The Preacher's Wife

Refreshing Conversations: Steph Gramling and Amy Bloye

Today I want to wrap up the last of our Refreshing Conversations.  We have been talking with some of my pastors' wife friends of mine from all over the country.  We have heard from them about raising children in the ministry and balancing life and the ministry, we have heard about some of their unique stories and ministries at their church.  You can catch all the interviews by clicking on the Refreshing Conversations category on the right side bar.

First up is Steph Gramling.  Steph and her husband, Troy, lead Potential Church in sunny Fort Lauderdale, FL.  South Florida has such a diverse population.  Hear Steph talk about how strive to uniquely reach the people in their area.

 

 

Finally we will hear from Amy Bloye.  Amy and her husband, Brian, lead West Ridge Church in the Atlanta, GA, area.  They also have a unique mentoring ministry to church planters coming along behind them.  Hear Amy talk about how they reach out to church planters.

 

I am so thankful to all of the ladies who participated in these interviews.  I hope that they have been beneficial and inspirational to you as they were to me. 

Refreshing Conversations Pastor Wendy

For the past several weeks we have heard from many of my pastors' wives friends from all over the country.  If you missed them you can click on the category, Refreshing Conversations, on the right side bar.

Today we are going to hear from Pastor Wendy Perez.  Wendy and her husband Pastor Benny lead The Church at South Las Vegas.  We heard from Wendy several weeks ago when she talked about being raised in a pastor's home (see here).  Today hear Wendy talk about her vision for reaching and restoring prostitutes in their city.

I'm really excited to tell you that Annie Lobert, a former prostitute (mentioned by Wendy in her interview), and her ministry reaching prostitutes is currently being featured in a documentary series on Investigation Discovery.  The series is called Hookers: Saved on the Strip.  It premiered this past Wednesday.  You can watch the clips from the episode here online. 

Here is a clip I swiped from YouTube...

I am not sure how many cable networks carry this channel but it is channel 251 if you have Time Warner Cable in Charlotte.  I have my DVR set to record it every Wednesday night at 10 pm.

What an amazing ministry.  I am so thankful that Wendy followed through with her vision to reach prostitutes in Las Vegas.  I hope that this will inspire you to look at your city and the unique vision that God has given you and that you would follow through with it no matter what difficulties or dangers you encounter.

There is a story told of a man named Henry Varley who challenged D.L. Moody with this thought, "It remains to be seen what God will do with a man who gives himself up wholly unto Him."  When Mr. Henry Varley said that Mr. Moody said to himself: "Well I will be that man."

I hope you will rise to what ever challenge God is calling you to do today.

Refreshing Conversations: Jan McClelland and Nicole Crank

We continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the past several Fridays, I have been playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from ministry to family to leadership. 

Today we are going to hear from two women who took very different paths that unexpectedly ended up in ministry.  I think you are going to enjoy hearing these women's stories.

 

Jan McClelland and her husband, Mark lead WillowBrook Church in Huntsville, Alabama.  When Jan married Mark, he was a banker, listen to Jan talk about her journey with her husband into the world of ministry.

 

 

 

Pastor Nicole and David Crank pastor Faith Church in St.Louis, Missouri.  Nicole has an incredible story of redemption.  Listen to her talk about her journey through abuse and hurt to marrying a pastor and entering the ministry.

Refreshing Conversations: Tiffany Cooper, Julie Richard, and Jessica Cornelius

We continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the past several Fridays, I have been playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from ministry to family to leadership. 

Today we will hear from 3 of my friends, all discussing family and raising kids. 

First up is Tiffany Cooper.  Tiffany and her husband, Herbert, lead People's Church in Oklahoma City, OK.  Tiffany and Herbert planted their church about 7 years ago.  They also have 4 very young children.  Hear Tiffany speak about raising a young family while planting a growing church.

 

 

Julie Richard is married to Mac.  Together they pastor Lake Hills Church in Austin, TX.  Julie is the life of every party, a truly hilarious individual to be around.  She and Mac have two teenagers.  Hear Julie talk about raising teenagers and ministering to their friends.

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Finally we will hear from my good friend, Jessica Cornelius.  Jessica is married to Bil.  Together they pastor Bay Area Fellowship in Corpus Christi Texas.  Jessica and Bil have three children.  Recently their oldest turned 13.  Listen to Jessica tell about the unique rite of passage they created for their son and how it impacted his life.

 

 

Refreshing Conversations: Brandi Wilson and Amy Groeschel

Today we continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the past several Fridays, I have been playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from ministry to family to leadership. 

You have heard from many amazing women and today we continue with Amy Groeschel and Brandi Wilson talking about balance, ministry and family.

Amy Groeschel is the wife of Pastor Craig Groeschel.  Together they not only lead one of the largest churches in our nation, LifeChurch.tv, but they also lead a very large family.  Amy is truly one of the most godly women I know.  She walks with the Lord intimately and is a role model to me as a wife and a mother.  Hear Amy talk about how she manages it all... 

Brandi Wilson is wife to Pastor Pete Wilson.  She and Pete lead Cross Point Church in Nashville, TN.  Brandi and Pete have three beautiful, young boys.  My relationship with Brandi began virtually as I regularly read her blogs about their life, church and family.  Hear her share today about balance and how she protects their home...

Refreshing Conversations: Lisa Hughes and Kerri Weems

Today we continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the next several Fridays, I will be playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from minitry to family to leadership.  And you will hear from amazing women like Amy Groeschel, Lori Wilhite and Brandi Wilson.

   
First today, we will hear from Lisa Hughes.  Lisa and her husband, Dave, lead Church By The Glades in Coral Springs, FL.  While Lisa is very involved in the leadership of Church By the Glades, her roll does not involve a lot of time speaking or preaching from the stage.  Listen to Lisa tell about a time where a technology issue forced her out of her seat on the front row and onto the stage.

 

 
Next is Kerri Weems.  Kerri and her husband, Stovall, pastor Celebration Church in Jacksonville, FL.  Kerri (a self-proclaimed introvert) is an incredible speaker.  Every time I hear her preach I am amazed at her beautiful combination of confidence and wisdom.  Hear Kerri share about how she prepares to speak and also give some encouragement about being authentic.

Refreshing Conversations: Jessica Cornelius and Tricia Lovejoy

Today we continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the next several Fridays, I will be playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from ministry to family to leadership.  And you will hear from amazing women like Amy Groeschel, Lori Wilhite and Brandi Wilson.

Today we are going to talk about how to deal with some of the more difficult parts of ministry like losing staff and taking criticism.

We had a technical issue so moving forward over the coming weeks, some of my video blogs have actually had to be turned into audio blogs. 

First up today is Jessica Cornelius.  She and her husband, Bil, lead Bay Area Fellowship in Corpus Christi, Texas.  This past Easter, they lead their church to do something radical and they received a ton of criticism for it.  Hear Jessica talk about how she personally dealt with the hurt and what she learned from the situation. 

 

Next we are going to hear from Tricia Lovejoy.  Tricia and her husband, Shawn, pastor Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, Georgia (Atlanta area).  This past year, Mountain Lake has gone through several staff changes.  Listen to Tricia talk about the pain of losing staff members, but allowing them to leave well.

Refreshing Conversations: Robin Mitchell and Lori Wilhite

Today we continue our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the next several Fridays, I will be playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from minitry to family to leadership.  And you will hear from amazing women like Amy Groeschel, Lori Wilhite and Brandi Wilson.

Today we'll start we will discuss following through with a vision from God.

First up we will hear from Lori Wilhite.  Lori and her husband, Jud, pastor Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, NV.  In addition to leading the women of her church, Lori has a unique web ministry for other women in leadership.  Lori truly has a heart to connect and provide community for women in ministry accross the nation.  Check out her blog, Leading and Loving It, to find out more information about being a part of a virtual community and her upcoming retreat this Spring.  Let's hear from Lori.

 

 

Next we will hear from Robin Mitchell.  Robin and her husband, Clark, lead Journey Church in Norman, Oklahoma.  Robin has always had a quiet, behind the scenes, leadership, until recently when God called her to step out and begin Reflect, a ministry to women at their church.  Hear Robin share a bit about her journey.

 

 

 

Refreshing Conversations with Sheila Gerald and Wendy Perez

Today we begin our series, Refreshing Conversations.  For the next 10 or so weeks I will be playing back videos recorded from a pastors' wives retreat that I hosted called Refresh.  I couldn't help but take advantage of all the wisdom that was present.  I called in my good friend, Tonia Bendickson, to interview some of the leading Christian women in this nation.  You will hear about a full range of topics from minitry to family to leadership.  And you will hear from amazing women like Amy Groeschel, Lori Wilhite and Brandi Wilson.

Today we'll start with the topic of Raising Kids in Ministry.

First off is Pastor Sheila Gerald she and her husband, Pastor Kevin, lead Champions Centre in Tacoma, WA.  Sheila and her husband have been pastoring for over 20 years.  Sheila is a wealth of wisdom.  When I am around her, I just love to hear what she has to say.  Listen to her share about her past and hear her challenge to pray over your children...

Next we will hear from Pastor Wendy Perez.  Wendy is married to Pastor Benny Perez and together they lead The Church at South Las Vegas.  Wendy is a pastor's kid herself.  She is daughter to Pastors Wendell and Gini Smith who started The City Church in Seattle, WA, where her brother Judah Smith and his wife Chelsea now pastor.  Listen to Wendy talk about what her parents did right in reguards to raising kids in the ministry...