REPORT
ON THE WOMEN’S CONFERENCE AT REDEEMER FELLOWSHIP CHURCH
March
15-16, 2013
- Linda Piippo
We
are so grateful to have provided this conference for the women of Redeemer. 180
women came – 150 of them from Redeemer.
We
began praying for this conference in August 2012. We began to see the vision
God was revealing, and the importance of connecting our women under the banner
of Yahweh.
Our
church has been blessed with many new people and we are so thankful. We were
concerned about growing without knowing one another. So we chose to do
something to familiarize ourselves with one another and, therefore, strengthen
our church body.
God
led us to contact Norelle Lutke from Wichita, Kansas, to be our speaker.
Norelle was the perfect person for this event. By nature she is so loving,
approachable, and confident in her faith and God’s redemptive activity. He
experience as pastor, daughter, mother, grandma, working wife, and minister to
women and couples provided the needed combination for our event.
Norelle
shared from her heart the identity we have as women of Yahweh, and the
challenges that can impede our spiritual growth. She referred to these as “blockages,”
and gave us a creative verbal and visual examples of things that stop the flow
of the Spirit moving in our lives. It was evident, in the responses of the
women, that God was working in their hearts.
In addition, we were blessed to hear two testimonies of two women whose lives were very different, yet who both saw and received the mercy of God in bringing them His abundant life.
Our
conference also included “pampering” our women. We provided free child care for
all sessions. On Saturday they were presented with a beautiful breakfast
brunch. And for dinner they were escorted into our fellowship hall, which was
designed to look like a beautiful restaurant. Over twenty of Redeemer’s men
dressed in black and white as waiters, each one hosting a table. Our women were
graciously served so they could just relax and enjoy one another’s company.
The
evening ended with Norelle sharing again. We had communion together in our
beautifully decorated sanctuary. Two prayer tents were designed for our
weekend, where ministry for specific things took place. We ended by singing our
conference theme song, “Creator God, You are Yahweh.”
We
were being truly united! We received strength in many creative ways: through
worship, our worship arts ministry, flags and banners, dance, special music
ministry, small groups, “stones” of proclamation, sharing “hands of prayer” for
one another, and declaring ourselves to be women of Yahweh.
A
wonderful moment happened when we made a circle around the sanctuary and
shouted aloud, “Beware of the tribe led by God singing one song – Yahweh!
Yahweh!”
Thank
you, God. We were, and yet are, amazed at Your provision and presence.
