A Little More about Guest Speakers

I believe that we all receive more from a speaker when we feel a personal connection with her.

For instance, last year our guest speaker was a fairly well-known retreat speaker.  The whole circumstance of her being here was a miracle in many ways, because we, as a small church, normally couldn’t afford a more well-known speaker.  However, because she had been a personal friend of our late pastor’s wife, she offered to do this retreat, knowing that it would be our first without our beloved pastor’s wife at the helm.  The majority of our ladies had never met the speaker, but I believe that all of us felt a deeper connection to her and her message because we knew that she understood and had suffered the same loss.  In addition, as she shared some difficulties that her family had faced in the previous year, more connections were made with ladies in similar situations.

Yes, that was a very unique year.  However, the same holds true with every guest speaker.  If they share from their personal life or highlights of their testimony at the beginning of our retreat, often these moments will provide that personal connection for our ladies.  That connection will be a conduit for the message and application of the truths she shares.