Snacks and Strokes #2

Our Women's Ministry held the second "Snacks and Strokes" at our church on Thursday night. What a wonderful time we had together. I just had to share some of the pictures with you. Now when I got home - I see that some of the pics are blurred - and some people are not on any of these pictures. They must have been hiding from the camera :)... I won't name them tonight...

But I will say that we just might have some "artists in hiding" here.

So wonderful to have sweet fellowship, good fun, and wonderful food together with Sisters in Christ...

Enjoy...

Gonna Be a BEAR

In this life, I’m a Woman.
In my next life,
I’d like to come back as a bear.

When you’re a bear, you get to hibernate.
You do nothing but sleep for six months.
I could deal with that.

Before you hibernate,
you’re supposed to eat yourself stupid.
I could deal with that too.

When you’re a girl bear,
you birth your children (who are the size of walnuts)
while you are sleeping.
And you wake to partially grown, cute, cuddly cubs.
I could definitely deal with that.

If you’re a momma bear,
everyone knows you mean business.
You swat anyone who bothers your cubs.
If your cubs get out of line,
you swat them too.
Oh I could deal with that.

If you’re a bear,
Your mate expects you to wake up growling
He expects you to have hairy legs
and excess body fat.

YEP, gonna be a bear!

I received this several years ago from a friend. I do not know the author...so if any of you do... please tell me and I will credit it to them. However, I love it!

I am sharing this with the ladies here on Saturday morning, and thought you might enjoy it too.
(Certainly not my text LOL... just a "funny" to share!)

Have a great day!

"Yes" to God Bible Studies (Chpt 3)

When Obedience Becomes Radical

So, after teaching this chapter 3 times (remember we have a Sunday night class, a Wednesday Lunch time class, and a Wednesday Evening Class)... I just wanted to share a couple of things that jumped out to me. (and others in the classes)

First, this quote by Lysa (TerKeurst) on page 45, "We need not fear what obedience will cause to happen in our life. We should only fear what our disobedience will cause us to miss."

So, the question to me and to you....
What is the area in our lives that God wants radical obedience? What is keeping you/me/us from doing so? Fear? That was the common answer from my sweet ladies. (the other was lack of discipline - ouch!)

Secondly, look at this passage of scripture. Let it sink in. Read it. Digest it. Meditate on it...

Isaiah 41:13, "For I, the Lord your God hold your right hand. It is I who says to you, 'Fear not, I am the one who helps you."

He calls us to RADICAL OBEDIENCE - but He... the I AM that I AM is the one who is holding our hand and helping us.

That is awesome.

I am basking in this for a while. Seriously.




P.S. - Make sure you participate in my poll for wives on the right side bar - if you have not already. Thanks-sweet friends :)

"Yes" to God Bible Studies

I am currently leading our Ladies Bible Studies using Lisa TerKeurst's Book, What Happens When Women Say Yes to God? We have a Sunday night class, a Wednesday Lunch time class, and a Wednesday Evening Class.

This was part of the vision that God gave me for our Women's Ministry when I went to the SHE SPEAKS conference in June. We had a beautiful banquet to kick off our fall semester with this theme. Then we encouraged ALL of our women to study this book together.

We have approximately 80 of our women studying this together. Imagine the possibilities...

One verse from this week's chapter was, "This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit..." John 15:8

Just think... 80 Women bearing much fruit - to the Glory of God. WOW...

What happens when these women say "YES" to God...

Only Heaven Knows....

But I am so excited to be a part of it!

A "Proverbs-31 Woman"

A Proverbs 31 Woman
(a.k.a. Shopping at Chicos)

I have to share when I do so well. I was functioning in my "Proverbs 31 Woman" role. Here are the verses:

Vs 14 (Message Bible) - She's like a trading ship that sails to faraway places and brings back exotic surprises. (that means a good sale)
Vs. 22(b) She is dressed in fine linen and purple. (that means Chicos)

So, here is the list of what I got:

One Blue Jean Jacket (with pretty gold stuff on it) $25.26
One Black Linen Jacket $9.49
One Pair of White Linen Pants $9.49
One Bright Pink Linen Top $9.49
One Bright Blue Linen Top $9.49
One Peachy/Orange Linen Top $9.49
One Black Sleeveless Top (one of those that you wear under everything) $9.49
One very pretty pair of earrings that will go with the pink and peachy tops. $6.64

Total spent: $88.84 (plus tax - $97.28). – Did you get that total? Two jackets, one pair of pants, four tops and a pair of earrings for less than $100.00. OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

I just love a good sale and I just love me some Chicos.

And I just love fulfilling my role so well.

Blessings,
DeeDee

Deeper Still Conference

Beautiful Group of Ladies

and let me tell you.... they are every bit as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside. What a privilege to go with them to Atlanta this weekend. And what a wonderful Conference. When you put Kay Arthur, Beth Moore, and Pricilla Shirer together to teach us God's Word and to encourage us in our walk with Him...then you add Travis Cottrell and His Praise Team to lead us in WONDERFUL WORSHIP. (And don't forget Mandisa)...

Well all I can say right now is WOW!!!!

Now, I must tell you that on Saturday when we got there at 8:05 (doors were supposed to open at 8:00) and the only seats we could find for our group to sit together were in the NOSEBLEED section....well, I knew that I would not be 'DANCING IN THE SPIRIT" on that day. LOL. I was praying for some shackles on my feet ... so I could hold on. Thank you Jesus for a firm foundation (in my chair). I held on ALL DAY for dear life! And I did pray during the first session - Oh God - be my Jehovah Rapha and heal me from this swimming head. (I also had to pray hard to not covet the lower 10,000 seats.)

Seriously, WHAT A WEEKEND. Time away with some of the most precious ladies in the world. Sitting and soaking in the teaching of God's Word. Praise and Worship - corporately with 19,000 others. It just doesn't get much better than that! We are so blessed! Extremely tired... but very blessed!

Love and Blessing,
DeeDee

Women Mentoring Women

Tonight we had our Women Mentoring Women potluck celebration. It is the end of the first six month commitment for our ladies. It was such a blessing to hear the testimonies given - with so many expressing how God had used their mentor/mentee to minister to them. And then I was blessed to hear the different pairs tell how they knew that God had put them together.

I shared with them that earlier today I had been very discouraged. Felt as if maybe this was not a ministry for our particular church. I had heard a few negative remarks... and Satan had decided to sit on my shoulder and tell me what a failure this ministry had been. I should have known where such thoughts were coming from. So... as I arrived I really did not know what to expect. But God is so FAITHFUL. He used the testimonies to not only remind me of His work in our individual lives - but also in our church and in these particular Mentoring relationships. He used the testimonies to encourage the ladies. It is a commitment to mentor. It takes time. But time invested in the lives of others for the sake of Christ is NEVER wasted.

Ladies, keep on keeping on. Let your Savior use you in the lives of other women. Even if you are not involved in a particular "mentoring" relationship... God places people in our paths/lives for a purpose.

For any of the men that visit my blog... don't think that there is not an application for you... Men need men too. Godly men. Accountabilty. You need it... and you need to give it.
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Prov 27:17) Will you be that iron in another's life? It will take time. It will take commitment. It will take being IRON yourself.

A familiar quote: "God is not concerned with your ability... He wants your availability."
He will do the work... but He always chooses to use people. Available people.

What is God calling you to do? Who does He want you to minister to? Where does He want you to go? God will do the work... but He wants to use YOU.

"Let your light so shine before men, that others may see your good works, and glorify your Father in Heaven." (Matthew 5:16)

We Need Each Other

Women need women. (Men need Men too) That is a fact. I have just had a wonderful Women's Ministry Leadership Team meeting. It was long - but I think that we accomplished a lot. However, the main thought on my mind tonight after all of our planning....is how much we need each other. Let me explain a little if I can...

Sometimes, the need is for counsel. We need Godly counsel. Oh that we would always surround ourselves with Godly people to point us to the Word. People who are not afraid to warn us. People who truly love us - warts and all. Oh yes, we need Godly counsel.

Then there are times that we need teaching. We can study on our own...but we need to learn from others too. We need people/teachers who will take us with them to the feet of Jesus.

Other times, we just need fellowship. Fun, Food, Fellowship - filled with love and laughter! We need to "let our hair down" without fear of rejection. Some time to just be me! No masks, no fear, no worry. Oh, doesn't that sound good?

Often we need someone to listen. Listen to all of our details. Women like details. And we often need someone who cares enough to listen to them. That will sometimes lead us back to the first need - of Godly counsel... but not always. Sometimes - just listen.

Prayer. Oh, what a need. Someone who will tell you that they will pray for you...and they actually do it. Or better yet....they pray with you now. We may not always be able to give an answer...we may not always be able to give counsel... but we can always pray.

Oh, and we need accountability. What more can I say? Accountable. Would that one thing keep so many of our present day troubles away? When we begin to isolate ourselves from the people who know us well, and love us.... trouble is lurking around the corner.

I am sure that there are many more....but my tired mind tells me to quit here...and see if you have any to add.

We need each other....

Blessings,
DeeDee