Girls, I've got a treat for you this time. Guys, don't take off; I'll catch you on the bottom side of the post...
Lots of you are familiar with Beth Moore. If you're not, your missing a chance to know your best girlfriend. Beth is a gifted speaker and writer who is known for her ability to get to the heart of the Scriptures and tell you in plain, every day language just exactly what it means to you. And she does it in a "Girl, I gotta-tell-ya-because-I-love-ya" kind of way. She's also known for her in-depth Bible studies and video seminars that are practical for both women and men.
The video seminar I just got though, beats all. It is called Loving Well, and is different from anything Beth has done so far. It is geared toward a weekend ladies retreat rather than her usual in-depth, time-committed studies. It's called a "Retreat in a Box", sort of like those bed-in-a-bag things you see at JC Penny. The kit comes with everything you need to have a spiritually-geared girls weekend. It's complete with a leader's guide, all the videos, a bunch of ice breakers and games, some promotion posters with 48 invitation postcards and best of all....a cute little tote bag in the lime green motif to carry it all!
When I opened the box, of course I immediately grabbed out the tote and loaded all the stuff in it. I had to just admire the cuteness of it for a while before I broke open the actual goods. The leader's guide is a concise little "how-to" manual that takes you through a suggested schedule and tells you what helpers you might need to put a weekend together. You can easily follow the directions even if you've never organized so much as a birthday party. There is a journal that goes along with the study that the participants use for about six weeks after the seminar to follow up on the topic of the retreat. She also includes a CD-Rom with all sorts of print resources and advertising material. To help you get the word out, there is a short promotion video on the DVD that you can show to get all your girls begging to be invited. The entire package retails for $99 and that's a bargain if you've ever shopped around for video seminars. You can get it here, and I suggest that you dash over before all the smart girls deplete the inventory.Now, I did the videos in a the second suggested format. I used the DVDs in my Sunday School class and since the videos range from 37 to 50 minutes, they fit perfectly in our alloted time slot. There are four sessions, so we covered them nicely in a month. The topic was so popular that we had women come from other Sunday School classes for the four-week session and I have three other leaders begging to be the next one to borrow the DVDs for their own studies. If you use the weekend format, you'll watch one video on Friday night and the three remaining ones throughout the morning and afternoon on Saturday.
The best part of the entire package is definitely the topic of the seminar. It's called Loving Well, based on I John, Chapter 4. The premise is that you can't properly love others until you've been loved well by God first. Beth hits home the point that as Christians, we are called to especially love those who are difficult to love, and that God wants to provide the key to doing just that. The topic is rich and effective and would be great for men and women both other than the fact that she is specifically talking to "us girls" and you guys might get a little tired of hearing us all giggle over "girl stuff."
So here's where you come in, Guys....take the kids to Grandma's for the weekend, hire Merry Maids to spiff up your house (I'm sure it doesn't even need spiffed) and instruct your ladies to invite a dozen friends over for a little weekend getaway at your place. They'll thank you for it because they'll be able to start
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