Michele Thompson wants the young girls in her congregation to know they can be anything God calls them to be — including pastors and church leaders.

Thompson is lead pastor of Rockside Church (Assemblies of God) in Independence, Ohio. She succeeded founding pastor Donna Barrett in 2018, when Barrett became general secretary of the Assemblies of God (AG) and the first woman to serve on its Executive Leadership Team.

Rockside Church’s history is unique. Over the past four decades, the share of female AG credential holders has nearly doubled — from 14.2% in 1981 to 27.6% in 2021. Despite these gains, only a small percentage of credentialed women occupy lead pastor roles across the Fellowship.

As network director of the National Network of Women Ministers and a presbyter for the Ohio Ministry Network, Thompson seeks to encourage and empower women to realize their leadership potential.

“I’m thankful for all those who have gone before us in previous generations and blazed the trails,” Thompson says. “I believe the next generation is going to see more women in higher levels of leadership. It will be more normalized for them than it has been for us.”

Thompson never expected to become a lead pastor. When she first sensed a call to ministry as a youth in Kearney, Nebraska, Thompson thought she might pursue foreign missions. But it soon became clear God was leading her to local church ministry.

She occupied a number of church staff positions in Illinois and California before moving to Ohio in 2006, where Thompson served as a staff pastor at The Cross Community Church (AG) in Elyria.

It was in Ohio that Thompson met Barrett, who became a friend and mentor. Barrett encouraged her to pursue ordination, a process Thompson completed in 2017.

Thompson says she took this step out of obedience to God’s prompting, not knowing where it would take her.

“I wasn’t called to be a missionary, and I wasn’t going to lead a church, so I didn’t see the necessity of ordination at that time,” she says.

Soon after ordination, however, Thompson sensed God telling her she would lead a church.

“I didn’t see a lot of women doing this,” she says. “I knew stepping out wasn’t going to be easy. But in that season of the Lord calling me, He let me know He was with me. I was not going to be alone.”

As it turned out, God was speaking to others about this as well. Thompson was one of 12 candidates the Rockside Church search committee interviewed. Committee members initially thought they would select one of the eight male candidates. But after an extended season of prayer, they agreed God was telling them their pastor was to be a woman.

Thompson still marvels at how God has directed her path through the years.

“When women feel empowered by those who come alongside them, they can step
up with confidence.”
— Michele Thompson

“It’s easy for women in ministry to get distracted by what we think we can’t do,” she says. “We may feel deterred by what look like closed doors. But we can also grow where we are planted and trust God to lead us to the right opportunities.”

Of course, this often requires a willingness to take bold steps.

“I’ve heard it said that sometimes we have to jump and grow our wings on the way down,” Thompson says. “I feel like a lot of my life has been marked by this.”

Thompson is used to not fitting the mold of church leadership, having remained single until she was 39.

“Being single in ministry is difficult enough without also being a woman in ministry,” she says. “You can focus on those differences and challenges, or you can focus on what God wants you to do.”

During her time in Elyria, Thompson met her husband, Charles, who works as a critical care nurse. She says people joke about their stereotype-defying roles.

“Here I am a female pastor, and he is a male nurse,” Thompson says. “We’re not what people typically think of when it comes to these roles.”

Charles Thompson serves as a church greeter and volunteers in the ministry behind the scenes, but his hospital schedule allows him to attend services only two Sundays per month. Still, people who meet the couple for the first time sometimes assume Charles is the pastor.

The Thompsons are hopeful their example — and the examples of others like them — will help open minds about what ministry can look like.

“We need male and female leadership because we minister to both men and women,” Michele Thompson says. “If you see it, you know you can be it. If it’s not seen or modeled, someone with a calling might hesitate to go for it. I’m thankful for the way the Assemblies of God is championing diversity.”

Thompson, who is also a certified leadership coach, says mentors play a crucial role in helping women move into higher levels of church leadership.

“When women feel empowered by those who come alongside them, they can step up with confidence,” Thompson says. “I have been blessed to have many people pouring into my life over the years.”

Thompson says she has always considered ministry to other ministers an important part of her calling as well.

“Whether pouring into a staff member, working with the Network of Women Ministers, or pastoring my church, it’s been amazing to see how the Lord has utilized that through the years,” she says. “I know there are people watching who will be called to lead in ministry. I want to bless those who are coming after me.”

Missions remains close to Thompson’s heart as well. Rockside Church gives over 40% of its general fund to missions. The church recently sent a family from the congregation to the mission field and is preparing to send a second one.

“It’s God’s Church and God’s people,” Thompson says. “His mandate is to go and make disciples. We want to be a discipling and sending church. It’s important to do that well and pass on those values to the next generation of leaders — men and women.”

This article appears in the Fall 2022 issue of Influence magazine.