Created for Care 2011

WOW!  It has taken me a while to "absorb" my spiritual basket that God completely FILLED for me at the CREATED FOR CARE retreat for adoptive mommas in Atlanta, GA, this past weekend.  I will share my experience a bit here and then some more on another post.

{Can I just say, I LOVE THE WOMEN FROM THE SOUTH!  The retreat was in Atlanta, and most women were from there or surrounding states.  Their precious hearts and love for the Lord overflowed from each one of them!  And that southern drawl......I LOVED IT!.....I felt like I was going to come home saying y'all!  An outstanding group of women.  Every last one of them!}

God planted this idea for a retreat on the heart of my dear, precious, sweet, sweet blog friend, Andrea.  And, like the obedient angel that she is, she followed His prompting.......and the result was AMAZING! 250 women with a love for God and for loving His children TOGETHER under one roof!

The presence of God was there from the very first worship on Friday all the way through Sunday!  What a sweet sound it was, listening to all the women singing their hearts out to God!  It gave me chills!  We had time for worship at least one or two times each day! Nothing like praising God for the work He was doing in our hearts, while continuing to welcome Him into our lives and our weekend!

This video was played at the very start of the weekend.  People sent pics into Andrea, and she made it into a video!  (scroll to bottom of this blog; pause the music player; come back here and click play button).  The JOY of FOREVER FAMILIES!

I cannot even begin to share with you ALL that God breathed into me this weekend!  In addition to the spirit-filled worship each day, there were anointed speakers who blessed us with stories of how God moved in creating their families; and how He desires to move in our lives and families as well.  

Wonderful food (ALWAYS!  meals, snacks, popcorn...I think I gained a few pounds!  Ha!).  Breakout sessions of NUMEROUS topics dealing with adoption, attachment, orphan advocacy, etc.  A very special break-out session was "A Date with God."  I can't wait to share with you what He revealed to me during this ever-precious time alone with Him! (saving for another post).

There was PJ night on Friday, where we all came down in our pajamas and listened to a panel of about 8 adoptive mommas, and asked them our questions.  Saturday night there was a showing of a film by SIXTY FEET UNDER that revealed the mistreatment of children in Uganda that were living in a "detention center" type of setting.  Daunting.  Left many speechless...........

Andrea, your heart to follow God's prompting blessed so MANY of us!  My hope is that your obedience to His calling resulted in abundant fulfillment for YOU as well!  You hoped to motivate us in our desire to reach out to orphans.  You did!  You wanted to help us rest, feel refreshed, and be filled by God.  Mission accomplished!  You wanted us to have a way to network with like-minded and like-hearted women.  Goal met!  You wanted to provide us a way to make our blog friends who "get it" become more "real."  Goal accomplished!  You desired to bless each one of us.  Goal SURPASSED!

Personally, I cannot THANK YOU ENOUGH!  Please share with your volunteer team my gratitude!

If this was not the year for you to attend the retreat, let me encourage you to GO NEXT YEAR!  That's right!  She is "in" for doing this again next year!  Stay tuned for details!  An event you just won't want to miss!

Below are a few pics to give you an idea of the FUN enjoyed by so many!...........................

The Legacy Lodge on Lake Lanier, GA

Ok, so how cool is this?  

Alison is one of my very first blog friends.......

and guess who was one of the FIRST ladies I met this weekend!

LOVE ya, girl!

The America World Gang!

How blessed I feel to be sharing

our journey with such a loving, crazy-fun,

and Godly group of gals!

(Jackie, Tracy, Candy, Erin, me, Polly, Anna and Amber)

MY ROOMIES!

(Erica and Jackie)

Capturing a moment with ANDREA ~ 

the woman with the HUGE heart who put this retreat together! 

(Anna, me, Andrea, Polly)

Miss, dear, sweet new friend in Alabama.

You blessed me!

Okay, so I think my cheeks have finally 

recovered from all of our laughing!

This was on each table.  I had to include this pic 

to show you the attention to detail throughout this weekend!  

I wonder if Andrea really knows 

what an AMAZING job she did!

Notice the sparrow theme?  I will leave you with the verse that was the theme of our weekend.  May it bless you as much as it blessed so many of us this weekend.

Psalm 84
How lovely is your dwelling place,

O Lord Almighty!

My soul yearns, even faints,

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and my flesh cry out

for the living God.

Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may have her young-

a place near your altar,

O Lord Almighty, my King and my God.

Blessed are those who dwell in your house;

they are praising you.

Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.

As they pass through the Valley of Baca,

they make it a place of springs;

the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

They go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion.

Hear my prayer, O Lord God Almighty;

listen to me, O God of Jacob.

Look upon our shield, O God;

look with favor on your anointed one.

Better is one day in your courts

than a thousand elsewhere;

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God

than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

the Lord bestows favor and honor;

no good things does he withhold

from those whose walk is blameless.

O Lord Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you.

CREATED TO CARE!

GREAT NEWS!

I AM JOINING THE 225! WOMEN

WHO SIGNED UP FOR THE

"CREATED TO CARE" Women's Retreat!

My blog friend, Andrea, received a Divine idea to develop a retreat for women with a heart for adoption and/or orphan outreach. The response of attendees was HUGE and God is moving BIG for this retreat!

The retreat is the first weekend in February, and it will include mommies and mommies-to-be who have a heart for adoption and reaching out to orphans in the US and throughout the world. While being a weekend of refreshment, it will also be an opportunity for all of us to put our heads together to create MORE change in the world for children.....together! We are SO excited to see what God is going to do with all of us in the same room together, seeking His guidance for His children! GO GOD!

Andrea created these fabulous shirts (below) for the retreat, while also hoping that they would create great opportunities for conversations about how LOVE is what makes a family!

The t-shirt proceeds will go toward the conference, breakout room fees, set-up fees, audio rentals, etc. YES! Our $100 cost is only to cover our food for the weekend. Andrea needs another couple of thousand dollars to cover the costs of ALL the other stuff to make the weekend happen!

Whether you are going to the retreat or not (registration is closed for this first retreat), the design is precious and I wanted to share the opportunity for you to wear a sweet tee ~ while also supporting the cause of the retreat and more importantly, helping to increase the awareness of the blessing of adoption!

Check them out!

Won't you please go to my blog friend, Andrea's, website (click HERE) to buy this awesome tee!?

NOTE: These tees are NOT true to size! Go up TWO sizes for a normal fit....go up just ONE size for a more fitted tee. Andrea normally wears a small but she can wear a medium in this shirt ~ but is more comfortable in a large.

In LADIES FITTED they have S, M, L, XL, XXL. She recommends a normal S should order L; normal M orders XL; normal L orders XXL; normal XL orders L in unisex.

In UNISEX they have L, XL, XXL. The unisex is a normal fit.

Well, I hope you love the tees as much as I do! I already ordered mine! May the tee bless you and your family story; while maybe even helping another child to be united with their forever family!

Going to the retreat!?!? I CAN'T WAIT TO MEET YOU IN PERSON!!!!

GOD SPEAKS...

.....so, as the pictures depicted in my last post, I had a fun-filled refreshing weekend!.........and I would love to share with you how God spoke to me throughout this time!

The Cat Walk. I anticipated this as being the most challenging event for me. Walking on a log 40-50 feet in the air. I was actually taken aback when I felt just how intense the fear was once I climbed onto that log! My level of fear surprised me! I spoke out words of fear and doubt, and I'm sure my face showed my fear as well!

I looked across the log to Nancy, my partner, and heard her saying how scared she was to let go of the tree and start walking......but all I SAW on her face was that joy and peace that she always exudes! Even afraid, I could only see her sweetness and peace!

In that fleeting moment, I realized how deeply I desire to carry such Godly peace within me ~ regardless of what fear or troublesome trial I may be facing. I want to continue to know God so richly that I know in my "knower" He has me covered. That all is well. That I have no reason to carry any fear or doubt. Not because of my circumstance, but because of WHO is carrying me in the circumstance!

{sigh of relief....as I sink into the arms of my Heavenly Father}

God has been leading me toward such peace, especially on this journey to parenthood. Though my face may still reflect my fear at times, I am thankful that He continues to show up and remind me of His steadfast love. And as He does, more and more peace overrides my fear ~ in my heart, my mind ~ as well as in my face. Thank you, God!

After this fleeting divine exchange about peace, I started my "cat walk" on the log, toward Nancy. I found myself focusing on a fixed object across the way (the zip line platform). This too, had great symbolism for me regarding my walk with God ~ though I did not process it until my feet were firmly planted on solid ground. You see, once I kept my eyes focused on a steady object, I was able to walk ~ with more confidence and greater peace.

GOD IS MY ZIP LINE PLATFORM!

GOD is who I want to keep my eyes fixed upon in daily life, as well as in the fearful times! Keeping my focus on God's steadfast love and promises, regardless of the circumstance in my life, gives me the confidence I need to take one step at a time. Keeping my eyes fixed on Him, gives me His peace to move forward. Even in the times when I don't know which way to go. Even in the moments when I feel I cannot take just one small step.

All He asks is that I keep looking up ~ to Him. God will provide the way. He is that rope-line that snugs up and gives me security. He is that line that will catch me if I fall.

It is my prayer that one day, this knowledge will chase away all fear and doubt, and such divine peace will exude from me in all circumstances. Even when I am afraid.

Women's Retreat Weekend

I SO HOPE YOU ALL HAD AN AWESOME WEEKEND!

The end of my week started with me feeling like total CRUM! I was afraid that I was going to miss our church Women's Retreat! My health improved and I was able to go. YAY! And now I see why the enemy was trying to keep me from joining these precious women! IT WAS A FABULOUS WEEKEND!

I was surrounded by very precious souls. I made new friends that I hope will become "old friends" with time. We had wonderful mountains views. We worshipped together.

Bethany and Lindsey were wonderful!

We studied God's word together.....(not sure whose hand this is, but love the picture!)

(Isn't Sarah SO talented with the camera!?

THANKS for all the great pics, Sarah!)

Connie and I laughed together so hard one night, we had tears streaming down our cheeks (and we kept our roomies up, I'm sure! Sorry, Sonia and Terra!) We felt like we were in high school again. Good for our souls!

This year all who wanted to (which was almost everyone!) participated in a Ropes Course. If you haven't done one, and ever get the opportunity.....Go For It! Total BLAST! That's all I have to say! Sums it all right up!

We had team building activities where we had to pass one another through small "web" spaces in what looked like a soccer net. Our group (#7...we called ourselves the divine group!) passed a fake egg around 16 women in 2.6 seconds! Creative passing brought us the fastest time! {smile} We lead, and were lead, blindfolded throughout the forest.

Tricia, Nancy, Sarah and me, as we prepare for our turn at the....

ZIP LINE! My first zip line ever! My scream, as I leaped off the platform high in the sky (climbed a tree to get there), was a release of pure JOY and FREEDOM! Likely the closest I will ever feel to flying!

Yes, that is me!...Spread eagle...Flying FREE!

Look hard, I blend in with the tree, but I'm there!

Immediately following my free-flying on the Zip Line, we headed to the "Cat walk." I can't say I walked as gracefully as a cat, but the experience rocked my socks off!

You climb a tree, get out onto this log that is WAY high in the air (yes, roped in, but that doesn't keep you from feeling woogy!), walk toward one another ~ PASS one another! ~ and continue to make your way to the other tree! Without falling! Schnikers!

WE DID IT!

It was SO FUN to do this with dear, precious, sweet Nancy, our pastor's wife. Neither one of us wanted to let go of our tree and take those first few steps on the log without something to hold onto.....but we did it!

Such a weekend of being refreshed and revived in God's love! Next post I will share with you how the Cat Walk, and weekend overall, spoke to me. I came home with a couple "life lessons" that I will forever carry with me.

THANK YOU, Lord, for meeting each one of us, in our own individual way, this weekend at Trinity Pines! Your presence amongst us was real. We enjoyed our time with you ~ and with one another!