What is this year’s theme for the International Month for Women? “Celebrating Women of Character, Courage and Commitment.”

Gateway - Banner 2 - _We love GateWay!_How do we see this theme played out at GateWay of Hope?

Character:

In our SOS group (Starting Over Single), we meet women who have been abandoned, betrayed and abused. Some of these women have devoted decades to their men and their homes, yet suddenly find themselves single again and rather shell-shocked at what has happened to them.

Yet they work through the emotions, they keep training their children about integrity and they seek the best ways to forgive and still remain true to themselves. They protect their hearts and fight against bitterness. They continue to attend church, stay active in their lifegroups and use the giftings God has given them.

In spite of emotional upheavals, they stay in character – strong, living within their core values and moving forward. We admire these women of character.

Courage:

The women who attend our Boundaries groups learn how to set fences around their personal space. They realize that in the past, they may have made some boundary mistakes, so they want to learn better ways to do that now.

They share with the other women in the group, becoming vulnerable for those two hours as they sit in the safety of GateWay’s Gathering Place.

Other courageous women visit our counselors and dig deep into their souls to find the places of first hurts. They admit to the abuses they have suffered and work toward a place of healing and wholeness. It takes a tremendous amount of personal courage to share how you have been shamed and reach for the hand of hope that is offered to you.

We applaud these courageous women.

Commitment:

In our Hope for Freedom group, wives of husbands with sexual addictions share their most private pain. They have nowhere else to go, no other group of friends or family who will truly understand the deep betrayal they feel.

They work through the grief and reach toward forgiveness – as difficult as that may be. They set healthy boundaries around their hearts and within their homes, yet are committed to try to make the marriage work.

Other women commit to coaching sessions and initiate plans for moving forward in life. They meet with our life coach and organize their lives. They learn social media so that they can move forward in their businesses and they discover new ways to be financially secure.

These are the women of commitment that we appreciate.

Everywhere, women are living out their lives with character, courage and commitment. At GateWay of Hope, we get to work with approximately 125 of them each year.

What about you? Who are the women in your life who exhibit character, courage and commitment?

2014 GateWay of Hope – The Helping Place for Hurting Women