Tonight we heard Ken Davis talk about how hearing "I love you" can heal a wounded heart. He told us that following rules does not make you a good Christian but loving one another is the true way to act Christ like.
Sometimes we get twisted in what Christianity is really all about. God tells us if you really wannt to show people you're a follower of Christ you need to love one another. The human soul needs to be loved.
Each one of us have a wounded heart and that would wound can be healed just a little when we hear someone say "I love you." A husband, a wife, a child, a parent, a friend...they can all benefit from hearing you say "I love you". We are all desperate for love.
Sometimes we try to heal the wound in our heart with things, homes, cars. We make mental lists of what we've accomplished and perhaps that will help heal the wound. But wounds cannot be healed without love.
Sometimes we expect from others only what God can provide. A wound can only be healed completely when we stand before God, naked, all our sins revealed, when we understand that we need a personal relationship with God.
When we know we're loved, our wounds are healed.
What a wonderful message to hear. Jesus can heal our wounds, and through that healing, we can be an ointment to help heal someone else's wounded heart.
Next week, we'll be putting together bags to give to EVE, women's shelter. We'd love to have you join us!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Let the Music Play
On Weds., we had a very special guest speaker named Noreen Midgley. She is a Junk lady. I say that in the nicest way since she collects what other people think of as "junk" and refurbishes it into something beautiful. She related it to how Jesus can take someone others think of as junk and turn them into a beautiful new creation in Him.
She showed us some really fun ways to use things others may have put at the end of the driveway to have the junk man take away and make them into treasures.
My favorite was a piece of an old player piano that had moving parts that she turned into a photo holder. She added a bow and a note on the paper of the player piano that said "Let the Music Play". How cute!
She gave us some creative ideas on how to display food at a potluck--cutting a globe in half, putting it on a stand, putting a bowl of beans inside and putting a note sticking out that said "Best Beans in the World". Cute!!
She encouraged us to not be afraid of tools--a hammer, a screwdriver, a tape measure and even a belt sander that she proved could not hurt us!!
What a fun evening full of fun ideas for us all. Thank you Noreen for sharing how God is using you to share His story through your junk!!
Visit Noreen at http://www.refunctionjunktion.com/
She showed us some really fun ways to use things others may have put at the end of the driveway to have the junk man take away and make them into treasures.
My favorite was a piece of an old player piano that had moving parts that she turned into a photo holder. She added a bow and a note on the paper of the player piano that said "Let the Music Play". How cute!
She gave us some creative ideas on how to display food at a potluck--cutting a globe in half, putting it on a stand, putting a bowl of beans inside and putting a note sticking out that said "Best Beans in the World". Cute!!
She encouraged us to not be afraid of tools--a hammer, a screwdriver, a tape measure and even a belt sander that she proved could not hurt us!!
What a fun evening full of fun ideas for us all. Thank you Noreen for sharing how God is using you to share His story through your junk!!
Visit Noreen at http://www.refunctionjunktion.com/
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Taking a Walk with Deborah
Tonight, we started our first Bible Study out of the book A Mile in Her Shoes and we discussed Deborah. In the book of Judges, we read the story of Deborah who was a Judge. She was a woman who rose up in oppressive times, she was connected to God, she was flexible, she was able to work with the opposite gender in a time where that was not the norm, she was an encourager and she was grateful to God for her victories.
As a woman who rose up in oppressive times, she demonstrated how we can take the negative situations in our lives and use them to propel rather than sink us. The author tells us that we have the God-given ability to lead others, or maybe yourself, out of a bad situation.
As a woman who is connected with God, she showed us that we too must be connected to God if we want to hear God's instructions for us. Not only did Deborah hear, but she responded with obedience.
As a woman who is flexible, she showed us that change can catch us off guard sometimes, and change has the ability to knock us off balance. Our relationship with God gives us the needed stability.
As a woman who was forced to work with the opposite sex in an environment that is not the norm, she showed us that when life places us in circumstances requiring teamwork, it is vital to rely on God.
As a woman who encouraged, she showed us that there is amazing power in the gift of encouragement. God has designed your circle of influence to include people who only you can reach so we should make it a priority to learn how to encourage others.
As a woman who is grateful for her victories, she showed us that being grateful to God reflects how we feel about God. God expects thankfulness from us.
We had some wonderful discussions on what a great example Deborah is to all of us as women leaders.
Join us next week as we hear Noreen from Refuntion Junktion.
As a woman who rose up in oppressive times, she demonstrated how we can take the negative situations in our lives and use them to propel rather than sink us. The author tells us that we have the God-given ability to lead others, or maybe yourself, out of a bad situation.
As a woman who is connected with God, she showed us that we too must be connected to God if we want to hear God's instructions for us. Not only did Deborah hear, but she responded with obedience.
As a woman who is flexible, she showed us that change can catch us off guard sometimes, and change has the ability to knock us off balance. Our relationship with God gives us the needed stability.
As a woman who was forced to work with the opposite sex in an environment that is not the norm, she showed us that when life places us in circumstances requiring teamwork, it is vital to rely on God.
As a woman who encouraged, she showed us that there is amazing power in the gift of encouragement. God has designed your circle of influence to include people who only you can reach so we should make it a priority to learn how to encourage others.
As a woman who is grateful for her victories, she showed us that being grateful to God reflects how we feel about God. God expects thankfulness from us.
We had some wonderful discussions on what a great example Deborah is to all of us as women leaders.
Join us next week as we hear Noreen from Refuntion Junktion.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
A Walk to Remember part two
What a wonderful evening we had watching the second half of the video A Walk to Remember by Renee Swoope.
She talked about how she was a Busy body Christian...always doing, being busy for God. She was saved but not satisfied. Then she felt an uneasieness in her soul which made her stop and it at the feet of Jesus and Listen.
She was ready to say "Yes, I'll be a fool for you, God."
In her life, she was busy with marriage, motherhood, and ministry. She found a book on motherhood that encouraged her to be "Miner for Gold in the lives of her children." She thought about how nice that would be to have in her life and felt God saying to her "I am the goldminer!" God told her that she was the one who was always focused on the negatives, on her mistakes but God wanted to see the good in her. God took her mess and gave her a message.
She brought out a vase which represented our life and how we put things in our lives to fill it, like clothes, children, spouses, friends, houses, food, chocolate but there things never fill all the empty places in our heart. It never satisfies us.
She told a story about Jesus at the well with the Samaritan woman. Jesus offered her living water saying "Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14.
She brought back another vase that was empty and filled it, with no empty spaces with water. If we allow Jesus to be our living water, we will be satisfied, there will be no holes.
She encouraged us to open our heart through reading the Bible and to read books by Christian women who have walked with Christ.
She encouraged us to move from having Christianity be a Sunday experience to having Christianity be a life experience.
She gave us some Faith promises that each women took home with her. One of those faith promises was our theme verse " For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11.
What wonderful comfort to know that God has a plan for each and every one of us.
Next week, we'll do our first Bible Study on Deborah. Please do your homework every day before you come!!
She talked about how she was a Busy body Christian...always doing, being busy for God. She was saved but not satisfied. Then she felt an uneasieness in her soul which made her stop and it at the feet of Jesus and Listen.
She was ready to say "Yes, I'll be a fool for you, God."
In her life, she was busy with marriage, motherhood, and ministry. She found a book on motherhood that encouraged her to be "Miner for Gold in the lives of her children." She thought about how nice that would be to have in her life and felt God saying to her "I am the goldminer!" God told her that she was the one who was always focused on the negatives, on her mistakes but God wanted to see the good in her. God took her mess and gave her a message.
She brought out a vase which represented our life and how we put things in our lives to fill it, like clothes, children, spouses, friends, houses, food, chocolate but there things never fill all the empty places in our heart. It never satisfies us.
She told a story about Jesus at the well with the Samaritan woman. Jesus offered her living water saying "Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14.
She brought back another vase that was empty and filled it, with no empty spaces with water. If we allow Jesus to be our living water, we will be satisfied, there will be no holes.
She encouraged us to open our heart through reading the Bible and to read books by Christian women who have walked with Christ.
She encouraged us to move from having Christianity be a Sunday experience to having Christianity be a life experience.
She gave us some Faith promises that each women took home with her. One of those faith promises was our theme verse " For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11.
What wonderful comfort to know that God has a plan for each and every one of us.
Next week, we'll do our first Bible Study on Deborah. Please do your homework every day before you come!!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
A Walk to Remember
Tonight we watched a DVD of speaker Renee Swope titled "A Walk to Remember". Renee told us about her life and how she came to know the Lord on a personal level.
She told us how she was living a life that focused on accumulating things, money and working towards success but there was something missing. Those things did not make her feel complete, there was a hole in her heart that was not filled with any of those things.
She wanted to have a life that was a "Walk to Remember", a life that made a difference for Christ.
She committed her life to Christ and learned that the Bible was her "Manna in the Desert."
Next week, we'll finish the DVD with more of Renee talking about her own life and how God called her into ministry.
She told us how she was living a life that focused on accumulating things, money and working towards success but there was something missing. Those things did not make her feel complete, there was a hole in her heart that was not filled with any of those things.
She wanted to have a life that was a "Walk to Remember", a life that made a difference for Christ.
She committed her life to Christ and learned that the Bible was her "Manna in the Desert."
Next week, we'll finish the DVD with more of Renee talking about her own life and how God called her into ministry.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
A New Year...Walking in Obedience
We started our 4th year of Club Mom and Girlfriends today. There is an amazing group of women that come and we want to welcome women of ages in all stages of life to join us and experience all the wonderful fellowship we have.
This year, our theme verse is found in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."
We talked about how in the Bible, Joshua told the priests who were carrying the ark to step foot in the fast moving, overflowing Jordan River and the waters would not part until they all stepped foot into that river. We talked about how much faith it took to be obedient and take those first few steps.
We talked about how God is calling each one of us to be obedient to His calling . We traced our feet, put our name on one foot and wrote down where we feel God is calling us to be obedient on the other foot. Then we put our feet on the wall with one foot stepping into the river as a reminder that we need to take that first step of obedience before God will hold back the waters in our life.
We put special yellow feet in the rushing water of the river to remind us of Sandi, who is daily walking in obedience to God as she is working to recover from her double lung transplant in North Carolina.
We look forward to an exciting year, leaning on each other, helping each other grow, and watching how our obedience to God will provide blessing beyond our wildest dreams.
See you next week for a DVD of Renee Swope, a speaker for Proverbs 31 Ministries.
This year, our theme verse is found in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."
We talked about how in the Bible, Joshua told the priests who were carrying the ark to step foot in the fast moving, overflowing Jordan River and the waters would not part until they all stepped foot into that river. We talked about how much faith it took to be obedient and take those first few steps.We talked about how God is calling each one of us to be obedient to His calling . We traced our feet, put our name on one foot and wrote down where we feel God is calling us to be obedient on the other foot. Then we put our feet on the wall with one foot stepping into the river as a reminder that we need to take that first step of obedience before God will hold back the waters in our life.
We put special yellow feet in the rushing water of the river to remind us of Sandi, who is daily walking in obedience to God as she is working to recover from her double lung transplant in North Carolina.We look forward to an exciting year, leaning on each other, helping each other grow, and watching how our obedience to God will provide blessing beyond our wildest dreams.
See you next week for a DVD of Renee Swope, a speaker for Proverbs 31 Ministries.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Ready for the New Year
Summer is almost over...although, some days this summer I wondered if summer ever came!
We'll be jumping right back into the Club Mom and Girlfriends schedule on Sept. 16 and you DON'T want to miss it!! This is going to be an incredible year! We have some incredible speakers lined up, some fun activities and service projects. I can't wait to get back together with all you ladies and hear about your summers!!
This year, our theme verse is found in Jeremiah 29:11 and it says "'For I know the plans I have for you,' delcares the Lord, 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"
This verse always gives me such peace as I think about my future and what it holds. God knows the plans for ME! He doesn't want me to be harmed but he wants to prosper.
A definition of prosper: to be successful or fortunate, esp. in financial respects; thrive; flourish.
God's definition of prosper might be very different. Have you ever thought about the fact that if God gave you success in financial respects, you may think you have everything under control and think you don't need God anymore. Or, if you are flourishing, that it's by your doing and that you don't need to rely daily on our Lord and Savior.
Just because our society says that "success" is having money and a flourishing career, that doesn't mean God defines it that way.
The Hebrew word for prosper in this verse is "Shalom". We may associate this word with peace but it also means “Completeness, wholeness, harmony, fulfillment. . . . Unimpaired relationships with others and with God.”
So the emphasis of the word is not on economic prosperity, but more on the positive relationship with God and others.
God wants a relationship with me...He's waiting for me to initiate it...waiting for me to come into his waiting arms...waiting for me to ask Him what His plans are for my future and boldly walking in faith that God plans will "prosper (me) and not harm (me), giving (me) a hope and a future."
Join us this year as we walk together on a journey of obedience to God in our daily lives.
We'll be jumping right back into the Club Mom and Girlfriends schedule on Sept. 16 and you DON'T want to miss it!! This is going to be an incredible year! We have some incredible speakers lined up, some fun activities and service projects. I can't wait to get back together with all you ladies and hear about your summers!!
This year, our theme verse is found in Jeremiah 29:11 and it says "'For I know the plans I have for you,' delcares the Lord, 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"
This verse always gives me such peace as I think about my future and what it holds. God knows the plans for ME! He doesn't want me to be harmed but he wants to prosper.
A definition of prosper: to be successful or fortunate, esp. in financial respects; thrive; flourish.
God's definition of prosper might be very different. Have you ever thought about the fact that if God gave you success in financial respects, you may think you have everything under control and think you don't need God anymore. Or, if you are flourishing, that it's by your doing and that you don't need to rely daily on our Lord and Savior.
Just because our society says that "success" is having money and a flourishing career, that doesn't mean God defines it that way.
The Hebrew word for prosper in this verse is "Shalom". We may associate this word with peace but it also means “Completeness, wholeness, harmony, fulfillment. . . . Unimpaired relationships with others and with God.”
So the emphasis of the word is not on economic prosperity, but more on the positive relationship with God and others.
God wants a relationship with me...He's waiting for me to initiate it...waiting for me to come into his waiting arms...waiting for me to ask Him what His plans are for my future and boldly walking in faith that God plans will "prosper (me) and not harm (me), giving (me) a hope and a future."
Join us this year as we walk together on a journey of obedience to God in our daily lives.
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