Twenty years ago, we moved from Seattle to Indianapolis for my husband’s job. We had two small children, ages 3 and 1. Our closest family was over 1000 miles away. It was a little overwhelming! Thankfully, a friend suggested I check out a MOPS group.
My first MOPS visit was a little crazy. I wasn’t sure where I was going, but I knew I needed to get out of the house and I needed to find some mom friends. I was introduced to a few women and as women do, we started talking about our passions and the things we liked doing. One of mine was crafting. I love to create and could live in craft store. As long as it doesn’t involve glitter, I’m all for it!
At the next meeting, they announced that their creative activities leader was leaving and if anyone was interested in leading that to talk to the coordinator. Much to my surprise, some lady I had only met the previous meeting (and still wasn’t sure of her name) stood up and announced in front of 50+ women that I was really crafty and would probably love that position. Um, what?
Needless to say, despite my hesitancy, I did become the new creative activities leader. For my first meeting as a leader, we made name tags, because I could not for the life of me remember the name of the woman who so quickly nominated me. I found out after that craft that her name was Susan.
Over the years, the women at the groups I participated in became like family. We served together. We laughed at the funny things our kids said and did. We cried together over deaths and job losses. We prayed over the hard things and thanked God for each other. We celebrated over new life and kids graduating. We are now attending weddings that our children are having. We don’t all live in Indianapolis anymore, but we try to get together as often as possible. These women helped me (and are still helping me) lead well and love well.
My kids don’t really know a life without a MOPS family. When we travel, they ask if I know anyone from MOPS in that town. Because we are a sisterhood, chances are, I might!
Jennifer Iverson is the Leadership Content Coordinator at MOPS International. She is an organizer of things and people which also comes in handy as the mother of six children. Jennifer and her husband Mike live in central Pennsylvania where you can always find a warm cup of coffee brewing.
