Today was my last Bible study in Monterey. We've been doing either weekly or biweekly ones since September 2011. I have grown so much and learned so much that there are not even words to describe the thankfulness I have for this season that God placed me in.
These women truly taught me how to be a friend. You know the kind who is open and genuine. The kind you know you can go to with your struggles and joys and prayer requests. And you know that you will be prayed for. The kind of women who, after only a few meetings, you just know are kindred spirits.
We've laughed, cried, hugged, prayed and come along side one another. Our children have gone from babies to little people. All the while we encouraged each other to persevere even when the sleepless nights and tantrums seemed like they would never end. When we felt inadequate or had been hurt, there was always encouragement to be gleaned. God truly showed Himself as we came back week after week to the oasis of fellowship in the midst of the little voices that consume our days. We are safe together.
So many of us have moved on to new seasons as of late. My sweet friend, Joy, introduced a quote that has become the motto for those embarking on new journeys.
The following moments brought to you by the Monterey Area Christian Mommies Meetup and Bible Study:
These women truly taught me how to be a friend. You know the kind who is open and genuine. The kind you know you can go to with your struggles and joys and prayer requests. And you know that you will be prayed for. The kind of women who, after only a few meetings, you just know are kindred spirits.
We've laughed, cried, hugged, prayed and come along side one another. Our children have gone from babies to little people. All the while we encouraged each other to persevere even when the sleepless nights and tantrums seemed like they would never end. When we felt inadequate or had been hurt, there was always encouragement to be gleaned. God truly showed Himself as we came back week after week to the oasis of fellowship in the midst of the little voices that consume our days. We are safe together.
So many of us have moved on to new seasons as of late. My sweet friend, Joy, introduced a quote that has become the motto for those embarking on new journeys.
“But, as for a Christian, there are, strictly speaking, no chances. A secret Master of the Ceremonies has been at work. Christ, who said to the disciples 'Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you,' can truly say to every group of Christian friends 'You have not chosen one another but I have chosen you for one another.' The Friendship is not a reward for our discrimination and good taste in finding one another out. It is the instrument by which God reveals to each the beauties of all the others. They are no greater than the beauties of a thousand other men; by Friendship God opens our eyes to them. They are, like all beauties, derived from Him, and then, in a good Friendship, increased by Him through the Friendship itself, so that it is His instrument for creating as well as for revealing. At this feast it is He who has spread the board and it is He who has chosen the guests. It is He, we may dare to hope, who sometimes does, and always should, preside. Let us not reckon without our Host.” -- CS Lewis
The following moments brought to you by the Monterey Area Christian Mommies Meetup and Bible Study:
And what gems these two pictures are!
