Welcome to another day of your life! You may have started it off by grumbling about more snow and a grey day, but it's not too late to change your attitude. Spring is just around the corner (or actually, just around the clock, since it officially starts tomorrow.) You probably have bulbs blooming in your flowerbeds, which is a sure sign warmer weather will eventually reach us. Robins and all the other birds are flirting with each other around the bird feeder here at Ashberry Lane. Love is in the air!

SeaSide Escape retreat update: You ladies are very eager to get away for the weekend of April 13th-15th, as we only have six spots open! Thanks for such a great response. We can hardly wait to spend hours together with you. Remember that once you pay your $80 you can choose which bed you want to sleep in. I'm carrying the "accommodation book" with me nearly everywhere I go, so just check with me.

Several of you have told me you'd love to attend the retreat but can't get away that weekend. Then have I got a deal for you! I would love to do what we did last year and have a mini-retreat here at my house. How does that sound? I would probably do that either the weekend of April 27th and 28th or May 18th and 19th. So if you're unable to make the beach retreat, let me know if you'd like to do one at Ashberry Lane. I can do it with as small of a group as 4 women. The cost would only be $20. We would cover the same material in SeaSide Escape as we will be doing in Lincoln City.

A reminder that Zumba now meets only on Monday and Wednesday at 4:15 PM at the church.

The Thursday Perk meets this week at 9:30. We'll be studying the life of Tamar in Genesis chapter 38. This section of scripture generated a lot of discussion when we looked at it last week at Common Grounds. Come prepared for God to speak to your heart.

Our second annual Feminini-Tea is Saturday, May 5th, at 10 AM at the church. Who would love to host a table by decorating it with a tablecloth, dishes, and centerpiece? We had a delightful time together (daughters are invited, and you can borrow some if you don't have any) last year. This year Barb Boswell will be our speaker. The event is free--you just need to bring along some tea-time goodies to share!

Our Bible studies will be through for the year before you know it, but don't worry, we'll have other options for during the summer. One of the things we always do is to plan some fun things to do together, and often your children are invited too. I'd like to do things like a day-trip to the beach, a picnic in a park, etc. Let me know what wonderful ideas you have and I'll try to incorporate them into our summer plans. Bible studies will also be offered during the summer, as we don't want to lose the closeness we've developed with each other throughout the year, nor do we want to take a vacation from growing in God's Word!

The Thursday Perk will meet:
March 22
April 5, 26
May 10, 17 (grand finale)

Common Grounds will meet:
April 4, 18
May 2, 16(grand finale)

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you--there are a couple of times when both studies meet back-to-back because of logistics.

So, I'm outta here for this week! I'll leave you with another good devotional from Holley Gerth's website:

Heart to Heart with Holley Gerth: 7 Secrets to Overcoming Fear: {2} Find Your Joy

7 Secrets to Overcoming Fear: {2} Find Your Joy

Posted: 20 Feb 2012 12:16 PM PST

She curls her toes over the edge of the diving board and peers into the water below. Pink bathing suit. Pink goggles. Pink rubber bands holding soggy pigtails in place. She's not exactly the picture of courage but just when it seems she's going to back down...she grins and instead leaps up, up, up and over the edge.

JOY is a powerful motivator.

And it always trumps fear.

We know that as kids. But somewhere along the way we forget how much it's true. We start believing life is serious business and getting rid of fear requires intensity and determination.

Not always.

Sometimes it's as simple as rediscovering our joy, embracing our passion, taking the hand of the Good-Gift-Giver and daring to follow him over the edge.

What do you really love?

What makes you feel joy in a way that nothing else does?

Where do you feel God's presence more than anywhere else (because where he is, joy is too)?

When fear tells you to turn back--to stop following that dream, taking that step, making that difference--run toward joy.

Because, here's the secret, fear has a fear of joy.

And it won't dare to follow you when you jump heart first over that edge.

--Holley

Sherrie Ashcraft, Women's Ministry Director

sherrieashcraft@yahoo.com 971-285-6699