When I ask women where they swagger, not too many identify church!  I love hearing the stories of women who do swagger in their spiritual lives. Thanks to Erin Counihan for this great piece on following your heart, being yourself, and answering the call.

Guest post by Erin Counihan

I’ve got a bit of a church swagger and I’m not afraid to admit it. I think I’ve always had it. I was that kid wore the white rug duct taped to my back in the nativity play but acted like she had on a full on Academy Award winning designer made sheep costume. Today, I am the woman who wears red shoes to church and sings the hymns, in harmony, from memory, quite loudly… because I can. I’ve always felt at home in the sanctuary, in the choir loft, and in the fellowship call after services (um, hello, that’s where they keep the cookies). With the exception my few uber teen-angsty high school years, I just always loved church. I loved seeing people around me caring for each other and caring for their community. I loved our pastor, who each Sunday who both inspired and challenged us. I loved being a part of that big, messy, lovely church family. And I loved who I was when I was with them.

In college, I felt a call to ministry, to serve that great church family, but I resisted that feeling. I knew I church work would be a good fit for me and that God had put a tug in my heart, but I didn’t know any lady pastors. I saw a church run by men my grandfather’s age. They were smart and kind and caring, but they didn’t joke like I did. They didn’t play field hockey. They didn’t listen to Nirvana. They didn’t toilet paper people’s houses. They certainly didn’t date or dance or read US Weekly. Read more…

Guest blog by Aunt Erin

As a responsible, single woman of a certain age, part of my whole  quit-your-job-and-go-back-to-school plan included taking good care of the financial resources I’d accumulated over a decade of gainful employment. In other words, Erin’s too cheap to pay the Red Cross an annual custodian fee to keep my 401k.

I took an Econ class in undergrad, but admit that I retained about none of it. IRAs, CDs, Money Market Accounts- I know nothing. I needed help. So I went to see an expert. I made an appointment with the financial advisor at my bank. Little did I know that when I walked through those doors, I’d be walking back in time about 5 decades. I sat down to discuss my financial situation and saving options. The financial advisor asked me why I quit my job. I explained that I was studying at seminary. Blah, blah, I’m getting used to this conversation by now and have some stock answers ready to go for all inquiries and reactions. I know how to handle the shocked reaction, the curious reaction, the concerned reaction, the excited reaction and the why-are-you-becoming-a-nun reaction. But Mr. Finance threw a new reaction at me. Well, and old-new reaction. He asked me, in all seriousness, if I was in seminary studying to be a pastor’s wife. Read more…