Several years ago a few of my close friends decided we would meet in Colorado for a girl’s weekend. The Fall leaves lit the mountains with brilliant colors. The four of us met for time to relax, refresh and revive. We laughed together, cried together, prayed together, looked at scripture together and did some fun activities together. It was an amazing weekend and each of us left refreshed.
We felt such comradery that weekend. Though each of us have busy schedules, we know we can count on each other to be there to support, encourage, and pray.
Soon after that weekend, the pandemic hit.
Churches shut down, schools shut down, and for many isolation and loneliness became the norm. All of us thought it would be over in a few short weeks. Boy were we wrong! What a wonky time in our history! Right?!
However, for me it gave me time to think, pray and dream.
During that time, I wondered if events would ever come back. Would I ever speak from a platform again, or was God doing something new? That’s when an idea came to me.
What if, girlfriends began to gather with their close friends to grow closer to the Lord?
I realized that some women were tired of big stadium events or huge gatherings. They were hungry for deeper connections with friends they could trust. They were longing to “get real” and be able to share their hearts authentically. But, they needed to feel safe.
All of those thoughts led me to start chatting with some girl friends of mine and asking them what they needed. Many said they needed deeper connections and more joy in their lives. Some said, they needed a safe group of friends whom they could trust to not judge nor to break their confidence. Some said, they were exhausted from life and were looking for friends, they could laugh with about all the crazy chaos going on around them. Out of these conversations came the vision for the Girlfriend Gathering series.
Each Girlfriend Gathering book will be short with four sessions that can be done on a weekend or as a four week small group. Each book includes suggested girlfriend activities and four 10 minute videos.
Recently, we filmed the four 10 minute videos for the first in the series called, Rooted Joy. If you peeked behind the scenes of that film shooting you would see friends laughing hysterically, friends sharing deep concerns about their kids in between the filming and friends simply enjoying one another. After the filming, the text message thread, read, “We have to do this again!’
Life is too short and crazy to go it alone.
We need close friends. I hope to inspire women to gather their friends and put the intentional time into their friendships. My prayer is that they will grow together and discover the joy of being deeply rooted in Christ and deeply bonded to each other.
Fascinating Friday Feature
Becky Harling
Authentic. Passionate. Funny. Biblical. All describe Becky Harling. A best-selling author, Becky is a popular speaker at conferences, retreats and other events. She has been a guest on many radio and T.V. shows and holds a degree in Biblical Literature and is a Certified Leadership and Communications Coach with the John Maxwell Team. Her life experience as a Pastor’s wife, Missionary, Women’s Ministries Director, survivor of breast cancer and childhood sexual abuse, all bring depth and realism to her message.
Becky is the author of How to Listen So People Will Talk as well as How To Listen So Your Kids Will Talk as well as other titles. Her newest Bible studies include, Our Father and Rooted Joy which is the first in the Girlfriend Gathering Series. Becky loves hiking with her husband, drinking strong coffee, hanging out with friends and family and playing with her grandkids!
You can connect with Becky on Instagram @beckyharling
Twitter @beckyharling
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/beckyharlingministries/
