I totally would have joined in!

Worth braving the weather!

Today, I attended the Special Moms' Retreat at Grace Church. What a blessed time we had! I braved the 1st snow of the year and unplowed highways, but it was worth it. This was the 3rd moms' retreat that I've attended and I always leave refreshed. It's like getting my spiritual gas tank full so I can keep striving for Christ in my role as mom of a child with special needs. My sweet friend and "Aunt" to my kids, Mary Horning, was the keynote speaker. Here's a snapshot of her talk.

* Suffering takes us from a "God serve me" mindset to a how can "I serve God" mindset.

*Depression often occurs because we listen to ourselves instead of talk to ourselves. We need to turn off the thoughts of anxiety, fear, & doubt and start preaching God's truth to ourselves.

* God cares about the concerns that we have for our children. However, He cares more about our soul than our child's syndrome.

* The sin in our heart is a lot uglier than any physical deformity.

* Being weak is the best place for us to be because in our weakness Christ is our strength. (2 Cor. 12:9-10).

* Our lives should be about loving Christ. Everything else is temporal.

* We can love and serve Christ whether it's by wiping the dirty butt of our adult child or going on the mission field!

* God is preparing His children each day for heaven. He desires to make us more like Christ until He returns.

* We need to daily: 1) read God's Word, 2) pray truth to our soul, & 3) quietly wait for the salvation of our Lord.

God truly used Mary to speak the truth to our hearts. Next time, I plan on posting all the practical ideas that the panel of moms shared about loving and caring for our children who do not have special needs.

Please Pray for the Miser Family!

Their loss deeply saddens me, but their faith inspires me.