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This is a time of the year that I look forward to the most where I go for my spiritual beauty therapy! It is a time for me to meet with my creator where there are no distractions, no husband, no children and no pressure from work where God has my undivided attention. The Women Of Excellence Retreats are such an incredible time of refreshing for the mind, spirit and body. I have been attending the retreats from the very beginning when it started back in 2005 by Pastor Erica Goodman. I remember the very first one, when we went to Ashburnham it was such a powerful and memorable time. I even remember the song that we sang back then; “there is a sweet anointing in the sanctuary”. Something broke off me back then where God released me from the burdens of fear, insecurity and rejection. I had so much baggage to deal with, you name it I had it.
 The Lord did something miraculous in me at that first retreat and I was able to receive and accept His love me despite the fact I had been running away from Him due to my insecurity. That retreat changed my life and I made a vow that I would never miss any of the retreats. Through the years the retreats for me have become more and more amazing in how God shows up to meet us there. The openness and transparency in the speakers and the women attending is incredible as time after time God heals every aspect of our being. Oh; there was a session I remember as the “shoe box” that was just the greatest healing of all! I witnessed and experience such a life changing healing that words fail me in describing that event. It was at that retreat that I realise that my past relationship was affecting my marriage and I just had to totally yield that to God. God was able to mend me and I was able to go home and be a wife to my husband like never before.
 I remember a year that the Lord spoke through Pastor Erica that I needed to fight for the health of my children, she said that the warrior in me needs to come out now and war and stop accepting everything that the enemy throws at my children, it was an enlightening time for me. It was just a confirmation of what the Lord had been saying to me, in Exodus 23:25. I was so excited about that because the Lord knew that I really wanted to hear from Him. This year’s retreat took another dimension for me. I was determined that I was not going to miss any of the session despite the fact that I was eight months pregnant.
It started off so powerfully and we did not have to struggle to get into God’s presence as everyone was so hungry for his Glory. If you have never been on one of the retreats you owe it to yourself to go, try and get there because you will be amazed what God will do in and for you. It will make such a great difference in your life as you experience a face to face with God like you have never known before. You will definitely come back changed if you allow God to work in you. Every retreat that I have ever been on has changed and transformed my life in an incredible way. I have come to realise that I do not have to be ashamed of the things in my past; instead, it has enabled me to be a blessing to other women.
One place I NEVER want to get to with God is that I know it all and He cannot reach me anymore. I will always yield myself to Him and keep my heart tender so that He has access tome any time.
 The first session started off with Pastor Erica with her message entitled “Mirror, mirror on thewall” the emphasis being on reflecting the Lord’s glory by application of His Word in our lives which is our mirror. All the remaining sessions continued along that same vein. I did not realise that I had so many veils that needed to be removed. This made me realise that even though I had dealt with insecurity therewere still things inmy life that I was still insecure about.
Elisha ministered on “The flawless woman” through the story of Rachelwhichwas such an eye opener as I did not realise I had so many flaws in me. I made a decision to checkmyself by looking in my mirror again and again to make sure that I am reflecting God’s word and also deal with my flaws so that it does not hinder me from fulfilling what God has calledme to do.
The Women Of Excellence Retreats are such an all rounder experience thatwe are blessedwith spiritual things aswell as natural things. It is good knowing howwe should act spiritually but it’s also important to know how we should act as ladies and we are taught etiquettes through various examples. One of those is the tea party wherewe get to dress up and enjoy each other’s company over tea while using fine china, it really is nice.
The cherry on the cake for me was when we were encouraged by Pastor Erica to go outside in the  beautiful grounds and sit in the garden or by the lake and spend time with our King and just reflect and listen to Him.What a wonderful time! It was a time of reflection, a time to hear from God, I was just mesmerise by His awesome presence. During the still, quiet time with Him I got specific instruction about everymember ofmy family. I began writing and the tears would not stop flowing because I knew the things that He was telling me was so real that I was overwhelmed by it all. What a time! We finished off the retreat with a special dinner where all the ladies dressed up in evening dresses and cocktail dresses; they all looked stunning and beautiful. The beauty was not only on the outside the ladies glowed and you could tell thatwe had been in the presence of our Lord.
Pastor Douglas ministered on “How to be that Ideal Women” what a powerful message to conclude an incredible and life transformingweek. This year’s retreat has given us so much to take away and implement in our lives. I want to encourage you to go back over your notes so you don’t lose the things that you got fromthe retreat, don’t let the enemy rob you of your blessings. I have learnt to use the practical mirror to remind me to look often into the mirror of God’s Word daily and make the necessary adjustments in my life to reflect what His Word says I should look like. I cameaway feeling refreshed, renewed, healed, delivered and set free. I declare that I am transformed so that I can transform others...
See you next year.
by Bimpe Ogunsanya
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