Rise Up and Sing...Ladies?

Once a month, I lead worship at the Pathways contemporary service at Orange United Methodist Church in Chapel Hill. This is pretty outside my comfort zone on a lot of levels, but I enjoy it, and I'm getting a little more comfortable with it. I led this morning, and although it went well, I was still feeling pretty nervous, still feeling like I come up short in that role--which in some ways is fine, because I have no intention of being, you know, "a worship leader" full-time in the sense of leading a praise band.

But after worship, a friend came up to me and told me that I did well, which was nice, but then she said something that struck me. She said it's meaningful for her to hear a female leading worship, because it seems to her that every time she turns on K-LOVE (Christian contemporary radio), it's a guy singing. I, too, have noticed a dearth of female worship leaders, and it shows even in the song arrangements that are available. It was cool for me to hear from her, though--it reminded me that even if I'm not totally comfortable in that position, simply being a woman in leadership in the church means something.

A little while back, I bought a book called Rise Up and Sing: Equipping the Female Worship Leader. I read about the first chapter and then got derailed with schoolwork. I may revisit that book over Thanksgiving, and I'll let you know what I think. In the meantime, do any of you worship in a contemporary service that's led musically by a woman? Or, for that matter, if you're in a traditional setting, is there a female preacher? If you're from a tradition that limits female leadership, how do you feel about that, or is it even something that crosses your mind?