A Beautiful Deep Weekend

     When I showed up at the Declare Conference (a Christian women's blogging conference in DFW) that Thursday, I knew God had wonderful things in store!

     First, I participated in Heather MacFadyen and Kat Lee's podcasting lab. (More on that soon!) It inspired and equipped me to launch a podcast, which I've been thinking about for awhile now.

     Last year at Declare, there were lots of breakout sessions to choose from. It was slightly overwhelming. This year was smaller and deeper. We all stayed in the same room for the sessions, which were relevant to everyone.

     These are the beautiful women who are the Declare speakers/organizers/team.

     One of my very favorite parts was the mastermind group time. Basically, we broke into small groups and discussed our blogs and gave each other feedback. My group's name is "The Purpose Planners." We also discussed dreams for the future and hope to keep in touch.

     By now you're probably thinking, "Madeline, come on. I don't want a step by step recap of your weekend."

(By the way, Kaitlyn Bouchillon is just as sweet in person as she is online! We had so much fun hanging out with her.)

     Don't worry. I'm getting to the point. These are little gems of refreshing truth for you to treasure.

• The only way forward was to go deeper with Him and what he started in my heart. ~Janelle Knox
• I believe social media can be used to spread the Gospel. ~Crystal Stine
• You just keep giving Jesus, and you've got an offering. ~Cari Trotter
• Find the [people] who don't want you to love them but who want everyone to love Jesus. ~Cari Trotter
• Stick your nose in the Word, and don't come up for air. ~Cari Trotter
• Bloggers are digital evangelists. ~Heather MacFadyen
• Hope is not a wish. It's an expectation. ~Ashley Linne
• The most powerful story you can ever tell is your resurrection story. ~Denise J. Hughes
• When God interrupts your plans, it's always a good thing. ~Crystal Evans Hurst

     Aren't those words so amazing and powerful? I'll share the name and topic of my podcast very soon, and I hope that (with a little more help) I can launch it by March 2016 at the latest.

 

     Special thanks to the Declare Conference for the ticket I won last year (read the story here). And to our friend who gave Mom a ticket.

 

~Madeline

 

P.S. Free books? Yes please!