The Rev. Deacon Betty Bowen - Trinity Episcopal Church, St. Charles
This reflection is part of a series celebrating women in ministry, June 2022.
I think one of my gifts is to encourage people into ministry. I seek people out who are not yet involved in the life of the Church and ask them to pray about whatever it is I am going to ask them to do. I must say that 99% of the time they willingly say YES! I find this very meaningful because it is empowering people to do ministry which hopefully will bring them closer to God.
I also tend to think outside the box and have a Vision of what may be needed to bring people closer to God. Through prayer and discernment Trinity recently started a Small Group Ministry and 28 people signed up to study the book The Way of Love, which turned out to be a big success and they want to continue meeting. For the summer we are going to do small group projects of various kinds and then do another book study in the fall.
I am also fulfilled when I do hospital visits.
I do not really have a role model right now. My Aunt before she died set a very good example for me to follow and I have kept on that path ever since. I admire people in the church for their faithfulness.
Women in the Bible who I think were brave in their time that resonate with me are:
- Ruth in the Old Testament, who was faithful to her mother-in-law.
- Mary Magdalene, who recognized Jesus for who he was and became a faithful follower.
- The Samaritan woman at the Well who, when she learned who Jesus was, went to spread the news - Evangelism. We need to be doing more of that -- when we encounter Jesus, we need to ‘GO Tell.’