Conference!!! Day 1!!!!!

Oh my goodness! Today has been so exciting, and it isn’t even half over!! For those of you who haven’t heard yet, I am in Sacramento working (and enjoying) a conference. Last night was wonderful, but late, so I’m running on six hours of sleep…teeheehee! This morning, I was fighting with the alarm clock, as usual…but I managed to get coffee and to my room on time!

Before our first small group, I must have looked like the camera lady, running around with not only my camera but with other leader’s cameras. I did get some great pictures, which I will download and link you to later. We played several different games, some old, some new. Right now I’m scrapping for games that have little (or no) preparation and that forty to sixty girls can play, so if you have a good one, e-mail me, please please please e-mail it!

I have a small group of girls this year…just five girls, one of whom has been on my team before. They are all absolute sweethearts, but slightly quiet. I think the reason they were so quiet this morning was because they were still sleepy, but that is neither here nor there. Actually, it is, because I’m planning of getting them moving tomorrow by moving our devotion forward and playing some teambuilding games with them beforehand. Muhahaha…..Oh dear.

Our devotion this morning was I Corinthians 13:1-4. 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.

For being so quiet, they had several very great insights. We talked about types of tongues, looking at both the spiritual gift of tongues and tongues as different languages. Rachel mentioned that even though we might have the gift of tongues from Christ, which is a powerful gift, it will have no good effect unless it is used in love.

We talked a little about different mysteries and types of knowledge, but did not find any remas here, however, we did find more in the third verse—giving without love. This, we discovered, is a manifestation of pride. If you think about it, it is very hard to be prideful and at the same time to have true love for others. I suppose this could be a sort of love meter—the more pride, the less love.

Our third rhema was concerning hypocrites, and not being Pharisees (this does not give you permission to be Sadducees, thank you very much). We may preach love to others, but unless we apply it to our own families, what good is our preaching? To preach something that we do not follow only alienates those we preach to.

I have extremely thoughtful girls. :)

Our large group was slightly painful, but a blessing nonetheless. Have you ever had something that rent your heart, but at the same time was a blessing? That was this morning, condensed. How hard it is to remove defenses that we put up to keep our hearts from being torn! This is something I struggle with daily, and I know my girls probably do also. I feel so much pain from my own heart tears and from its defenses, and I wish so much to protect others from the same thing. Oh that God would heal those broken hearts! I believe several girls have begun a process of healing today. Have you ever seen the time-release potting soil at a hardware store, the kind that releases nutrients for up to two years after you use it? I wish I could put the spiritual equivalent around them right now, so that in the future I will know that they are still growing. 

See? Micromanaging can be fun.

Our elective sessions were quite fun, and, actually, a little hectic. I never new so many girls would be so interested in something like papercrafting. It was a blessing to listen to them talk as they worked. Beside papercrafting, which I was doing, there were tables for calligraphy, needlework, knitting, crocheting, and origami (actually, we only had 3 tables, but somehow everyone found a place) as well as sports stations and an area for girls to try out about four or five different types of stringed instruments and a piano. It was beautiful to work with girls while listening to the music! I did have a few qualms, however, after rescuing a light colored inkpad from destruction by a stamp that had black ink thickly spread on it. However, nothing was destroyed, no one died or was severely injured, and everyone seemed to be completely enjoying themselves, so….

Our second group session was also very blessed, however, because of the delicacy of the session, I will not be posting of it here. If you wish to know, please talk to me privately. 

Directly after lunch was choir, with the most wonderful conductor ever, Mr. Brian Fox, who the ENTIRE orchestra and choir love with all our hearts. Mr. Fox, I can’t transcribe your conducting style, well, I could try, but I’m it wouldn’t do justice. Let’s just say I think I spend more time laughing and breathing than singing. But, we love you any way. God bless you.

That said, I am going to leave you hanging to find out what happens next, because Mr. Gothard is about to speak, and I am not going to miss out on this.

Pictures can be found here.