A Foot in the Door

By Elisa Morgan


I was one of six women in my seminary program. Even thirty years ago, God was clear to me: My job is to open the door. Yours is to go through it and once on the other side, to put your foot in the doorway to hold it open for the next woman coming after you.

Today that's it - my job description and calling: go through the door and keep my foot in the doorway for the next woman.

Are you that woman? I'm betting that you are.

"Who me?" comes your squeaky reply. Yep - you. For various reasons, we women pull back from open doors. Some suffer from a case of the "Not Me" syndrome. Not important. Not platform-gifted. Not experienced. Not educated. Not official. So when we see the door opening in front of us, we look around and over our shoulders assuming that the entrance couldn't possibly be intended for us.

Then there are those diagnosed with a "Really? Me?" condition. We believe we hold influence - even leadership skills - but we draw back at the timing, at the conditions, at the position involved in moving through an open door.

Others suffer from an "Only Me" posture. We've been all alone slugging out the "woman in leadership" battle and we're just plain tired. We don't want to go through one more door. We forget that sometimes that's the only thing required of us: entry. Entry so that others can follow.

Wherever you are on the pathway to leadership, (Do you suspect you have gifts that aren't being used or do you know you have influence but need a push to live it out?) There's a doorway in front of you. Everyone of us has influence that God intends we invest for his kingdom purposes.

Guess what? (This is a REALLY BIG DEAL!) God has opened a new door for us. I'm heading through and I want to invite you with me!

For a zillion years, CLA (Christian Leadership Alliance) has offered training in Christian nonprofit and church ministry management. (You know - teaching stuff like how to read a balance sheet, how to take care of yourself while leading others, how to stay relevant in order to connect with your audience.) New this year: an alliance with CLA and FullFill™! We take all the great CLA teachings and bring them home for women. Finally - training in a woman's first language, in our voice and from our unique instinctive perspective!

Paying attention? Chuck Swindoll, Crawford Lorritts, Andy Crouch AND Priscilla Shirer, Carolyn Custis James and myself. Deep and enriching teachings from amazing men as well as uniquely qualified women. Tailor-made offerings like Healing Waters' CFO Beth Flambures on "Changing Women's Seat at the Table: Moving from Bookkeeper to CFO" and Awana's Marie Guthrie on "Marketing Messages that Motivate Women" and Care Net's President Melinda Delahoyde on "Engaging Women as Executives and Board Members."

Seriously. For the first time ever, here is a conference that uniquely equips us to invest all of who we are as women - alongside our brothers in Christ. Here is a time to connect with other women like us - some just starting out on their journey, others seasoned and prepared to guide. Networking. Connecting. Challenging. Caring. Growing. Questioning. Hoping. Voicing.

God has opened a doorway for us - and after us, it's intended for us to stick our foot in the space and to prop it open for the women coming behind us.

You coming?

Click here for more information on the 2011 CLA - FullFill™ Conference. As a special offer to FF Fans, use the code: FFCLA11 when registering and you'll receive a copy of Elisa Morgan's best-selling book, She Did What She Could AND the Study Guide! Click here to access the complete syllabus of workshop offerings and look for the logo!