Hi there! I'm Brittany.

I have been involved in church leadership for more than a decade, though the work closest to my heart has always been walking alongside women as they grow in faith and discover their gifts. I believe the Church is stronger when women are encouraged, equipped, and trusted to use those gifts fully – including in positions of teaching, preaching, and leadership. I've always believed that faith grows deeper when we're willing to keep learning, and that conviction eventually led me to seminary.

 

I hold a Master of Arts in Public Theology from Union Presbyterian Seminary and am currently pursuing a Master of Divinity. My areas of research focus on the intersection of religion, gender, and power.​ That tells you what I've studied. It doesn’t tell you much about who I am or what it’s like to know me.

 

So, here's a bit more about me:

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I was born and raised in Georgia and have never lived anywhere else (but you’ll never catch me rooting for the Bulldogs). I'm married to the pastor of our interdenominational church, and I'm the proud mom of two grown sons. I'm incredibly close to my family – especially my two hilarious sisters and four perfect nieces – and my mom is one of my very best friends. My idea of a personal heaven is shopping at TJ Maxx for free and eating an entire thin-crust cheese pizza completely guilt-free. And I’m an Enneagram 1, which means I have strong opinions about justice, Oxford commas, and the correct way to load the dishwasher. Obviously, I’m super fun to be around.​​

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I’ve been told I have a flair for the dramatic, and I admit that I do feel things intensely. My husband says that my primary Love Language is all 5 at once, which I choose to take as a compliment. Call me an over-achiever, but I guess I just think people should feel enthusiastically loved in every language possible. And why should we just pick one, anyway? Life is never that simple, and neither are people. We don’t fit into perfectly defined, neat and tidy categories. At least, I certainly don’t.

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• I'm a feminist who loves a good rom-com.

• I’m a vegetarian who sometimes misses bacon.

• I’m a Type 1 diabetic with a weakness for Sour Patch Kids.

• I'm a good listener, but my kids will tell you I have a terrible memory.

• I'm drawn to minimalism, symmetry, and order in my surroundings,
  but my mind usually has 31 browser tabs open at once and sticky notes are EVERYWHERE.

• I am in my (very early!) forties, yet my obsessive devotion to Taylor Swift remains completely
  age inappropriate.

• I will spend hours reading about theology and biblical exegesis, then go binge The Secret Life of Mormon Wives.

• I love studying the Bible, but I believe faithful interpretation requires humility, historical context, and the willingness to admit we will never have all the answers.

• I deeply value the Church's traditions, but I believe being part of the Body of Christ means caring enough to challenge the ways it has sometimes excluded and harmed the very people it is called to love.

• I love Jesus with all my heart, but I'm not convinced there is only one path to God (nor do I believe every expression of Christianity reflects the heart of Christ).

 

The contradictions in my faith used to make me feel insecure and ashamed. I used to work so hard to make myself fit into what I thought was the definition of a "godly woman." But the older I get, the more I understand what Kierkegaard meant when he said,

 

"Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards."

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I know all too well (IYKYK) that when it comes to faith, living in the tension of the unknown is deeply uncomfortable. But the reality is that most of us exist somewhere between certainty and doubt. No matter how carefully we construct our worldview, life has a way of disrupting even our most firmly held assumptions. Sooner or later, we are confronted with questions we can’t answer as easily as we once did.

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I've found that faith becomes more resilient when it can withstand honest questions, and I no longer believe faith is meant to eliminate mystery. Instead, I've come to think certainty is overrated, curiosity is underrated, and some of the best conversations begin with the words, "I've never thought about it that way."

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I believe faith invites us into a lifelong conversation, not a collection of easy answers.​​ And I don't expect everyone who visits this space to agree with me. Honestly, I hope they don't. What I do hope is that we can disagree generously, think deeply, keep a sense of humor, and leave with a little more understanding than we had before.

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So, if you find yourself trying to navigate a faith that is changing, know this: you are not alone.

It is my hope and my prayer that you find belonging here. 

 

Grace and Peace,

Brittany Evelyn