Dear Praying Friends,
Greetings in the name of the Lord. Thank you for your faithful prayers.
I have been co-facilitating "Developing a Discerning Heart" with my women's ministry leader, Lili, in her church for the last few weeks. She doesn't "need" me to help her as she has two women leaders who have been trained as facilitators and helped her co-facilitate their first group of lay women earlier this year. However, she wanted me to help out with her second group, partly because it includes one woman who is quite a "handful", but also because she wants to keep learning from me and how I facilitate. I was glad to be invited because I've never co-facilitated with Lili and wanted to see how she does also. Hers is the first church to take Discerning Heart to the next level--into the local church.
I have been blessed to see how Lili has matured in these past four years. I told her so the other day. The Lord has truly brought deep healing into her life and she has learned to apply the truths of Discerning Heart to her personal life and ministry. There are a number of pastors' wives who have deeply grasped these truths and Lili has done so in amazing ways. A couple of weeks ago one of their key couples got bent out of shape about some things and the wife (who happens to be one of Lili's co-facilitators) said some very hurtful things to Lili and then about Lili behind her back (though these got back to her ears). Four years ago Lili would have been devastated and threatening to leave the ministry and weeping "como una Maria Magdalena" (like a Mary Magdalene)--a phrase we have in Spanish. But the Lili of now, though deeply hurt by what happened, was not devastated, but was able to take her hurt to the Lord and move on with God's peace. Lili wisely told this woman that she would not be helping to co-facilitate this second group, but the woman asked if she could continue attending the sessions. The Lili-from-four-years-ago might have told her "no", but the Lili-of-today wanted her there in the sessions and is praying that the Lord will get through to her as she listens to the Biblical principles once again.
Please be in prayer for us as we finish off with this second group of women. The Lord has already been speaking to many of them. These last few lessons are the key to the whole course.
Your prayers are what make a difference in my life and in the lives of many women here on the Island. Thanks once again.
Love in Christ,
Gaileen