WHoly His urges state’s women to pray, give, go

Those attending Alabama Woman’s Missionary Union’s (WMU) WHoly His annual meeting March 18–19 found themselves in the heart of the inner city before being whisked away to a refugee camp in the Muslim world — all inside a Montgomery church.
   
The two-day event at Morningview Baptist Church, Montgomery, combined conferences, missionary testimonies and activities to encourage women to live lives surrendered to Christ.
   
“WHoly His is one way we at Alabama WMU seek to enrich the spiritual lives of the women of our state,” said Melissa Bowen, Alabama WMU consultant for women’s missions and ministries. “Blending a missions emphasis with personal growth is key to living a truly surrendered life.”
   
One of the highlights of the event was a prayer tea focused on Muslim women held on Friday evening. Ladies removed their shoes and donned head coverings as they entered rooms resembling Muslim homes. Each woman then took her seat on the floor, cleansed her hands and was poured a cup of tea. 
   
The women fellowshipped and drank tea much in the same way Muslim women do with their friends. Then, the women were asked to pray for their Muslim sisters in a unique way. 
   
The women assumed each of the five postures of Muslim prayer, in each posture praying for Muslim women to come to faith in Jesus Christ. The prayer teas were followed by a candlelit worship experience led by music from the Lamb Family of Tuscaloosa. 
   
Attendees also took part in an interactive prayer journey, visiting 12 stations that highlighted different aspects of prayer.
   
At one station, women wrote their burdens on rocks and laid the rocks at the foot of a cross. At another station, women were asked to pray for our nation and its leaders. And at another station, they wrote a note of encouragement to a woman for whom they had committed to pray. At one point in the journey, women simply were asked to be still and listen to God.
   
Speakers such as Lucinda Rountree, women’s ministry coordinator of Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tenn., and Neal Hughes, executive director of the Montgomery inner-city ministry Community of Hope, challenged those attending to live surrendered lives and to pray, give and go. 
   
This message was echoed by an International Mission Board Last Frontier missionary working among Muslims in central and eastern Europe. 
   
For details about WHoly His 2006, visit Alabama WMU’s Web site at www.alawoman.com. (Alabama WMU)