Workshops - January 2016

Burnout - Gerry Wakeland

10/22/2015

Burnout literally means, “the cessation of operation of a jet engine-” a pretty accurate description of how people experiencing burnout can feel. But it can also mean “physical or mental collapse caused by overwork or stress.” I see burnout as a ploy of the Enemy to distract us from God’s Kingdom work. It’s a lot like allowing your car to run out of gas.

Do these descriptions hit home for you? My knowledge of the signs and preventative measures did not keep me from falling into the trap like thousands of other people. Here are a few of the things I learned about burnout and how to overcome it. In this workshop you will learn how to:

Turn to the Lord. Get close. Crawl into His lap, lay your head on His shoulder and listen to what He says.
Take a step back so you can see clearly and understand what’s happening.
Be courageous. Ask the hard questions and deal with the hard answers.
Give yourself permission to rest and then do it. REST!
Let others help. You do not have to carry the burden alone.
Set boundaries, create margin and establish balance

Beat burnout and burn brightly once more!

Church Hurts - Cris Paulson

10/22/2015

“All I’ve ever done is seek You God—why are You hiding Yourself?”
“God, where is the love in Your church?”
“Do You see me as a person or just a worker?”

These were the screams in my head. As a pastor’s wife, I worked to earn love from God, my husband and 100 adults. I was the perfect servant/ homeschooling mom/ Sunday School teacher/ prayer partner until I couldn’t function anymore; I was killing myself to please a God who never seemed pleased. I heard self-righteousness, guilt, pleas for money and sacrifice at church but did not meet the God of love I knew about.

Perform for approval? Got it. Grace? No clue.

I left my husband of 24 years and was fired from all my ministries. Only after my divorce did I experience God’s still, small voice speak kind, soft words in my ear. God was infinitely patient and gentle with my shattered heart and answered my tiny, faithless prayer requests. My life has been transformed over the last 10 years, based on His tender care. I hope to introduce you to the God of love in this workshop.

Sinful Saints
Secrets of a Pastor’s Wife
Saving Your Soul
Sharing Your Passion

The church hasn’t changed much, but I have! I can be the woman God made me to be now, and use all my talents to praise and honor Him. Forgiveness brings freedom, God gives grace; you can have abundant life and live in joy.

Victory Over Strongholds - Jennifer Smith

10/14/2015

Do you struggle with an addiction or have been told you have an addictive personality?
Have you tried countless times to stop but haven’t found lasting victory?
Do you long to find true joy, peace and freedom?

Jesus wants His children to be free, satisfied, living abundantly in the purpose they were created for. Yet many of us still live trapped in strongholds, not fully experiencing what is rightfully ours. Whether you have struggled with drugs, alcohol, food, gambling, pornography, shopping or any other controlling, destructive habit, this workshop is for you. Freedom is not found in a program, behavior modification or even your own will power—real freedom comes from what Christ has already done for us. The Bible says we have God’s power to conquer the “sin that so easily entangles us.” In this workshop we will focus on:

Our identity and authority in Christ
The sufficiency of Christ to overcome sin
Spiritual warfare
Our faith and response to God’s grace

Through JESUS you already have the victory.

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:36)

Standing For Marriage - Amy Meyer Allen

10/14/2015

Have you been toying with the “D” word (divorce)?  Do you fantasize about being married to someone else? Or do you wish you had never said, “I do”?

In this workshop, we will be REAL about struggles in marriage. Throughout 23 years of marriage I've lived through lying, anger, fear, non-confrontation, infidelity and pornography. I've prayed that my husband would die, so I could be free from what felt like a prison sentence instead of wedded bliss. I get it. I've lived there.

BUT GOD…..

When my husband and I were just a pen stroke away from divorce, God captured both of our hearts. He redeemed a terrible marriage and turned it into a treasure.
In this workshop I will teach you: 

to make Jesus the foundation of marriage. 
to see both yourself and your spouse from God's perspective. 
to pray earnestly, forgive, and stop building walls. 
to see how sex can keep both temptation and the enemy away. 
to be REAL with God and others.

Over the years God gave me these tools that have helped our marriage to not just survive, but THRIVE!

Let's Get REAL – Amy Meyer Allen

10/6/2015

Have you ever wanted to tell a secret or admit a sin but were afraid no one would accept you if they knew the REAL you? Are you afraid to tell God for fear He won’t love you or want a relationship with you anymore?

Pain, sin, betrayal, and hurt are inevitable in this broken world. But they shouldn't keep us imprisoned. We can’t have intimacy with God and people until we break down the walls around our heart. We want to protect ourselves from pain, but the deep relationships we desire elude us.

In this workshop, we will explore how Jesus was willing to be vulnerable and REAL with those around Him, despite their betrayal, lack of trust and contempt. Using the Bible as our foundation we will learn:

to be REAL with God
to be REAL with others
keeping things hidden inside can make us sick
being REAL gives others courage to be REAL as well

Learn tools to help you live life in the open – vulnerable and strong, humble and REAL.

Walk Away from Abuse - Cris Paulson

10/6/2015

Do you wonder if you are being abused? Do you know someone who is? This workshop offers tools to unmask these bad relationships and escape the traps that have been laid.

Abuse wrecks relationships and people. Fear grows, life shrinks. The heart issue of abuse is a misuse of power. The one being abused is usually blind to how bad the abuse really is. Lies and blame-shifting, guilt and shame are powerful weapons of control. In this workshop, you will learn:

How to Define Abuse
10 warning flags–Am I being abused?
6 kinds of abuse—what do they all have in common?
Can I stop or change an abusive relationship?
How to help someone who is being abused.

There IS hope, even in cases of abuse. Jesus Christ came to redeem your life out of darkness and free you from the prison cell. Let Him help you.

Creative Quiet Time - Karen Warin

10/5/2015

What if there was a way to go deeper in your time alone with God? Sometimes our quiet time grows stale. You read the Bible or a devotional and pray, but it seems boring. What if you could hear God’s voice and experience Him with all your senses? You can—just Come to the Banquet!

In this workshop, you will discover how to see God everywhere around you. We will use:

pictures and images
music
hands-on activities
creative expression
journaling

God is always speaking, just waiting to be heard. As you learn to be still and listen better, you can deepen your relationship with Him. When you share what you learn with others too, you can broaden your experience of God’s love!

Uprooting Anger - Susan Swafford

10/5/2015

Have you ever allowed anger to grow in the soil of your heart?
Buried so deeply beneath layers of circumstances that you didn’t know how to dig it out?
Has anger spread so far over your heart that you’ve forgotten who you are?

In this workshop, we will discover that our identity is not in our anger or in our circumstances; it is in Christ. Satan uses our painful life experiences to destroy us, but God uses those circumstances as a path to deepen a REAL relationship with Him.

We will learn:

How to break free the captive soul by the power of prayer and simple obedience.
How Jesus transforms us through renewing our minds.
How to change through a simple daily exercise.

In the near future, we can be set free from old slavery to bitterness and unforgiveness. Anger seeds that were buried deep will die, and the goodness of God will grow instead.

Just As You Are - Jennifer Smith

10/5/2015

Have the ideas of a performance-driven world seeped into your relationship with God?
Do you try to please God and earn His approval by your performance?
Do you consider some days a success and some a failure?

Get off the roller coaster of working harder—rest in the finished work of the cross. In Just As You Are, we will explore God's grace - His generous riches, unmerited favor and unconditional love. These gifts don't stop at salvation but empower us for victory in the Christian walk. Whether you feel discouraged and weak from a besetting sin, a weight that hinders you, or weary in waiting on God, His Grace is your answer. We will look to Scripture to understand and apply the role of Grace in:

Healing & Restoration
Waiting on the Lord’s timing
Taking small steps of obedience or bold steps of faith
Standing in His righteousness, not your own

Come just as you are… and be all you were created to be!

Dealing With Depression – Sara Ghormley

10/5/2015

Are you one of the millions of people that struggle with depression? Or have you received a clinical diagnosis? Even though you are a believer, do you fight to find joy in life? I was trapped in the pit of depression for many years, but God led me out of the darkness. I believe He can do the same for you.

Depression is fueled by lies, like chains that keep us in the dark pit of despair. This workshop will help you discover Truths to break the chains that have kept you down so long. We will expose different lies we believed down in the pit:

God doesn't care about me.
I am too damaged to experience real joy.
Down deep I am really worthless.
My life will never change.

The Bible tells us to "Be transformed by renewing your mind..." (Romans 12:2). When you change how you think about God, yourself, and others, you will discover how to reclaim the Peace and Joy that is your birthright as a believer. Then you can rest in His love.