Women of Faith - A Grand New Day
In my 6+ years with About.com, I have been to more conferences and events than I can list, and I have never seen anything more organized that the Women of Faith event that we attended in Atlanta. Every single person that we met, from the lady at the window to the media coordinator to the security staff and cameramen, was courteous, pleasant to be around and absolutely on top of what they were doing. I have never covered an event that went that smoothly and it was a wonderful treat (and that was only the beginning). I was upset that my schedule only allowed us to go for one day.Imagine 15,000 women and over 300 volunteers, all coming together to fellowship and worship! The atmosphere was electrified and the spirit of the Lord was so thick, you couldn't help but be swept up. The speakers (especially my personal favorite Luci Swindoll) were easy to relate to and packed full of wisdom. The music ... oh my goodness the music! The Women of Faith worship team was incredible! Those ladies could easily record and sell millions of albums. And then there was Mandisa ... need I say more? Since we first saw her on American Idol, her talent has only grown.
Another great part of my treat was getting to sit down with Mandisa and Lisa Whelchel for a few minutes to chat. They are both incredibly strong women in Christ and I walked away from our interview realizing that there is much more to those ladies than simply their talent.
Mandisa and Lisa Whelchel Talk About Being Women of Faith
(Photo Gallery)Kim Jones - Both of you are very involved in Women of Faith. With so many conferences out there for women, what is it about Women of Faith that makes this conference the “right” one for you?
Mandisa – The thing about Women of Faith is that everybody that takes that stage is very transparent. There are a lot of different places where you can go and everybody has it all together and that's not what you will find here. We talk about our struggles; the things that we've gone through and the things that we are going through. The solution that we talk about is God brings us out.
I think the thing about women is when we get together, we like to share our lives. That's the thing about Women of Faith. We share our lives and as a result, we're all growing – both us that are on the porch and those that are able to attend. I think that we all grow closer to the Lord as a result.
Kim Jones – That's very true. I think that as women, frequently we feel like the weight of the world is on our shoulders and no one understands that better than other women who feel the exact same way.
What is the one thing that you take away most from Women of Faith personally, as a woman?
Lisa Whelchel – I take away the relationships. I think, in our culture, it is glorified if you can do it on your own. You know, “I can do this. I don't need anybody.” In the Christian realm, it is “I only need God. I don't need anybody else.” I am learning, in the context of these relationships, that I do need other people and God isn't upset about that. It's not like he's going, “No, you only need me.” He created us that way. He is relational. That has been the most healing for me, to find out that I don't have to do this on my own. I can talk through things with other people. I can be real and not all perfect, having it all together in the context of relationships. I can say, “I need this or I need that.” Sometimes I don't even have to say it. Mandisa sits by me on the porch and so many times she has just reached out and given me something I needed without me even having to ask.
Kim Jones – If you could give one piece of advice to younger women who are just starting out, what would it be?
Mandisa – I've got two. First is go to Revolve! If you think Women of Faith is great for women, Revolve is the exact same thing for girls. They will grow so much and they will realize that they are not alone. The second thing is something I learned from American Idol. When I got there, I looked around and I thought that it was America's Next Top Model because everybody was so beautiful and all of the press wasn't just about the singing. It was also about how a lot of these women looked. Being a big girl, growing up and seeing the magazine covers and the music videos, I thought that was how I was supposed to look. So I felt less than because I didn't measure up to that standard. It's hard for anybody to grasp, let alone a young woman who is just bombarded with these images and told that that is what they have to measure up to. I would tell them is not to look to those magazines and not to look to any of that stuff to define your self-worth. Really look at the Word of God. It says in 1 Peter that we're not to get our beauty from the outward appearance. I believe that we can take care of ourselves - I get my nails done, I get my hair done, I believe in make-up – but that's not what makes me beautiful. What that Scripture says makes us beautiful is what's going on on the inside. I believe that it shines out. We saw evidence of that time after time. When Moses spent that time with the Lord and came down from the mountain, his face was just glowing. I believe that there is a principle that we can take from that. It is more than our outward beauty. It's what comes from the inside.
Lisa Whelchel – I hear about that principle when people are talking about Mandisa. I wish that it could be translated on About.com, but I know that without a video, it can't. People will just have to take my word for it. There is something about Mandisa – her countenance just shines. She is beautiful but it is an exceptional beauty. You can be beautiful and be in a dark room and you can't see the beauty. There is just such a shining light around her, it just amplifies everything from the inside out.
