Whether you are starting a new women's ministry or in need of "refreshing" your current ministry, prayer is the key to keeping God in the center of your plans.

The following idea was sent to us by Debbie Buxton.

When seeking the Lord's heart for re-directing our Women's Ministry, the Lord gave me the following points to focus on to encourage our women in prayer.

• Pray that the Lord will give us a vision for ministry to women that we all sense is from Him. i.e. Lord what is in our heart for the women of (Your church).
• Pray that we will have love for one another and that God will exchange any critical spirit for a creative one.
• Pray for a hunger/desire to reach out to those around us.
• Praise and thank the Lord for where we are today. Thank Him for this season of our women's ministries where we are stopping to listen to the heart of God.
• Praise and thank Him for the diversity in our group. For the backgrounds, life stages and maturity represented. For all the gifts our ladies have been given, and for the Lord to fulfill those gifts in us through ministry one to another.
• Thank the Lord for all the women 35 and under and for the opportunity for them to minister and be ministered to. Thank the Lord for their outlook, freshness and enthusiasm, and for the great possibilities of reaching other young women for Christ through them.
• Thank the Lord for all the women 36 and over and for the opportunity for them to minister and be ministered to. Thank the Lord for their experience, growing maturity and possibilities of mentoring.
• Thank the Lord for the vehicles that He may have us set in place to minister to women: i.e. Bible Studies, practical outreach, helping when someone is in need, keeping our missionaries visible, prayer times together, mentoring, fellowship/fun times.
• Thank the Lord for the willing hearts of the leaders. Pray for His continued watchcare over their families and hearts.
• Just Praise the Lord!

Praying scripture is powerful! Here are two verses that we used:

II Chron. 20:12b,c "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."

Isaiah 50:4&5 "The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught. The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears, and I have not been rebellious, I have not drawn back. "

I (Robyne) attended a women's ministry leadership conference many years ago that featured a directed journaling time. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and have used it many times for retreats.

Materials Needed: journals or notebooks for participants, Bibles, pens, CD player with instrumental praise and worship music, and a small bell.

Set-up: This is really up to you but I like to set the room up with tables and chairs, so that everyone has a solid surface to write on. This can be a very personal time, if you have enough space, consider setting up chairs on one side of the table only.

Timing: Again, this is flexible. An hour is usually a good time frame for the overall activity, with 3- 4 sessions in the hour.

Procedure: Either provide the journals in your retreat packet, or hand them out, with a pen, as ladies enter the room. Announce ahead of time that they should bring their Bibles. Have extras of everything, just in case!

Once the ladies are seated, let them know that you will give them directions, a passage to read and time to journal. Tell them that you will ring the bell two minutes before beginning the next session to give them time to wrap up their thoughts before moving on.

Example of schedule/theme:

Overall Theme: A Woman's Walk
5 minutes - Opening prayer
12 minutes - Session 1: My walk with the Lord
13 minutes - Session 2: My walk with my family
12 minutes - Session 3: My walk with my church
13 minutes - Session 4: My walk with my community
5 minutes - Closing Prayer and Commissioning

Session ideas: Use devotional books to focus on different areas that relate to your theme. For example, if your retreat is on Praying God's Word, use Beth Moore's book to guide each session. Read an small portion of a chapter and give them a passage to paraphrase and journal. You can do the same with any devotional book.

Visit the WomensMinistry.Net Online Bookstore for great books, music and gift ideas!

Take a minute to visit this recent sponsor...

• There Is A Season, a Bible study by Laurie Cole

Once again, we are looking for your brainstorming ideas to develop a theme.

And the theme is...

"Matters of the Heart" based on Proverbs 4:23

So... What type of event would you plan? ... What types of activities or workshops would you include? ... What songs or skits would you use? ... What types of crafts would you offer?

Send your ideas to robyne@womensministry.net and we will post answers in an upcoming issue!

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Journaling is a way to not only record what is happening in your life, but can also be a powerful tool to work through life's challenges and track your walk with the Lord.

There are many creative ways to journal and here are some of my favorite tools and ideas for journaling.

Christian Life Journal - an online tool that offers writing prompts, a daily "pulse" record, indexing and many other features.

Journaling: A Tool for the Spirit - A heartfelt article with some great journaling tips.

Daily Christian Journaling Prompt - When you are not quite sure what to write, these daily prompts can help get you going.

Another great article, How to Develop a Spiritual Journal.

If you are interested in sharing your thoughts with the world, try Blogger, an online website that is free and easy to create.

And some books I would recommend:

Transformation Journal: A One Year Journey Through the Bible by Sue Nilson Kibbey and Carolyn Slaughter

Journal Keeping: Writing for Spiritual Growth by Luann Budd

Believing God: Devotional Journal by Beth Moore

In Him.... Robyne Beaubien, Editor
Email: robyne@womensministry.net

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