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Women In Ministry—Staying True To The Call

An Interview with Marilyn Hickey

Enrichment Journal Spring 1996

Enrichment editors talked with Marilyn Hickey during the Signs and Wonders Conference in Springfield, Missouri. She shares experiences and insights concerning her ministry that will help other women who may be asking, "Can God use me in ministry?"

EJ: What do you see in the future for young women in ministry? What advice would you give to any who feel a full-time call?

Hickey: I didn’t feel called for a long time. I was a pastor’s wife. I liked that. I was not discontent. As I became active in reaching people, I was concerned that I was getting so busy doing a lot of good things and might miss God’s best. Then I went to speak at an Assemblies of God women’s meeting in Alexandria, Minnesota—17 years ago. They had two back-to-back meetings with a day between. I fasted and prayed that day.

"God," I prayed, "if You don’t show me what You want me to do, I’m going to flounder out here and maybe do a lot of things and miss You." That’s when He called me to cover the earth with the Word.

So I think women have to hear from God—what He wants—not what people think you want to do. You have to know. People say, "It’s hard on women." It has not been hard on me. If you’re called, God is going to open the door—you don’t have to knock it down.

Some say, "Because I’m a woman, they’re going to be against me, so I have to push the door down." That’s the biggest mistake you could make.

EJ: What does the future hold for women in ministry?

Hickey: It’s not whether you’re a woman or a man that your future’s good but whether you believe in the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. Gender has nothing to do with it. It has to do with your call and your following the Holy Spirit. When women get into the mind-set, "I’m a woman; I’ve been persecuted," that’s a setup of the devil.

EJ: How does God speak His will to you?

Hickey: Two things: (1) I try to keep my heart prepared and open. My prayer life is essential, priority. I cannot live without it. (2) The Word—I read so much of the Word every day that I usually memorize at least one or two books a year. As I meditate in that environment, I feel His impression. Then I write these things down.

EJ: Early in your ministry did you feel there were barriers you had to overcome because you were a woman?

Hickey: Not really. It was all a full advantage, though at one time a whole group of men came out against women preachers and told their people, "Don’t go to anything or listen to her on the radio or television because she’s a false prophetess—God didn’t call women to preach." I heard that, but it didn’t ever seem to hurt or stop anything. I’m sure there will always be something like that. If you’re called, some people are going to be negative, but that’s not a problem for God.

EJ: Has your parallel ministry with your husband’s been a blending of ministries?

Hickey: Yes, for he is probably the most supportive of anybody—almost to the point of embarrassment. Because I was so shy and held back, he was always pushing and praying. When things broke, he never felt it was my ministry but ours. He’s never felt competitive, which is so important.

EJ: How can women in ministry prioritize their lives?

Hickey: In pastoring, your time is gone before you know it. You have to set priorities: (1) prayer time and (2) the Word—those two things. In my life there is no question about it. If I have to drop something else to give these priority, I will. If I have to stay up late to finish up the amount of time that I intended to pray, I’ll do it. You won’t cut these, for you’ll crash without them.

EJ: So your relationship with God is your priority—prayer life and personal study—your family second, and then your ministry?

Hickey:That’s right. I never traveled more than 3 days in a month when I started. My two children went with me at times. As they got older I might be gone 6 days a month but never 6 days at a time, then 10 days a month during college years. Even now, I’m not gone more than a third of the month, except for an occasional overseas trip. My family is really good and has had a lot of input; we do well with each other.

EJ: In bringing this interview to a close, do you have a concluding thought for our women readers?

Hickey:Women need to be very cautious not to get on a pity and rEJection party but keep their eyes on the Word and stick with what the Word says about us, not what people or even our church sometimes think.

When I first got involved in radio and television, we lost 100 people in our church because it was not the standard thing for an Assemblies of God [Pentecostal] pastor’s wife to do at that time. When you lose 100 out of 400, that’s a big segment. I told my husband I didn’t want to hurt the church. I thought my ministry would bless the church and volunteered to stop.

He said, "God’s called you to do this, and we’re not going to let the enemy steal from this. You stay true; we’ll stay true to God." Of course, the ministry was blessed and God blessed the church.

You cannot look at your circumstances and be defeated by them. You have to keep your eyes on that inner witness of what God has called you to do. I want to encourage women not to get hung up on being a woman—get hung up on the Lord and being the woman He wants you to be. Don’t say, "Men are against me." Men are not against us. The devil is against us. Women need to keep focused and keep the focus.

Marilyn Hickey is the president and founder of Marilyn Hickey Ministries. She and her husband Wallace Hickey are the senior pastors at Orchard Road Christian Center in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

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Copyright 2008 The General Council of the Assemblies of God

The Network for Women in Ministry, c/o Enrichment Journal Office
1445 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802