My Side Of The Story: EWomen Bham & Weekend

This past weekend, I went to EWomen over in Birmingham, AL. I knew that Chonda and Mandisa were going to be there, so off I went on Friday afternoon. I must say that Friday didn't start off so great. It was raining (hard) and I had several errands to run before leaving town. If you've ever had to take a 3yr on an errand run in the rain, you know how I feel. Tay did GREAT though. I made a game of seeing how many puddles he could jump in while walking up to a store. He liked that idea. And the fact that I would scream when he splashed me. It turned out fine and we got it all done.

Tay in his rain coat and boots.

On Friday night at the conference, Angela Thomas was speaking and Mandisa was giving a concert afterwards. SO exciting. I have been listening to Mandisa's new cd What If We Were Real. There are days when this is all I listen to. It's a great cd for working out and just to remind me that God is my Lifeline(one of my favorite songs on the cd). I was beyond ready to see her do her thing. She has been such a great motivator in my weightloss journey. So thankful that she is "paving the way."

I always love hearing Angela Thomas speak. She is an incredible author and I have loved her Bible studies and books for years.

Some notes from Angela's talk:

God does not need anything outside of Himself to be a better God.

She gave us 8 provision of Scripture:

1. The presence of God RESTORES

2. God requires a divine wait before a REFRESHMENT (Ps. 33:20)

3. The Sabbath REST is a gift to us. (Heb. 4:12)

She says that our Sabbath may not be on Sunday. We have to decide when our REST is, but that it's important to have the rest. Doing things that are joyful to us but not work is part of the Sabbath rest. For example, if you are a chef, do something enjoyable that doesn't involve cooking. Go pull weeds in your garden. Do something that promotes rest. Also, you may not be able to give a whole day for the rest. Start with what time you can. Either way, God provides rest to us as a gift.

4. Jesus didn't go everywhere or heal everyone. He only did what God instructed.

5. He required physical, mental, and emotional rest. (Luke 5, Mark 6)

6. Repentance leads to refreshing (Acts 3:19)

7. Ask for the good way,walk in the good way and it will lead to rest

8. Godly friends refresh your soul.

Another great thing that Angela told about was telling her son to BE THE SUNSHINE at his soccer game one time. She said he was embarrassed, but now it is saying in their house. (Matt. 5, 13:43)

Michael O'Brian lead worship

Julie Clinton-president of EWomen

Angela Thomas

Dancing a gig!

Michael O'Brian

Angela and I- such a sweet woman

Then it was time for the one, the only MANDISA!!!

She blew me away. She is so gifted. She sang several fun songs and some from her new cd. She also did some from her old cds. I didn't sit the entire time. I loved her concert so much. I simply love her and her ministry in this world. One of my upcoming travel weekends is to see her and Anita Renfroe in Tampa, FL in June. I'm beyond excited and so ready!

So powerful!

Mandisa and I

Saturday morning, I got a call from Chonda's merch woman asking for some help. I went down to her bus and helped unload all the stuff. I then helped Cyndi (yep, just like me) set up and work Chonda's table all day. It was a lot of fun and I had a blast as always. I love when Cyndi and I get to hang out and I get to tell other people about Chonda. I had been looking forward to hearing Lysa TerKeurt speak. So I went in to hear her speak. She is author of Made to Crave and the president of Proverbs 31 women. I had been putting off reading Made to Crave, because I knew that God would use it to speak truth into my life. And I was RIGHT! He did. I highly recommend everyone to read it. Such a great book that deal with more than just our food cravings.

Her message on Saturday hit home as well. Some highlights:

-When The Messiah touches our mess, it becomes the message of hope.

-No mess is to small for Him or too big for you.

A great thought provoking question she asked:

-Does this mess define me or refine me?

Lam. 3:17

At lunch time, I helped with Chonda's signing. It was so much fun to see her. We don't get to hang out enough. HA! I love watching people interact with her. I'm able to see how she's impacted other people's lives, just as she has mine. That afternoon, I went down to the front row to hear her talk. No matter what goes on, I know that Chonda is going to have me laughing out loud. Can't tell you how much I am so thankful for this mighty woman of God and what she offers to Christian ministry. So great! Now, when can I see her again????

Cyndi & Cyndi (hers is short for Cynthia, mine is not)

Brand new shirts and hats from Chonda's store

On her phone- surely not check Facebook!

This is Mandisa's bass player-Bernard.

He can tear up this guitar!

You know he is getting into this by his face! Love it

Bernard and I

This is Krystin and I. She was Chonda's runner for the day.

Now for CHONDA! I love her facial expressions and body movements when she talks. HILARIOUS!

The queen of Comedy and I- I finally got another picture!

I came home Saturday night and spent Sunday in bed resting, reading, and sleeping. Gotta REST in the Lord. Another thing that I learned this weekend was that God is not asking me to trust Him tomorrow. He's asking for me to trust Him with my right now. Simply now. Don't worry about the things I can't control. He has all things in His hands. And He tells me that all things work together for my good when I trust Him. So right now, I'm trusting Him with my day moment by moment.

And for today, Tay and I haven't done anything big. Stayed at home playing. Such a great thing to simply just be still today. To not be on the go so much, to just be still.