THINK BIG!!

It may seem like we have disappeared into blog-space but we have actually been very, very busy! So much has happened in just one month.

The date is set, the venue has been secured, hotel rooms have been blocked and plans are well underway for the PREMIERE of For the Girls International. We can promise you that this conference will be inspirational, motivational and full of fun and surprises! We have put together a conference team that is ready to make it happen. The other big piece of news is that we have a WEBSITE up and running. Check it out at http://www.forthegirlsinternational.org/ The front page takes a minute to load so be patient. You can register for the conference on line and all the dates and times are listed there. In the middle of all that, we managed to fit in a trip to California to attend the GODCHICKS conference which was incredible!

So, in order to make all these things happen, we have had to...THINK BIG!!

This is not a small vision that God has given to us. There are a lot of people in need in this world and a lot of women (and men of course) that can help provide the solutions. We meet women every day that are ready to join forces to make a difference in this world we live in and we are so encouraged by them.

Ephesians 3:20 says "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us..."

God is ready and waiting to blow our minds. All we need to do is excercise the power of His Spirit that lives within us and stand back and watch Him exceed all of our expectations.

In Isaiah 58: 7 -11 (NIV) God promises that He will hear our cry and heal us when we are doing His work.

Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
You will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

We can Think Big but God can Think Bigger!!

Lots of Love,
Cynda and Tracey

GET REAL

There is only one person who knows the REAL you.

And that is the One that created you.

We as women have many identities in this lifetime....we are daughters, sisters, mothers, aunts, grandmothers, friends, mentors and the list goes on...but at the end of the day who are you really?

You are a daughter of the King that is loved and treasured beyond measure. No one loves you like God loves you. He made you! Nobody "gets" you like God does. He knew you before you were born. So why is it that we look to so many other people and things to define who we are?

We get caught up in thinking that if we just had the right husband, house, job, children we would feel better about ourselves and be happy, but the truth is that until we can find our identity in our Creator we will never have that inner joy that we all want so very much.

I am married to one of the most patient, supportive guys around. Really. (It's borderline sickening because he makes me look bad!) I'm not kidding. My sisters even take his side when we're at odds. The thing I love about him is that he would go out of his way to do anything he could to make me happy and most of the time he does. But life has come at me hard at times, as it does to all of us, and there came a point several years ago that I realized that he could not make me happy no matter what he did or was willing to do. I realized that if I looked to him to be my source of joy that he would eventually fail because he is only human like me.

That is when God required me to Get Real. I needed to recognize that my identity is in Christ alone. I needed to know that it didn't matter what the rest of the world thought of me, or did, or didn’t do for me. I had to let it really soak in that I was made in the image of the living God and He alone is my source of joy.

There is freedom in Getting Real and discovering who we are in God. When we stop comparing ourselves to others and get busy discovering what we were created for (because He has a specific purpose for each and every one of us) we find true fulfillment.

When we find out who we are in Christ everyone benefits! We stop putting unnecessary pressure on others to affirm us and as a result our relationships flourish. We start putting on the mind of the One in whose image we were created, and we become more compassionate and kind, more humble and patient, and we live with so much more power to overcome all that life throws at us! (Read Colossians 3:5 – 14 the whole thing is great!)

Verse 10 says: “Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him”

These are the things we will be talking about in depth at our conference in January. This is just a teaser!

Get ready girls, to Get Real!!!

Lots of Love,
Tracey and Cynda

DIG DEEP

So here we are...MUG #1 - DIG DEEP

Many years ago, during a particularly difficult time of my life, my pastor said to me, "Tracey, when you come out on the other side of this trial you will be so much stronger." My very spiritual answer to him at the time was, "I was happy being weak".

But now, I'm on the other side...and I am stronger.

Years later I came upon another difficult time. My friends would tell me, "This is going to make you even stronger." I'm not sure what my response to them was, but it was probably along the lines of... "I don't care". (and they are still friends with me!)

Nobody willingly signs up for difficult times or heartache. I don't know anyone that has jumped up and down at the opportunity to grow through pain, but the sooner we embrace the concept, the sooner the healing can begin. God does not just want us to grow, He wants us to thrive! He wants us to be complete.

James Chapter 1 verses 1-4 (Amplified Version)

Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort, or fall into various temptations. Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience. But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing.

Sometimes, in the wake of suffering or adversity, we are willing to settle for recovering just enough to go on. We underestimate the degree of recovery that we can have! God doesn't want you to just be ok with what you've gone through. He wants to use it. He wants you to be fully developed! Then, we can grab the hand of someone facing similar troubles and walk through it with them, encouraging them along the way.

But how do we get there? That's where the digging comes in. We have to reach down deep inside of us and discover what it is that holds us back. What past hurt we are harboring? What lies have we bought into that make us feel unworthy or not good enough? Is there someone we need to forgive? (whether they want to be forgiven or not!) Have we done something that we are ashamed of, and although we've received God's forgiveness, we haven't forgiven ourselves?

I know what my battles are and have been, but only you can answer the question...

What holds you back?

Let patience have it's perfect work so that you may be FULLY DEVELOPED!

Once we identify those things that have caused the most pain in our life we can identify the very things that will produce the most growth for us (and for others) if we allow them to.

The exciting news is that we are in the process of finalizing details of the PREMIERE of For the Girls International. It will be a conference in January of 2009. We look forward to an amazing time of learning how to grow and THRIVE together! We will be putting all the details on the blog under SCHEDULE as soon as we have everything firmed up.

NEXT MUG...GET REAL!

Lots of Love,

Cynda and Tracey