Anyone trying to minister to women today recognizes their increasing segmentation. A recent article in Newsweek, headlined "Mommy vs. Mommy," stated, "The tension between mothers is building as they increasingly choose divergent paths: going to work, or staying home to care for their kids."

Today, more women than ever are working full- or part-time. According to Time, 68 percent of women with children under 18 are in the work force, in contrast to 28 percent of women with children in 1960. In addition, more women are single parents. Time also states that more than half the poor families in the United States are headed by single women.

In short, life situations vary dramatically.

This fragmentation has been felt in the church, where it often erupts into disagreements over "family" issues: working outside the home versus staying home, home schools versus Christian schools versus public schools, and whether family-life education belongs in the schools.

The church, finding itself in the middle ...