Welcome to the 9th season of Chick Climber! We are a life group through Bethel Church. On behalf of the leadership team, I want to say welcome. We are so excited to see all that Jesus is going to do in our lives this summer.
I love seeing how this ministry has grown and transformed over the years. It has been a blast to share the two things we love the most, Jesus and climbing, with the hundreds of women that have crossed our path. While a lot has changed, one thing remains the same. Every season it is our desire to further reflect our ministry’s mission.
Our mission and heart’s desire it to share gospel and impact lives for Christ. We also want the help you find healing and your identity in Christ through physical challenge. Finally, we want to build community, lasting friendships, and support among the women in our group. Climbing is the tool we use to accomplish our mission.
A few years ago we started assigning a theme for the season. As I thought about a theme for this year, God gave me the word, victory. The more I’ve thought about that topic, the more excited I’ve become. I don’t know about you, but I am in serious need of victory in my life.
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t fighting through an emotional, spiritual, or physical trial. When I was younger, I carried a burden from my past that no matter how much I pressed into Jesus, the enemy reminded me daily of my shame. He whispered the lie that God couldn’t love a person like me because of my past. It wasn’t until I fully rested in His promises and the truth He has outlined in the gospel, that I was able to lay down the hidden parts of my life and be free from the bondage of my past. After over a decade of living in this torment, I was able to find the victory I so desperately needed.
I’ve struggled in so many ways throughout my life. Inadequacy, feeling like I don’t fit in, and a faulty identity have been major strongholds in my life. The enemy loves to point out our failures and shortcomings. He loves to hold us in bondage with our weaknesses to prevent us from becoming the women God has created us to be. By pressing into Jesus, and resting in His promises, we can learn the truth about our identity as precious, beloved, accepted, and cherished daughters of the King.
I will be honest and vulnerable for a moment. I’m struggling today. I am not ready for this season to begin. Last July I had a pretty extensive stem cell procedure that took me away from climbing and pretty much anything else I liked to do for over 6 months. This was followed by an entire winter of various nasty colds. The past 6 or 7 years have been this cycle of illness and injury. The older I get the harder it is to come back. This year seems more difficult than most. I’m coming into this season 20 pounds heavier, totally out of shape, and a little discouraged. Just like many of you, sometimes feel a little tired, anxious, and discouraged.
While I may not be totally ready, I’m excited with the anticipation of how God is going to move not only in my life, but in the lives of each of you. In 2 Corinthians chapter 12, Paul pleaded three times for God to remove the thorn from his side. Paul didn’t mention what that thorn was. Many believe it was his extremely poor eyesight. Whatever it was, Paul’s thorn caused him to suffer. In 2 Corinthians 12: 9 – 10, Paul goes on to share what Jusus showed him about this thorn he asked God to remove. Paul writes, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Verses like this help me press on through my struggles by pressing into Jesus. God promises He will use my weakness to shine even greater throughout this Summer. It’s not about what I can do. It’s not about the abilities or shortcomings of our leadership team. It is about what He is going to do through me, through our team, and through you that will bring the biggest impact in all our lives.
Our verse for this season is Corinthians 15:7, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is the season we will learn how to dig deep and preserve both in climbing and in our lives. As we preserve and find victory on the rock by overcoming fears and becoming a stronger climber, it is my prayer you will also learn how to lean on the Rock to find victory in the personal battles you face.
Check out ourChick Climber Season Calendarfor meetup times and locations.