Women of Faith Reflections

Our Women of Faith event was two weeks ago...

I waited to blog about it because I wanted to see what would make the most-lasting impression. With so many great messages, it can be a little like drinking from a firehose. In the heat of the moment, EVERYTHING was my favorite. Now that life has settled back down to a low boil, here are my biggest take-aways:

• Dr. Henry Cloud's "Monkey" talk. In the days before PETA took over the world (his words,not mine, lol) a monkey was put in a cage with electrodes attached to his head. They were then seriously stressed out-buzzers, flashing lights, shaking cages, that sort of thing-and there stress indicators went through the roof. Then the cage was opened, and a buddy was put in with them. Although none of the stimuli changed, their stress levels came down because they were no longer alone. The moral of the story: grab your monkey as you go through this journey called life. We were not meant to travel alone.
• Another Dr. Cloud: there is no shame in taking medication for depression. As Christians, we often feel like failures if we are clinically depressed, like we aren't praying hard enough or properly tapped into the joy of Christ. Medically, depression can result from our brain chemicals being out of whack or neurons not firing the way they are supposed to. Just like you would feel ok treating diabetes with insulin, you must respect the way God created you and care for that creation with what you need. There is no shame in helping your body be healthy.
• The last take-away is not my own, but it is a great story. I received two tickets for blogging but gave them to a friend because I already had one with my church group. She took her mom who has been somewhat antagonistic towards the whole "Jesus" thing...By the end of Saturday, her mom bought a Bible and asked my friend to help her learn how to read it. Because of the stories and testimonies shared, she is willing to look afresh at Jesus Christ. I got the holy goosebumps when my friend emailed me. Praise God...He will never stop pursuing us.

Thank you, Women of Faith, for all you do to strengthen and encourage our relationships with the Lord and with each other. See you in Milwaukee next year!