When you imagine a free woman, or—if you lack imagination—Google “free woman,” you will probably see a woman in a field or on a beach, arms outstretched, hair blowing back, and most of all: alone. But a shift has begun in the understanding of an individual spiritual freedom that grows and thrives and spreads in community. Liberty Sisterhood devoted their quarterly gathering on May 2 to women sharing “Stories of Freedom.”
Lead Pastor Andi Andrew was thrilled to hear the diversity of voices, “Different women connect with different women. And we as women either consciously or subconsciously give each other permission to be free by paving a way, or showing the way to one another.”
The song set was interrupted as we sent off a troop of women to participate in Liberty Sisterhood’s first sleep out to benefit Covenant House in their efforts to end homelessness among teens in New York City. Gina Guercia, Adrienne Weidert, Meagan Clark, and Sandi Frenke (who was on crutches, no less) spent the night on the pavement. The next morning, Gina cheerfully posted on her Instagram, “We are all called somewhere. New York is my city and it’s such a privilege to help these amazing kids fulfill their dreams the same way I have been blessed to fulfill mine.”
Sandi Frenke (again, on crutches) was also honored by her daughter Sarah Brann and Andi Andrew for being the unstoppable force that raised four kids in New York as a single working mom. We are all inspired by Sandi’s indomitable spirit, especially after hearing her story and Andi’s statement that “she has never given up, ever…She has never isolated herself, but has stayed a pillar of strength in our community and to her family.”
Together we watched a moving video of four women whose lives were impacted by their community groups. And we got a taste of the next Sisterhood event set for September 5th with the announcement that Sarah Dubbeldam of Darling Magazine will be guest speaking!
Next, four women took the stage, eager to share stories of overcoming difficulty through discovering their spiritual freedom. Dawn, the founder of a marketing agency, cut to the chase, narrating how God confronted her about avoiding relationships with women and leaving a crowd of women both astounded and cheering. I shared how in the process of instilling the concept of freedom in my kids, I came to understand walking in freedom and unlocked mindsets from my own childhood. Actress Ito revealed how God redefined difficult times in her past to draw her out of a performance-driven busyness rooted in fear. And recent grad Tia urged everyone to draw nearer to the heart of a relentlessly loving God, a key she discovered for overcoming a boredom that was pulling her into destructive behaviors.
The range of passion and insight from such different walks of life illuminated the truth and wisdom surrounding how women relate to the freedom offered to them in Christ.
Interestingly, Ito’s and my story brought different perspectives on being released from perfectionism, one kind that silenced my voice out of the fear of making mistakes (“I wouldn’t call it perfectionism—I call it ‘a low tolerance for frustration or failure.’ It happens when you’re naturally good at a lot of things”) and another kind that drove the constant activity to crowd out her identity and value apart from her performance (“My ambition was born out of fear, my desire to be perfect out of the need to experience perfect love…The truth is that I am worth more than the sum of my accomplishments. Who I am is not what I can do. Who I am is not what was done to me. Who I am is found in him.”)
But the common element that stood out most was how often the journey to freedom began by another woman pulling them out of isolation. Dawn awed us all when she recalled that God told her, “The walls you build are selfish!” When we allow God to set us free in our identity and purpose, we pave a way even in our brokenness. We create a unique template through our stories when we share our weaknesses and our triumphs. Freedom might photograph as a woman standing alone, but freedom happens in community, on crutches, no less.
The podcast from the evening is at the top of this page so you can listen again or for the first time. And please don’t miss our next meeting to hear Sarah Dubbeldam speak at the Scholastic Theater on September 5th.
