LIVE From Ft. Worth: A Rescue Effort in Chile . . . and in Ft. Worth

I’m writing this post while the Gettys are doing their sound check. It’s like a personal concert!

I want to give you several pre-conference snapshots from today. First, though, a style update . . .

Style Update

I LOVE Kristyn Getty’s long, flowing dresses. If I could, this is how I would dress every day. I asked her if there was one store where she buys most of them, but she finds them all over. She told me they’re called “maxi dresses,” which I never knew.

I also have to let you know that Nancy Leigh DeMoss looked so cute today in her denim jacket and brown cowboy boots. “Only in Texas,” she says.

Health Update
There’s a lot of sickness going around. Kristyn Getty is experiencing sickness due to her pregnancy. Kay Arthur is quite sick, and she’s scheduled to speak first thing tomorrow morning and later in the day at a breakout session. A couple of other breakout session speakers, Holly Elliff and Susan Henson, also have health issues. And I’m probably unaware of others. Would you pray for them?

A Rescue Effort in Chile . . . and in Ft. Worth

I slipped into the speaker’s meeting this afternoon, where Nancy filled the other speakers in on some of the women who will be attending. Women like the one from San Antonio who raised funds so that 25 Spanish-speaking maids who work in her friends’ homes could attend with her.

Before the speakers prayed together, Nancy talked about the similarities between the Chilean mine rescue effort and the rescue God has planned for this weekend. She likened the darkness these miners were trapped in to the bondage and darkness women are in, and then talked about the incredible planning and effort that went into each rescue. There was nothing quick about it; each rescue was very personal and individual.

In spite of the fact that there are billions of people on this planet, the world watched and cared deeply for number 16 . . . for number 33. She likened this to Christ’s heart for each individual. His work is that personal, and also involves a team. It’s labor-intensive and exhausting. She encouraged the speakers to persevere in spite of weariness (2 Samuel 23:9-10) as God pulls many women out of darkness and bondage this weekend.

A Call to Return to Scripture 
Our women’s ministry director’s leadership pre-session was totally sold out. I popped my head in the room for awhile and caught a bit of Susan Hunt’s message.

Susan has done a lot of historical research, and found that “true womanhood” (where women’s lives are consistent with God’s Word) was just “a given” in the mid-nineteenth century. Women intuitively knew what it meant to be a true woman. Not so today. 

By the beginning of the 20th century, there was a theological shift from objective truth to subjective sentimentalism, and with that, true womanhood collapsed. Culturally, it was lost for an entire century.
The question is, Susan said, will we recapture the concept and pass it on?

Please don’t misunderstand—this is not a call to return to the 19th century; this is a call to return to Scripture. A “true woman’s” authority is God’s Word rather than herself.  A “true woman’s” purpose is to bring glory to God rather than exalting herself.

I appreciated Mrs. Hunt’s caution that we must not see true womanhood as a list of behaviors, but as part of the redemption story that begins in Genesis and unfolds throughout Scripture. She unpacked this from Genesis 2 and 3—I wish you could’ve heard it all!

A Behind-the-scenes Video from the Revive Our Hearts’ Staff