Women's Ministry Trip, Part 5 (life-changing)

Although our morning session wasn't scheduled until 8:00 a.m. I was up early (before my roommates) and stepped out the door of the room before 7:00 a.m.  Here was my reward from a faithful God:

Wow! To think I would have missed it if I'd slept in just another fifteen minutes.  

I joined the group for the morning session and we started with three songs of praise, "Sovereign, Bless the Lord (10,000 Reasons) and Great is Thy Faithfulness.  Wendy Lyons gave a short testimony and then we were released to three hours of individual prayer.  After the previous night I wasn't worried about the time, but rather anxious to talk and listen to what more God had to say to me.  I decided to spend time exploring the camp; my first stop was at the zipline structure, where I was able to sit quietly.  I opened my Bible to Isaiah 61:1 and began to read the chapter.  Among the verses God spoke to me these words:  

• Fear--I can release my fears because "the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings"
• Trust--I can rest in my creator and Father because I "am the clay and he is the potter."
• Guide--I don't have to find my own way because "the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light"
• Future--I don't have to worry about what will come because "men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him."
• Redeemed--I can believe his promises because I shall be called "thy holy people, the redeemed of the Lord.

Later I found the waterfall prayer garden that was on the map and although there were others praying at that spot, I was able to sit, reflect and listen.

I finished my time thanking God for the opportunity to be in the beautiful place, for reminding me who I was and, more importantly, who I needed to be, for convicting me and calling me into a deeper relationship.  

The retreat ended with a fifteen-minute group testimony time--women simply speaking out a words of praise and thanks to our great God.  I can truly say that the retreat was life-changing for me!  It lived up to it's purpose--a place to experience God.

It's about the talk, not the walk

Before anyone jumps to the conclusion that I typed the title backwards, let me say that the reversal of the words was intentional.  While I agree that the age-old adage to "walk the walk" is more essential and, likely, more important than to "talk the talk," today's post comes from a different point of view. 

****If you just want to know the answer to the riddle, skip to the last paragraph.

If you are interested in the whole story, read on.  While in Kansas City during the holidays, I had my annual physical.  Although nothing was greatly amiss, the numbers were increasing and by numbers I mean weight, cholesterol, including triglycerides, blood pressure, etc.  It could be argued that most of them were not greatly outside the normal range for a woman my age; but, nevertheless, my doctor suggested it was time to halt the increases and, even better, reverse this trend.  Before we left Kansas City, I purchased the book, "The Daniel Plan" written by Pastor Rick Warren from Saddleback Church in California.   One of the things about that particular book that grabbed my attention was that it doesn't identify itself as a "diet"book, but rather a as a multi-faceted "get healthy" book.  In fact, the book suggests that a healthy lifestyle requires all five of the following:  faith, food, fitness, focus and friendship. 

I will admit that the whole concept was very convicting.  Here's a quote from the first chapter:

"Before you can make any healthy changes in your life, you must first believe those changes are possible.  Even more important, if you want God's help you must trust him to give you his power to change.  Jesus said, 'According to your faith let it be done to you' (Matthew 9:29).  If you don't trust God to help you get healthy, all you are left with is willpower--and you know from experience that willpower doesn't usually last very long."

There's so much more in the book on this subject, but a little taste is all I wanted to provide.   As a result, after returning from the states in January, I embarked on a journey to get healthy.  On January 10, I started following the food and fitness recommendations in the book.  I am still working to wrap my head around the concept that this is a new lifestyle, not a diet, and that I need to set more long-term goals than short-term goals.  So far, the food part has been easy, well, except for the extra prep work that is required here.  Two examples come to mind.  First, all fresh vegetables and fruits have to be washed and disinfected (15-20 minutes) before they are ready to be consumed and second, some items have to be "homemade" (almond milk, almond butter, applesauce, vegetable broth) because they are not available here.  

In the chapter on fitness, Pastor Warren suggests that a person is more likely to start (and continue) with a type of exercise they really enjoy, i.e. bike riding, dancing, aerobics, basketball.  That sounded great, but there wasn't anything on his list (and it was comprehensive) that sparked my interest.  As a result, I defaulted to something that everyone can do, that's easy and that costs nothing--walking.  My son and daughter-in-law gave me a Fitbit for Christmas (in February) and it has become a great motivator.  I've now realized that my day does include time to exercise, and I'm trying to make choices to walk instead of sit.

My morning now includes a walk around our safe, gated neighborhood.  I don't have a iPod or other .mp3 player, so I found walking alone relatively boring.  Then I realized that it was the perfect time to "talk" with my creator. Why hadn't I thought of this before?  Why have I struggled with prayer time and been so easily distracted by every single thing going on in my house when all it took to start talking was walking.  Let me tell you that there's nothing better than talking to someone who wants to hear every word, who is infinitely interested in everything you do and say and who loves you more than anyone else.  That's the answer to the riddle--my daily "walk" is about the "talk."  How long do I walk?  So far, at least 30 minutes, but longer if my Father and I have more to discuss.  I think, perhaps, that my higher numbers were God's way of encouraging me to find time to talk to Him.