Pathfinder: Equipping Women to Serve in Ministry

With precision and passion, Melissa Alfaro unravels the story of Pathfinder — a leadership training resource for women pursuing the call of God on their lives. Pathfinder, according to Alfaro,  is “entirely free, customizable, contextualized, and sustainable.” It aims to equip women in all seasons of service, from those exploring the possibility of ministerial credentials to advanced levels of leadership.

Alfaro, who serves as the national chair for the AG Network of Women Ministers (NWM), is no stranger to pursuing God’s call to ministerial service. Together with her husband Jay (who also serves as district superintendent of the Texas Louisiana Hispanic Network), she pastors El Tabernaculo in Houston. She is also an executive presbyter — ordained female representative.

Upon assuming duties with NWM in July of 2024, Alfaro held round table meetings with district/network leaders nationwide, seeking to learn how best to serve female ministers and what overarching needs seemed to exist. The results were consistent: how can women be trained and resourced to best operate in the many ministry areas Jesus has for them?

Alfaro recalls feeling the Lord impress upon her that she was to be a “pathfinder.”

“When I heard that from the Lord, I tucked it away because I felt it was something He was giving me for the future,” Alfaro says. “Then when we were having the listening sessions, it immediately came to mind. It is not always easy or most convenient to pave the way for others to walk further into their call. But that is what Pathfinder aims to do — chart a path for women to walk in her call.”

A CLOSER LOOK

With a tiered access system, Pathfinder is designed to be accessible for ladies at every point in life and ministry, whether mothers of young children, single missionaries working to raise budgets, bi-vocational ministers, district/network leaders, or anyone in between. It offers two paths — Discovery and Development.

The Discovery path is for those exploring ministry or transiting into a new ministry context. They are able to gain wisdom from experienced leaders through on-demand videos covering a variety of ministry expressions. Women who feel a call of God, are pursuing credentials, or who have received credentials — but are still not clear on what ministry path they are to take — can hear practitioners in the field tell how they received the call to that particular area of ministry, and how they need to prepare if they feel God is calling them to that path. They can complete a survey and be connected to a practitioner in the field who will help guide them through the gate towards their particular ministry journey.

The Development path is a structured, cohort-based learning experience with three tracks designed to meet each woman at her stage of ministry. Pathfinder Development offers deeper learning, skill-building, and connection opportunities for women actively engaged in ministry. The three tracks are:

• Track 1: I Am Called
– A six-month cohort experience designed to help women take their first steps into ministry with confidence and support.

• Track 2: I Grow
– A series of educational modules that can be completed individually or within a cohort, equipping participants with essential ministry skills and tools.

• Track 3: I Ascend
– An invitation-only track for executive female leaders or those stepping into executive leadership. This track provides exclusive access to coaching from high-level leaders, featuring monthly online sessions for strategic growth and leadership development.

A CORE OF PARTNERSHIP

Alfaro celebrates the partnerships that have gone into the creation of Pathfinder, as there are cohort facilitators and liaisons from AG World Missions, Church Multiplication Network (CMN), and many other departments within the AG. She says that while many are known figures, many other practitioners represented in the program are leaders that many have not had the privilege of gleaning from, yet who have great wisdom to share.

“We want to see women equipped to step into the streets of America as U.S. missionaries, into the global path as AGWM missionaries, into a local community as a church planter, and more. Whatever path God is calling them to we want to chart the path through this resource so they can step into their calls,” she says.

She continues to explain that Pathfinder also upholds the four pillars of NWM: Fostering community for female ministers, enhancing theological awareness, providing opportunities for leadership development, and normalizing women and men working together at every level of ministry.

AG General Secretary Donna Barrett states, “NWM is not designed to promote one gender as a cluster from a specific demographic. Dr. Alfaro and her team have a great understanding of how NWM helps female ministers come alongside the vision of [the] General Council to see a healthy church in every community measured by numerical and spiritual growth. Pathfinder contributes to seeing ministers and churches grow in greater health which is measured by Biblical engagement, Holy Spirit empowerment, and missions involvement.”

Since the most embryonic days of the Assemblies of God, women have played key roles in the movement, from Rachel Sizelove to Alice Reynolds Flower to Etta Calhoun, to name only a few.

And with 11,046 women currently credentialed as AG ministers and serving across the full spectrum of ministry, the need for Pathfinder is clear. As they have been since the Assemblies of God’s inception in 1914, those walking ahead seek to continue blazing trails for the ones coming behind.

Kristel Zelaya

Kristel Zelaya is a freelance writer and editor with global experience. She served as marketing manager for Assemblies of God U.S. Missions and as a writer and editor for Assemblies of God World Missions. These experiences have led her to numerous countries and cultures — far from beaten paths — on behalf of many who did not know how deeply their stories matter. Zelaya is also a licensed Assemblies of God minister. She and her husband Rudy share one daughter.