From Frazzled to Fun

A mom's retreat, friends made so dear

Many touching moments that brought a tear

We really chilled 

Our cups were filled

And connected with beautiful peers.

With a new perspective hope appears

And a moment to breathe, we see God is near

So take a peek

At something you might seek

To add to your *calendar for next year.

*Feb. 23-24, 2024

"I'm heading out to grab some lunch," said our friend Josh who ran AV at the retreat. My mind reeled with thoughts of how badly I wished I had some cash right now to hand him. He was sooo kind to give of his time....

 At that very moment my friend Vicki walked up and said, "Brenna, I just sold two t-shirts" and handed me a twenty dollar bill. 

It was almost one solid movement from her hand to my hand and then my hand to his hand!

This is the perfect example of how every detail for this event has come together, I immediately realized. Just at the time there was a need, it was met.

(And it was the one and only time anyone handed me cash all weekend, even with all the books and t-shirts that sold.)

Though it seemed like a daunting task in October when I felt the Lord leading me to have a Coach Mom Live Retreat, I moved forward in faith and I testify to the Lord's goodness and provision in every way.

I heard Priscilla Shirer the week before...

Have you been fearful for the future of your children in this world that has most recently seemed like everything has been turned on its head?

Be hopeful, mama! We are now seeing glimpses of what the future holds...

Revival is here!

You may remember my Aslan is on the Move blog post from two years ago that compared our "dark winter" season with that written about in The Lion,The Witch and the Wardrobe and ended with this prayer:

Father, I believe you will defeat the spiritual darkness and bring about the Great Awakening and Revival that many of us have felt you have promised. Help me to STAND, be still before you, and watch for your salvation.

Friend, it is happening now!

On Wednesday, Feb. 8, at Asbury University, the speaker for their morning chapel service closed with a simple prayer:

"Jesus, do a new thing in our midst. Revive us in your love."

A few students gathered afterwards and one student's repentance led to another, and students began to...

Make it meaningful for your man with just a little thoughtfulness and a few minutes this year for Valentines. 

Think outside the box. 

How about taking a sheet of paper, writing out things you love about him, and posting it where he will see it every day? 

Talk about impact!

I want to share some posts I put up years ago that continue to strengthen my husband and our marriage. These are so old, worn out and quickly done that it's almost embarrassing to share, but I want you to see how easy it really can be.

This one, for his birthday, I taped inside his closet. (If I would have written this same thing on a card, how many times would he have seen it in comparison?)

From brainstorm to posting probably took 5-7 minutes. Notice how I listed specific things about him. Details mean so much when it comes to expressing admiration and love.

Are you thinking this doesn't look doable right now for you in your busy season?

How about the...

A young woman from my daughter's high school found out she was pregnant a few months ago. We tried to help, offering to throw her a baby shower and encouraging her. Unfortunately, the pressures became too great and she terminated the pregnancy with an abortion.

If only she had been given more support, I know the situation could have been different.

Do you have a hurting young woman in your life?

Do you have a friend who has a daughter in crisis?

Are you a young woman who is struggling with a life-altering issue?

Mercy Multiplied, a faith-based organization founded by Nancy Alcorn offers help and hope for young women in crisis...free of charge.

Mercy’s Residential Program helps young women ages 13-32 break free from life-controlling issues and situations, including: 

• anxiety
• depression
• sexual abuse
• eating disorders
• self-harm
• addictions
• unplanned pregnancy
• sex trafficking

Where are the residential locations?

• ...

"We pray Your blessing on us this day, O Lord. Trusting in Your daily provision, may we find ourselves like trees planted by water, that we may receive the strength and refreshment You provide. In this may we face the heat of the day and the drought of spirit that attend the demands on our time.

Reveal to us the sustenance available to us as our roots, our very beings, reach deep to find anchor in Your truth. Grant us the security of Your protection as we yearn for the refuge of Your steadfast love.

Then may we, as a Congress, as a country, and as communities seek to rid ourselves of fear and anxiety by placing our trust and confidence in You. Extend to us Your wisdom that we need not depend on our own understanding.

Test our minds this day and search our hearts. If we are found wanting, be gracious unto us.

In You does our hope find its foundation and, in Your name, will our prayers be answered. Amen."

Was this prayer, so powerful, from the opening of a long-ago Congress...

Have you heard friends talk about their "word for the year" and wondered how they found it? And what difference it made in their life?

Twenty-three years ago when I created my DIY prayer notebook, I began seeking a word, scripture, or phrase that the Lord would give me as my focus to write on the first page so that I could see it every morning and live intentionally.

Those words, scriptures and phrases through the years have provided me great inspiration and focus. 

And it's really cool to look back on them as I have those pages all still in the front of my journal, starting with the most recent.

I encourage you to give it a try! 

My simple step-by-step process for finding your "word for the year":

1. Get a pen and paper, find a quiet spot for 5-10 minutes, and ready your heart to hear from the Lord.
2. Pray something like this: “Lord, clear my heart and mind so that I may hear from you. Spirit of Truth, speak to me as I...

God bless you from my family to yours this Christmas and throughout 2023!

History

The idea of Christingles came from a Moravian Church in Germany in 1747 when minister John de Watteville gave children at the service a lighted candle with a red ribbon around it. He explained that this represented Jesus being the light of the world and the final prayer of that first service was "Lord Jesus, kindle a flame in these children’s hearts, that theirs like Thine become".

Moravian missionaries brought the tradition to the Church of England in the late 1700's and the Christingle was later made more popular in the UK by John Pensom in 1948 at Lincoln Cathedral.

The tradition is often observed either the Sunday before Christmas or on Christmas Eve.

Over the years the symbolism of the Christingle grew into what's known as a Christingle today. What does it represent?

• The orange represents earth.
• The candle gives light to the darkness, just as the love of God and Jesus himself does. (The foil is only there to catch waxy drips from the...