President … Spring 2019
by Lillian Cabral
“See, I’m doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it?”
Isaiah 43:19
This was the inspiring scripture the weekend in 2016 when I came on board as the president of our beloved organization. I have meditated and wondered about it for these three years.
What is the new thing God is doing? But as we all know, God’s time is not the same as our time. So we get impatient. At least I do. I want to see this new thing spring up like the flowers or leaves on trees in the springtime.
We live in a world of instant gratification. There is a small part of me that is disappointed that God didn’t run with my ideas during my tenure. I need to work on that part of me. God is in control and change or no change will happen in His perfect timing.
We tried a couple of things while trying to figure out what this new thing is for American Baptist Women’s Ministries of NYS.
We had two young ladies represent us as AB GIRL Liaisons. One wasn’t able to make it to board meetings or convention. I am hopeful that she was able to make a small difference in the Metro area of NYS.
Our other young lady was invited to one church to speak, attended and shared her experiences with American Baptist Women’s Ministries at the AB GIRLS retreat at Pathfinder last summer and attended board meetings, convention committee meetings and convention to bring young ideas, energy and a presence to our gatherings. It was difficult for her to not be invited to speak more often to women’s groups or churches and this was a disappointment to her.
We learned that it is difficult for these young ladies to attend events while in school or college. Some may be thinking this is a no-brainer but we tried something we hadn’t done before.
We also worked on bringing AB GIRLS together for a retreat at Pathfinder Lodge in Cooperstown. We were blessed by the 13 girls that attended. We were also able to show off the camp to some ladies from the Metro area and it was decided to hold the AB GIRLS conference there this summer. We are hopeful that this will encourage more girls to attend.
We need to remember our mission is to introduce women and girls to Christ not to fill our board or churches or increase convention attendance.
But now I must say goodbye. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as your President for these three years.
God is still in control and He has brought you a new President. Rev. Grace Kelley-Neal has been elected to serve you for the next three years. Rev. Grace was ordained in January of 2018. She is an active member of the Bethany Baptist Church in Syracuse where she serves as the Minister of Outreach to the Community of Syracuse. She is excited to be working and serving you as we continue to introduce women and girls to the one who died and lives for us, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
To God be the Glory,
Amen.
Lillian Cabral
President 2016-2019
