Retreat

Dear Moms:
I have a group of gals I go on retreat with twice a year. This group of four has been retreating together for almost 20 years. That’s commitment, my friend. We have laughed together, cried together, been pregnant together, nursed our babies together, shared our lives, shared our wisdom, shared our hearts and most important shared our prayers together. Retreats are planned and enjoyed by all , even if it means bringing a nursing baby along. We delight in sharing with all we meet , on retreat weekend, that together we have 22 children. People just roll their eyes at us. In our younger days, one of these dear sisters in the Lord used to point out a group of old and gray Senior woman in a foursome, like us, and say that’s us in 20 years. Well, I guess you could say she was prophetic, and the jokes on us, as now 20 years later we are those woman, older and grayer, and wiser for the journey. I trust these ladies with my life. We have learned to trust each others correction , as well as each others encouragement, and tremendous growth has happened because of our commitment to retreat together. This is my recipe for moms to be able to grow spiritually, retreating two times a year with three other trusted friends. You‘ll be glad you did.
So why do I write this under a subject called Thankfulness? You see one of our friends moved from Aiken, South Carolina to Greenville, South Carolina. And two of us went to visit this past weekend. As always God moved, it was life changing and I thought you might want to gleam from what we learned. As amazing as it may seem, when we began to pray for each other, as God would have it, we were all working on the exact same area of our lives. We were all trying to overcome anger, which grew into bitterness, which produced the fruit of complaining. As we beseeched the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit quickened to one of the girls, “REPLACE COMPLAINING WITH THANKSGIVING.” They did not know that that was the subject of my blog this week. Once home I realized that this was a huge revelation. It was just what moms need to hear. How many moms go thru a day complaining and not even realizing that they had a anger problem that grew into bitterness and they were now eating the fruit of complaining with their ears deaf to it. Ask the Lord to make you aware of what is coming out of your mouth. You will be amazed. “You didn’t wet your diaper again?” “Can’t you learn to pick up your own toys? “ “Do I have to do everything around this place?” “All I ask for is a little help?” “ I’m going to scream because I am so frustrated with you!” Sound familiar mom. That believe it or not is complaining. We all do it so often that we don’t even hear ourselves any more. The first step to change is knowing that there is something that needs changing. We all prayed on th retreat, that God would guard our tongue and give us a grateful heart. I think it is working, because I for one am bubbling over with joy. I know this is true because I had lunch with a friend and she remarked , “she’s on caffeine.” This freedom from complaining and making a conscience effort to be thankful has lightened my load and set me free. The truth will set you free, if you walk in God’s truth. When the Son sets you free, you are free indeed.
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, let us make a new start. Let us fill our hearts with praise to the Lord for the many blessings He has bestowed on our lives. Let us guard our tongues, and guard our hearts. Let us replace, bad habits with good habits. Let Thanksgiving overflow in your life as God reign in your heart.
That’s all for Ellen www.momsbestwisdom .com