Conference.. Round Two

I attend a rather large church. And I love it. At first, I wasn't sure how, or if, I would fit into a place so large (about 16,000 attend each Sunday), but I now know I do. And I'm thankful.

On Sept 30-Oct1 our church held it's annual ReCreate women's conference. A perk to attending a large church is the ability to obtain amazing talent for special events. This year was no exception. Now, I'll be honest, when I heard the names of the speakers, I did not know who they were (with the exception of our pastor) and I never looked them up prior to the event. I am glad. It would have been like trying to peek at a Christmas present too soon. I went to the conference with no preconceived notions nor did I have any expectations. I went open, ready to enjoy myself, and receive anything God had to offer.

The first speaker was this cute little Aussie named Christine Caine. She works with Hillsong and travels the globe speaking. I must say, I loved her story. I loved her passion. I was truly blessed by what she had to say. She reminded us that in order for us to go out and do God's work, that we must be strengthen our core. That we need to make sure that we are strong enough to fight the fight because when we are sent by God, a battle will ensue.

She also taught us about an organization she began out of a desperation to help those held captive in the sex slave industry. Christine's organization, A21 Campaign helps women escape the sex slave industry. It is not easy. These women, once sold, have a hard time trusting in good people. They have a hard time seeing God as faithful and loving. But, they do. They learn to trust, they learn to help others in their situation, the learn that God does love them and that evil is not of God. I would encourage you to look into this organization. Sex slaves are not only sold and traded overseas, this happens in the US too. It happens in my city and in yours. Though, not always on the nightly news, it's happening at an alarming rate.

Another speaker from our event was Kerri Weems. I so enjoyed her sweet spirit, her honesty, and her teaching. She spoke of Samuel in Judges. Samuel had a plan for his life given to him, but he chose to go about his life in a much different way. She taught how Plan B is not God's Plan A for our lives. When we know what we are to do, we just choose to go about it our way, it's not the right way. God's Plan A for our lives is so much better than we could ever imagine, we just have to trust and obey.

The final speaker was our very own Pastor Chris Hodges. To hear this man speak is to hear his passion for God. The fact that he chose to attend the conference and speak to the women of his church was great. His words are always so meaningful to me. I am thankful to be under his teaching. Two years ago when we were preparing to leave our church home of 12 years, I was concerned about not feeling "at home" in another church. I now do. I am thankful for the love that is poured into those in attendance.

So, that was our weekend in a nutshell. A lot was given to us at once, but a lot is expected of us always. Well, we did have some time to laugh and have fun a little. Check this out...