interview with Danielle Kelly)
An Interview With Christine and Kyle Hoover (special guests Lynley and Ben Mandrell)
Motivations for Ministry (an interview with Krissie Inserra)
Serving in Small Churches (an interview with Wendy Ortiz)
Seasons of Spiritual Dryness (an interview with Kristen Wetherell)
From Pastor’s Wife to Pastor’s Widow (an interview with Melissa Swain)
Unmet Expectations in Ministry (an interview with Lisa Hughes)
Serving in Camp Ministry (an interview with Rachel Shelton)
The Joy of Raising Missionary Kids (an interview with Keri Folmar)
A Church Planting Couple’s Legacy (an interview with Jennifer Clifton)
Finding Your Place in Ministry (an interview with Angie Brown Elkins)
Expectations in Ministry (an interview with Jeanine Sanchez)
In Her Shoes: A Pastor’s Wife (an interview with Caroline Saunders)
Ministry After Covid (an interview with Kimberley McGibbon)
The Basics of Women’s Ministry (an interview with Kelly King)
Friendship Between Brothers and Sisters in the Church (an interview with Jen Wilkin and JT English)
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