One Christian’s Review of “The Church and the Single Mom” by Jennifer Barnes Maggio

America is experiencing an explosion in single mom households. In response, God has raised up someone he has clearly prepared to minister to them.

Jennifer Maggio: America’s Leading Expert on Ministry to Single Moms

As the founder of The Life of a Single Mom, Jennifer Maggio, a one-time single mom herself, has become America’s leading expert on ministry to single moms. In the past decade, her organization has ministered to over half a million single moms in hundreds of churches worldwide. (Full disclosure: I have served on the advisory board of The Life of a Single Mom.)

“The Church and the Single Mom” is Based Partly on Jennifer Maggio’s Autobiography

In The Church and the Single Mom: Why You Should Care and What You Can Do, Jennifer shares her startling testimony of what it was like to be raised in a home filled with sexual chaos, only to begin her own unplanned single-mom family that was destined for the same fate. Jennifer tells us how God rescued her from her terrible predicament. She explains how her story is just one of millions of tragic single mom stories. She then goes on to show us why single moms need the Lord and the church, and how the church can reach out to these dear women.

My mouth kept dropping open as I read Jennifer’s testimony of the tragedy and abuse she experienced over and over again, starting at a very young age and extending into her young adult years. Clearly, no one is in a better position to speak to the needs of single moms than Jennifer Maggio is.

“The Church and the Single Mom” Reveals the Hidden Epidemic of Single Moms

And there is definitely a need for someone to speak to the needs of single moms. Here are just some of the statistics Jennifer cites:

In 2018, 35% of households were headed by single parents.
42% of all children living in single-parent households are poor.
Children from fatherless homes are 85% more likely to be imprisoned.
Children from fatherless homes are 5 times more likely to commit suicide.

After listing these and many more statistics on the dysfunction of many single-mom households, Jennifer Maggio asks: “What is it that we, the church, are supposed to do about the problem? How can we sit idly by and watch the future of our next generation crumble?”

Fortunately, Jennifer has answers to give us. The first is that ministry begins, as always, with understanding the people we are trying to minister to.

It’s Not The Church VERSUS the Single Mom

One of the strengths of The Church and the Single Mom is the first-hand accounts from single moms themselves of how they feel about the church. For example, in “Jen’s Story,” Jen describes what it was like for her to attend church as a single mother:

“I had a constant feeling of being an outsider. I felt like everyone else who sinned could hide it, but not me. I walked around with the evidence of my sin all the time. It felt like a scarlet letter was sewn on my shirt. I was never ashamed of my daughter, but I was very ashamed of what everyone knew I had done to get her.

“It was not what the church did to me, but rather what they did not do. They did not try to get to know me. I was not invited to any fellowships. There seemed to be no group at church where I belonged or where I fit in. I know now that some of it was my own guilt because I had a hard time forgiving myself. I needed someone to reach out to me. I wanted someone to let me know that it was okay for me to be part of the church, despite what I had done. I needed to feel like I was forgiven, not only by God and myself, but by my church. I never found it there” (p. 57).

Anyone reading these stories of how single moms were treated by Christians will never view single moms at church the same way again.

It’s The Church AND The Single Mom

Another strength of the The Church and the Single Mom is the many helpful suggestions on how to reach unchurched single moms, such as passing out fliers about your single moms ministry in apartment complexes and housing projects, setting up booths at local fairs, and creating a social media page. (See page 72, 73 for many more of these great suggestions.)

In Chapter 7, Jennifer lists “8 Steps to Effective Ministry.” This section gives step by step instructions on how to start a ministry to single moms at one’s church and what the focus of the single moms ministry should be. Anyone who is interested in starting a single moms ministry will find this chapter helpful.

Do Not Forget to Minister to the Children of Single Moms

One subject The Church and the Single Mom does not cover is how the church can minister to the children of single moms. Fatherless children are a major sociological ticking timebomb and churches have a lot to offer them by way of programing and mentoring relationships.

The Church and the Single Mom is a clarion call for the church to minister with compassion and dedication to every hurting single mom who walks through its doors.¹

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Learn how to form teams of men for every widow, single mom

and fatherless child in your church at NewCommandment.org.