April 9

Today we had the pleasure of hearing one of the most precious, wise and faithful ladies in our church, Mrs. Sue Sanders. She talked with us about Jochebed, who was only mentioned twice in the whole Bible. Once, as the wife of Amram, and again as the mother of Moses. Jochebed and her husband were Egytian slaves and yet they raised their children to know and love God. They weren't identified as anything/anyone significant in their own right. We can learn from Jochebed that the world doesn't revolve around us, but around God. He isn't here for us, we are here for him. Do you go through life in the princess mode -- feeling like someone else should be doing all the hard work? Jochebed didn't. She was Moses mother, and she had to completely trust God to take care of her baby, building a basket and putting him into the river and walking away. She was faithful to God, and that provided her the opportunity to raise her son, for the princess. She worked all day, and she still taught Moses the laws of God and trained him how to be a servant. We need to be striving everyday, being faithful and obedient. And we can be thankful we don't have to do what Jochebed had to do! When Moses was of age, she had to let him go to the princess. But she could do it, knowing that she had done her best to raise him right.

Leah shared something about one of my favorite verses in the Bible, today, too. She talked about how when we are discouraged, we sometimes give God the silent treatment. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future". The problem here is that's where we want to stop. We sometimes fail to read on and apply the next verses -- "Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. We just want the prosperity part, without the work of having to see the Lord to get it.

After our session this morning, we opened the floor up for testimonies and so many women shared stories about how Satan had attacked them this week and tried his best to prevent them from coming. We were all so happy that we made it there and excited to see what God was going to do in our lives from this day forward. We confessed our weaknesses to one another so that we, through the power of prayer, can make one another stronger in the Lord and be an encouragement to each other. We learned that true God-honoring faith absolutely cannot be anchored in our feelings but needs to be wholeheartedly anchored in our FAITH, and knowing that God does provide for his people, and we have the ultimate and final victory. Feelings and emotions will constantly change and control you. Faith is eternal and needs to be kept in the proper perspective.

I hope that you were able to get a couple of little nuggets (at the very least) from what I shared here over the last few days. I want to post a video of Leah's new song that was one of my favorites for today. Maybe tomorrow I can post pictures of the actual retreat. :)