One2One
...because two are better than one
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What are the deepest places of your desires, disappointments, fears?
Where do you go for wise counsel?
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Snowflakes
| | "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish... so is My Word that goes out from my mouth - It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish the purpose for which I sent it."
-Isaiah 55:10-11
Many thanks to all of our Snowflake Cafe Workshop leaders - we were warmed by your preparation, your talent, and your encouragement! Special thanks to Lynne and James Hutzel for sharing the with us a glimpse of God's STRENGTH in their life. Truly, we were all blessed.
 | | Lynne Hutzel shares at Snowflake Cafe |
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For women of ALL ages:
|  | Jennifer Rothschild bestselling author, teacher and speaker is our featured guest for Mothers & Others
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Mothers & Others is an elegant gathering filled with treasures and a celebration of the women God has placed in our lives... mothers, sisters, neighbors, mentors, friends.
All women are invited for this inter-generational event, for young teens to the wisest among us.
Come and share light refreshments, music, gifts, friendship and encouragement. This year our featured guest is Jennifer Rothschild, artist, Bible teacher, author and inspirational friend. Jennifer will join us for Brilliant, Brave and Beautiful...
women designed for purpose.
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Two identical seatings:
Friday,May 11th 7:00pm
Sat., May 12th 10:00am
Reserved Table Seating.
TICKETS AVAILABLE SATURDAY
March 17th - 9am Main Lobby - 9-10am - limit of one table per purchase.
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Experiencing God
"When God moves us out of our comfort zone -- into places that are way bigger than us, places that are difficult, hard, painful -- that even hurt - this is a gift.
We are being
given a gift.
These hard places give us the gift of intimately knowing God - in ways that would never be possible in our comfort zones."
Anne Voskamp |
Writing & Remembering
"Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done..." 1 Chronicles 16:11
"There is so much in God's Word that encourages us to remember what God has done... for me, I have to write it down. So I just want to share with you my own testimony to the blessing of writing and remembering (journaling). In it I hope to show you how God has spoken to me through His Word, prayer, circumstances, and the church and how it has revealed to me His character, His purposes and His ways."
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Karen Hicks - Writing and Remembering
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March Madness
Something happens to us this time of year - we wrestle and squirm and are ready for change. It's March madness.
Restlessness and discontent knock on our doors.
The winds of March stir us up and we await a new season.
Of all the seasons, anticipating springtime is the most eager time for me. I love the smells of the new fragrances bursting up from God's good earth as the hardened places of winter start to soften and new growth surprises us. The warm breezes that blow across still cold ground catches the breath of the earth in it's fullest aroma.
It is madness - spectacular madness!
You can't help but smile on the first dewy days of spring. The vibrant colors are unmistakable, the sounds that have been muted for months now sing, and the texture of grasses and new gardens pointing to the heavens announce renewal... the whole world seems to brighten and soften at the same time.
Places within us become tender, and we feel that longing for change, renewal...growth.
After a season of grey and shortened days, storms and rain and chill... grows the work of creation in its brilliance.
Beauty that speaks hope.
Our sleep deprived darkness, discouragements, and discontent awake to a bloom of insight and grace as a season of change reminds us of HOPE.
Hope shines from beauty that comes only because there is first rain and grey skies. So many storms turned to glory. 
God sends the springtime after a long winter.
It's indescribable. Beauty that speaks hope.
It makes us speechless.
It's awesome.
It's March madness.
"Let us live in awe of the LORD our God, for he gives us rain each spring and fall, assuring us of a harvest when the time is right."Jeremiah 5:24
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Our Stories ...
Our stories are God's Stories
"One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts.
They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They will tell of the power of your awesome works, and I will proclaim your great deeds.
They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness." - Psalm 145:4-7
God wrote a love for story into our souls. More than 70 percent of the Bible is written as narrative, and Jesus often used stories to teach us His Truth. God's people have recalled and told His stories throughout the centuries.
Scripture reveals the overarching story of a loving God who repeatedly rescues and redeems His people. Many of us know one such story about ourselves... a brief tale of our conversion. Yet our histories with God encompass more than just one event.
We each live out stories in process. While most of our stories don't flatter us, they do reveal God's work of grace in spite of our failures or sins. When we tell these stories, we communicate all that God is, and more.
So these are not our stories... they are GOD'S Stories... [more...] |
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I have friends who feed me.Those who know me know that while I may do some things really well, one thing I don't really do that well is cooking. My life is dense and finding time to learn the culinary arts has never found its way onto my to-do list.
Actually, I LOVE to host a dinner party, and plan fancy dishes with creative touches and a special table. But the every night, stand in front of the fridge thing, is, well -- just not my thing. So my family gives me grace and I give them lots of pasta. :)
Don't get me wrong, I have some famous dishes. If you want to eat well over here, the best time to visit is the morning ... I have an exquisite caramelized onion quiche that saves most of my brunch gatherings, and an original from-the-bakery-recipe for scones that leaves us all wanting more. Biscotti....waffles... monkey bread...these are my favorites. I practically exist on carbs, salads and fruit.
So I have friends who feed me. I found a brown lunch bag on the table today with my name and a small heart. A friend knew I was committed to prayer time after study and brought me a bagged lunch -- nothing fancy, but in between the yogurt, 1/2 sandwich, strawberries and nuts I found encouragement and peace. I was reminded that prayer is essential, and I was grateful that a friend simply and creatively confirmed that with me.
Another friend with the gift of hospitality had me over for homemade soup. I so appreciate this art because it is incredibly beautiful. The table put together so thoughtfully. The soup colorful and deeply layered with simmered scents... it really is a work of art. The chopping and blending, and stewing and seasoning are a reflection of the appreciation of friendship found in (as C.S. Lewis says) 'long conversations'.
My athletic friend brings me a small salad and gets me walking and praying. Sometimes we even play tennis. In breathless conversation we digest the stuff of our lives and it is delightful. With the wind around us and the soft ground below, it fills me up, a reminder that we need friends to run alongside of us in life, ready to take the next ball for us, or look across to a different landscape. The freshness of friendship weathered thru seasons of time is a treasure.
And then I have a friend who challenges me to step out in faith, and orders things like blackened Caesar salad and pizza with at least 19 toppings. I've been inspired to see a radically new perspective, to look beyond my comfortable world, and read again places in Scripture that perhaps I had rushed past. Like dark spices and hot seasonings, friendships like this sometimes make your eyes water with gratitude for being able to see what perhaps I would have otherwise missed.
My friend who always chooses seafood and exotic dishes that I cannot even pronounce laughs at my run toward simplicity. My black-slacks every day routine are jazzed by her bold jewelry and brilliantly colorfed jackets. Her love for deep things of the ocean mirror her passion for the deep thoughts of God, and she points me deeply, always, to His truth and to prayer.
I need friends to feed me.
Friends to challenge, question, inspire, take me deep, and are willing to run alongside of me. I need friends who are radical and raise questions and thoughts that sometimes do bring tears to my eyes. Perhaps my pasta dish will carry a few dark seasonings now. But surely, my feast is more than overflowing.
"For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land-a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing..." -Deuteronomy 8:7
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 The Garden Post is designed to share news, connections and information specifically for women, offer spiritual encouragement and insight, and provide resources for wise living.
I love how God connects us thru the circumstances of our lives... along the journey of life we encounter friends that forever change our lives -- relationships that encourage us, challenge us, inspire us, and help grow us. Thank you for sharing your hearts in meaningful ways, and for telling your stories. When you share a part of yourself you show us what God has done, and we see Him more clearly. Thank you for that gift.
If we haven't met personally, I want to hear your story. Give me a call or email me any time... a difficult question, spiritual concern, fresh idea or suggestion, perhaps a great book to recommend or insight to ponder...anything at all, I'd love to connect.
Louann Rodgers 610.431.0300x109 LKRodgers@comcast.net
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The Women's Ministry of Christ Community Church is here to help you grow spiritually in your relationship with God and to connect purposefully
with others in friendship. ||Women's Ministry||Christ Community Church|| 1190 Phoenixville Pike|| West Chester PA 19380|| 610.431.0300x109|| www.RootedToGrow.com 
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