Then and Now

Once upon a time, a long time ago, at Favorite Christian University, the Lord brought a little group of girls together on a green shag living room floor, and they prayed for the very first time.  And the girls had no idea what a beautiful blessing was being given to them that night.

We've been going on trips together every year since college.  This weekend was our 16th trip. 

Trip #1-- days before we graduated and went our separate ways  We had the best time driving those golf carts all around Holly Lake.  (Was there a golf cart wreck?  Does anyone remember?)

Some years there are seven, some years there are less, but always there are four.  We must have a quorum for the trip to count. (There is one elementary ed major, one biology major, and 5 business majors...can you tell?)

Sometimes there's a baby, or a husband, or a dog...but we don't count them in our quorum.  That would be cheating.

This year we met in Gruene, TX.  (Pronounce that green...like the color...this is very hard for the reading teacher in me)  

We lingered over coffee and a bagel...we shopped in all the girlie shops...we ate dinner on the patio next to huge open windows listening to live music...we stayed up late (but not as late as we used to)...we ignored the clock...

We talked, non-stop.  After 17 years of knowing each other, nothing is taboo.

We encouraged, hugged, cried, supported, advised, listened, laughed, sympathized, celebrated, and prayed.

And God saw that it was good.

The time change is a killer...

We were in Cali the weekend of the time change. California is already a 2 hour time difference from where we live. So factoring in the time change, it felt like a 3 hour time difference the entire weekend.

Which didn't really matter while we were there because we don't really operate on any sort of a schedule when we are on prayer group retreat. Because we're too busy talking. Usually someone's stomach finally growls loud enough to hear over all the words and we remember to eat.

If anything it made us feel decades older than we actually are. We were all hungry and ready to eat dinner and it was only 3 in the afternoon. And then we were ready for bed by 8:00.

No alarms means no bed times, so the time change didn't matter until we headed home. Going home was KILLER.

And I woke up the next morning to 4 straight days in Kindergarten. The 5 year olds worked hard to steal my San Diego buzz.

Thank goodness I got to drink my morning coffee out of this:


It makes me smile.

Be patient, I'm having a hard time adjusting to the time change.

November = cra-zay

The good kind of CrAzY, but still...cRaZy.

I spent the first weekend on the West coast in La Jolla, CA with my prayer groupies.

We've been praying together for 16 years, and we've gone on a trip together every year since our college graduation.

Personally, I knew this was going to be a great trip from the very beginning. One morning in late June, I overheard a couple of moms talking at swimming lessons about the 1 day special that Southwest was running. The rates sounded too good to be true, but I thought of prayer group and decided it was worth a try.

One quick check of the Southwest website on my handy-dandy phone verified the cheap rates, so I sent out a group text...What do you think about Prayer Group in San Diego? When can we go? We have to decide by midnight.

None of us were at home in front of a computer. One of us was not even in dependable cell phone range. In spite of our limited resources, what usually takes us 2 months to decide was done in 6 hours. We had a weekend booked and plane tickets purchased. It was pretty much a prayer group miracle.

A lot has changed in 15 years.

The first trip we took together we loaded up in Jo's Jeep because it would fit all 6 of us and we drove a couple of hours down the road to a borrowed lake house. Our only directions to the lake house were an atlas and a hand drawn map on a piece of paper. About half way in to our drive, we had to stop and pick up our 6th member because she was staying at home. We had to call ahead the night before and plan where to stop and what time to stop there. And then we had to stick to that plan...because there were no cell phones to use for last minute changes or detours.

I know. I don't know how we managed either.

This year, we hopped on a plane in each of our respective airports and met up in San Diego. We paid for a condo that we found on the internet. None of us had ever seen the condo in person, we were going off of the website descriptions and pictures. I never even talked to the property manager, we communicated by email.

I saved the email with the address to the condo on my iPhone along with our plane itineraries, and I reserved a shuttle to take us from the airport to the condo one afternoon while I was sitting in the car pool lane waiting to pick up Bubba from school. Our phones also came in handy when we wanted to take pictures or get directions to area restaurants.

But some things never change.

Just like that first trip and every other trip since then, we had zero plans for the weekend once we got to San Diego. All we knew for sure is that we would go anywhere that would let us talk, and visit, and catch up, and talk some more.

In fact at one point on the way there, three of us were on the same flight. At the end of the flight, we stood up to get our carry on bags and the lady in front of us said, "Whew...y'all are talkers, aren't you?"

I'm not gonna lie. I came home with a slight case of laryngitis.

The ocean was peaceful and gorgeous. The seals and sea lions were stinky and entertaining. The food was delicious. The company was precious, the memories are sweet.

And at some point we all stopped talking and stood still long enough for some guy to take our picture.

Love you girls!

Life Happens Between PGRs

So, Prayer Group did not disappoint. We had a wonderful weekend catching up on each other's lives, encouraging each other, and petitioning our Father about the matters in our hearts. And playing with the newest baby in the group. She is precious and perfect in every way. Such a sweet, tangible, kissable piece of evidence proving that God does answer prayers, and longs to give us the desires of our hearts.

Since Sunday afternoon, our household has been trying to recover from Prayer Group weekend. Laundry, dishes, and plain old snuggling has been abounding here at the casa. Not to mention, sleeping. Once the weekend of fun has been had, we have to catch up on the things missed here at home. Thanks to Honey and Gran and Grampy for taking the kids for the weekend and making it possible for PGR to crash at our place at the last minute.

This morning I was finally able to pick up the latest addition to my plate collection. And for your viewing pleasure, here are a couple of pics.

My goal is to have a plate to display for every season. So far I have fall, winter, and this one for summer. I still can't decide what to do for spring. Thank goodness I have a few months.

Honey spent yesterday as his first official day of selling. It was a great day! The goal is to get one order every day (or 20 each month) and he came home with 2! I hope with each day that passes, he will become more and more confident in his new job.

So, this week is back to real life. VBS, library story time, and swimming will probably be involved.

I'll make an attempt to explain...

I'm not sure the ticker above can adequately express the excitement I feel as this weekend approaches. We have tried for years to come up with a name for it that is a bit more dazzling than "Prayer Group Retreat". And also one that doesn't sound like a pregnancy test when you abbreviate it, "PGR". But, we've never been able to put into words exactly what this weekend means to the 7 of us. So, I'm not sure why I'm trying to do so now.

Back in the day, we were club sisters at our favorite Christian university. In an attempt to make our beloved club more of a focus on God and less on winning that year's Sing Song competition, or an avenue to celebrate yet another engagement with a ring ceremony, our club chaplin decided to form prayer groups. The way this was organized was simple. Those of us that volunteered to be prayer group leaders would pick a time that was convenient for us and post it on a sign up sheet. Any other club sister that found herself available to pray at the designated time was encouraged to sign up. So Jo and I volunteered for Monday nights (it was Monday nights wasn't it girls?) and waited to see who would sign our list.

When it was all said and done, our little group of 5 was set to meet in my living room floor the next Monday night, to form a prayer group. I don't remember much about that first meeting accept feeling this huge burden of being one of the "leaders" and not having the foggiest idea what you were actually supposed to do in a prayer group. I think I probably read a verse out of the Bible, since it has quite a bit to say about prayer and other such things. And then I think we just shared prayer requests and prayed.

When everyone showed up for prayer group the next week, I felt like I'd done something right, so we went with it. Every week we got together, shared prayer requests, and prayed. And girls, we prayed for everything. Nothing was too big or too small or too inconsequential. Through our years in college we prayed for classes, tests, relationships, new marriages, guidance, wisdom, peace, social dates, siblings, friends ... all the while learning about each other and what it means to be brought together in Christ. Really, in the beginning we didn't have much in common except club and Jesus. And it didn't take me long to realize that I'd done nothing to make this little group come together, but God had his hand in it the entire time.

Oddly enough there are very few times that our weekly meetings included food. It has caused us to be concerned that the church of Christ might not acknowledge our little prayer group. Because we all know that when you get together in the name of Jesus, outside of the appointed times, there must be a potluck involved.

Towards the end of our senior year, we decided that we spent quite a bit of time praying for one of my roommates and a mutual friend of the rest of the group. So we invited her to join our little group, even though she was (gasp!) from another club. She serves as a cherished member of our little circle and also to remind us that Jesus even loves the people in all those other clubs.

A few days before graduation, we decided to take our first "Prayer Group Retreat". I think the name was sort of meant to mock all of the organizations at our university that went on retreats. I mean if you were a part of any organized activity, and could find an adult to pose as a sponsor and claim the group legitimate, that group took a retreat. Understandably groups like the band, student senate, and dorm RA's took trips in the name of teamwork. But we all agreed it was going a bit far when we heard of groups like "All Those Who Walk to the Cafeteria at 12:15" and "Everyone Who Claims the Bench by the Fountain as Their Favorite" were going on retreats. So, Prayer Group Retreat, or PGR, was named.

And, the rest, as they say, is history. We've been spending the weekend together every year since then. And yes, we do pray, quite a bit, actually. And because we meet for an entire weekend there is also food involved. So much food that I think we have made up for all of the foodless meetings in the beginning. Along the way, we've picked up another member that we all knew from school, and she has added so much to our circle of friends.

Every year is such a treasure to me. Through our bond in Jesus, and our passion for prayer, we have been able to witness supernatural comfort, peace that passes understanding, unfathomable forgiveness, and holy restoration. The darkest times in life are made bareable, and the cherished moments are so much more joyous when shared with Prayer Group. These next 4 days cannot pass quickly enough.

PGR

Well, it's time to update on my awesome weekend. We met my college prayer group for a weekend of food, fun, and fellowship. We also prayed. A lot. I have spent the last couple of days reliving some of the best moments and trying to find the words to describe the blessing I find in these women (and their spouses, when they choose to crash our reunion).

We just celebrated our 10th PGR (prayer group retreat)! Our first one happened a few days before our college graduation and we've spent the weekend together every year since then. These women have prayed me through the darkest days of my life and have praised me through the happiest! I am constantly thanking God for giving me such a blessing as these 6 women.

I usually go alone. I leave Honey and the kids behind and this gives me a weekend all to myself. This year, Honey wanted to come along, so we packed up the kids and made the 5 hour trip. As we were getting ready to leave, I prepared myself for a sort of downer weekend. I was anticipating some kid responsibilities (Honey was great though and I didn't have to do much). But more than that, none of us has had that great of a year. Between PGRs life happens, and this year had not been a very joyous one. I didn't really feel like I had much in me to encourage these girls, and I knew they had been through so much that they, very likely, felt the same.

I was so very wrong! This was probably the best weekend we've had together. I think the reason it was so great was that we skipped the details. For the most part, we skipped the "this happened on this day and it was awful, and he's a jerk, and she's just plain mean, and it was just horrible." We didn't really try to relive our whole entire year in detail just so we could get some sympathy from the girls. Instead, we focused on the now. Where we are now, how God has worked in our hearts to get us there, and the lessons He's taught us along the way. It is so much more powerful to hear the details of the transformation God is accomplishing through the struggles than to hear the details about the struggles themselves! I left feeling encouraged that God is still in control. He is still working in the lives of those who love him. He is faithful!

I still remember, very vividly, the morning about 12 years ago when I stood in front of the sign up board analyzing the prayer groups that were forming and the times they were meeting. As I read the names of the girls who had signed the same list as me, I never dreamed in a million years the beautiful blessing God was showering on me. Thank you God for your perfect timing. You know me better than I know myself. How wonderful it is to place my heart in your hands and allow you to provide for my every need.

Prayer Group

I have a group of friends that are very dear to me. We have known each other since college and grew close as we prayed together every week. Now that we are out of college we still pray for one another, usually sharing our requests via e-mail. We see each other at least once a year and catch up, shop, eat delicious food, and most importantly pray. There are seven of us. We all have things in common, but each of us has a very distinct life with its own joys and sorrows. It has truly been a blessing to share in each of these girl's lives. The encouragement I have been able to give and receive from this group and the power of the prayers that have been offered by this group are indescribable.

Because we all live such diverse lives, spread across the country, and knowing that life is not always a bowl of cherries, you can imagine that at any given moment there are some, even in my small group of 7, who are experiencing intense joy, while at the same time, there are others who are living in deep grief. In all my life, I don't think I will ever completely understand why we all can't live in intense joy all the time. But if it can't be so, I am glad for my own seasons of grief so I will know how to be a better friend. All I know is that for these 7 girls who are so precious to me, my own feelings are torn. I am not sure how to express my deep saddness and great joy all at the same time. I love all of you and I'm continually praying for each of you as you live your life.

If you don't have someone praying for you. Ask someone how you can pray for them. They will probably return the favor.