The call to ministry has always been strong in Brookhaven native Betty Jean Jones’ spirit, but she did not realize it until 12 years ago.

Her spirit led her to say “yes” to being in many church activities, starting with teaching Sunday school. Before long, she was also teaching Bible class along with leading the children’s ministry. “I guessed people thought I would be good to do it by the way I lived my life and talked to people,” she said.  “I didn’t think I could do it, but by faith I did.”

These roles led her to answer her calling at Living Word Faith Ministry in 2005. “It felt like God was leading me there… I was led in those positions without asking for them,” Jones said.

She was later licensed as a minister.

The 49-year-old is now the president of the women’s ministry at her church, New Beginning Church with Dr. Victor Mackabee. “I deal with the women individually and I also minister couples on their marriages,” Jones said. “I mentor women on what our role is and how to be the wife, mother, friend and neighbor to our community. I learned that under Rev. Mackabee.”

The minister understands that her ultimate calling is to spread the good news and be a good example for other women, especially wives. “I learned that my husband is the head of the house and he’s the covenant,” she said. “If we submit to our husbands, it’s just showing that there’s order in house. God called me to minister to women as being a wife and mother.”

Along with helping other women, Jones wants others to understand who they are serving. “We’re all bought at a price, and we all have a master, whether it’s God or Satan,” she said. “In some point in your life, you have to choose because your will is not God’s will. The only way we can get there is by accepting him by faith.”