So by now you’ve heard about the kite project. I told you about how that led to my Quilts for Foster Youth project so now I’m going to back track just a bit. I mentioned in part 1 that Rae and I are in a Facebook group together. Well this group is for women who will be attending the She Speaks Conference put on by Proverbs 31 Ministries in Concord, NC.
I’m going to go back even further. I don’t know if you’re familiar with Proverbs 31 Ministries but it is an amazing resource for women. Here’s a little blurb from their site:
Proverbs 31 Ministries is a non-denominational, non-profit Christian ministry that seeks to lead women into a personal relationship with Christ. With Proverbs 31:10-31 as a guide, Proverbs 31 Ministries reaches women right in the middle of their busy day through free daily devotions, radio program, speaking events, conferences, monthly magazine, resources, online communities, and Gather and Grow groups. We are real women offering real-life solutions to women who are striving to maintain life’s balance, in spite of today’s hectic pace and cultural pull away from godly principles. Wherever a woman may be on her spiritual journey, Proverbs 31 Ministries exists to be a trusted friend who takes her by the hand and walks by her side, leading her one step closer to the heart of God.
OK, so I had heard about the She Speaks Conference before but I had never really considered that I could go. For one, it was way out of our budget. Second, it’s in Concord, North Carolina and third and most importantly I didn’t feel qualified to go (but I really wanted to).
Well in February of this year I attended the California Women’s Retreat with my mom. And I was super excited because the amazing Lysa TerKeurst was the speaker. Lysa is the President and one of the founders of Proverbs 31 Ministries has been a role model to me for a while. I have read her books and devotions and she is truly an example of a woman who has said and continues to say “YES” to God. At one point in her life she took her daughters to see a concert performed by orphaned boys from Liberia and she heard the Lord telling her that two of those boys were supposed to be hers. And yes, she adopted them. And did I mention they were teenagers and as a result of her leap of faith, others in her community ended up adopting over 45 children from the same orphanage as well! You can find out more about her story here.
So at the California Women’s Retreat Lysa mentioned the She Speaks Conference and I knew. I KNEW I had to go. You see during the months leading up to this event, I had felt God was calling me toward something new. Not necessarily to give up other things but to stretch myself and grow in ways I didn’t feel qualified.
I knew this was happening as I was working with families in my job doing counseling and outreach at a public school and they were desperate. Their teens were constantly getting in trouble at school; with the law. And in danger of not graduating or worse going to jail or even worse living in fear of actual physical harm due to gang violence. And I wanted to tell these moms to pray, that God was in control, that He could work miracles, that He loves their kids. I wanted to encourage them because I could relate, I had felt desperate at times too. But I couldn’t because we can’t talk God in a public school.
And that’s when I discovered I needed to be able to talk “God” through some other platform.
First up, stop being afraid and start blogging (check). Second would be? I didn’t know but what I did know was that I needed to be prepared for whatever that was and to do that I would need to develop and sharpen some skills. Enter the She Speaks Conference.
She Speaks is a life-changing conference for women of every generation seeking to explore the tug on her heart to reach out to the world for Jesus. Through She Speaks, Proverbs 31 Ministries encourages and equips women who are called by God to share our mission to bring God’s peace, perspective and purpose to today’s busy woman. Sharing God’s truth with love is not only a holy calling but a remarkable responsibility. We believe by equipping women to become more effective at sharing the Word of God, we multiply our efforts to reach a hurting world with the life-transforming hope of Jesus.
And because of the awesome kindness and generosity of some people who believe in me (i.e., my husband and sweet mom) I will be able to attend. Yay. And I will be learning about things related to writing, “blogging”, speaking and ministry.
I’m super excited and a tad nervous about this amazing opportunity. But it feels right and again I want to be open to whatever God may have for me.
So friends, if you’re a praying person would you please keep my in yours? The Conference is July 20-22 and I have a lot to do to prepare and I’m sure there will be challenges along the way so I would be really grateful for some extra prayers.
Oh Zohary, how wonderful! I came very close to attending last year,but something came up and I knew it was not the year for me. You will have to fill us in on everything!
How very exciting!! I’ll be excited to hear all about what you learn when you return.
Oh Zohary, how wonderful! I came very close to attending last year,but something came up and I knew it was not the year for me. You will have to fill us in on everything!