Tuesday, February 21, 2012 WOW-Zine

Hello, ladies. I know--it's Tuesday, not Monday. Did you miss me yesterday? Yeah, I figured not! Turns out I was able to go to the beach with a couple of friends for the weekend, and didn't return until Monday afternoon. And since it was a holiday, well, I just figured I'd wait until today to write. So that's my excuse--now on to the news!

While in Lincoln City, we drove by our retreat house. It is still there, looking as gorgeous as ever. And I could hear it whispering to me, "Come here April 13th-15th and bring 39 of your best friends!" So that's my plan. Registration for our SeaSide Escape Retreat opens next Thursday, March 1, for you women who regularly attend Wapato Valley Church. Two weeks later I expect to be inundated with checks from those of you who attend any of the Bible studies. Two weeks after that, we will open it up for you to invite other family or friends if we have still not reached our 40-women cap. Everyone will be sleeping in the house this year (no motels). It's only $80 for a weekend of spending quality time with girl friends and the Lord, plus having plenty of free time for shopping, long walks on the beach, etc. We're holding the retreat later in the spring than usual, as by then you'll have your tax return and we'll be back into Daylight Savings Time, so it won't be dark when those of you who have to leave after work on Friday get there. We're trying to make it as easy on you as possible! Car pool arrangements will be made once we reach our 40-person capacity.  Remember to make checks out to WVC (with women's retreat in the memo section) but give them to me. If you want, you can write your check now and address the envelope to put it in the mail on Wednesday, the 29th, so that I'll receive it the next day (March 1st.) I will also accept checks and registration forms at Common Grounds on the 29th. My mailing address is PO Box 665, Gaston, OR 97119. Let's stuff my mailbox and make the post mistress wonder what's going on! Hopefully you've held on to the registration form that was included in the bulletin this Sunday, but if not, we'll have more available.

This week we have Zumba on Wednesday at 4:15.
We're changing it up at bit, at least for a while, on  Tuesday and Thursday at 5 PM. We're going to do the Core Rhythms dance exercise program. We'll still be groovin' to hot Latin music which gives us cardio conditioning while toning our abs at the same time. Come try it out!

WOW's Movie Night is at my house at 7PM Friday, March 2nd. This is a very laid-back, casual time to enjoy snacks (bring some to share) and a good movie. Please let me know if you're planning on coming. Any movie suggestions by those of you who will be coming?? I know we're competing with a great concert in Portland that same night, but for those of you not attending that, I'd love to have you come hang out with me!

And don't forget about  The Art of Marriage video conference being offered at Wapato on March 16th and 17th. This is a wonderful opportunity for a low-cost way to improve your marriage. Becky has all kinds of information about it in the weekly announcements, as well as at a table in the back of the church. Call her with any questions or to sign up to attend. This is the perfect time for your kiddos to spend some special grandparent-time over the weekend so that you and your spouse can concentrate on providing your children the security of a great marriage. Take advantage of it!

The Thursday Perk meets this week at 9:30 AM at the church.  Feel free to join us this week even if you've never been before. We have a great time enjoying coffee, tea, and a goodie, while studying one of the gals from the Bad Girls of the Bible.This week our lucky subject is known as The Witch of En Dor, as found in I Samuel chapter 28. We had a great time studying this last week at Common Grounds, so if you're home during the day, come join us on Thursday morning so you don't miss out.

I'd like to close with a blog I received last week that I think maybe a lot of you can identify with. Here it is:
 

Heart to Heart with Holley Gerth: 7 Secrets to Overcoming Fear: {1} Go There

---

7 Secrets to Overcoming Fear: {1} Go There

Posted: 17 Feb 2012 07:56 AM PST

* THANK YOU for helping my new book, You're Already Amazing, go to #1 on the bestsellers list of Barnes & Noble.com! Woo-hoo! Haven't gotten your copies yet? Amazon now has it half price for a limited time and you get free shipping when you order four (stock up for Easter and Mother's Day gifts!). Y'all are wonderful. *

 We stepped through the door of the laundry room in our newest rental property. My husband pointed to a hole in the back of the wall. "That's the dryer vent," he said, "And we're going to clean it."

He proceeded to unfold a series of flexible sticks with a brush on the end and cram it into the wall. I watched wide-eyed in my skinny jeans and new sweater.

After a few minutes, I got a chance to join the fun. "I'm going to pull the brush back out and I need you to stay by the hole in the wall and make sure it doesn't get stuck."

I crouched down, cute boots and all, and peered into the tiny black space in front of me.

Y'all, what hubby failed to mention is that when the brush gets ready to exit the building so does all the lint it's collected. Do you remember the Monty Python movie when the soldiers are attacked by a killer rabbit? I had a flashback of that scene as the mother of all dust bunnies came flying out of the pipe and exploded all over me.

I got so startled I fell over. And I might have fainted if the sound of hysterical laughter from my husband hadn't kept me conscious.

Because my life is one big analogy, I found myself pondering the dust bunny as I laid in bed that night. While my skinny jeans got covered in fluff, no real harm was done. I just felt like I'd been attacked by a killer rabbit. My reaction didn't match the reality.

It's often the same way with fear. What we imagine is often far worse than what comes to be. And even if it does happen, we discover we're more resilient than we ever knew (and God is more faithful too). But the only way to find that out is to stare fear in the face and let it explode all over of us is needed. Not what we fear but the fear itself--which many times turns out to be worse.

What are you really afraid of?

And if that happened, then what?

And what about after that?

Keep going until you've gone all the way down the pipe of your fear and pulled every little bit back out. Then hold it in your hands and see if you've got a killer rabbit or a dust bunny. You might even find yourself laughing a bit about what you thought was in there.

The secret is not letting all of that fear grow in the dark.

Then stand up, wipe off your skinny jeans, hand it all to God and go out there and change the world...

I believe with all my heart you can.

--Holley

* THANK YOU for helping my new book, You're Already Amazing, go to #1 on the bestsellers list of Barnes & Noble.com! Woo-hoo! Haven't gotten your copies yet? Amazon now has it half price for a limited time and you get free shipping when you order four (stock up for Easter and Mother's Day gifts!). Y'all are wonderful. *

Isn't that a great story? Don't let the perception of your fears overcome your reality this week! Hope to see you at our events. 

Sherrie Ashcraft, Women's Ministry Director

sherrieashcraft@yahoo.com    971-285-6699