Happy Christmas season! A month ago we held our women’s retreat at The Oaks Camp and Conference Center north of Los Angeles. Pictured is the group photo of all who attended from San Diego. It was wonderful to bring women from three different church plants to a retreat filled with fun activities, breathtaking views, and truth-filled, soul-reviving teaching.
One woman, Maria, who attended with us, was especially impacted during the weekend. She is passing through an extremely painful and lonely season in her life. Knowing how much she has been suffering, I have invited her for the past month to be consistent in seeking fellowship and attending Sunday services. During one of the teaching sessions, the presenter spoke about 1 Peter 5:8-9 and how one normal, otherwise simple and unimpressive word just jumped out at her when studying that passage: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around for someone to devour.” Not several persons, not a group of believers, but someone, one person, alone and isolated, the enemy seeks to devour and destroy.
Maria passed me a note after this, saying in Spanish, that she struggles with isolation. I was relieved to hear her admit this, as she often would not take me up on invitations to come to church on Sunday. Later that afternoon, the group of women who came from Puente de Vida spent time praying with her and encouraging her. Please pray for Maria to continue to seek fellowship consistently as she passes through this difficult time in her life.
Thank you so much! Please also pray with us and remember us as we finish the year, to be able to end the year in the black financially. Merry CHRISTmas!
Read more about our Urban Men's and Women's Leadership Retreats.