Thirteen years ago, Brady Boyd and his wife went to a hospital to pick up their newly adopted baby girl. This pivotal moment in Boyd’s life started him thinking about how he, as Callie’s father, could help her become all God meant for her to be. Boyd and his wife have raised Callie to believe that God has created her and gifted her with specific abilities that He has planned for her to utilize before the beginning of time. With that purpose in mind, LET HER LEAD: Creating a Better Future for Women in the Church, becomes the perfect platform for sharing how he believes the church is failing women on many fronts.

"No matter what theological camp readers fall into, Boyd’s thoughtful and excellent treatment of this touchy topic of women leading in the church should be gratefully read and received because the subject is not going to be pushed aside much longer."

Boyd fully understands the longstanding debate between denominations that either give way for women to lead (even to the pastoral position) or refuse them that right based on specific biblical pronunciations. What is so helpful about Boyd’s work is that he offers readers both sides of this argument in a non-combative manner. Perhaps for the first time this reviewer has ever seen, the author shares compelling arguments by exegeting scripture and using common sense for allowing women their place in leadership in the church machination itself. He likewise provides Christ followers with the opposing side of his stance, and does so with the same intellectual care and courteous tone as he does when presenting his opinion.

Readers will appreciate Boyd’s early treatment of the fall of man, the curse, and how this affects every person to this day. His careful look at how God originally designed man and woman to function as co-regents of the earth is sound, and he doesn’t neglect the dismal effects of Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden. Boyd shares the importance of understanding the scene in the garden that focuses on divinity, unity and diversity.

Another essential area of debate surrounding the question of the Bible allowing women to rule comes into play when we realize that God uses women throughout the Old and New Testaments to lead His people and (this is important) praised them for their courageous acts of leadership. While some Christians might struggle with modern-day women leading in the church, Boyd suggests that similar to the case of women wearing head coverings because it was a cultural symbol of being a righteous lady (as opposed to prostitutes who allowed their hair to be uncovered), the passages forbidding women to lead might have been included because women in that culture were not educated like the men were. Today’s women are equally as educated and trained as their male counterparts.

No matter what theological camp readers fall into, Boyd’s thoughtful and excellent treatment of this touchy topic of women leading in the church should be gratefully read and received because the subject is not going to be pushed aside much longer.