Highly Favored Ladies Conference

Highly Favored is an annual ladies conference held in Tulare, California. This meeting is the vision of Stephany Parkey, Abundant Life Center pastor's wife. Living so close to ALC I can say with assurance that Stephany, in spite of adversity and criticism, is a women after God's heart. I count it an honor to call her my friend. This year's theme was "Becoming" and one of the guest speakers was Janice Sjostrand, Ed.D., of Newark, Ohio. Dr. Sjostrand has served as instructor at both the secondary and university level and holds degrees in Spanish and Educational Administration and Supervision from the University of Arkansas. She has spoken and performed in a variety of venues from opening for Ray Charles in Little Rock, to singing for the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C., as well as multiple conferences throughout the United States, Australia, Asia, and Europe. She performed for both President Clinton's inaugurations and his mother's funeral. In her liner notes, Barbra Streissand credits Janice's performance of "Holy Ground" at Mrs. Kelley's funeral for the inspiration for her CD "Higher Ground." Dr. Sjostrand wrote the song "Alabaster Box" which was recorded by CeCe Winans and was awarded the 2001 Dove Award. On the opening night of Highly Favored, Dr. Sjostrand spoke about "Becoming Powerful." She used many thoughts from the story of Esther and how she "became" - from maid to queen. Her message was lengthy, but everyone set on the edge of their seats clinging to each word. It seemed as though each sentence she spoke was powerful. I cannot possibly give you the entire message, but she did make three points about becoming powerful like Esther. 1. preparation 2. separation 3. purification. The following morning, Dr. Sjostrand ministered through song for nearly 45 minutes. She never paused during this time and progressed from one song to another. She turned the keyboard into a Latin acoustic guitar. If you are familiar with Norah Jones, I would say Dr. Sjostrand was similar. Beautiful, lilting, tender. It was a beautiful time in the presence of God. Friday evening, She gave a sequel to the story of Esther and taught us the appropriate way to get the king's attention. Never nag, whine, or cry, but when he sees you and bids you come, love him and serve him. Then, when the appropriate moment comes tell him everything and don't lie. Another point was how many hundreds worked/served in the palace. The men served out of desire for power, but Esther served out of love. The king loved that one, and she was his "refreshing." He didn't want to speak of powers and principalities when he was with her. He wanted intimacy and love. Without seeming redundant, I will again say her every sentence was powerful. You owe it to yourself to hear her speak. I am sure CD's could be ordered through ALC. Other guest speakers were Diane Mendoza of Stockton, California, and Beth Parkey Dillon of Winchester, Virginia. They were both inspiring and thought provoking. I want to give you a couple of quotes from Stephany Parkey. First - Look where you are going, because you are going where you are looking. Second - Sometimes we operate out of fear of people and not fear of God. I have only skimmed the surface of this wonderful conference. It was great from beginning to end. The praise team was awesome, special singing blessed, and the dramatic sign team, Holy Hands, was anointed. The grand finale was a lovely lunch Saturday afternoon. Another time I wished you were here to enjoy it with me. (I believe the above picture is from a CD cover of Janice Sjostrand.)