The Reason

The Vision The Method The Reason

 The Road of Life is Long 

My Reason

One too many times I stood changing the diaper of my child singing Amazing Grace to calm my nerves while he wiggled and screamed to be set free. I secretly prayed for something I didn’t have and wasn’t quiet sure I wanted…a connection with other moms.  

At the time, I didn’t know any other moms, except my mother who lived in California. We didn't attend church and any friends I had acquired at work I lost once I gave birth. Sure I went to play days at the community center and tried to make a connection but being afraid I was too different, too loud, too needy kept me from truly reaching out and making any relationships.  

It’s in those quiet nights when your sleeping baby lies in your arms after just being fed that you can stop for a moment and realize that you are truly blessed. Who can you tell at 2:00am…4:00am…6:00am…8:00am…10:00am when you are all alone? But God listens, even in the still of the night. 

“The Lord God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone'” Genesis 2:18

Since that moment in my life I have met and made relationships with some amazing mothers. Women I can talk with and realize that I’m not alone in this great big world of motherhood. Women who understand what it takes to make it through a day with out getting any housework done but still not having the time to sit down and eat. Women who hold their breath in fear, not judgment, as they are being told about someone's child falling out of a shopping cart. Women who cry with you after you’ve lost a child. These are the women I know.  The connections in life that God has always wanted us to have. 

I feel very blessed to be placed in a position to open doors for the moms of our communities to get connected with each other. I have doubted that I am the right person for the job. But God has reminded me that He can use anyone, for any reason, to do anything. So what can I say but “Here I am God, what’s next?”

-cl

Beyond Reasoning
answers to a few questions you may have

When will we be meetings? 

The first Tuesday of each month** starting in November we will have a centralized meeting as a group at the church as a group between 9AM-11AM. At these meetings we will have a aguest speaker sharing about heir life on the current topic for the month followed by small group talble discussions, plus a little food and fun.

 Then on the third week of the month moms will be able to connect in a more personal way by meeting with a HostMoms in a small group home-style meeting. Each of these groups will be meeting on various days and times in thier respective locations. 

The on-site groups will meet their HostMom at the church on the third Tuesday of each month** and share one of the designated preschool/nursery classrooms with their group and their children. The off-site groups will meet at a HostMoms home with their children on a day and time determined by the HostMom and/ or group. While at these meetings, the groups will take a little "mommie and me" time and then continue discussion on the monthly topic in a more relaxed conversational fashion allowing the group to get to know each other better followed by some fun.

**January we will be off setting the schedule by meeting the 2nd Tuesday of the month and 4th week of the month.

We do  encourage each small group to try to get together during the 2nd and 4th week of the month as well. However, we KNOW the business of a mom's life and understand that sometimes it's just not possible to fit another thing into your schedule. 

How many moms will be in each group?

Ideally each group will consist of six moms. As the word gets out, more moms may be integrated into the group until a split can be achieved. This is why it is good to have either an apprentice or a trainer in place to help with that possibility.

What do we do with the children in our groups?

Our focus group has come up with several different ways to manage the childcare situation to help your group with it's final decision. After you find out if and how many children their will be attending your meetings, these options can be discussed in further detail with your coach. However, during our centralized meetings childcare will be available with notification/ registration.

What exactly does a Coach do for the group

A coach is someone placed in a position to provide vision and direction for the HostMom leaders. They are there to help the leader and your group grow in the three key relationships, apply the leader essentials, and help in developing an apprentice or trainer for each group.  

What if our group doesn't want to participate in the community study?

Choosing your study is really up to you and your group. We will however have topic related speakers at our centralized group meeting for the study session from "Gaining and Being a Friend" during the first week of the month.  If your group wants to attend the centralized meeting and you feel that the change of subject won't disturb your study, enjoy the community visit and change of topic. However, please make sure you are registered within the MomsLife community prior to your attendence for childcare reasons.

As a HostMom, do I have to attend every monthly leaders meeting?

The monthly meetings are set up to benefit you as a leader and to keep you connected with the other HostMoms in this ministry. The purpose of these meetings will alternate between planning,training, and connection.

A core leadership has been put in place to make final minor decisions concerning this ministry. We would, however, appreciate and welcome your opinions during the planning meetings about major or minor changes within this ministry.  We will be having 1/4ly planning meetings to discuss how well groups are going, any changes that could be made and other planning events that may occur. There will be a tentative schedule of these meetings given to you at the begining of each year.

We will be having three training meeting this year called "Huddles" which are directed by Pastor Jeff Boxell. These meetings help to clearly define the vision of small groups at Abundant Life and help you to reflect authentic relationships within your group. We strongly suggest you make ever effort to attend each of them. The are typically held during Sunday morning or evening service so childcare is not a problem.

Our connection meetings will be a great time to really get to know the other HostMoms in the group. This will be a time when we get to go out and have some fun...call it a "girls night out". Whether we go bowling, go to the spa, have a nice dinner or just have coffee together, it will be a time to let down your hair (or pull it up depending on where we are going). This will be the time to just be you!

 

Any and all other questions please direct them to Crystal at momslife@juno.com.

The verses in this website were pulled from NIV and NewLiving Translation Bibles

Word of God Speak

 

We make group connections because…

Life change..... life change is equivelent to how we trust God. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths.

 

Proverbs 3:5-6

 

We cultivate relationships in our groups because…

"So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.  Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are My disciples."

John 13:34-35

We share in the responsibility because…

"Each one should use whatever gift he has recieved to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in it's various forms.”  

1 Peter 4:10

We develop trainer or apprentices to maximize our influence because…

"For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. "

Philippians 2:21-23

We want to provide care for each other because…

"Under his direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love."     

 Ephesians 4:16

We want to pursue balance in the three key relationships of Worshiping God, Serving within the church, and Sharing beyond the Church…

...because this will help keep our groups healthy. We can Love God by worshiping Him; we can Love People (others) by serving and sharing with them; and we can best Love Life in the company of others.

 

 

The Reason That Is

Life change is so relevant to society today. People come and go, loose jobs, grow up, loose love, have a change in faith. No matter what you believe or where you stand on the global front your life is bound to change one way or another. It's relevant.

I once attended a group that was held at Abundant Life Church that changed me. It was a group for preschool moms that met twice a month. I was asked to be part of the core leadership and was given the awesome responsibility of Publicity. I had never done anything like this before, but I took on the challenge. It changed me tremendously. God showed me through this group that I enjoyed writing, creating ANYTHING that had to do with forms, paper or the computer, and I enjoyed the company of other moms...other women.

It was an awesome experience for many of the moms in that community. Some of the moms had never attended church and this was their only connection to Jesus and to find out who He really is. Some moms came broken hearted and were loved by their table group during the meeting times. Some moms were lifted up and shown their own confidence through serving others for God. In many ways it was the ideal community for motherhood.

However...life changes. This program soon fell through the cracks due to lack of response to leadership. That ideal community connection became a burden and we lost that mother-to-mother relationship at Abundant Life. I've personally witnessed many accounts of mothers trying to get back that connection into their lives by reaching out the only way they knew how. Some have succeeded; some have failed, while others where given dreams of a new life change.

God speaks to us if we listen. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" Proverbs 3:5-6. This verse can be used in so many lights because it is relevant. If we stop looking back and look forward to what He has laid before us and trust Him, we may come to see that His plan for us all along was to just make the connection. My questions were "Why?" His answer was "Trust not on your own understanding."

So trusting in God, we venture forward in our new life adventure of MomsLife. The program is different but the heart is still the same. This program can reach so many lost, so many hurt, and so many struggling to find their way home to Jesus. All we need is open homes and hearts filled with God's love and we can make a difference. It is life change....It is relevant.

-cl

 

Your Reason
questions to consider
before becoming a HostMom

What is at least one reason why you would like to learn more about MomsLife?

 


What do you think are the greatest needs of the women you know?

 


What do you do to nurture your walk with God?