How God Takes Care of Us When We Step Out in Obedience

One of the themes of this blog is that just because it is God who has called you to ministry does not mean that you can sit back and do nothing to promote that ministry. If God has given you a message, it is your part of your responsibility to spread the news that the message is available. Marketing has to be part of our ministry.

I know that’s difficult for some of us; how do we find the balance? We don’t want to promote ourselves; we want to promote Jesus. But what is the difference? And if God wants to use us, shouldn’t He be opening some doors?

It’s one of those dilemmas that takes a lot of prayer for confirmation that our ministry really is from God. And this week, on our Facebook Page, a number of people joined and told their stories. And I found one really encouraging, and I thought it may encourage you, too. Yes, it is our responsibility to spread the message that we are available. But so often, as we stop out in obedience, God also does His amazing work.

Here’s Jessica Harris, of A Beggar’s Daughter, talking about what happened to her as she started her ministry. She tells us:

Just some encouragment. My story is kinda like Courtney’s. I’ve been doing this ‘unofficially’ for two years now and finally felt God saying, “It’s all or nothing, girl. Either your heart is in this ministry or it isn’t.” So, I took a step, not knowing what to do next, and God led me to Sheila!

I read through her blogs and found a post about photos and how you need professional photos. I got discouraged…taht can be expensive! God led me to a Christian photographer in the area. I contacted her about doing ‘publicity’ shots and she was stoked. On top of that, she works on the property of a day spa (also owned by Christians) who are willing to do my hair and makeup to make sure I look extra nice. On top of that, her husband is a youth pastor… (I speak to young women).

This is the greatness of the God we serve, ladies. I don’t even think I could have prayed for all of these connections. He is just so faithful to open doors we didn’t even know existed!

Isn’t that wonderful? I can echo what Jessica has said. As I have stepped out in obedience, so often I have found that God has gone before me. That doesn’t mean it’s easy. That doesn’t mean it’s not a slog. But God is there.

So I thought: can we encourage each other by sharing our stories? Has God done something–little or big–to show you that He is in your ministry right now? Please leave a comment and share it with us!

And if you are wondering where God is, share that, too, and we will pray for you. Sometimes God just wants you to step out in faith, and He is trying to grow that faith. It is not always easy. But that is why we are here to encourage each other. So please, leave a comment, and let’s share our stories!

Now’s the Time to Find Speaking Engagements for the Spring

Three weeks ago I was looking at a relatively empty fall and spring speaking schedule. I had reserved some major blocks of time for trips and writing, but it turns out that those things weren’t happening, and I started to get worried. Would I get speaking engagements to cover the time? Or had I lost it by saying no when people asked last spring?

I’m no longer worried. I’ve received a ton of stuff in my inbox over the last few days, and things are booking up fast.

So here’s what this tells me: Now is the time when churches are starting to think hard about their Christmas and spring events. I can just picture what’s happening: the summer is winding down, and all of those women who head up their ministry committees are starting to think abou the ministry year again. And they’re starting to realize that they had better have some names ready to suggest to people at their next meeting, or they had better have a speaker booked when the committee meets again. So they’re doing their research RIGHT NOW!

But what if you haven’t received anything in your inbox? What if your phone isn’t ringing?

Don’t worry! You can still take these steps to capitalize on this busy time of year:

1. Cold Call Local Churches

It sounds scary, I know, but if you do it right, it minimizes the awkwardness. Here’s the important thing to keep in mind: apparently that “six degree of separation” thing is true. Each of us can get to any other human being on this planet through just six people. So chances are that if you want to get booked into a church, you know someone who already knows the women’s ministry coordinator. Or you know somebody who knows somebody who does. And if you call a specific person, with a referral, that’s much more effective than sending out a block email.

Here’s a post on exactly how to do it, that takes all the fear out of it. Well, most of the fear anyway!

2. Send out Your Newsletter

Have you been collecting email addresses each time you speak? Have you been sending out newsletters fairly regularly, highlighting interesting things you’ve written, and interesting things you’ve read and watched, around the internet?

I know it’s hard to send out a newsletter regularly. I often am late by a few weeks–or even months. But now is the perfect time to send it! Sure, many people are still on vacation, but those are home are starting to think about who to hire.

In this newsletter, highlight very near the top the dates that you are available. Say something like this: I’m booking now for Christmas outreach events in November and December, and retreats in April and May! Let them think of something specific. They can still ask you for something that falls outside of those time periods, but the more specific you are, the more it looks like you’re in demand, and you’re purposeful about what you want to do.

If you want to know more about creating a dynamite newsletter that people read, check this out!

3. Talk about it on Facebook

Never forget the power of social media! Your friends and family can be your best cheerleaders. I know sometimes we take Jesus’ statement that “a prophet has no honour in his own country” rather personally, but if you let all your friends and acquaintances know that you’re gearing up to speak, your chances of someone passing your name on increase dramatically.

Every now and then, post a status update that says something like, “polishing up a Christmas outreach talk”, or “Writing a new weekend retreat package. Do you know a church that needs a women’s speaker?” When you ask directly, people are more likely to help.

4. Contact Places You’ve Already Spoken

Perhaps you have your former speaking contacts on your email newsletter list, but even so, it’s good to send a personalized email to those you have spoken to in the last few years, to remind them of you. Make your email short, so it’s not overwhelming, and try to do these things:

a. Mention that you’re booking up for the speaking season
b. Write down the titles of any new talks that you have that differ from the ones that you’ve already given at that church
c. Ask specifically if they are looking for a speaker this year
d. End the email by saying, “if you know someone in another church who may be looking for a women’s speaker, please forward them this email. I love partnering in ministry!”

There you go: my four tips for taking advantage of the August/September rush. What do you think? Have you tried to contact churches lately? What has been your experience? Let me know in the comments!

And if you want more information on how to get better bookings as you grow your ministry, check out this download that shows  you how to uncover even more opportunities!

Is It “Unspiritual” To Charge a Fee When You Speak?

photo © 2008 Horia Varlan | more info (via: Wylio)

I’ve been conducting speaker training for two years now. Most of you who come to this site truly want to speak in the Christian world. You want to speak in churches, at camps, to youth groups. You want to make a difference for God. You want to share the message that God has given you. But you can’t do this without receiving some sort of compensation, because you need to be bringing in some income.

Does that make you unspiritual?

That’s an important question, and it’s interesting that it seems to come up pretty much solely concerning female speakers. Male speakers, after all, are paid all the time. They’re called “pastors”. But many ministries to women exist that do not really believe in compensating their speakers.

In fact, I read a thread from one of these ministries where people were appalled that one speaker asked for about $150 to cover her gas, rather than the traditional $50 or $75 that the group paid. How could she think of doing that?

And yet, my question would be, how could she not?

I’m afraid that many women speakers are battling this idea that to ask for money makes us unspiritual. I find this puzzling, because at these Christian events, the people have paid caterers. They have bought decorations (and thus paid stores). They have, at times, rented halls. It was not unspiritual to pay for food; it is only unspiritual to pay for food for your soul. Very strange.

But I’m also opposed to it for two reasons: the first is scriptural. The second is practical. Let’s tackle them both in turn.

1. The worker is worth his wages.

The Bible clearly states in 1 Timothy 5:18 that “the laborer is worthy of his wages”.

In other words, those who are involved in ministry should be paid. They should not be expected to do it for free. Certainly those in the New Testament church sold their belongings and gave to the poor, but that was their choice, and they were giving to their own community. I often take the money that I receive from speaking and give it away, but I give it away to the charities I support. If I go to a church that is two hundred miles from where I live, I do not know that church or its ministry. I want to support the ministries that I do know. To expect a guest, who is not part of your fellowship, to pay your fellowship for the privilege of speaking (which is what it amounts to if a group does not pay adequate travel expenses), is unreasonable.

Now some groups don’t pay because they don’t have the money. I’ve spoken at both churches and groups who apologize profusely for not paying, and I don’t mind that at all. They have little money, and so they can’ t pay, even if they want to. What bothers me is the groups that make it an issue of spiritual pride that they do not pay, so that no one becomes puffed up. I think this is a misunderstanding of Scripture, and can be damaging to their own group.

2. If you don’t pay, you damage your own ministry

Here’s where I really see the problem, though. Becoming a gifted, effective speaker is something that takes work. Yes, we are gifted, but that gifting needs to be trained. It needs practice. I have always been a gifted speaker, but I am so much better today than I was eight years ago because I have had so much practice.

Who are the best speakers out there today? Those who are actually speaking to groups that hire only good speakers. When a medium-to-large size church hires a speaker for an evening, that speaker knows that he or she has to really prepare. She has to be engaging. She has to be a little bit funny. She has to be able to speak well. She has to have an effective, well-crafted message. And so she works hard to be that.

The groups who insist on not really paying speakers are also saying, “we don’t believe that speakers should have practice or a lot of training, because that’s worldly.” Certainly they may give some training themselves, and I know groups that do train their speakers to a certain extent, but the best speakers are those who have spoken to a variety of groups, not just one type of group. They are speakers who have had to adjust to different personalities or circumstances. Speakers who have had to develop different talks, or gone deeper into the Word to find new material and new thoughts.

I used to speak for a group that didn’t really pay, going to a number of different circuits and speaking to a number of different individual groups under their umbrella. And I can tell you that the quality of speaker there differed tremendously from the quality of speaker at most women’s conferences I attended, simply because once people got good, they left.

Some women are comfortable speaking for no money, because that’s their ministry, and if God is calling you to that, that is perfectly okay. But we need to understand that it is not unspiritual to be paid for one’s work, and in fact, being paid for one’s work usually brings better quality.

I still speak for free occasionally when I feel God prompting me to. I often speak for little or no money when it’s a real opportunity to share the gospel to people who haven’t heard. But I don’t speak for organizations who refuse to pay speakers well as a rule, thinking that this is spiritual. It’s not. What they’re really looking for in speakers are people who are completely dedicated to their particular ministry, and not to ministry as a whole. That cuts down the number of potential speakers drastically.

It also puts an undo burden on the speakers, asking them to be away from home–from family responsibilities, from children, from their own churches–far more than the organizers of these events are. The speakers travel; the others don’t. And they are asking the speakers to take the money out of their family’s pockets to pay for these speaking trips, because it costs money to drive to different groups. They say this should be done in the name of “ministry”, but I question whether it is ministry to ask children or husbands to sacrifice without compensation. That can cause a lot of family friction and hardship.

I come back to the Bible: “a worker is worth his wages”.

My conclusion? Listen to the Holy Spirit and be open to speaking for free. But you are not unspiritual if you ask to be paid. You are simply being faithful to your family and enabling yourself to grow as a speaker, and that is a good thing.

What do you think? I know this is a controversial subject, and I’d love to have some of you chime in!

How to Use Photos to Get the Word Out

You’re a Christian women’s speaker. You speak at church events. You do it for the glory of God. So thinking about marketing your speaking ministry sounds weird. Is that really part of ministry?

Yes, it is, because if God has given you a message, you should want to get it out there. And you can only get it out there if people have heard of you and if you capture their attention long enough to get them to suggest you or hire you.

So let’s look at one of the best marketing tools you have: pictures of yourself. You can use pictures in a whole variety of ways to get people’s attention, but to do that, you need one thing first: a professional photograph of yourself, taken by a professional photographer. It should look interesting, should portray you in your best light, and should make you look like you take ministry seriously.

I waited too long to pay for a professional photo. I settled for some that were just awful, and they were embarrassing on my website. One day I was asked to be on the most popular Christian radio show in Canada, and I sent them my photo to put up on their website before the fact. The host gently told me the photo wasn’t up to snuff–and honestly, it wasn’t that bad. It just obviously wasn’t a professional photograph. So don’t settle for your sister taking a picture of your smiling face. Ask someone who knows what they’re doing!

I finally paid for a photo shoot, and now I have 15 different pictures I can use at different times, and it’s so freeing!

Of course, it’s almost time for some new ones, because my hair keeps changing, but that’s one of the dangers of being a woman.

So get a professional photograph. And then here’s what you do with pictures:

1. Put them prominently on your website

Use a variety of pictures, if possible, on each page. People like visual things. Embed one picture into your header on your website so that it’s on every page, but you can add different pictures of yourself on other pages. They don’t all have to be super quality; as long as one really good one is in the header, you can include action or candid shots on the other. But include lots, to make it seem as if you’re very busy. The busier you seem, the more people will want to hire you!

2. Take pictures every time you speak

Whenever you  speak, ask someone in the audience to take pictures. Hand them your camera, show them what to do, and tell them to shoot away! And ask them to take a ton, because I find that usually only 10% are usable. So get them to take lots so you have lots of choice.

And make sure you get pictures when you’re just chatting with people after the talk, or sitting at a table with people at a dinner. People like the action shots and not just the shots of you at the podium.

3. Put them up on Facebook

Even if they’re not great, after each engagement, post pictures to Facebook, both to your page and to your profile. This is easy to do by uploading them to your page and then tagging yourself in them using your profile account, and then they show  up in both news feeds.

If they’re not great, I often upload them to Facebook and my blog and then delete them from my camera card, because I don’t need to save everything. But putting them up as often as possible reminds people: Hey! She speaks! And that may sound silly, but often people forget (especially your friends). Remind them, and they’re more likely to recommend you.

4. Wear different outfits as much as possible

This may sound a little too image-conscious, but I try to not repeat the same outfit very often, or at least within the last 2-3 speaking engagements. That way I have pictures of myself speaking in different clothes, which reinforce the fact: Hey! She’s doing LOTS of speaking! If you always speak in the same clothes, then the pictures can look as if they were taken on the same day, and people don’t have the same impression that you speak lots.

Give them the idea that you speak lots, and they will think of you as being in demand and want to hire you more.

5. Use pictures for video

You can make a video of your ministry without actual video. As long as  you have an .mp3 of you speaking, you can combine that with still photos and create a short promo video. Candy Troutman, one of my students, made one here. So never underestimate the power of what you can do with photos!

6. Send out newsletters

You should be sending out a monthly newsletter to those on your email list. Include speaking photos from the last month in that newsletter–or at least photos from engagements that perhaps you haven’t highlighted yet. Again, let people remember, “she speaks A LOT”, and then they’re more likely to ask you to speak for them.

Note that you can’t do many of these things if you don’t take pictures. So be sure to take as many as you can everytime you speak, and you’ll find your ministry growing!

When You Feel Like an Impostor

Photo by Xenia Antunes

I smiled, hugged, and waved at the women who organized the women’s day as I opened the trunk to deposit my props and books inside. Clicking the unlock button, I climbed in the driver’s side, and turned the car keys as I rolled the window down. One more wave, I thought, as the smile was plastered on my face. They waved back, laughing and smiling.

And then I was out the driveway, onto the highway, heading home. The smile came off of my face. I exhaled loudly, slumped in my seat, set the cruise control, and hunted for a radio station to fill the car with music so I wouldn’t be alone with my thoughts.

I felt like an impostor.

I think that is one of the most common feelings speakers have after an engagement–or perhaps even before one! We worry about whether we were present our message properly, whether our message was relevant, correct, and effective. We’re nervous. We’re scared. And yet we have to appear upbeat, energetic, and excited all day as we’re surrounded by women who are hanging on to our every word.

At times it feels more like being in a high school play than it does delivering God’s message. So many times I feel as if I have been acting.

And I have learned that this is not necessarily a bad thing.

A phrase hit me this week as I was loading up the car with books, once again, to drive three hours away from my family to speak at a retreat. God said to me,

Can you offer me a sacrifice?

And in many ways, that’s what speaking is. It is hard to believe that, perhaps, when you are just starting out and you’re so desperate to get some speaking engagements. In many ways the inception of a ministry is a wonderful time–a period of dreaming and visioning and working and excitement.

But the time comes when those speaking engagements roll in, and we are consumed with doubt. I know my messages are effective. People tell me they are, they cry with me, they pray with me, and most of all, perhaps, they ask me back.

I also know, though, that some of the best days I have had speaking are not days when I have felt particularly energetic. They’re days when I had to push myself. When I had to remember that it was God who originally helped me to write this message, and it was God who gave me the gifts to deliver it. And so I deliver it, and I see the impact, but in the meantime I’m thinking about missing my own church that Sunday, and wondering how the youth are doing without me (I teach their class). And I’m wondering if Katie made it back from Youth group okay last night, and if she’s made up with that friend who was being silly to her last week. And I’m wondering if my husband’s okay, because he was on call on Friday night and he’s always tense being on call when I’m not there, because he hates having to leave the girls (even though they are teenagers now).

And quite frankly, I want an afternoon to knit. I haven’t had an afternoon to myself in a while, and I’m tired.

Yet nevertheless, despite all these things running through my mind, I plaster a smile on my face, and I deliver my message.

Am I an impostor?

Photo by doortoriver

No. I’m not. Here’s what I realized, driving back through the array of fall colours last weekend. Those words I spoke were true–whether or not I was excited by them right then. I have heard them so many times, given them so many times, that I sometimes miss the power of them. But God’s power is still there, in those words, and He does not depend upon my mood. He simply asks to use me–even if I’m not excited at that very moment.

Isn’t that what a sacrifice is? To offer yourself to God, knowing that what you have to share is important, even if your feelings aren’t necessarily in line right now? I’m not talking about sin in your life. If there are major sins, we definitely have to bring those before the Lord and work them through before we stand in front of an audience. But sometimes we’re just engulfed in our humanity–worried about health concerns, or family, or laundry, or church. And none of those things stops just because we have a speaking engagement.

Here’s another scene that is repeated many times when I speak: I am standing alongside my book table, shaking hands, hugging teary women, praying wih some. So many come to me and say, “that was just wonderful. You spoke directly to me.”

And I don’t know what to say. I want to cry, “I’m glad, but I’m worried about my daughter, and I wish that I could have been there for her today!” I want to say, “I sometimes wonder if I’ve lost my enthusiasm for this; why aren’t I more excited today?”

But I don’t feel that I can say those things, and so I simply smile and say, “thank you for telling me. I’m so glad.” And I leave it like that, empty, hanging in the air, as if there was something else that really should have been said.

I don’t leave it hanging anymore. Sometimes, in those moments when people sing my praises, I just decide to be honest once again. I say, “Thank you for that encouragement. I needed that today. I’m tired, and I sometimes wonder if I’m having an impact. So it’s so great to know that God can use me even with all the things I’ve got running through my mind, too!”

People appreciate that. They like knowing I’m human, too. And so I have realized I don’t have to be an impostor. I don’t have to pretend that everything is okay, that I was completely excited to be there, that there was no other place I would rather be, no other people who are tickling at the edges of my brain, no other concerns that I can’t seem to leave behind. It is not “acting” to act excited on stage, to deliver your message with a passion that you don’t necessarily feel. It is simply giving it the attention that it deserves because it is God’s message, and it IS exciting.

And usually, once I start, that excitement returns. Berate myself for feeling selfish, and it doesn’t.

I am trying to practice the art of being quiet on the drive home, of letting God speak to my heart, and quiet me after delivering a retreat. I am trying not to flee from the people who tell me that I spoke to them, trying not to flee from the thoughts that accuse me of not being worthy to speak because my heart is sometimes divided. I am simply offering God a sacrifice–my time and attention and energy–and a sacrifice has to cost something. In this case, it costs my emotions and my energy, and it is lovingly offered, even if sometimes it is difficult.

We cannot expect ourselves to be always on an even emotional level when we speak. Some days we will be over-the-top energetic. Other days we won’t. But God stays the same. And we are offering Him our sacrifice. We are offering Him our best delivery–even if we’re tired. And I believe He is happy with that, and that He will use it, if it is honestly offered, even in the midst of worry or exhaustion.

Why This Blog?

Sheila Wray Gregoire

I’m Sheila Wray Gregoire.

I speak.

Do you?

I didn’t always. I started off writing articles, and eventually books. But I’ve always loved making people laugh, and I love communicating God’s truth.

But when I started speaking it was tough. I didn’t have a mentor, and I didn’t have any clue where to find speaking engagements, how much to charge, how to write a good talk, how to market myself, and more.

Now I speak 4-8 times a month to audiences from 50-1000. And I love it!

But there aren’t enough of me. And there aren’t enough other really good speakers, either. There need to be, because our churches, and our culture, need to hear good, biblical messages that can help transform their lives, families, and communities.

So I hope this blog can become a place where I can share what I’ve learned, and where you can add some of your own ideas and comments. Let’s make this a community, where we can trade knowledge, grow from each other, and inspire each other!

In the next few days I’ll have posts up on how to get started, how to figure out how much to charge, great places to launch your speaking ministry, and more! So bookmark me now and visit back often, or subscribe via RSS! I’m going to provide some great tips that I wish people had shared with me way back when. And you can get them here, for free!

Thanks for joining me!