Have you ever had a day that you wished you could capture in a bottle?  A bottle that  would end up being so full that even if you poured some out for others to enjoy, it would never be empty?  I had one of those days yesterday.

We had a “spa day” for single and military moms.  And not just moms from our church, but moms from the community. My friend, Teresa, was in charge of this event.  And she did a fabulous job!  It was fun to work alongside her and we both witnessed miracle after miracle of God’s provision for the day.

We took all the chairs out of the sanctuary, and then went to town decorating it to make it feel like a spa –  big comfy chairs, candles, plants, soft lighting, light instrumental background music, draped fabrics, etc, etc.  The transformation was crazy!  And now it truly WAS a sanctuary!

As the women came in they were greeted with a basket of cozy footie socks, and shoes were removed to begin the feeling of relaxation.  Their children were taken downstairs for fun and games while mom had her day.  Each were given a neck cozy that we would put in the microwave for them to heat up and wear while they were relaxing.

Entering the “spa”, they had many choices, as we had three massage therapists, two facial massage therapists, two manicurists, a pedicurist, paraffin wax treatments, four hairstylists, a makeup artist.  They were served a choice of coffee, tea, lemonade or fruit infused water, along with various choices of chocolate.  The comfy chairs were put in groups of two and three so that they could also sit and talk with each other, encourage and get to know each other.  They absolutely ate it up!

When they day was over, they would go home with a fully prepared meal for their family, a goodie bag and prizes from local vendors offering free services or goods.

I had the opportunity to sit with several women one on one.  Each with a different, but similar story of pain and struggle. None of them from our church.  Each responding to a listening ear and a safe environment.  And it was incredible!!!!  The hours flew by and no one wanted to leave at the end. And I honestly don’t know who was more blessed by the day – the women serving, or the women being served.  It was beautiful.  In so many ways.  And many of those women will now be coming to our “Church in the Park” service that we are having today at the local park, followed by a BBQ.  God is so good…

But I have to tell you about one crazy thing that happened yesterday morning when we were in the middle of all the setup.  I was running around decorating and, for reasons I can’t even remember, I went out into the lobby.  I saw a woman standing there, and since I am still the new girl, I assumed she was there to help with the event.  I introduced myself.  And then she asked if she could ask me a question…

Turns out, she was just walking in off the street because she saw cars in the parking lot.  She wanted to know about our women’s ministry and possible bible study.  I set her up with a catalog of our small groups and then told her what we doing that very day.  And guess what?  She is a recently separated mom.  So I invited her on the spot.  She had a wonderful time and is bringing her kids and another single mom friend to church today.  Isn’t God so good????

Here are a few pictures of our amazing day….

massages....

....and more massage...

sweet conversation...

paraffin treatments...

pedicures...

manicures...

my friend Teresa, the brains behind the whole thing....

the neck "cozy"...

relaxing with a paraffin treatment...

haircuts...

....and more sweet conversation....

…and I got to hold babies!!!!