"I don’t understand the word ‘lose’, I only understand the word ‘learn.’”

-Pitbull

Dear young people in the church,

Uncertain about how to get involved in church leadership? I’ve been there. This letter is not going to be much of a “how to,” rather more of a “you can.” If all that you take away from it is, “Maybe I should just go for a position in church leadership and see if I’m elected,” then I’ll have done my job. Here’s the story of me, Mr. Worldwide, and the open ocean of church leadership.

…

Around the end of 2017, the Episcopal Diocese [regional affiliation of churches headed by a bishop, somewhat analogous to a synod or conference in other contexts] of New Jersey was calling for more candidates for a ton of diocesan roles. It seemed, from the pleading via email, that they hadn’t received nearly enough names for the available positions. After much hand wringing, I thought to myself: why not? To be clear, I didn’t think I'd be elected. NJ is a highly political state, and I had done zero politicking. But I crafted my personal statement, applied to be considered for Diocesan Standing Committee (a group that helps advise the bishop/make the Big Decisions™), and then promptly put it in the back of my mind. 

Enter Pitbull. My husband Ben is an Episcopal priest, and he credits Pitbull's music for getting him through seminary (priest school), and especially the GOEs (General Ordination Exams). Sometime that same fall, Ben's seminary buddy submitted his information to a random contest to win a "Pitbull Cruise." When I tell this part of my story, for some reason people always think the dog breed, not the international musical sensation. Nope, I mean the latter. Anyways, of course he won the cruise. Better yet – it was over my birthday weekend! I'd be ringing in 29 in the Bahamas with Mr. Worldwide. The. Dream.

There was one problem. This was also the weekend of diocesan convention, when the elections would take place. Even worse, my husband was canonically required to attend convention. He'd have to plead with the bishop to be allowed to go, and I'd have to check the rules and see if I could skip as well. When Ben floated the idea of skipping convention for the Pitbull Cruise, the Bishop said "You HAVE to go!" (to the Pitbull Cruise, that is.) Turns out I didn't need to be present for the election either. 

So that's how I ended up sipping a birthday cocktail out of a coconut on a beach in Nassau when I got the call I'd won. Not a terrible way to spend your 29th birthday.

Of course, I didn’t really just throw my hat in for the sake of it. I had felt called to serve the Church in a larger capacity for a long time before I had ever considered running for a diocesan position. I have always been the kind of person who likes being involved with things in both small- and large-scale capacities. In my day job as an attorney at a medical-legal partnership, I am a master at straddling multiple worlds. I take what I learn on the ground serving clients and use it to pursue big picture policy changes. I blur the line between the legal and the medical fields because I know that both have so much to offer each other and our mutual patient-clients. 

I see my role on the standing committee in a similar light. I am very much a lay person, but my spouse is clergy. I was brought up in the church and have been around long enough to know the local stakeholders and customs, but I am young enough to stay connected to new communities forming online and new innovations taking place across the Church. My calling is to make connections—acting like a very flexible but very sturdy bridge. Standing Committee allows me to live into this call in the spirit of giving back to the Church that has formed me into so much of who I am today.

I've been on Diocesan Standing Committee for 2 years now. I've found it to be an incredibly rewarding and humbling experience. I'm the only millennial on Standing Committee by a long shot, and as such I feel like my voice has a lot to offer our governing body. Despite the minimal time commitment, it's a huge part of helping to sustain our diocese. I am continually invigorated by the multigenerational relationships that are nurtured through this service. The collective wisdom contained in the body is diverse and voluminous. I get a chance to participate very directly in the work God is doing in the Diocese of New Jersey, and it is a delight. I unequivocally would run for church leadership again, and I would be honored to help fellow "youths" do the same, although I am now an elderly 31.

If you want more practical advice than: “Just do it!” here are some tips about getting into church leadership:

1. Start small. If you’re not really plugged into your local parish, try taking on something there first. It could be anything, from serving on a smaller committee, to helping  organize events, to volunteering to develop their social media accounts. 

2. Stay posted. Timing is everything, and you won’t be elected to any positions you miss the application deadline for. Make sure you’re on your local church mailing list, as well as that of the larger governing body (in our case, a diocese). 

3. Know and show your worth. Time does not equal experience. Don’t let people with decades of work history psych you out. Maybe you only have a couple of years post-undergrad professional experience. Heck, maybe you’re still in school. (I was actually in law school when I was elected.) What really matters is making a case for why you are the best person for the job. Look at the requirements of the position and highlight your personal strengths and life experience that directly apply to those requirements. Don’t assume the link is clear — connect the dots.  

4. If at first you don’t succeed, blah blah blah. Okay, you probably know this, but every time you apply for a position you aren’t going to hear you got the gig while sipping a cocktail in the Bahamas. This is okay. You have plenty of time. Each attempt is just a rehearsal for the next one. You can do this. You’ve got this.