An Old Broad Hits 40—-something!

Well, happy birthday to ME! The big day is January 14th and this gives me the perfect excuse to ask you if you’d be so kind as to give me the gift of testimony.

Specifically, your written and signed testimony that I can use for my consulting portfolio. Ministers who write books get all those nice blurbs to put on the jacket cover. Well, these testimonials will be my blurbs for my own selfish ego gratification (why the heck not? We all deserve ego gratification for work well and faithfully done!) and for anyone who is interested in knowing why this ministry is relevant. Especially that latter part.

So send ’em in the comments if you’re willing to include your real name, or send ’em via e-mail if you’d prefer to keep your letter private (it could wind up on a website eventually, though, so don’t put anything too personal in there like, “PeaceBang was there for me when I was really depressed and thinking of quitting the ministry or setting off a stink bomb in the sanctuary of my church on a Sunday morning, or maybe just ripping off my clothes and running naked and screaming down the main street of town just to express myself. She talked me out of doing any of those things and helped me to channel my energy in constructive ways, and also recommended some really great shoes that helped me endure the crisis”).

I’m going to try to take a little blogging break for a bit (not too long, as you know how this feeds my soul, energizes and inspires me), just because it would be good to get more fresh air and go to sleep earlier. It seems that everyone around me has a terrible flu and I’m trying like the dickens to avoid it. I have an especially creative idea that I want to do with my congregation for the month of February/Lent and I want to have the requisite energy for it.

Thank you in advance for your testimonials that include how we met (if we did), how this ministry has supported yours, and if you saw me lead an event, please specify which one and why it was good. Nobody’s allowed to be mean because it’s MY BIRTHDAY and also Jesus doesn’t like that.

Thanks, Pigeons!! Kiss of peace from this old broad who loves you!

14 Replies to “An Old Broad Hits 40—-something!”

  1. Dear PB,

    Your ministry rocks! I have not consulted you personally, but have trawled BTFM on many occasions to find advice on this and that. I love the mixture of fashion and ministry. I was lucky enough to meet you a couple of years ago, when you came to the UK, and spoke to Golders Green Unitarians about Unitarian Christianity. We went out for a curry afterwards, and I was so thrilled to have the chance to get to know you personally.

    Blessings on your ministry, and happy birthday for the 14th,
    Sue xx

  2. Happy Birthday, Dear PeaceBang !!!!! Happy Birthday to you!

    I can’t remember when or how I ran across BeautyTipsFor Ministers – but it was a happy day for me. Your topic is so important, your “voice” so spicy and warm, and the passion you bring to this blog (and your other one) is infectious. You make me proud to be a clergy person and proud to be trying, however haltingly, to build up a beloved community around love and beauty and joy and mutual regard (i.e. the stuff Jesus likes.)
    It was my pleasure to meet you “in the flesh” at Louisville Seminary, when you led us in a lively discussion of clergy image and substance. My most vivid memory is the makeovers you performed on a few lucky participants. Just a few touches (and that’s the right word – you have such a healing touch) and you brought out beauty and life they didn’t know or show before. It was amazing. Birthday blessings on your head and many more years of ministry and delightful-ness. Your servant, Cindy

  3. I love BTFM and I’m not a minister. I am a seminar grad and a public figure (I don’t think I ever wrote that before but I work in the public and feel like my image matters) and I find your advice and counsel supportive and fun. I appreciate the theological base of your work and I trust your theatrical side. Thank you for having such a ministry and thank the internet for making it so accessible. Many blessing on your birth-day!

  4. I haven’t worn eyeshadow since I was 14, but I’m grateful for your beauty tips. I’m not clergy, but I’m grateful for your pastoral wisdom. Thank you for being so fierce, funny and faithful.
    Blessings on your birthday: Lord, you have clothed your minister in righteousness: now let your saints sing for joy!

  5. Peacebang, Birthday blessings galore to you! I’m so grateful God created you, because you help us reflect the Creator in each of us more beautifully. Thank you for channeling so much of your God-given blessedness into blessing us!!

  6. Happy birthday, Peacebang! I’ve been reading for a long time and have been wanting the excuse to tell you how wonderful you are! Your blog has been such an encouragement and inspiration to me–from seminary days through 5 years into ministry. Once upon a time I was afraid that becoming a minister meant having to adopt a frumpy wardrobe and you have helped me navigate the fashion world of finding clothes that are age and work appropriate. I’m in awe of your spirit for ministry, your humor, and your honesty in dealing with personal and professional issues. Thank you for all that you do. Here’s to many more birthdays and many more years of BTFM!

  7. Happy Birthday! I met you and talked with you at Louisville Seminary- and that was after being a long-time reader and one-time questioner. I turned down a chaplain residency because it didn’t feel right in my gut, and the supervisor’s dowdy way of dressing was part of that feeling. You affirmed my feelings, and I just finished the best year of my life in a residency elsewhere! … and now I am job hunting, and will the most put-together applicant (as soon as I get an interview).

  8. Happy birthday, PeaceBang! I am a clergywoman who has never been terribly concerned with fashion. Following your blog regularly has made me more aware of my choices and how they may be perceived. For two years now I have kept your advice in mind, and have been shopping and dressing with more intentionality. As a result, I feel more confident among other professionals. Thank you!

  9. Happy Birthday! Thanks for all you do–it is reassuring to know that you are only a click away. Birthdays with a zero are the best–may it be so for you! Grace & Peace,
    Merry Mary

  10. A very merry, happy exultant birthday to you! Thank you for your incarnational ministry remembering that God treasures human flesh so much that she entered into it. The vehicles through which we minister are sacred, have worth and it matters how we treat, drape and celebrate them.

  11. Happy birthday to you! I am grateful that you have saved me from a life of ministry frump (well, most of the time anyway. I am a work in progress!). You also helped me to buy my first lipstick when I turned forty, calming me down after my first attempt left me frazzled and confused. I cannot tell you how many colleagues and ministry students I have directed to your website, not just for advice but also to think about a theology of fashion. Incarnation is such an integral part of how I understand my faith, and you explore how I live, look and do ministry in ways no one else does. Thank you for being inspiring, cheerful, honest, and encouraging. You are a good teacher and a wonderful cyber-colleague to have in ministry. Now all we need to do is get you to come up here to greet all of your fans in Canada!

  12. Dear PB, thank you so much for your ministry. Even as a non-clergy person, it has been helpful for me to think about a theology of the body and of dress and of presentation. Why we do what we do, and how to have fun with it, when appropriate.

  13. A little late, but a beloved, blessed, belated birthday wish for you! We have not met but we have talked on the phone when I was going through a personal identity crisis. We consulted about me changing my hair colour and our hour long telephone conversation had about 5 minutes of advice on hair colour. The rest of the conversation was the most amazing pastoral conversation that I’ve ever had.

    We compared stories, and shared challenges that come with being a woman “of a certain age” in a ministry that was once (and sometimes still is) male dominated. We talked about being authentic to the Creator and to ourselves.

    You gave me much needed permission to sit in the presence of the Holy and just be. You affirmed to me the ministry of presence. Not having to say or do anything, but simply be present.

    What can I say? The hair colour experiment worked out well. And you rock. [As do you, my dear lady. This is a beautiful letter that gave me tears. Thank you so much for taking the time to write it. – PB]

    Birthday blessings,
    andrea+

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