This cultural moment presents a unique and Spirit-led opportunity for women to step more fully into their God-given calling within the local church. We envision a future in which women are encouraged, equipped, and empowered to faithfully steward their gifts for the sake of the Gospel.
We also envision a future where women and men serve together—as co-laborers in Christ—reflecting the fullness of God’s image and advancing the mission of God’s Kingdom in unity.
While we recognize that the global Church finds itself across a theological spectrum regarding complementarian and egalitarian convictions, our desire is to create space for mutual learning, encouragement, and deeper equipping. We believe that when women and men work together in humility and shared mission, the Church more fully embodies the beauty of the Gospel.
Join Exponential NEXT this year as we curate a series of podcasts and articles that feature conversations with women—and a couple of men—who are courageously living out their callings and championing the mission of Jesus through the roles and leadership of women in the local church.
We asked women in ministry to share their experiences, challenges, and opportunities—and the response was powerful. This report reveals how women are currently serving, how the Church is (and isn’t) equipping them, and where leaders can do better.
Download the findings and join the conversation on how we can listen, learn, and lead better together.
Impacting others is part of our leadership calling. This series will encourage leaders to invest in their soul, their team, their voice, and their mission as they work to influence every level of leadership and generation.
Caring for our soul is necessary to keep our leadership strong. Mindy shares 6 practical ways to reduce burnout and embrace flourishing leadership. These practices will allow us to serve Jesus well!
One of the best ways to strengthen your influence is to invest in and apprentice others at every level of your leadership. Jacqueline will share her journey as others invested in her and how she works to use her influence to invest in others.
Being able to impact the next generation is vital to the forward mission of the Church. From meeting them where they are at both physially and digitally, to empowering others to lead with you, Julia convinces us that Gen Z needs us to show up for them. With practical and real life examples, you will be equipped to make a discipleship difference and level up your leadership with Gen Z.
If you are called to lead, you are called to use your voice. But many of us think way more about using our intellect than we work on using our actual, physical voice. As a professional actor and long time college professor in the theater department at Columbia University, Kristi now coaches communicators to not only use their voice but their movement and body to most effectively convey their message. In this video, you will learn practical tips that you can put into play right now to become an even more effective communicator.
To strengthen your missional impact, you will need to have an awareness of your sentness. In this episode, Lori shares practical tools to help you deepen your relationship with God, cultivate your gifts and abilities, and learn to listen for where God would have you minister. Remember, faithfulness is our part of the missional equation, fruitfulness belongs to God!
Impacting others is part of our leadership calling! Learn how to maximize your leadership and it’s impact in several key areas!
To strengthen your influence through every stage of life you will need to make consistent, intentional choices that are helpful now and become dependable underpinnings for the future. Listen in to Deb Walkemeyer talk about how learning to be mindful, consistent, intentional, and imaginative sets you up to lead strong in every season of your leadership.
Speaker: Deb Walkemeyer
Learn to show up with confidence as a valued participant in gatherings where you are the only or one of a few women in the room. Join Cassie Ferrern for this powerful discussion as she shares what practices and skills you can intentionally embrace that will allow you to do just that!
Speaker: Cassie Ferren
Everything we do is missional—because everywhere we go, we carry the light of Christ. In this episode, we’ll reflect on the contrast between Jonah’s resistance and Mary’s courageous yes, and what that reveals about our own response to God’s call. Dr. Dee Stokes invites you to consider who God is calling you to impact, how to prioritize your mission without doing it alone, and why gratitude is essential in stewarding your calling well. Strengthen your awareness, your alignment, and your impact as a Kingdom leader.
Speaker: Dr. Dee Stokes
Learn to strengthen your leadership team by being intentional in several key areas! In this episode, Pastor Tara Beth Leach shares how to shape the culture by nuturing presence, trust, calling, and humilty. And watch how God moves – not just through your team, but in it!
Speaker: Pastor Tara Beth Leach
Strengthen your advocacy as a leader by exploring what it means to lead with courage and compassion and standing up for others. You’ll learn a biblical foundation for advocacy, why it matters for Kingdom leaders, how to overcome common obstacles, and simple, sustainable ways to begin. In this episode, Rev. Dr. Liz Rios helps us see how Jesus modeled advocacy and take our next steps toward justice-minded leadership.
Speaker:Rev. Dr. Liz Rios
Deitrich Bonhoeffer states “Christianity without discipleship is Christianity without Christ.” The Jesus follower who is centering discipleship would add that believers who don’t have mission as a daily part of their imitation of Jesus are probably following someone or something else. Is your life being impacted by your imitation of Jesus? Is your leadership being impacted by your imitation of Jesus? Is your neighborhood, community, and city being impacted by your imitation of Jesus? Join Rev. Dr. Eun Strawser as she dives into the topic of strengthening your discipleship.
Speaker: Rev. Dr. Eun Strawser
Noemi Chavez has served Revive Church in Long Beach for nearly 20 years. She is passionate about developing leaders and helping communities grow in spiritual health. A wife, mother, communicator, and builder in the Kingdom, Noemi brings a deep commitment to the work of the Church. She serves as Chair of the Board for Exponential Español and is also a board member for Christianity Today and Exponential. Noemi is dedicated to raising leaders and bridging generations for the future of the Church and the communities they serve. When she can, she loves to sneak away for a hike or a visit to a local museum.
Sue Ferguson is a follower of Jesus, a wife to Dave, mom to three adult kids, sister, friend, mentor,and a connector of people. Sue helped plant Community Christian Church in the Chicagoland area and has served in a number of different ministry roles there. She loves to create safe, brave spaces for others to process faith and life; and to help other leaders develop the desire and skills to do the same. She loves to encourage women leaders to develop their gifts and use them for the sake of the Kingdom! She is a co-director and a content creator for Exponential Women NEXT. She is excited to equip, empower, and cheer on the next generation of women leaders! You can contact Sue at [email protected].
