Saturday morning, I sat up in bed and swung my legs over the side and stood up quickly, and suddenly realized I was virtually pain free. There was still a twinge of pain here and there, but the constant throbbing spasm was gone, and I rejoiced!
On our way up into the mountains, I prayed that our ladies would meet the Mountain Mover. Saturday was a great opportunity for us to get them away from their familiar environment, to leave their children with caregivers, and to really just pour into them without distraction. We did crafts, then began a silly series of relay games, as a seasonally uncharacteristic rain began to fall. It was the strangest thing. There was blue sky all around us, but right over us, a large gray cloud camped, unmoving. So, we gathered under some trees and began to just sing and laugh and wait. We took down and set up sound equipment and towel dried chairs three times before the rain finally cleared and we were able to carry on with our plans.
The first thing we did was set the chairs up in a circle, with a second inner circle of chairs turned to face the outer circle. Hope Gardens ladies sat on the outside with Spark ladies facing them. We took out hand lotion and began to massage their hands as an act of service and an opportunity to visit with and pray for them individually. Their surprise and delight was so much fun to see as they realized what we were doing. A few ladies had their nails painted, and others received back/neck massages, too. It was a great time. Session 2 followed with singing and teaching from Psalm 139 and a testimony from one of our team members, a formerly incarcerated felon who is now living for and serving Jesus in Reno, NV. Cindy's testimony was like a glue that pulled everything we'd been doing all weekend together. Suddenly, we weren't just a bunch of crazy rich ladies in pink, we were women with stories of how God had delivered us through circumstances every bit as dark or difficult as theirs.
Our small group discussion that afternoon centered on God's grace and the importance of our obedience to His commandments, not because it earned us salvation but because it was our response to His great love for us. The women shared from their various experiences, some having walked far with the Lord and others having walked far from Him. One young girl told us, "I just don't really do this church thing." And another gave her heart to the Lord that same day. Mountains were definitely beginning to shift.
We closed out that great day with s'mores over a campfire and began to turn our hearts and thoughts toward our final times together on Sunday.
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