Narrow 2022

I got to spend an incredible weekend in Asheville, North Carolina for the She Works His Way Narrow Conference.

First, I have to say a huge thank you to the anonymous individual who had purchased a ticket so that I could go. You blessed my socks off. If you are reading this, I don't know if you knew, but I have been wanting to attend Narrow since the very first conference. I never could for a multitude of reasons. So thank you for your gift. Truly. I want to hug you and squeeze you!

Next, I cannot even begin to tell the rest of you just how necessary and soul filling this weekend was. There is something magical that happens when women who love the Lord gather together in one space.

I don't know that I will be able to sum it all up into one big takeaway. But there were some points that stood out to me that I wanted to share with you.

1. Spiral up: If I was forced to come up with a phrase for the weekend, this would be it. Spiraling upward as opposed to moving downward. Are the things, beliefs, ideas and people we give our time and attention to propelling us to look upward and focus there? The messages shared forced me to take a hard look at what I was reading, believing, thinking and engaging in and what direction I was heading in.

2. What we tell ourselves matters: our words have impact on our brains and our emotional health. Period. This isn't a new concept. Words have power and scripture, the words of our Heavenly Father, even more so. There was an incredible photo of what transforms in the brain when we change our thoughts.

Photo by Donna Gibbs, speaker at Narrow Conference and a licensed Professional Counselor.

3. What stirs you up forward heaven? What fill you? On the flip side, what drains you and distracts you from heaven?

We have spoken about these very topics together on this blog, but I think it beats repeating. Important things often need to be repeated so that they develop deep roots.

I catch glimpses of heaven when I am surrounded by women and eating good food or having coffee and conversation. Belly laughs fill my soul. Hanging with my teens. Praying together with Bill. The ocean draws me closer to the Lord and reminds me just how amazing and powerful and wonderous He truly is. When I write and women message me to share that I have encouraged them in some way. It stirs me up toward heaven.

What distracts me? When justice isn't served. When things are not fair and the good deserving individuals appear to be cheated and the ones who cut corners or treat people poorly in order to win in life, appear to be win in life. I can get caught up in that and allow it to rob me of my joy. When I believe the lies that I am not good enough. I get caught in the downward spiral of imposter syndrome and shut down. More on that specifically for another day, but I know I am not alone in feeling that way. I can bet many of you who feel the same way a lot of the time.

4. The final charge...and the most important....to pray: Pray for one another. Pray for our families. Pray for our spouses. Pray for what God wants us to do in this moment to spur others to spiral up. The gospel is the whole point. How do we, as women who are in the work place, with our responsibilities of loving our spouses and raising children and helping to provide for our households.....how can we spur one another up? It is a question that has been on my heart for several months now. This weekend brought forth a lot of clarity for me. Clarity I have been praying for.

I am sure I am missing something. I took so many notes that I have developed a hand cramp. Worth it. I hardly took any photos, but my heart is beyond full from good words and incredible people.

Well done, Michelle and Somer and the entire She Works His Way team for an incredible conference. I will definitely be back and I will be bringing friends!

Tiffany Rhea