Retreat and Devotion

Today was another day of retreating. I started my day with a classic massage. Next time I want to try the massage with the hot rocks. I hear it does wonders.

At 10 AM I spent two hours of an excellent devotion given by my church member Kim. The theme was "You Don't Know My Name". I think everyone got teary-eyed as Kim and the other ladies expressed how calling on God by His different names has helped them through difficult times in their lives. This devotion reminded me that God serves us in so many ways and that He is everything that we need, although it's hard to realize that sometimes with all that we have going on in our lives. In order to remind us Kim gave us an exercise. She gave us a sheet of paper with all the translations of God's name and a smooth rock. She asked us to think for a couple of minutes and write the translations of God's name that applies most to us. There were more than ten to choose from, but after thinking for a bit, I wrote on my rock El Shaddai and Jehovah-jireh. El Shaddai reminds me that God is sufficient for whatever is needed. Jehovah-jireh means that God will provide. I plan to keep the rock by my bedside and use it when I reflect from day to day. Very powerful.

The Ladies Participate in the Group Excercise

Well, after that emotional two hours, most of the ladies headed to the Zona Rosa Mall. It was time to eat, so a bunch of us headed to Mimi's Cafe. Great food. The highlight was their huge homemade muffins. If it's your first time at the cafe, they send you home with four of their signature muffins. How nice. The best is the carrot-raisin-nut. After lunch, I was there long enough to grab a decent swimsuit (yeah!!), get a cup of Cold Stone and head back to the bus. It was super-hot, so we did not want to stay out there long. After a nap, I went to the hot tub to soak. It was a full day.

Ahhh...relaxation!!

I've taken off a couple of days of work to take part in a ladies church retreat. We left the Ferguson Heights Church of Christ this morning at 9 AM and arrived in Excelsior Springs, Missouri around 2 pm. We were supposed to get here at 1 PM, but the bus driver's GPS threatened to take us down a closed road and into a river, so he had to do some re-routing, needless to say. Then, later in the day, the group decided that we needed to head to Super Wal-Mart to pick up some necessities-chips, chocolate, gum, water, swimsuits, etc. It must have taken us an hour to get there. Apparently, the driver was not too sure of where he was going. When he stopped to ask the locals, it became apparent that they were not sure either. Well, I think they knew, but "it's just down the road" means different things to different people. Anyway, we got our snacks and such and headed back to The Elms our hotel.

The lobby at The Elms, Excelsior Springs, MO

I never did find that swimsuit, but there's always the mall. By the time we finished our "outing"we were famished. Dinner at the hotel was great. We ate at Adega, which has a prime rib, seafood and pasta buffet on Fridays. Very tasty, especially the made-to-order pasta. Now, I've retired to the room for some much-needed rest. Tomorrow has in store a 9 Am massage, our devotional, a trip to the mall (another fun-filled bus adventure), and other activities which I hope will include water. Hope I find that swimsuit.