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"Sister Care Prep Meeting" Back to Sister Care Seminars
February 1-2, 2008
From Virginia Conference Mennonite Women Action Newsletter
By Beth Pease
Something awe-inspiring happened in Harrisonburg the first weekend of February, against the odds ninety Mennonite women met at the Holiday Inn to learn how to care for other women in their congregation and their community. A few degrees colder outside and the icy roads would have kept most of the women from coming from as far as North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Indiana. The idea of bringing Sister Care PREP to Harrisonburg started way back in August 2007 around a supper table. I had the privilege of watching the Lord’s Spirit inspire and work through many people to grow that idea into a weekend conference that can only be described as miraculous.
Friday evening started with Sharon Wenger, Sharon Arbaugh, and Linda Burkholder leading the group in praise and worship songs. Rhoda Keener, the Executive Director of Mennonite Women USA, had spent many hours preparing the Sister Care manual. She gave the group a definition of Sister Care and her vision for the weekend. She then led the group through the first session entitled “Calling our Giftedness.”
During the first exercise each person shared with her tablemates one thing that she had not gotten done before heading to the conference. Most of us had to narrow down the top ten things that we hadn’t gotten done. Rhoda then invited us to let go of all that “stuff” just for the weekend so that we could be a porous vessel that could soak in the sweet words of Lord and feel the empowerment from His Word. I heard the collective sigh of relief as we temporarily laid down our burdens. Aldine Musser and Rhoda helped us walked in the shoes of Leah, and we found that she experienced some of the same situations and feelings that we face today. We all finished up the evening with a new appreciation for Leah’s suffering and a new respect for the strength that allowed her to continue walking her life’s path.
Saturday morning, Jessica Axford joined the previous evening’s musicians to lead us in praise and worship songs. To introduce the session entitled “Attending, Being Present,” Beth Pease helped the group empathized with the story of paralytic that was lowered through the roof by his friends. Rhoda changed the story’s characters to females and we looked at the possible scenarios that could have preceded the Bible’s narrative. We then looked at ways that Jesus renewed and refreshed himself as He ministered to masses, and how we also need to follow Jesus’ leading in renewing and refreshing ourselves so that we can continue in our calling.
We began Saturday afternoon’s session on “Resource Sharing” with a game that got us out of our seats and our comfort zones. Rhoda showed us the distinct differences between Caring and Curing. Our job is caring and we must learn to leave the curing to the Lord. Rebecca Sommers, Board President for Mennonite Women USA, shared her walk through the disease of depression. We laughed with her as she related some of her coping mechanisms, and the reason she doesn’t like exercising, and we were touched by her vulnerability and willingness to share.
The final session of the day entitled “Encouraging, Carrying our Stories to Jesus” explored practical ways that we could seek out and minister to those in our congregations and communities that are hurting. Rhoda used the symbol of the paralytic’s stretcher to emphasize the passing on of Jesus’ love. Each church group then shared within their group how they could take the knowledge and teachings back to their home church.
The weekend was not without silliness and laughter. Rhoda and Barbara Borntrager wrote skits that were performed by Ann Frank, Aldine Musser, Barb Borntrager, Sharon Arbaugh, and myself. Each session was sprinkled with a game or activity that initially made us giggle, but then made the point of the session even more poignant.
We are very grateful to Rhoda Keener for her vision and her effort to present Sister Care. I will be very thankful if I the privilege of watching the Lord’s Spirit inspire and work through these women to grow this weekend’s conference into something else that can only be described as miraculous. |