Women's Weekend at Lake Junaluska

This past weekend was the annual meeting of the Western NC Conference of United Methodist Women at Lake Junaluska. It was my first time to attend a Conference UMW function and I totally enjoyed it! I learned alot about the organization of the United Methodist Women that will help me fulfill my duties as president of our local unit. It was motivating and inspiring.

I was accompanied by 13 other ladies from our unit. We ranged in age from the 40s to the 80s. I enjoyed getting to know these ladies better. One night, we sat around in one of our rooms, laughing and telling stories - I haven't laughed that much in years! I had fun teasing them about the trip being an eye-opening experience for me! Now, they're afraid of the stories I might tell. Oh well, I promised some of them that what happens in Junaluska stays in Junaluska! So, my lips are sealed!

Our main speaker for the conference was Rev. Angela Pleasants, pastor of Central UMC in Charlotte. Her message on Friday night talked about "me-ology" or being so full of "me, myself and I" that we can't see anything else. It is impossible to be a servant to our hurting world when all we can see is us! She continued this servant idea in her message on Sunday morning when she used the text of John 13:1-11 where Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. She talked about loving others, even when they weren't making it easy for us! She made this statement:

"If you quit in the middle of the crucifixion, you'll never see the resurrection!"

When she said that, I felt like someone had smacked me with a big stick! I grabbed my pen and wrote it down. Wow! What powerful words! And, just when I needed to hear them, too! I've been whining lately about some things that weren't going my way but her words cut to the heart of the matter. If I don't hang in there when the going gets tough, when things aren't going the way I think they should, when I find out that what I thought I was signing on for isn't the way it is, then I will never see the blessing that God intended for me and for those I was meant to serve.

There's a little less whining going on today in Shari's world!