Rev. Tashara S. Void, TCR Acting Assistant Editor
When women get together, one or two things will happen. We will band together in jubilee, or we will separate in distrust. Candidly, I entered the WIM Global Sacred Gathering unsure of what to expect. I was wondering if I would encounter disorganization, an echo chamber, a patriarchy-bashing session, or a combination of all three. I am pleased to report that I encountered none of these. Instead, I walked into a carefully curated space of care, insight, and trust. In her opening welcome, Presiding Elder Betty Schroder framed the gathering as a sacred reunion of women and leaders “rooted in purpose, planted by God in diverse nations, languages, and contexts, yet drawing from the same living water.” She challenged us to “address injustice, heal brokenness, mentor the next generation, and build the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven.” She concluded her opening with a welcome – “welcome home. Welcome to a space where your voice matters. Welcome to a space where your gifts are celebrated. Welcome to a space where God is about to do a new thing. Let us open our hearts. Let us open our hands. Let us prepare to receive what the Spirit prepared for us. [Let us] be who God has assigned [us] to be.”
Her powerful welcome and spiritual commissioning created space for Connectional WIM President Dr. Joy Gallmon to be who God designed her to be. Rather than offering a keynote, she affirmed Elder Schroder’s keynote. She moved into a space of careful interaction that allowed each of us to go beyond learning each other’s names to the identity of our being. She called us to creatively express our identity in a way that was familiar to us but would help others learn more about who we are. This expression forced us to go beyond words and use imagery to display our character. Partnered, each woman deciphered her sister’s images, speaking to whom she believed her sister was based on her interpretation.
A key theme of her message was “move beyond survival mode.” She highlighted that across the connection, leadership doors are being opened for women, leaving the question of not whether the opportunity will come, but “will we be ready? Will [we] even recognize that the door is open? How do we make sure we’re healed enough? How do we make sure we have [the] emotional intelligence?” The remainder of our time together centered on these questions, guiding us through the process of identifying our Strengths. Constraints/Limitations. Opportunities/Possibilities. Pressures/Warnings/Burdens – the WIM rendition of a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis.
The work of the day continued – not necessarily from those appointed to do so, but from one another. Circles of trust were formed. Shared experiences provided affirmation, confirmation, and encouragement for those often isolated in ministry. We wrestled with the tension of being both strong and struggling – too often stuck in survival patterns that exist long after crises have passed, preventing us from fully stepping into our divine assignment.
Intentional engagement expanded our network of sisters. Modeled vulnerability called us into remembrance, renewal, and empowerment. Pastoral strategy invited us to embrace “kin-dom impact” and align with the mission of defining, enhancing, supporting, and expanding the presence of women in ministry and leadership.
Before President Joy pinned all who were present, Rev. Swen Liv delivered a powerful prophetic charge, centered on the metaphor of earthen vessels and the sacred responsibility of women as carriers of divine destiny. Drawing on Genesis, Exodus, and Pauline imagery, she framed women as fragile yet chosen vessels, intentionally selected by God to carry treasure and to give birth to deliverance. Beginning with Genesis 3, she highlights God’s pronouncement that the woman’s seed would crush the head of the serpent. Rather than viewing this solely as a punishment, she interpreted it as a divine commission. “Since you spoiled it, I want to give you the responsibility of fixing it.” The woman is entrusted with the responsibility to restore what was disordered, and restoration comes through the life of the seed. “If your seed will crush the head of the enemy, your seed must have the opportunity to grow.” She emphasized that pain, fragility, and vulnerability were not disqualifiers but a part of the divine strategy.
Rev. Liv expanded the metaphor into architecture. Women are not only vessels who birth destiny but are architects who consult, design, ensure compliance, and execute divine construction. Using biblical examples – Moses’ mother, the Hebrew midwives, women skilled in weaving priestly garments, Zipporah ensuring covenant compliance – she spotlights how women have always shaped, safeguarded, and sustained God’s redemptive plan. The sermon crescendos with the declaration that the enemy fears women because “if [we] get pregnant… what we carry… is going to have enough potential to crush the head.” The wounds, the fragility, and the pain are not weaknesses. They are in battle preparation. Women are positioned to define, nurture, and protect what God has conceived within them until it matures into deliverance. Women give definition. [We are] the architect [who] must consult, create, ensure compliance, and execute construction.”
The WIM Global Sacred Gathering formed a sacred arc rooted in legacy, sharpened by reflection, and propelled by prophetic charge. The day unfolded as more than a convening. It became a sacred recalibration. A clear thread emerged: women in ministry are not accidental participants in God’s story but intentional architects, carriers, and stewards of divine purpose. The gathering called the community to move beyond survival patterns and into spiritual readiness – healed enough, self-aware enough, and connected enough to recognize when doors open and to walk through them without hesitation. Themes of unity across nations, legacy rooted in courageous foremothers, emotional intelligence, covenant alignment, and kingdom impact wove together one charge, “remember who you are, nurture what you carry, define the spaces you enter, and prepare what has been entrusted to you for growth and warfare.” The takeaway is both tender and bold. This is a season not just to serve, but to build; not just to endure, but to expand; not just to gather, but to be commissioned because my story is not complete without your story.
