Dear Jen Wilkin,

There’s something you should know.

We read your book.  We've been studying the Bible and the way you teach inductive study in the way it was intended made us sit up and take notice.  We appreciated you handing us a shovel, showing us how to dig and then letting us loose to get into The Word for ourselves.  

And it happened almost immediately…The Word began to get into us.

We listened to all your teachings…even the parenting seminar.  We read your blog and looked forward to the next study you’d put into print, while listening to old audio and using your free resources from studies long past.  We were drawn to you, your wit and wisdom.  But we knew it wasn’t just you.  You pointed us to the teacher Himself.

And somewhere in between the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount where we couldn’t get off our face for the realization of our own poverty of spirit, and the moment in Exodus we arrived at Elim and wept at the goodness of a God who would provide 12 springs and 70 palm trees…this funny thing happened.

We began to feel like we actually know you.

You see, we’ve learned from you, studied along side you, marvelled at the wonder of the truth laid bare before our eyes and sometimes when you tear up reading those marvellous words…we’re right there with you.

And those kids you talk about?  We feel like we know them too.  We know about Matt’s Fantasy football league, and we remember how furious Mary Kate was when you made her ride the rollercoaster.  We know about the dogs, how you feel about camping and the beautiful and quirky way you and your husband teach alongside each other in the parenting seminar.

Somehow you’ve brought us into a sense of fellowship with you and though you might not realize it, there's a sense in which you have become our trusted friend.  

So when 35 of us packed into the rows of a big city church to hear you speak this past weekend, we couldn’t help but feel a bit confused.  We wondered if the message that was being lived out in that place was somehow competing with everything you say and stand for.

We listened to the words of women taking the stage before and after you; women worshipping, praying and trying to clearly articulate the gospel and we wondered if those women actually knew our friend like we do.

We wondered if they actually knew your message…not the one you were about to give, but the message of your heart; the one you keep going back to.   And we wondered if you were grieving over Vancouver as you heard women declare the Bible as 66 love letters to us.  We wondered if it was common for you to question whether anyone was actually listening.

We wondered if the fruit of believing the Bible is a book all about us becomes glaringly obvious once you arrive at the realization that it’s actually not.

We wondered why we were not regularly praying for our friend Jen Wilkin: That you would be strengthened and encouraged in your ministry and know that many of the shovels you have handed off are indeed hitting paydirt.  That as women have looked to you they indeed have been pointed in the direction of One Far Greater.  

We wondered why we were not praying more fervently for all women that by His Spirit, the information would result in transformation.

You see, we are starting to get the message.  And in studying the Word of God daily and seeing what it says, we have seen something life-changing.  

We have seen God Himself.  Sure we know more about Him, but we also know Him.  

And knowing Him is changing us.  It is life-giving and beautiful, painful and ugly all at once and at times we’d rather just look away.  We rarely feel like we’re “getting it right,” and yes, we know we walk in victory but it also causes us to linger in repentance.

It is changing the way we worship, the way we pray, the way we “view and do” ministry, and the way we interact with each other.  We're in awe of it actually, but It’s changing our common language, our motivations, the choices we make, and the things we set our affections on.  And yes...It’s even changing our swag bags.

We've looked in the mirror and are determined not to go away immediately forgetting what we look like. Our good God is bearing His fruit through your faithful commitment to your message.

And we just thought you should know.

Sincerely,

Your Friends - Some Real Life Women of the Word