"O Holy Night"

What better way to escort in the celebration of our Savior's birth than through an evening or morning with sister believers sharing in the praising and worshiping of our heavenly Father and His precious Son at our women's ministry Christmas Dinner and Brunch.  That is truly what Christmas is all about . . . the birth of the precious, holy and pure Son, The Son of God.  Though I have heard the nativity story numerous times, this year God showed me the sacrifice Christ made for me through the eyes of Mary, the mother of the precious baby who went to a cross with the same innocence of a newborn.  This Christmas meditate on the sacrifice that was made to cover your and my sins so that we can experience eternal life with our perfect Father and His precious Son.




"Sweet Life Cafe" - Women's Retreat

What a beautiful group of sisters! And what a wonderful weekend . . . We had a wonderful weekend at "Sweet Life Cafe", but "what happens at retreat, stays at retreat" except sharing the Gospel!  Hope you enjoy these few pictures.

16 Days and Counting . . .

We are getting closer and closer to our "Sweet Life Cafe" Women's Retreat.   Whether you will be attending or not, I hope you are praying over those who will be.

Today, my special request for prayer is that each woman who attends, like Mary Magdelen at the tomb (John 20), will encounter Jesus in a very real and personal way.  I hope that you will lift up all of our women and pray this prayer for them.

God bless,
Ann

WOW! What an "Ingathering" of Believers . . .

Coming off the heels of Ingathering, I'm what the Akins Family sang "Good Tired".  This week was physically and emotionally exhausting, but WOW was it spiritually uplifting and energizing!  I am almost in a state of depression today considering I have to wait another two years for Ingathering again.

In Pastor Rick's challenge last night, he asked who would take the gospel to a lost and dying world?  Now, my question to you is are you sharing the gospel with a lost and dying world?  From his challenge, I have determined that I MUST pray to my Abba Father daily to provide me with opportunities to share; eyes to recognize them and the Holy Spirit's courage and clarity of words to present the gospel in a loving way to the lost and dying world. 

So how will you share?

29 Days and Counting . . .

Yes, it's just 29 days until the "Sweet Life Cafe'" Women's Retreat.  I hope you are getting as excited as I am. 

I wanted to post a prayer request for today . . . I ask that you will pray over the retreat in your daily quiet times and include our specific requests.  For today, I ask that you pray specifically for our session leaders Patsy Cook, Christy Cook and Donna Drake - pray for God's guidance and direction; that only words from His heart will proceed from their mouths; and that He will use them as an instrument for His purposes and not their own.

"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year . . ."

Do those words make you think of snow, crackling fires, the smell of evergreens and a precious little baby in a manger?

I can hear you now . . . "What?  Christmas?  It isn't even Thanksgiving yet!"  But it is time to start planning towards our annual Christmas Dinner and our new Christmas Brunch!  This year's theme will be "O Holy Night".  The dates are December 7th for the dinner and December 11th for the brunch.  Tickets will go on sale in November for $15/person for one event.  But for those of you with a love for decorating and hosting, now is the time to start planning your table.  If you are interested in hosting a table, please contact Beverly Pittman at bevpittman@charter.net or Leianne Penn at leianne1972@yahoo.com.  We hope you will put this exciting tradition on your calendar and plan to join us!

What are you looking forward to?

Well, the countdown is on until "Sweet Life Cafe" and we want to know what excites you about the retreat?

Click on the "Comments" link below and tell us what you think!

Where's Your Focus?

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3:2

Where's your focus?  For several weeks, I have been meditating on this very thought - how do I keep my mind (and life) focused on heavenly things and not the things of this earth.

I love The Message Bible's version of this verse . . .

Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ - that's where the action is. See things from his perspective.

Often times I have been to conferences where I have repeatedly heard one particular statement, "if you don't know what to do, look where God is working and jump in" . . . Isn't that the whole point?  Be about His work, not self absorbed, world absorbed, possession absorbed, but rather GOD ABSORBED!

I posed the question to several individuals, whom I highly respect, "How do you keep your mind focused on heavenly things while doing the mundane tasks of the day?"   I thought I would share their answers . . . 


"The thing that helps me keep focused is reminding myself that this is my Heavenly Father's world and He is just letting me use and enjoy things while I'm here. " 
                                                                                                             - Marcella Mote

"Try to make Prayer my first response to problem solving.

Surround my office, car and home with verses or sayings that cause prayer to be a thought. On my refrigerator is a 4 parts of prayer index card in one of those magnets that normally would hold a picture. I helps me remember to pray."
                                                                                                               - Kim McCormack

I am not sure that I do....I should .....but I don't .....the real sad thing is that sometimes I actually hide from the "heavenly things"....but when I am facing the day as God would have me to ..... "there are no mundane tasks". The reality is ... the majority of our life could be seen as mundane, routine and aggonizing....or the majority of our life could be seen as filled with possibity and purpose.... sometimes we just really just need a change of perspective. It is like my grandmother would say to me when I was whinning about life .... "You need to look at the other side of the quilt." (For those that have no idea of what a quilt is... one side is often pretty awesome while the other side.....well it just doesn't look as good...kind of like wearing a tee shirt inside out.)

When I begin to view life as mundane...I may have lost the appreciation that I should have for the "moments" that God has given me.

We proclaim that today is the day the Lord has made....if we believe this .....then whatever task I am confronted with may also bring with it the possiblity of encountering God in some unique way.

So ....In those moments when life is mundane.....

..... I know that it is time for me to pray once again.... "God give me eyes to see".

                                                                                                                - Dan McKay


Prayer and The Word!

The first thing that I do when I wake up every morning and the last thing that I do before I close my eyes in sleep are to commune with My Heavenly Father.

Believe it or not, I don’t do all the talking either! I have learned that I must listen to My Lord. In any successful relationship, communication is the key.

The Bible says “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27) I try to be listening for God’s voice so that I will be ready to follow Him in whatever His will is for my life each and every day.

I study His Word, so in times of a widow’s loneliness and pain from chronic illness,I can focus on my blessings and not my fears. Knowing that He holds me in the palm of His hand gives me great comfort. (John 10:28)

The experiences of having been carried by my Savior through the deepest valleys of this life when I could not carry myself have given me peace that surpasses all understanding. (Philippians 4:6,7)

When I feel that I am being temped by satan, I pray, asking Jesus to rebuke him in His power and I quote scripture, for the greatest power is in the name of Jesus and the Word of God.

I am so unworthy, but He has forgiven me! He gives me peace, comfort and joy; therefore, I strive to live every second of every day knowing that He is all I need, He is enough!

May He and He alone receive glory and honor in any and everything that I am able to accomplish for Him.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13 (My life verse)

                                                                                                          - Brenda McClure


I have to allow my mind to be reminded of what is His, everything. And then I feel thankful, unworthy, excited, humble -- to think that Jesus loves even me! And every time I am outside, at some point in the day, I see his awesome artwork!!!
                                                                                                          - Linda Branan


I have to remember that nothing in the life of a believer is mundane...if allowed, Jesus will use every moment of life to bring us to a higher level of relationship with Himself. I sometimes find myself thinking (and acting) as though the mundane is opposite from the mountain top...when actually, the mundane is a big part of the mountain top or getting to the mountain top. John 15:4 says "remain in me" or "abide in me."


Oswald Chambers says, " it is a matter of determination." "The Spirit of Jesus is put into us by way of the atonement by the Cross of Christ. I then have to build my thinking patiently to bring it into perfect harmony with my Lord. God will not make me think of or like Jesus--I have to do it myself. I have to bring "every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ...2 Corinthians 10-5."

As I write this...I must confess to the Lord that I am guilty of the above and ask forgiveness. I often let the ""mundane thinking cloud out the "abiding."
                                                                                                       - Beverly Pittman


"Usually when I am working around the house someone will come to mind and I pray for them. If I am cleaning out stuff, I will run across something that will remind me how blessed I am. God has blessed me with many dear friends and whether it is God putting them on my mind or whatever triggers their name it reminds me how blessed I really am."
                                                                                                                                           - Jan Adams



So, how do you keep your eyes focused on Him and things eternal?  Feel free to click on comments below and share your way for keeping your eyes on heavenly things.

4th of July

With the exception of one day a year, we have drifted from celebrating the wonderful freedoms we have in our country. Post 9/11 days, I have become more hesitant about traveling freely outside of our home land. The numbers of anti-American groups out there are growing consistently . I think back to the "Mayberry" days and how joyful things were . . . I even think back to my childhood and how much safer our world seemed. Recently, I read a marvelous book entitled Radical discussing the need for radical change in our Christian living. In my reading, I am reminded of how in other countries people are traveling by foot to hidden, secret houses to spend 10-12 hours JUST studying the Bible - there are no fancy buildings, music, bands, just a dirt floor and one light dangling from the ceiling.

So many times the musician singing the Star Spangled Banner tries to put their own personal spin on the song and we lose the song and the meaning of the words, I have never heard a better version of the song than this video represents . . . I hope you enjoy as much as I did! Reflect and PRAISE HIM for our freedoms, then celebrate them by spending some quiet, alone time in His Word! ENJOY!

NOTE: Before playing the video, please scroll down to the bottom of the page to pause the music from our site.

Fall Women's Retreat

Sunday we will be opening up registration for the Fall Women's Retreat taking place Friday, October 29th - Saturday, October 30th. This year's theme is "Sweet Life Cafe . . . Where Women Savor Time With God". Our place of renewal and refreshment will be Simponsonwood Conference Center in Norcross . . . it's a little piece of quiet in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the city. The total registration fee is $99/person with a deposit of $25 due now to reserve your spot. Space is limited, so please do not delay in making your reservations. We will have an information table located in the Welcome Center between services on Sundays, July 11th, July 18th and 25th. If you have any questions, want to pick up a registration form or drop off your deposit, please stop by and speak with one of our ladies. Also for additional information, please feel free to contact Ann Bertschin at salem.girls@gmail.com. We hope that you will make this part of your fall plans . . . you won't want to miss out!

Awesome Experience

Last night I had the pleasure of joining the LOVE Ministries team to deliver meals to the homeless in Atlanta. WOW! What an experience! There is much prayer, thought and time put into preparing these meals for delivery . . . then, in a matter of 17 1/2 minutes, we distributed 200 meals! Looking into the faces of these many individuals of different sizes, different colors, different ages and different sexes, they all have one common need - hunger. . . obviously, the physical hunger, but also, the spiritual hunger for Jesus Christ. Several of us fell in love with a precious little boy, energetic, excited, social but probably born into this situation - no home, no food, and maybe only the clothes on his back. Who is going to train him up? Who is going to teach him a trade? Who is going to introduce him to God, the Almighty Provider? Many critics look at ministries like this and question, "when does it end?", "how are you helping them?" or make statements such as "they did this to themselves" or "how are they going to get up on their own feet with individuals catering to them", but who are we to judge? Jesus said "Go, make disciples!" The LOVE Ministry team may only be meeting an immediate, physical need, but who can share Jesus with someone and preach to them about spiritual hunger when their physical hunger is not being acknowledged. The LOVE Ministry is planting a seed that perhaps they will never see come to fruition, but the seed has been planted and hopefully others will come along and continue to encourage and share the love of Jesus Christ.

Even if you are not able to join on Monday nights to deliver the meals, there are several volunteer opportunities within the ministry:
* Donation Pickup at Kroger on Hwy 155, Monday-Sunday from 8:00am - 10:00am
* Washing and organizing donated clothes
* Organizing and helping with fundraisers
* Accounting/Paperwork
* Cooking and preparing meals
* Hosting Monster (large restaurant size cans) Can Drive

If you are interested in volunteering in any way, please contact Tyra Parker @ 678-878-9364.

2010 Meal Deliver Dates (Mondays)
July 12th
August 9th
September 6th
October 4th
November 1st
November 29th
December 27th

3AM Wake-Up Call

During the hecticness (is that a word) of the end of school year, I seem to be finding so little time for quietness and stillness. In the chaos of an overly busy weekend, I wondered when would I ever make time for God? What a terrible question. But in all seriousness, I was missing my Abba Father, I wanted to spend time in His presence, in His Word, in conversation with Him . . . where would I find time. For a little humor, and if you know me well - you know I refer to our family as the walking, living, breathing version of "America's Funniest Home Videos" . . . there is never a dull moment in our household, but back to my humor statement - Saturday started with me rebelliously exiting our bed at 6:45am to begin my day of chafeuring, "chefing", and catering to the many desires of teenagers hearts! We begin with me chafeuring one to baseball practice before 10am, cheering for another at a softball game at 10:30am while trying to keep up with "Little Missy" who has discovered "these feet were made for walking, and that's just what they'll do", to leave in the black cowboy Cadillac heading to chafeur teens number #1, #2 and #3 home to prepare for social activities that amazingly are all to begin at 3pm! While maintaining a sense of calmness so my sweet and hardworking husband doesn't feel guilty going to hit a few little white balls over the beautifully landscaped and manicured green grass of one of his favorite golf courses (he deserves it and I don't ever want to take that joy away from him!) Are you laughing yet? I'm out of breath just thinking about it . . . But I absolutely LOVE it! My family is a hoot and I wouldn't change any of it . . . God knew what He was doing giving me this craziness, they keep me on my toes! Still though, I was missing my heavenly Father . . . I needed Him, I needed time with just Him!

At 2:45 this morning, our dear dog, Lucy, decided something was nearing the perimeter of our house and she didn't like it - keep in mind, we back up to woods . . . animals tend to wander at night, this is not a predator . . . just probably something that will attempt to touch her food or leave evidence that he/she has visited our yard. Nevertheless, Lucy does not like anyone outside of our immediate family entering our yard without her LOUDLY announcing their arrival. After illuminating the neighborhood with our outside lights and visiting to chat with her several times, my eyes dared to shut again - I'm one of those, once awake, staying awake kind of people - so there I was 3am, wide awake and nothing to do . . . or so I thought! Then, clearly my Bible sitting next to my bed spoke to me almost like an audible voice, open me, spend time in me, sit with me. Conveniently, my dear husband was out of town, so I couldn't bother him . . . here I was, snug in my bed with my precious Bible and Heavenly Father sitting right here with me. We visited different scriptures, we conversed over the people who were burdening my heart, I shared my heart for the women of our church and He listened. AMAZING, SIMPLY AMAZING! He awoke me, not with just a nudge that I could return to "night-night" land (as our "Little Missy" says it) - but with the freshness of the cool morning air that would awaken me and freshen me to spend time with Him. In the midst of our chaos and whirlwind lives, He meets our needs . . . He recognizes our hungers and meets us there! What an amazing God and Father. He knew us before we were someone to know and He knows our every need . . . Reach out to Him and He will meet you where you are!

DYS Mother Daughter Dinner

What's DYS? Decorate Your Space! This was a wonderful dinner for high school senior girls and their mothers. There was lots of fun, fellowship and encouragement for these young ladies who will be graduating high school and entering this Babylonian world in which we live. Dawn Inglett shared some wonderful ideas regarding decorating and organizing their personal spaces whether it be a dorm room or their bedrooms. Then, we were blessed with Danielle Smith sharing the "10 Things I Learned in College". And finally, the evening was closed with a prayer of encouragement, blessing and protection over the young ladies and their mothers. Just to share a little of the evening, we are including the "10 Things" from Danielle's message:

1) My parents really are wise and I really do like my siblings. Exodus 20:12

2) God cares about my grades. Mark 12:30

3) God cares about my health. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

4) Get plugged into on campus ministries AND a local church. Hebrews 10:25

5) I am not in college to find a husband. Proverbs 4:23

6) Make time alone with God a priority in your day. John 6:66-68

7) Make wise choices. God will bless you when you do. When you don't make wise choices, there will be consequences to follow. James 1:22

8) Know what you believe and stand up for it! 1 Peter 3:15-16

9) Choose your friends wisely. Ecclesiastes 4:10

10) Find a mentor AND an accountability partner!

Beth Moore - Live in Atlanta . . . "So long, Insecurity!"

For those who missed this wonderful conference, I wanted to post comments from some of the attendees . . .

"Saturday morning when my alarm went off, my first thoughts were about sleeping in. Even as I was getting ready that morning, I was weighing more sleep over the $60 ticket price. I just kept telling myself that was just Satan trying to keep me from where God wanted me to be that day. I arrived at the church, got on the bus and was overcome with new fears. Will anyone sit with me? Am I going to have anyone to pal around with or talk to today? There were only a handful of people that I kinda' knew going and only one or two that I knew well. So I sat by myself. On the ride to Woodstock, I opened the envelope with my ticket and was reminded of the topic of the day, So Long, Insecurities . . . Hmm, seemed fitting for today. There was chitchat on the ride and a few introductions, but the fear of spending the day alone still remained. One of the first things that Beth Moore said was something along the lines of, Insecurity is not a weakness, it is lack of faith. Do I lack faith? No. Am I feeling insecure? Yes. Why? Why, why am I letting these trivial things cloud my mind? I let them go, and just soaked up everything that Beth had to say. The day was AMAZING! I met some new people, conquered some of my own fears. I even passed one of the ladies Sunday morning and she chatted with me like she had known me forever. God is Good!"

-Kimberly Fernau



"The Beth Moore Conference at Woodstock was awesome, it is hard to imagine 9,000 women, much less 300,000 women worshiping together in one accord. It was so awesome! You could feel God's presence!"

-Gloria Ambrose



"Saturday was awesome! It was wonderful to be with so many women who were intentionally there to praise God and love on each other. It was a very special day where the truth of Christ, of His love and security were shared with literally over 300,000 women nation wide. What an amazing wonder that only God can stitch together."

-Cheryl Lindsey



"Hearing Beth speak is such a blessing. I don't ever want to miss an opportunity to hear her. Seeing her in person allows you to see that she is authentically passionate about our Savior and humbly give Him all the glory and shows that she has a real love for women. Beth is such a dear and close friend to me (even though she doesn't even know it . . . but maybe I'll get to meet her to tell her one day). The recent conference in Atlanta came at just the right time. I had many "ah-ha" moments, because she just gets it. When you can't put your finger on it, she does. I'm thankful she is so in tune to what God presses on her heart then courageously shares with us. She has a way of making you feel that she's talking directly to you . . . even if you are one of 300,000 in the room."

-Sharon Griffin



". . . Beth just has a way of explaining things in such a clear and relevant way. She also does not beat around the bush on our responsibility to make choices in our lives. . ."

-Leianne Penn

"Decorate Your Space" Mother - Daughter Dinner

We are excited to be hosting our first "Decorate Your Space" Mother & Daughter Dinner for high school senior girls and their mothers. This is a great time to celebrate the completion of this chapter in their lives and the beginning of the next. The evening will include a catered dinner for everyone with economical decorating tips for creating an organized, yet personal and stylish space of their own. Then, the girls will be encouraged and challenged regarding maintaining their Christian values and purity while stepping out into this "Babylonian" world in which we live. Finally, our sweet pastor's wife will share words of encouragement for the mothers and a special prayer over everyone for the adventure in which they are about to embark.

If you have a high school senior girl, we hope you will include this as part of your graduation festivities. For additional information or to RSVP, please contact Ann Bertschin at salem.girls@gmail.com

Arming God's Vessel for Holy Purposes

Daniel 5:3-4
So they brought in the gold goblets that had been TAKEN FROM THE TEMPLE OF GOD in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. As they drank the wine, they PRAISED THE GODS (LITTLE "G") OF GOLD AND SILVER, OF BRONZE, IRON, WOOD AND STONE.

When reading Daniel 5 and the story of King Belshazzar, Daniel and "the handwriting on the wall", we can easily say "how dare King Belshazzar to not only use items taken from God's temple, but to use them for his own purposes . . . for ignoble reasons . . . to worship other gods?" But how often do we do that in our daily lives. In II Corinthians 6:16, we are told " . . . we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.' " Once we have accepted the gift of God's salvation, our bodies become His temple, a holy vessel. We can never be snatched away from God's hand, but we can be used by Satan for unholy purposes. In our present day, what do the unholy purposes surface as?

Complaining . . . Do we remind our husband what he didn't do? Do we complain that we didn't like the way something was handled at church, work, school? Have you ever noticed when you complain to one, then it catches on like wildfire which leads to dissension.

Gossiping . . . Do we share something under the title "prayer request"? Do we tell someone something with the preface to protect ourselves, our children, our family or others, but truly it does nothing but tear someone else down?

Pride . . . Do we look at Sunday services as a fashion show, ignoring the true reason for attendance? Do we want to show off our new car, purse, jewelry or some other material item? Do we like to brag on Facebook about how wonderful our life is or what wonderful thing someone did for us?

Judging . . . Do we judge others by their dress, the way they manage their children, the car they drive, their participation or lack there of?


If you notice all of these things start in the heart and mind, so we must renew our minds and arm ourselves DAILY through prayer and Bible study, filling our hearts and minds with things eternal.


My prayer for you is that you will make daily time for God filling your heart and mind with things of eternal significance.

Fall Retreat Planning Meeting

I'm excited to say we had a great representation of the women of Salem at our planning meeting for the Fall Women's Retreat. Go ahead and be planning to join us for an exciting weekend October 29th-30th at the Charlie Elliott Conference Center in Mansfield, Georgia. The registration fee will be $99/person which includes retreat materials, lodging and food. This will be a time of fellowship, friendship, relationship and fun! We will be offering a ONE TIME ONLY Early Bird Registration at the "Get Acquainted" Social on March 25th. If you register and submit a $25 deposit at the social, your registration fee will only be $75 . . . a $24 savings!

The Nativity

With this being our "Little Missy's" first Christmas, there were lots of new things to discover and find. One of her favorites was our manger scene located on the entry way piece at our front door. Every morning as she awoke from her sleep, she would motion over to the nativity and want to go over to hold Mary and Baby Jesus, Joseph, one of the wisemen and the camel. Then, at different times, she would want to hold different pieces, but always Mary and Baby Jesus. While she was napping on New Year's Day, I took advantage of that time by removing and storing the majority of our Christmas decorations. To her disappointment when she awoke, Baby Jesus was no longer on the entry way piece, but rather a boring lamp and our family picture. As the week has progressed, several times she has pointed in that direction and with a puzzled look on her face, she can't find Baby Jesus. So today, I am putting our manger scene back on our entry way piece and maybe it will become a permanent, rather than holiday, fixture in our home. Though she has a very simple, 9 month old's mind, she is very much correct - we should celebrate Jesus' birth and seek Him everyday, not just on Christmas Day!



God Bless!