Junia Network

A faithful model of female leadership

Mission

The Junia Network was formed to cultivate a faithful model of female leadership that reflects the image of God through mutuality, rest, and Spirit-led courage. We are building a community where women are equipped and encouraged to lead in full expression of their calling.

Vision

The Junia Network endeavors to see a growing network of women whose leadership becomes a living proclamation of the gospel - embodying leadership that is rooted in relational wisdom, spiritual depth, and freedom in the Holy Spirit.

We imagine a church and a world shaped by women who are:



  • Grounded in rest, not striving

  • Connected in mutual support, not competition

  • Courageous in voice, not silenced by systems

  • Leading with grace, confidence and humility


Values

Relationships built with Authenticity

We value honest, Spirit-led leadership that springs from self-awareness and vulnerability.


Authenticity for us means:

  • Being honest about what you carry—your wounds and your wisdom
  • Leading from your story, not in spite of it
  • Creating space to be seen and known without performance

Rest

We resist the culture of hustle and scarcity by trusting in God’s provision and presence.


Rest is not a retreat from leadership—it is the soil from which healthy leadership grows.


We honor:

  • Sabbath rhythms of work and play
  • Embodied practices that connect us to God, to our true identity, and to one another
  • A posture of trust that waits, listens, and responds

Reciprocity

We practice trinitarian mutuality and Spirit-led collaboration by listening and making room for one another’s gifts. 


We value:

  • Community over self-sufficiency
  • Diversity of experiences and voices
  • Discerning and following the leadership of the Holy Spirit

Resource

Rooted in storytelling, this is a space where we can share, learn, and resource one another in leadership—not by mimicking what has always been done, but by embracing who we are and what that means for how we carry ourselves and how we lead.


We resource one another by:

  • Sharing our lived experience as a gift to others
  • Offering encouragement, wisdom, and practical support
  • Celebrating and amplifying one another’s gifts

Cohort

The Junia Network is a movement of women leading in the local church, theological education, denominational life, Christian non-profits and the marketplace. This year-long cohort experience gathers women leading in a significant ministry or organization who are longing for peers and mentors that share similar gifts, callings, and convictions. 


The cohort will be anchored by two retreats (three nights and three days).  The generous hospitality of Green Lake Conference Center in Green Lake, Wisconsin and Truett Seminary in Waco, Texas make these retreats possible.  There will also be virtual gatherings each month to build relationships, learn from and resource one another, and find moments of rest amidst our ministry vocations. 


Who is Junia?

We all think of Paul as a pioneer, but who were the pioneers before Paul?  The disciples of course, but in Romans 16:7, Paul names Junia and her husband Andronicus not only as outstanding among the apostles, but as those who were in Christ before he was. 


When we think of the Apostles, we often think of Paul’s particular brand of leadership, but what about the leadership of Junia and Andronicus? We have no record of their writings, we simply know they were early adopters.  They were both named among the apostles, but surely, their leadership style was distinct.  We know from Gen 1:27 that God created humanity in his own image, male and female he created them.  God created men and women in unity and distinction, both designed with the capacity to lead according to their creative design.  The leadership of men and women, when lived in mutual honor and interdependence, mirrors the relational life of the Trinity—strength and tenderness, initiative and receptivity, wisdom and courage held together in love. Junia’s story reminds us that women have always been pioneers in the story of God, not in competition with men but in partnership that brings the Church to her fullness.