Surprise! Retreat!!!

So my 33rd birthday came and went this year without much fanfare... in fact, I barely remember parts of it, because the flu bug decided to hit our house hard right around then. But my wonderful husband and my good friend Sherry, got together and planned a surprise getaway. Sherry's birthday falls around the same time and we both were in need of a little stress-free down time. So that is how we ended up at Lake Blackshear in Cordele, Ga.
The resort was actually in a state park, so the scenery could not be beat!!

The place reminded me of Dirty Dancing for some reason... it had hiking, canoeing, a pool, work out facilities, fine dining, golfing, camping, fishing... you name it! It was tucked out of the way of civilization... in fact, my phone had no signal, so I could actually sit back and know I wouldn't be interrupted!

Here we are fueling up before one of our hikes! We found some pretty isolated and beautiful spots! And also saw a couple of deer... and looked really hard for an alligator.




Sherry laid out by the pool and got a weird sun burn while she read. I wrote a song and took a nap and read. We did our nails, curled our hair, did funny face masks, and talked and laughed until we were dropping in and out of the conversation...


We ate at a critically acclaimed little hole in the wall restaurant on Friday night... Daphne Lodge. It was so good! The history on the menu said that the building used to be an open air dance hall and that families used to load up their wagons and drive over on Sundays to dance... how cool is that?!?!

On Saturday, we headed over to Albany to meet up with Sherry's family. The GPS took up mudding! We laughed and were oddly proud of the mud splattered truck.


We spent Saturday afternoon and evening with Sherry's family. And I found myself feeling drawn in by her family. Laughing at tales of Sherry's childhood... and pics of her high school days. Sharing where we've been and celebrating how far the Lord has brought us. I so enjoyed the retreat at Blackshear, but my favorite part of the trip was staying up until one in the morning talking and laughing and crying at times, with the Sceales family.

Keep The Change

Change is so darn hard sometimes! Especially when you are trying to apply what God has taught you about you and your behavior to the relationships around you and to your every day life.

Do all you Kingwood Youth Group alum remember the sermon Benny... or was it Mark in Chi Alpha... preached about how a clay pot if made. It is formed sculpted. Then it has to be fired in order to have a finished product. I remember one of the points was that there are times when a pot is resistant, for one reason or another, fired too long or damaged, and has to be broken and reworked to go through the whole process again.

I absolutely know that God is teaching me things through some of these tough circumstances. I've had some interesting encounters with people that have made me take a step back from my gung ho path, and examine my actions, words, and deeds. If I can't be a good student for God... then I don't think I can be a good anything.

Change is happening whether we embrace it or not... and even though, there are many moments lately when I want to yell "Enough! Keep the change, already!" I would rather be refined by my Master's firm, loving hands, than to crumble beneath the weight of my own failings.