Faith Walk: Station Five

     As we walk to the final station of our faith walk from the retreat speaker, we share about a time we felt alone.  The feelings that come up are so real, so raw. Then the group gets to the gazebo.

                                 I AM Here

Consider: God chose you before the beginning of time, relentlessly pursues you, calls you and woos you.  He promises to never leave you.  He is with you when life is great and on your darkest days. 

 Psalm 139:1-18 “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me.  You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.  Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.  If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you.”

 

Challenge: Take turns slowly spinning in a circle.  As you spin, pause and read each sign.  I AM Here!

Reflect: Pause for a moment of silence and acknowledge God’s presence.

 

 

 

     When we felt alone, we weren't.  He was really there.  Even if it didn't seem like it.  Even if we didn't see where He was, He was there. 

     Which of the stations has been the best for you?  Why?  Which was the hardest?  I hope that these last five days have impacted you.  If you would like to share any stories, please feel free.  :-)  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Faith Walk: Station Four

     As we leave the beach and the fire, we walk back the way we came along the shore.  As we walk, we talk about, "Is it easy or hard for you to receive help from others?"  We continue walking until a HUGE tire swing comes into view.  The following is the section of the faith walk written by the retreat speaker.

                    You are part of God’s Family

 

Consider: The moment we believe and receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we become part of God’s family, His body in Christ.  We were created to be totally dependent upon God and one another.  We were never meant to do life alone, but in unity together. 

 

Ephesians 4:11-13, 15-16 “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ… speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

 

Romans 12:3-8,10, 13, 15,18 “For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others (mutually dependent on one another). We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully…Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves…Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality…Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn…If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”

 

Challenge: Push 2 ladies on the swing.  Each person has to participate and can only do 1 part.  (Example - 2 on swing, 2 lift and help down, 2 hold flashlights, 2 push, etc.). 

 

Reflect: Whether you realize it or not, God has surrounded you with women to encourage and help you and women you are to encourage and help in this journey of life and faith.  Take a moment to think through your answers to the following two questions: What area in life do you need help?  Are you willing to invest in relationship and help someone else?



     I love this!!!  We are not meant to be alone.  We are meant to be surrounded by community, by those who love us.  We are designed to grow closer and closer to each other.  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Faith Walk: Station Three

     We are leaving the sound of rushing water behind us.  We are walking on a gravel road toward a dirt path along the lake.  The sound of the lake over the shore is peaceful.  On the way there we talk about "What stops you from fully receiving God's love?"  (The following material is from the retreat speaker, not me.)

                               You are Loved by Jesus

Consider: Close your eyes and picture a man – perfect, tender, strong and head over heels in love with you.  He delights in all of you – He’s not appalled by anything you’ve done or will do, or scared of your deepest longings, in fact, He is able and longs to satisfy all your needs.  He’s the lover of your soul, captivated by your beauty.  He watches over you while you sleep, never leaving nor betraying you.  He defends and fights for you.  His sole desire is to be with you now and forever.  This perfect man, your beloved, is Jesus.  Is He enough for you?

 

Song of Songs 2:10, 7:10 “My beloved spoke and said to me, “Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me…I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.”

 

Romans 8:35, 37-39 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

Hebrews 13:5 ^“[God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]”

 

Challenge: Sing Jesus Loves Me, Father I adore You, I love you Lord.  Before leaving, put a log in the fire for the next group.

 

Reflect: Take a silent moment to receive God’s lavish love for you.    

 

 

 

    

 

     His love from us is perfect.  He will not let us down.  He knows what we need.  Ask Him to show you more and more of His love for you.  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Faith Walk: Station Two

     Remember, this faith walk series was from the speaker of our retreat.  She listened to what God wanted her to do and AWESOME stuff happened.  The faith walk was one of those things.  Please take the time to just sit and read through each part.  If you were at the retreat, do it again.  Let God remind you of what He said or listen to Him speak something new.  If you were not on the retreat, ask God to speak into your life and what He has for you. 
     We are walking to Station Two of our Faith Walk.  Remember, it is very dark.  We are heading toward rushing water and there are trees around.  On the way to the next stop we discuss, "What would you do in life if you knew that nothing was impossible and you could not fail?"  A slight breeze is blowing.  It is cool, not too cold, but getting there.  We stop right before a small wooden bridge. 

 You are Here for a Purpose: To Go and Share God’s Love


 Consider: We can choose to stay in the safety of the lives we create or we can step out into the dark, uncertainty of faith, offer our lives to God, and arise to live and love through Christ.  

Ephesians 2:8-10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Matthew 28:18-20 “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

John 14:12-13 “ Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

Isaiah 61:1-4 “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”

 

1 John 3:16-18, 4:7-12 “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth…let us love one another, for love comes from God...This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him...Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.”

Challenge: Hold hands and walk single file onto the bridge.  Once everyone is on the bridge, stop.  

Reflect: Be still and listen to God’s voice inviting you to step out in faith.  What is God inviting you to?  Whom will you serve, where, and how? 



     Are there things that are stopping you from stepping out?  Ask God to take those things away and make His voice clear to you.  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Faith Walk: Station 1

     After listening to the first session of the women's retreat, we had a faith walk around the camp.  It was DARK outside.  We did have three flashlights in each group, but it was still very dark.  On the way to each station we would talk about the discussion question.  Then at each station we would read scripture and do an activity and reflect on it.  I am going to list each station and the scripture we read and the activity we did and what the reflection part was.  I think that I am just going to do one station per day.  I want you to really take the time to think about each of these answers for yourself.  I know that this is longer than most of my other posts, but PLEASE read it.  God did great things through this faith walk.  I know that He can use it here on this blog to really change people too.  It was written by the speaker of the retreat, so it is her and God, not my thoughts, until the break at the end.   


     Station 1:          You are fully forgiven & free to forgive

Discussion: Share a sin you need God to forgive or one needing your forgiveness.

Consider: Sin and unforgiveness are a burden we were never meant to bare.  They weigh us down and stop us from moving forward in life, love and faith. There is no sin so grave that the Lord’s grace cannot remove and fully forgive or empower us to forgive as He forgives us.

Scripture: Read

1 John 1:9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Psalm 103:1-12: ¹ Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
² Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
³ who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶ The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
⁸ The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
⁹ He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
¹² as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Ephesians 4:32:  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Challenge: Harness one person to the rock.  Once harnessed, try to move/climb the wall.  (We were harnessed to a VERY HUGE rock!  You could not move at all once you were attached to it.) 

Read Hebrews 12:1-2:  Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Reflect: Take a silent moment to release your sin or unforgiveness to Jesus, lay it at the foot of the cross, and receive God’s full forgiveness, forgive yourself, or make the choice to forgive another. 



Wow...How freeing is that?  Jesus died so we didn't have to carry a burden that we were not meant to bear.  Allow His loving sacrifice to cover you and those around you.  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Live Big!

     This blog is based on the teachings of the speaker at our women's retreat.  She described how in life, we all have a "plate."  When we are first starting out in life, it is mostly our self and God on the plate.  She had a plate with different fruit.  She and God were both big apples.  Then she got married- add an orange.  She got a job- add a lemon.  She had five BOYS- add five oranges.  She has friends- add some limes.  She does ministry- add a few tangerines.  Then she has to do things like housework- add a bunch of grapes.  You can see that soon, there is not enough room on the plate for everything.  So, she makes herself a little smaller-a tangerine.  Then later, she needs to be a little smaller- a grape.  She makes God a little smaller too.  Because, you know that He understands.  He won't be mad.  He WANTS us to do all this stuff right?!?! 
     Even with making herself and God as small as she can make them, there is not enough room on the plate.  The awesome thing is, God's power works best in weakness- He tells us that in the Bible.  So, HE can take all of our stuff- our relationships, ministries, tasks, all of it.  Instead of us trying to fit it all on our little plate, we can give it to Him and He is our ginormous fruit bowl.  He can take it all- IF we actually give it to Him.  So, give Him all of your life, every bit of it, even if you think it seems like He might not want it, He does.  Give it all to Him and LIVE BIG!!!!!  Do NOT shrink yourself anymore.  Our Heavenly Father loves you and knows that you are important.  Come to Him.  Let Him hold all of the things of your life that seem to just be falling uncontrollably off of your plate.  He can handle ALL of you.  He WANTS all of you.  You are not too much!!!  He is more than enough.  Let Him love you well and let Him allow you to LIVE BIG!!!!!  Thanks for reading.  :-)

Warrior Women

     The women's retreat this past weekend was about being Warrior Women.  Our speaker described how we can make our life fuller and fuller and fuller until we become less and less.  And sometimes we can make God less in our life too.  We looked at the fear that we have in our lives.  Talked about being tired and weary.  Then we looked at who God really wants us to be, what He really has for us.  It was an awesome weekend.  I am going to be blogging more about it, but I just wanted to give you a little time to think first.  Do you feel like a warrior for God?  Or are you hiding under the covers, afraid?  Are you making God bigger in your life or smaller to make room for other things?  More tomorrow.  Thanks for reading.  :-)