Last month, we held our first women’s ministry event of the 2016 school year. The turnout was excellent, and we were incredibly grateful for all the women who showed up to hear about our vision for women’s ministry in Karis Church, which we simply call Karis Women.

If you are new to Karis, or missed the event, you might be wondering what Karis Women is all about. Perhaps you’ve been a part of women’s ministry events at other churches and think you know what to expect. Or maybe you’ve never been a part of women’s ministry in a church before and have no idea what to expect.

Women’s ministry in Karis Church is not an endeavor separate from the rest of the church. Karis Women is a gospel community on mission for Christ’s Kingdom, just as every other ministry in Karis functions! Here’s how this plays out practically in our ministry:

Gospel

Four times a year, Karis Women hosts teaching events for women. These events are known as Katalyst. In science, a catalyst is a substance that creates or speeds up a chemical reaction. In the same way, we want our teaching at Katalyst to be gospel-centered substance that stimulates a reaction in the women who hear it. Our prayer is that women feel compelled to evangelize, disciple and serve others when they leave our events.

Karis Women is also launching a blog series for the women of the church on karischurch.org. This year, our series will be focused on Galatians 5:22, also known as the fruit of the spirit. Once a month, a different woman from our church will provide written teaching on this passage. We hope that you will find these blog posts helpful and share them with your friends.

Community

We believe that the Bible places a heavy importance on church community, and Karis Women wants to see their sisters flourish in Christian community. Members of our leadership team will be regularly opening their homes for informal get-togethers. There’s no teaching or agenda for these events; this is simply an opportunity for the women of Karis Church to spend time with their sisters in Christ, and for new women to make friends.

In addition to informal social events, Karis Women will be providing training that will help women get the most out of their Fight Club experience within their Missional Communities. Karis Women will also host a yearly retreat where women can spend quality time with other female believers and learn about topics that will help them grow as disciples and disciple-makers.

Mission

Ultimately, the women of Karis Church come together for gospel teaching and community discipleship so that they can encourage one another in an outward, missional direction. We seek to love and serve the city of Columbia side-by-side as sisters and co-laborers. With that goal in mind, Karis Women strives to put ladies in touch with ways they can serve their church and their city so that the love of Christ can be displayed through their various gifts and passions.

This December, Karis Women will be hosting an event called Affordable Christmas. We hope to provide families an opportunity to purchase Christmas presents for their children at an extremely low cost, so that families can celebrate the holiday season with dignity, but without the financial burden.

Karis Women will be soliciting donations, volunteers and other needs for this event during the Autumn months, and we need every woman at Karis Church to pull it off. If you love to wrap gifts, buy gifts, help people shop for gifts or just like Christmas, then we have a part you can play! Please contact Charlee Zimmermann on the City for more specific information on this event.

Want to know more? Mark these dates on your calendar and join Karis Women for one of our upcoming events. Or connect with us by contacting Laura Gutwein (Karis Women Deacon) or Rachelle Cox (Karis Women Intern) on The City. We would love to meet with you and help get you plugged in with other women in Karis Church! If you’re not on The City, contact us at info@karischurch.org.

November 19th, 2016: Katalyst
December 6th, 2016: Affordable Christmas
February 25th, 2017: Katalyst
May 5th-6th, 2017: Karis Women Retreat