A sacred time, set aside for reflection and refreshment, for the unique message from our Father, and for fellowship with friends, new and old…this is a women’s retreat.
It’s laughing, crying, praising, singing, sleeping/not sleeping, dancing, praying, meditating, breathing…
It’s letting go of past hurts and bad habits, it’s coming to know your Father’s voice and fleeing anything not from Him, it’s knowing that the opposite of Love is Fear, it’s focusing on the quality and content of that moment and not dwelling on the past or worrying about the future…
It’s trusting, surrendering, and above all, loving…this was our women’s retreat.
I spent this past weekend with 80 women from different churches and seasons of life. Some were just being introduced to Jesus, others have been walking intimately with Him for many years. It was a weekend I will not forget and will treasure always…
Shawls were placed over all the chairs. These were a warm, welcoming gift for us and had fun wearing them in different ways over the weekend.
Scripture attached to the shawl. Philippians 1:9
Beauties, Laurie and Marci…
Precious prayer warrior, Linda…she placed names on the blue clear stone. We each took a stone to pray over the weekend…and beyond…
The upstairs dining hall was decorated in rich colors. This is where we had our meals, played board games, and worked on crafts…
Door prize display and water bin…
Prayer Table, with a prayer journal…
The gang’s all here!
Bev taught five sessions. This was the first of five…
PAJAMA PARTY/KARAOKE NIGHT!!
Our introverted hostess, Stacy!
Beverly and lovely daughter, ‘E’, singing and dancing to, “Man of Constant Sorrow”
…and more dancing with Dawn Marie and Marci!
Bekah and Stacy…UNFORGETTABLE!
The retreat team prayed over all the women the week preceding the retreat. Lori posted a list of the names with the prayers at the entrance…
Some of us went on a lovely hike, Saturday. There was a beautiful view that the camera cannot properly capture…
Sunday, after the retreat was over, Crystal, Christie, and I went back to the hike to enjoy it in full sun. The warmth of the sun on our faces, the smell of the wet earth drying, the breeze singing in our ears, it was God’s love song to us and our hearts were bursting with joy!
Someone said this was a manzanita tree. Made for some fun shots…
Crystal
Christie
OK, here’s where the adventure spirit really kicked in! Crystal, Christie, Ginger, and I were walking through downtown Nevada City and had planned on going to Ikes Quarter Cafe for an early dinner before heading home. Well, Ike’s was closed, so we tried to go to New Moon Cafe. Nope…closed until five. Then I spied a sign that said, The Fix for Foodies. Assuming it was a kitchen/cookbook store, I beelined for it. Turned out to be a vegan/raw food restaurant! After some discussion and the rumbling bellies chiming in, we decided to stay and check it out.
Christie ordered the two non raw items. A fabulous tomato soup and panini!
Ginger ordered the quinoa spring rolls, but they were out of the rice wrapping, so she ended up with a quinoa spring salad, with the best dressing!
Crystal and I split our dishes. Mine was a raw beet salad with raw cheddar on top. They spiral cut the beets thinly to make it easy to eat. Delicious!
Crystal’s was the Strongwich. I don’t recall all that was on it, but I know it was a raw bread, sauerkraut, avocado, and nutritional yeast. It was a messy affair, but yummy.
We finished by sharing a cacao pudding. I abstained from licking the bowl…barely…
