2010 Young Women’s Retreat in Lake Geneva, WI “Living the Chocolate Life.” We truly “Lived the Chocolate Life” in Lake Geneva February 5 and 6 as we were sweetened with God’s word and indulged in fellowship with LWML sisters and guests. Friday evening the retreat’s Senior Counselor, Pastor David Totsky, discussed how some people just “gotta have chocolate!” Just as white chocolate isn’t quite chocolate some people claim to be Christians but don’t truly act as a Christian in all aspects of their life. Ever been tricked into eating baking chocolate? Your taste buds probably went through a period of suffering as you tried to remove the taste. Pastor Totsky reminded us that Christians will also go through various sufferings.
Our keynote speaker, Deb Burma of St. Paul Lutheran in Janesville, reminded the ladies how to “Live the Chocolate Life”. We should Savor the Rich Indulgence of Christ, Share it, Find Satisfaction in Him, Delight in His Promises, From Scratch (No Substitutions!), We Remain Sweet in Bitter Circumstances, and Use His Abundant Gifts. We concluded our large group time together with a performance by Living Prayer, the talented trio of Amanda Busse, Kris Hebel and Lori Helgren from Bethlehem in Sun Prairie.
After the lovely performance some of the ladies grabbed a cup of hot chocolate, bundled up and headed outside for a campfire topped with a devotion. The campfire’s devotion was read from “Better than Chocolate Chip Cookies& Milk”, a devotional book written by Deb Burma’s WWW: Women Walking in the Word group. This devotion discussed the three things necessary for a campfire and a Christian’s life: “fuel” or God’s Word, “oxygen” or God’s continued presence in our lives; and “heat” or the spark of faith. Some of the avid readers joined the book discussion on The Note by Angela Hunt. As the women discussed the book’s message of forgiveness they were reminded how we must forgive as our Father in Heaven forgives us and how some people are unwilling to accept God’s forgiveness and free gift of salvation.
Bright and early Saturday morning, the women gathered for a lovely breakfast buffet and more fellowship with new friends in Christ. After song time with Living Prayer, Pastor Totsky opened Saturday’s retreat with a devotion. We broke into two groups to attend one of the two breakout speakers’ sessions.
Elizabeth Kestner, discussed “My Journey, God’s Roads”. Elizabeth, a deaconess at Sherman Park Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, shared how she never used to imagine herself as a missionary and then one day found God calling her to work in Guatemala. Her time in Guatemala was no easy time either. She struggled with illness, discomfort and most often the question “God, what do you want me to do?” We were reminded that sometimes God calls us to do things that are not comfortable or easy, but are necessary for His will in our lives.
Deb Burma discussed “Holding Hands”. Deb shared how we all “hold the hands of others” with the sharing of our faith and encouragement of others in our lives. Whether we are a mother holding the hand of our child, a child holding the hand of a parent, or a friend holding the hand of another, we can talk about God with all of those we encounter.
So many “sweet” indulgences were enjoyed at the 2010 Young Women’s Retreat. From chocolate on every table to a video about Fair Trade products sold through Lutheran World Relief to aid countries in need which included the Divine Chocolate we sampled. God truly blesses us with sweet encounters in our lives. However, the reality is we encounter much bitterness as well. This retreat left me savoring the reminder of both the sweet and bitter moments that God has blessed me with in my life. May He always remind each of you of the same as you “Live the Chocolate Life.”
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For the icebreaker, the women had to pick a candy bar from a bag and then find someone in the room with the same one and discuss LWML. These two ladies had a Snickers Bar in common. |
| The committee presents our Chairman, Paula Duvenek, with flowers and a gift for all of her hard work and dedication for this retreat! |
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Friday night the YWR Co-Chair, Marie Adams, reads the devotion “How to Build a Campfire” as others sip their hot chocolate. |
| Committee and speakers from left to right Kim Terry (Secretary), Paula Duvenek (Chairman), Pastor Totsky (Retreat Counselor), Marie Adams (Co-Chair), Cindy Gill (Treaurer), Florence Harms (Vice Pres. Gospel Outreach/Christian Life), Deb Burma (Keynote Speaker), Sue Gebel (Lutheran Association of Missionaries & Pilots), Karen Faber (Registrar), Robin Larkin (Publicity), and Elizabeth Kestner (Breakout Session Speaker). |
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