The most terrifying thing I did at the She Speaks conference was sign up to be part of a speaker evaluation group. First of all, I’m an introvert and going and speaking at events is scary enough. But purposely putting myself in a situation where I would be evaluated on my abilities as a speaker took a lot of faith for me. When I first met the fabulous Karen Ehman, my evaluation group leader, I was put at ease. She was friendly and warm and she openly described herself by saying, “I’m a Paula not a Simon.”
I spent two sessions with the women in this group. On Friday night we each shared a three-minute portion of our faith journeys and on Saturday afternoon we each had five minutes to teach from a passage of Scripture. For the last six years I’ve been speaking in 30, 45 and 60 minute increments so condensing my talks into those bite sized nuggets was more difficult than I initially thought. But it was so much fun to see the diversity in the room. We’re all trained, professional, speakers from a variety of backgrounds and reaching distinctly difference audiences.
Our group consisted of a Canadian radio DJ, several women’s group speakers, a woman whose current passion is digging wells in Africa, a musician and a college biology professor who wants to start preaching. Since we were all evaluating each other, and being evaluated by Karen, I wasn’t sure what type of environment to expect. Would there be a spirit of competition in the room? Or would it be a positive and safe place to come for constructive feedback?
The level of encouragement in that room truly amazed me. Each of us was there so we could become better for the kingdom of God, so we gave honest feedback but we all managed to do it in a gentle and loving way. I had no idea that the fact I move around when I talk could be perceived as pacing in smaller settings. These women pointed that out to me. Another woman used visual aids that seemed to distract from her message, and we were able to let her know.
I really appreciated the honesty and sweet spirit of the women in this group. Many of them said things to me like, “Your calling is evident.” A few asked how they could order my books or have me come speak at their church. There was no element of competition among us. We all recognized that with each of us ministering in our own unique way more people would be reached with the love of Christ.
By the end of the conference I realized that the thing that scared me most about going to She Speaks turned out to be one of my favorite parts of the weekend.
Have you ever found yourself in an environment where you were positively affirmed in God’s calling on your life? Why do you think it’s easier to respond to constructive yet gentle feedback than it is outright criticism? How can a spirit of unity in your area of ministry greatly impact the kingdom of God?
