MOPS convention

I am helping coordinate a local MOPS group. MOPS is so much a part of my hopes, schedule, and phone calls these days that I forget that loads of people have never heard of it. I giggle to myself~ respectfully, ofcourse~ when someone looks at me, a little awkwardly, and asks, "MOPS? Like for cleaning?"

"Mothers of Preschoolers," I explain. I did this last with the man who sat in seat 30B, while I sat in 30A (the window seat) on my way home from the MOPS convention in Dallas, Texas. That plane was loaded with MOPS actually~ all of us flying home to our preschoolers in the Northwest.

I didn't really talk about this convention as I was waiting for it. I was grateful to be going, but when arrangements were made way back in May, I gulped and thought, "I'll be leaving my family. I'll be getting on a plane and leaving my family. I have never done this. And as a matter of fact, death by plane crash is one of my ugliest fears..." gulp... So I didn't really talk about it because I kept finding it reassuring to think, "Yes, I am grateful to be going, but that's a long time from now. I don't have to think about it quite yet." I comforted myself with those thoughts right up to the last day of September. And then the first day of October, the day before I boarded my plane to Texas, I started trying to have those pathetic conversations I subject Ash to whenever I feel... well, actually, whenever the whim strikes. I had legitimate concerns this time, so the conversations went something like, "If I get on this plane and I don't make it home, and you find another woman for our children to call 'Momma', will you at least promise to never let her take my pictures off the wall? I need to know Charlotte and Liam will remember me." It's sick, I know. Ash doesn't play along, either. Just like when I ask him to reenact that last scene from Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility (Emma Thompson's movie script, which I prefer to the new one, though I am THE ONLY ONE with this conviction) with me, he never does (I'd be Eleanor crying, hiding my face in my dirty apron, and he'd be Edward to say, lovingly, "My heart is and will always be, yours.") You gotta respect a man who firmly resists little episodes of mental illness, but sometimes I feel like he doesn't understand fun.

ANYWAYS, this past weekend I was in Dallas, Texas for the MOPS International convention. I'll admit, I had shamefully low expectations for such an event. In fact, I had no expectations. I had no idea what to expect from a MOPS convention. I have been part of three MOPS groups in two different states and I have loads of reasons for believing in and supporting this ministry, but I had no idea what it meant to pull 5,000 women away from their preschoolers for a weekend and celebrate the work they do, day in and day out. I stood in the middle of 5,000 women singing praises to God and being challenged with the refrain, "Better Moms Make a Better World." The whole weekend was devoted to encouraging and training us to do what we can in Christ. Every general session and workshop was aimed toward reminding us of our potential in Christ.

Did you know there are over 102,000 women who are members of MOPS, International? Me neither~ before this past weekend. Do you know what number made huge fat tears roll down my cheeks this weekend? 5,000. A little over 5,000 women came to know Jesus Christ as the Savior He is through MOPS last year. One of those women sat at my table last year. I've appreciated MOPS for the opportunity it gives me to meet women in my community and share life with them. I've been so grateful for the scope of influence God has given me through MOPS. In the next few days I will post my thoughts on lifestyle evangelism because God has used my experience with MOPS to help shape that. I think lifestyle evangelism should be thoroughly discussed and taught among Christians. I'm not saying I'm an expert on the subject, but I do have some thoughts here. I've seen the issue be divisive whereas I feel it should be exhilarating. As exhilarating as 5,000 women stepping out of darkness into the marvelous light of Jesus Christ.

As a cliffnote summary of my favorite convention moments, here's my list:

~Hearing a woman from California share her experience in starting MOPS groups in prisons and then hearing a young woman share how she came to know Jesus through one of those groups.

~Meeting author Erwin McManus and being inspired by his challenging words to live our most heroic lives for Christ- not for fame & fortune, but for transforming the world. He asked if we are more concerned with creating a safe place for our children or rather with making the world a better place. He challenged me by saying (something close to), "When I fear only God, only God establishes my boundaries."

~The musician Plum told us she wasn't going to jump around during her performance like she usually does because she's lactating. Only at a MOPS convention! She has a nine week old daughter, who is her third child and in her words, "has rocked my world".

~The constant refrain that everything about my days is important and worthwhile. The diapers, the meals, the cleaning, the referee moments... all of it is significant. I want my children to grow into interesting, capable, passionate people. I want them to run fearlessly hard after God. God has given me an immense scope of influence as a mother. I love that MOPS appreciates that.

P.S. Sylvia... There are three people in particular that I wish I had told I was going. The first two are my parents. They called and said, "We read in Ashley's blog that you went to Texas. How nice of you to not tell us." Needless to say, they didn't actually think that was nice of me. But the third person is you. If I had thought there was a chance that you'd have come, I would have been thrilled to see you. I would have monopolized your time~ as evidence of my delight.

P.P.S. Jennie Schellenberger! How great it was to see you! How great to get to connect with you again.