Last month, Grace en Español was able to host Shame: Finding Freedom—a conference exploring what shame is, identifying the experiences, thoughts, and feelings that cause shame, how it affects us in everyday life, and how to live in the freedom and comfort Christ holds out to us.
Over 180 women attended the conference—some traveling from Nicaragua, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Dominican Republic. We also had women leaders come from churches in Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Atlanta as well as three different Hispanic churches in Greenville. Over 30 volunteers served by helping with hospitality, A/V, worship, parking, and security.
The goal of this conference was not only to teach women about shame, but to be a resource to equip other ministries and churches as well. After the conference, Grace staff and leaders hosted a lunch on Sunday to equip ministry leaders to start a shame study in their churches. We were able to share materials, digital resources, and guidance around helping women view shame through a biblical lens. As a result of this conference, we know that church leaders in Nicaragua are going through the material as well as women in a prison ministry in Colombia.
For our Español women, it was an impactful topic as shame is rarely studied or even mentioned in hispanic culture. As a result, 50 women are participating in the Shame: Finding Freedom study that launched 10 days after the conference. We also have a group of Forge girls going through this study.
What a blessing to see women from around the world come together and connect as sisters in Christ! We are thankful for all the leaders and volunteers who made this conference possible, and we pray that all who were impacted will continue to grow and experience life change. To learn more about our resources for women, click below.
