To Be A Mentor...

On Saturday the ladies of my church held an all day mini-retreat.  We focused on the Biblical art of "mentoring".  I was privileged to be on the planning committee.  To say it was a success is a huge understatement.  Women who have went to church together for 20 years talked to each other.  Ate lunch with one another.  We had a fabulous speaker who spoke in two sessions on the hows and whys we need to be a mentor and the hows and whys of being the mentee.  Several women of our church hosted and taught breakout sessions on various topics.  I got the chance in the afternoon to slip into one about "living a balanced life".  It was hosted by two of our younger women with little ones running around the house.  Brandy and Jennifer did a marvelous job.  I know God was so honored by their speech and what they had to say to us as a group.  Both of them stirred my own heart towards balancing my own life in ways that God can use me.  I struggle with that concept.  I allow Satan to whisper lies into my ears that tell me, no one wants you, no one would ever come to you for anything, you are not usable for anything let alone something for Jesus.  Lies, all lies. An I believed them.  Believed.  But...no more.  God can and will use me as long as I am willing to be used wherever He places me.  I am praying right now that some young woman asks me to come along side her and be her friend and help her.  To mentor her.  All it really means is to be her friend.  To pray with her.  To pray for her.  To show her how God can use the circumstances we go through for His glory and her benefit.  My own daughter attended and both of them felt the tug of God towards a woman to ask to mentor them.  One young lady was so touched by Saturday that she is flat out on fire to kick this whole thing to the moon and back.  God is just awesome.  The day flew by and I hated to see it end.  Our pastor told my friend, Kelley, and I Sunday night that he had never heard so much positive responses about anything before.  Oh, how that did my heart good.  That remark told me that the Holy Spirit had moved the hearts of our home based women.  Moved their hearts towards one another and towards God.  Days like Saturday can only strengthen our core at church.  Now we can branch out and surround other women in our community and bring them in for the next mini retreat we do.  Growth, depth and change is what this was all about.  I have mentioned before I felt a dryness in my life.  Desert-like.  What I know now is that when these dry times comes...rain is on the horizon.   Soul quenching rain that makes new life flourish and grow.  Sure with this growth will come eventual pruning.  But that will just make the branches stronger.  To be a mentor to a young woman's life is so worth the desert I have traveled through.