Living Free Retreat with Crossroads Christian Church

The weekend of April 12-13 I had the humbling honor of speaking at the Living Free Retreat for the women of Crossroads Christian Church in Grand Prairie, TX. These ladies know how to worship the Lord!

Held at the Sky Ranch Retreat Center in Van, Texas, this retreat offered the women a superb opportunity to "get back to nature" with the full comforts of air conditioning, great meals, state of the art facilities, and a lovely prayer garden.

In fact, they utilized the prayer garden Friday night as a way to prepare their hearts for the good things the Lord would do.

The lovely prayer garden at Sky Ranch. Honestly,
this photo doesn't do it justice! We used it in the evening and the fire pit
in the middle was ablaze. Plus there's a little outdoor chapel "room" just
beyond this photo's reach where there are kneeling benches and
a soothing waterfall. Glorious! The women really "did business" Friday
night in this tranquil setting.

Another highlight of this particular retreat was the praise team that set the tone for worship in the house. They brought it! They brought the moves, the songs, the voices, and the praise. Most importantly, these four women displayed such humility and such sweet spirits. Surely the Lord of heaven smiled as they brought us before Him!

The Worship Team - Wendy, Natasha, Fatima, and Chelsie: lovely ladies
with the sweetest spirits!

LOVE these gals! Wish I could take them on the road with me!

I presented just the first two sessions of the Satisfied...at Last! Conference at this retreat, but God didn't discount His blessing! Maybe the less I say, the more He speaks. I could certainly agree to that. At any rate, He spoke. And this was a responsive group of women...flooding the front of the auditorium during the "altar call," asking for prayer and accountability as God dealt with them about the dry, broken cisterns they had fallen into.

I had the amazing privilege of counseling a special woman named Stephanie who came forward seeking a way out of her pit. When I shared with her that only Jesus could reach down and pull her out, she made the life-changing decision to grab hold of that gracious, nail scarred hand. Following the pattern set by the friend who had accompanied her down the aisle, Stephanie asked Jesus to take over her life, yielding to His gift of salvation and His lordship. Hallelujah! Angels rejoiced in heaven that day and I haven't stopped grinning yet!

Of course, as usual, so much of this retreat hinged on the physical and spiritual preparation laid by the leadership. I have enjoyed "mingling" with women's ministry director Phyllis Montoya through the worldwide web for over a year now, but I couldn't have imagined what a special woman she would be in person. This is a servant who cares deeply for the spiritual needs of the women of her church. Serving in a church that averages over 5,000 in their Sunday morning worship services, Phyllis has no small job. She counsels dozens of women each week at Crossroads Christian Church, and God is using her mightily to help women untangle the strands of their knotted lives so they can, indeed, live free!

Kim, me, Phyllis, and Lauri
These women were such a joy to work with!
Two more sisters in Christ I'll recognize when I "get there"!

I loved working alongside Phyllis and her assistant Lauri Miller. Like Phyllis, Lauri knows the value of praying for God's anointing and blessing on such an event. It was her idea to have a prayer walk on Friday evening as the retreat kicked off, and God blessed by surprising her with the lovely prayer garden just outside the doors of the auditorium. What a mighty God we have!

Thank you, ladies of Crossroads Christian Church, for the opportunity to open God's Word and teach you what I've learned. It is my prayer that God's Word not return void in your lives, but that He accomplishes all He set out to do in your lives through that special weekend. May it continue to produce lovely dividends in your lives as you "live the lesson!"

The "annual group picture" of the Living Free Retreat, Crossroads Christian Church, Grand Prairie, TX
Aren't they just beautiful?!