Rising Stars: Meet Teresa Edwards of Macon, GA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Teresa Edwards.

Hi Teresa, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I suppose I thought growing up as a little girl near Savannah, GA that there were roles for men and roles for women. No one ever said this out loud to me but it was clear as I observed the division of labor in the world. Women were teachers, nurses and secretaries. Men wore suits leading from offices with views of the city. They were always the exterior face of the work while the women supported them. I’m so glad that turned out to be wrong.

As a life long United Methodist, I grew up with the church as my second home. When I was in high school I sensed a call to ministry but because I had never seen a woman in ministry this didn’t connect. By the end of my college experience, I stepped up with the help of a mentor to discern this was my call. I spent three years completing a Master of Divinity at Atlanta’s own Emory University specifically the Candler School of Theology. These years transformed my life in ways that I could never have imagined in a positive and profound way.

Since those years in the early 90’s, I ‘ve spent my career in the local church teaching, serving, leading and preaching. Even when it was hard, (and there were many times when it was hard) it was always worth it. John and I married in 1996. He’s opposite of me in all the right ways so we compliment each other well. Together we raised an amazing daughter, Corinne, who works as a mental health therapist near Orlando, Florida.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’d say yes and no. When I take the aerial view, the road looks mostly smooth. Yet if you zoomed in you’d find that there were some places where the pavement cracked and trees fell over the path blocking my way. My work life has brought me some of my greatest joys and deepest sorrows. Sharing daily life with people is a holy privilege that comes with much responsibility. It takes our whole lives to learn how to take care of each other, ourselves and to allow God to take care of us.

Starting a family proved to be harder than I thought it would be. It was painful to see the negative sign on the pregnancy test. The prescription for fertility drugs was filled and waiting in my night stand when we found out we were expecting our daughter. Now I see my daughter changing the world in her own ways. That feeling of waiting, confusion and sometimes not great medical care during the time we were trying to conceive taught me so much about how things actually work in the world.

Twice in my career, I’ve found myself deeply struggling in my work as a minister.. The church is full of people, did you know that? Sometimes navigating life with people is difficult in ways you never expect or imagine. The only thing that kept me going during those seasons was trusting in the anchor of God’s call in my life.

In late summer of this year, I went for my yearly mammogram expecting to get a clear report as usual. Instead, I got a call to come back for another mammogram and then a biopsy. This was how I found out I had a very early stage of breast cancer called DCIS. Because of the early diagnosis, my treatment options were optimal. Since then I’ve had a lumpectomy, started taking an estrogen blocker, and am in the midst of radiation treatments right now. This experience has so many layers that I’m just beginning to peel back. I’m learning a lot. The support I’ve received has blown me away. People are good, they really are.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Let me just say that I love my work! I serve as an ordained deacon in the United Methodist Church. It’s a joy to be part of the staff as associate pastor at Vineville UMC in Macon, GA. Over 30 years of ministry, I’ve served churches in a variety of places across South Georgia but our family calls Middle Georgia home. My specific role as associate pastor centers on adult spiritual formation. I often tell people that my job is to help grown ups grow up in their faith. This looks different on different days. One day it’s Bible Study, the next day it’s a service opportunity, and the next day it’s worship, visitation or meeting one on one with adults who want to be intentional about living closer to God and becoming who they are called to be in this world.

It is sheer joy for me to walk alongside others as they seek to live deeper and fuller lives with God. I do this by offering spiritual direction, enneagram coaching and working with the 3Practices. Contemplative spirituality draws me with its emphasis on silence, prayer and slowing down to listen to what the Holy is speaking into our lives. Our busyness steals these important formational and foundational moments. As people of faith, we must intentionally take them back from the world. This work helps us do just that on a daily basis.

One of my newest passions is working with 3Practices. 3Practices founders Jim Hancock and Jim Henderson created a tool to help people listen to one another across ideological divides and simply to just listen to each other with deep curiosity. As Jim Hancock often says: “What we don’t know is often more important than what we do know.” In the work of 3Practices, people gather in a group called a circle, where a predetermined topic is the frame. For instance a frame might look like: “If I thought they would listen, this is what I’d say.” 3Practice leaders, called referees because referees keep the game safe and fair, lead the experience based on the 3Practices: “I’ll be unusually interested in others. I’ll stay in the room with difference. I’ll stop comparing my best with your worst.” Volunteers respond to the frame for up to two minutes then others in the circle can ask questions all beginning with the phrase: “I’d be curious to know.” I can’t explain the lights that went on in my brain and my heart when I encountered this work. I practice as both a referee and a trainer of referees. In a world where no one can actually talk to each other or listen to each other, this feels like work that truly matters.

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I love this question! Most people think that I am an extrovert because I can be all things outgoing. As I’ve grown older, my need to reenergize in quiet moments and rest has grown exponentially. So while I am not an introvert, I identify as an ambivert which means sometimes I get energy from being out with friends and social events while other times this zaps my energy. Often I need to step away from too much interaction to breathe and rest which restores my energy and my soul. It goes both ways. As we age, we tend to move toward more of a balance between our introvert and extrovert selves which I have definitely found to be true. This looks like becoming more aware and more nimble because we understand ourselves better now than we did before.

Writing a good letter and receiving a good letter is one of my greatest pleasures in life. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve been a superb pen pal. There’s something so exciting about opening the mailbox and imagining what encouraging missive I might find there. I believe in a time where texts have replaced even emails, the power of a handwritten note or letter is gift beyond measure.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://vinevillemethodist.com/

Image Credits
Image Credits – Vanda Asbell