Winter's Wonderful Weekend

Okay, that's not the official title of the weekend, but it was! Kansas-Nebraska Covention of Southern Baptist, has a Wonderful Weekend for Women (WWW) every year at Webster Conference Center in Salina, KS., and I have had the privilege of going twice now. Both times-wow! This year I was able to go on a scholarship from the Kellly Shelton Fund for Leadership Training. I was so excited to get this scholarship, because I otherwise would not have been able to go! My stellar mom-in-law came and stay at our house to take care of things and I went off and had a WONDERFUL WEEKEND!

There is a main speaker and then 4 "break-out" sessions, my first break-out session was "It's a Boy!, but someday he'll be some body's husband and father", taught by Marca Deimund, a women who has definitely gained my respect as a great women of faith. She is the mother of two adult boys and a pastor's wife and a cancer survivor of three years, and she is a great speaker and obviously God was using her this weekend to speak to me! I guess I have been so wrapped up being afraid and not knowing how to do this that I have not thought of the awesome responsibility of raising boys and the wonderful opportunity this is for me to literally change this word, with three men of God! I mean, think about it, one man of God can make such a difference in this world and three, just imagine! Taking hold of his little heart and mind and teaching him all that he needs to know to be the man the God desires him to be, with an understanding of how a women's mind works and how to be strong, but sensitive, and responsible for his actions. Obviously they have the great example of their Dad in their lives, and I really was counting on that, but I, too, can have such an impact on the man they become, letting them be my heroes and teaching them to love and affirm others and how to honor and respect a woman!

Another session I attended was "Soccer Moms and Spirituality", taking a look in the bible at Deuteronomy 6 as a parent and refocusing myself on the right things in life, keeping my eyes on him! The leader, Cheryl Cooke is such a vibrant speaker, a home-school mom of three she really know what she's talking about. I actually felt really good about my own practices in life on the subject, I really strive to make sure the kids know the giver of the blessings and the "true value" of "stuff'," and being as an authentic Christian as I can be.

Third, I went to Jeanie Roten's session, "The Storm, The Sword and The Serpent", on Acts 27-28, I love hearing direct from the word of God and Jeanie can bring it! I felt I did know a little about how Paul was feeling, I related, boy, did I relate. But, you know, God is just as faithful today as He was then and the distraction of the devil are just that, distractions to throw you off track, our responses are what can turn us into a testimony for God's glory.

The main speaker of the weekend was Jennifer Rothchild and if you have never been blessed to hear her speak take the opportunity next time it arises, she is an inspiration. An author, pianist and composer and blind since the age of 15, she brings a wonderful perspective to things we can see, if we open our eyes! She is a mother of two boys and married to "Dr.Phil" (Dr.Phillip Rothchild, that is!). I could write all day about the things that I learned from her, so I will, just kidding, some key points that I took away were, "God has given you a life to live not in perfection, but to live a risk-taking life." In short she was talking about how confidence and courage are not the same and asked if we were a "risk taker" or a "hole digger", because hole makers are not life livers, they are grave diggers. God has given you a life to live. #1 Acknowledge that who you are and what you struggle with are not the same thing. #2 Turn your feelings into action. #3 What you feed will grow and what you starve will die. 2 Samuel 23:9-10 talks about the brought victory to the one clings to the Sword (the Word of God), not the shovel.

In another session she taught, and well, the thing that most stuck out to me was this, "The deepest longing in your heart is one that God put in you and it is for Him", we can search and search for the fulfillment of this longing and try to fill it with our husband, friends, children, job, etc. and never fill it, because only God can fill it, He created us that way! Another thing she said that I thought was great, "Hope is when we are walking with God and we let go, God is still holding on", she described this as a child and parent holding hands and the child trying to wiggle out their hand, but the parent is still holding on.

During a lunch session Jamie Speak Wooten spoke, I had heard her just a few weeks before at the Women's conference at our church (love her!), she talked about "Fashions of the Heart". Fashion is best described as the way of dressing, behaving, writing , or performing that is favored at any one time or place . She talked about how to "clothe" ourselves in the fashions outwardly and inwardly that will be sure to make us fashionable always. She used Colossians 3:12-15 as our inward "wardrobe".
Colosians 3 (Amplified)
12Clothe yourselves therefore, as God's own chosen ones (His own picked representatives), [who are] purified and holy and well-beloved [by God Himself, by putting on behavior marked by] tenderhearted pity and mercy, kind feeling, a lowly opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, [and] patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper].

13Be gentle and forbearing with one another and, if one has a difference (a grievance or complaint) against another, readily pardoning each other; even as the Lord has [freely] forgiven you, so must you also [forgive].

14And above all these [put on] love and enfold yourselves with the bond of perfectness [which binds everything together completely in ideal harmony].

15And let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts [deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state] to which as [members of Christ's] one body you were also called [to live]. And be thankful (appreciative), [giving praise to God always].

16Let the word [spoken by] Christ (the Messiah) have its home [in your hearts and minds] and dwell in you in [all its] richness, as you teach and admonish and train one another in all insight and intelligence and wisdom [in spiritual things, and as you sing] psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody to God with [His] grace in your hearts.

All in all I really enjoyed all aspects of the conference weekend and really, you can go and gain what you will from it, I gained a wonderful time of fellowship with the ladies that also went, and also I was able to rest, and have 45 minute quiet times with God (yeah!), and the worship experience, oh, the worship, 650 ladies voices lifted up to God, AWESOME! A chorus of angels must sound similar!