by Jalene Jaspers

I have traveled nine years in evangelism with my husband and two children, and I am convinced that the Lord equips us for what He asks us to do. With that said, I believe that there are some ways churches can encourage and minister to an evangelist’s wife that will enable her to be much more effective in her ministry to the church.

If you want to better understand the needs of an evangelist’s wife, realize that she carries the responsibility of being a guest as well as a hostess in a new place every week. She has been invited as a guest and must conduct herself as such at all times. (So must her children.)  On the other hand, she has also come to serve and is expected to put her best foot forward, so to speak, to make everyone feel at home with her.  The awkward tension between these two worlds can be exhausting at times. The key to being a blessing to her is to be gracious. Be gracious in your acceptance of her, and be gracious in your expectations of her.

Don’t be intimidated by her—she wears her nylons out one run at a time just like you! Because she has to be the visitor every Sunday, help her make the transition from guest to hostess as painless as possible by graciously accepting her. However, kindly refrain from the other extreme of smothering her. She has a family and a life beyond this one week of meetings. Her responsibilities and schedule will change from week to week so include her, yet be gracious if she declines your invitations to participate in activities.

Don’t expect Martha Stewart, Ann Landers, Beth Moore, and June Cleaver to be embodied by your road-weary evangelist’s wife. By God’s grace, she will come fully equipped to do exactly what God has called her to do and nothing more. Allow her to be who God made her to be, and you will be richly blessed.

If you speak with an evangelist’s wife regarding difficulties in traveling, it doesn’t take long before the subject of food will surface. Many well-meaning church ladies have failed to step back and ask themselves this one revealing question:  “If I ate every day what I am expecting the evangelist and his family to eat, how healthy would I be? Not to mention, would I be able to fit through my door?” There may be several solutions to the over-feeding that takes place in a week of meetings. One option is to provide a food allowance which gives them more of a say in what they eat. You can be creative, but whatever the solution, be gracious if their answer is “No, thank you” when it comes to food.

I know for myself, my specific needs may change from week to week; therefore so the churches that are the greatest blessing, and the easiest to serve, are the ones that have personified graciousness.