"God is at work in amazing ways, Ways you don't always expect but brilliant ways. God wrangles good out of some of the icky stuff that comes our way. God wrangles and reveals those plans laid out for you." These are the words of Rev. Susan Jennys, a licensed local pastor who serves Colton and Chester United Methodist Churches and is passionate about understanding and connecting with our Native American neighbors.

Over two decades, God has used several things to point Rev. Susan Jennys to her call to ministry. Native American heritage, history, and culture are deeply part of her spirit and ministry journey.

Growing up in a conservative church, Susan Jennys never imagined that females could serve as pastors for a congregation.

"I was about nine years old, and we'd had a rally at the church.  I remember going forward and saying, 'God, whatever it is, you want me to be doing, I will do it.' It was just such a compelling feeling. It was so distinct," described Pastor Susan. "All the men in the church very rapidly reinterpreted it for me. You will be like a missionary, or, best of all, you could be a pastor's spouse. That is not what I felt God laying on my heart."

She felt a very compelling idea of the shepherd and that God was calling her to shepherding, whatever that looked like. But the atmosphere at the time did not allow her to respond to God's calling.

Susan headed to college, and everyone assumed she would be a teacher or a professor. She became a pastor's wife, which was how it was supposed to be. God continued to nudge her call to ministry through many conversations and situations.

"David was the pastor; I was the pastor's wife. It just began to be so clear to me through so many conversations and situations. This is not about my husband; this is about me and God calling me as well," said Pastor Susan.

With a background in music, she found herself as a church musician for many years. Jennys took a job at a United Methodist Church, playing the organ and leading music.

"I began to realize it was almost like God slapped me and said, 'Susan, look at all these brilliant, beautiful Christians here who love Jesus and want to serve God and love their neighbor.' That was one of those things that God used to point me and ready my spirit. I suddenly realized it was a call to pastoral ministry," shared Pastor Susan.

God used a senior pastor and a deacon, both female, who recognized that call. The two women clergy walked with her to articulate the call and wrestle with the theology that it was okay for women to have a call to pastoral ministry.

Pastor Susan explains, "It took these two dear women to say, 'You've got a call and let us work with you.' I was to the point where I was ready to say yes. They got me a mentor. It was just fantastic."

God continued to place people in her path to keep Pastor Susan going in the right direction. The senior pastor who recognized her call to ministry became a district superintendent and requested that she serve a church.

"She got me into licensing school and said, 'I have a parish for you.' I started out with a two-point charge, and then the rest is history," said Pastor Susan.

Rev. Susan Jennys lead a workshop on connecting with our Native American neighbors. Photos by jlynn studios.

Jennys was licensed as a local pastor in the Indiana Conference. In 2014, she was assigned to serve the congregations of Colton and Chester United Methodist churches in South Dakota, and she continues to do so. Her husband, David, serves as an interim pastor for congregations throughout the region.

"One of the things that brings me a great deal of joy in ministry is hearing people's story. That ties in with my interest in anthropology," she describes. "Anthropology is the study of people, and learning about people, social groupings, and how we interact with each other. I was trained in anthropology to listen to stories, hear stories, and hear people's lives. That brings me an incredible amount of personal joy and fulfillment.  I feel honored to have people share their life story with me."

Listening to the story draws her to a passion for advocating for Indigenous people. Something that she attributes to her father, a Korean war veteran whose best buddy was Indigenous, and ancestry. As a former professor of Anthropology, she wrote a book about Northern, Central, and Southern Plains Native American dress.

Pastor Susan describes her ministry and connection with Indigenous brothers and sisters. "I can't remember when that [Indigenous people] was not a passion in my heart. It is a culture that lives through the oral tradition. I think that draws me to Indigenous culture. This is something laid on my heart. I feel like we have done such a grave disservice to our Indigenous brothers and sisters. We have this colonizing lens that flavors everything. Part of my passion in ministry is trying to break that. I am trying to decolonize first myself and then decolonize the way I see things, people, God, and creation."

It is a paradigm of thinking that weighs heavy on Pastor Susan's heart. She desires to focus on herself first. She does not expect anyone to walk a path that she would not.

"I've already walked on that path myself. I recognize in the way I was reared that it was colonized thinking that influended me and others to believe that women can't be ministers," she said.

One of the ways she is living out her passion is through learning with others. On Saturday, August 17, Pastor Jennys will be a part of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives webinar. She will provide a theological underpinning on why this topic is essential and a land acknowledgment. View a recent worskhop Pastor Susan led. 

Her passion for ministry continues to be ignited by her past experiences and the story surrounding her.

"One of the phrases that I live by is attributed to Gandhi: Be the change you want to see in the world. If you want the world to change, then change yourself first. Let God transform you, and then, because you are a transformed person, you are in a place to go out and be a catalyst for transformation," said Pastor Susan.