Christian Latina Leadership Blog

By: Carolyn Porterfield

Para leer la versión en español haga clic aquí

Who doesn’t love a good celebration?  The birth of a child. A quinceañera. A wedding. Graduations. Birthdays. Anniversaries. Holidays. We need times of celebration.

Today, I celebrate the Christian Latina Leadership Institute because it is a place focused on Latinas and Latinas-at-heart who love God and desire to grow to become all God has created them to be.

From CLLI’s beginning in central Texas, the work has expanded to east Texas; North Carolina; Monterrey, Mexico; Metepec, Mexico; Mexico City, Mexico; and this month to Barranquilla, Colombia. That is something to celebrate!

I celebrate CLLI because it offers three unique things to Latinas and Latinas-at-heart.

A Safe Harbor

The first is a safe harbor. The CLLI harbor is a place of shelter, retreat, and refuge. It is a space where women come away from the busy demands of home, work, and ministry to hear from God, learn about themselves, and discern where God is leading.

This safe harbor is a place where women can freely celebrate who they are in God: Made in God’s image; Transformed by grace through faith in Jesus Christ; Gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit. With united hearts and voices, women celebrate in worship and offer thanks to the God who declares them His very good creation.

Women learn how deeply loved and valued they are by God. They grow in their understanding of the place they have as women in God’s kingdom. They hear His call and surrender to Him even if it takes them out of their comfort zones or cultural norms. And it is all for the glory of God. Yes, it is good to celebrate a safe harbor called CLLI.

An Incubator

Not only is CLLI a safe harbor, but it is also an incubator. When a woman registers for CLLI she is declaring she wants to grow as a leader. The CLLI incubator is a place where conditions are favorable for growth and development.  

I have seen some women come with little confidence in their leadership abilities with no idea how they could use them. Others have more direction but recognize gaps in their knowledge or skill sets. Still others think they know the direction their life will take only to discover that God has something else, something more in mind.

No matter where a woman is in her leadership journey, the CLLI incubator offers favorable conditions for spiritual, emotional, physical, and intellectual growth and development. The curriculum is intentionally created to empower women to be their best selves in all areas of life to maximize their God-given potential.

I celebrate donors who believe women need the CLLI incubator and provide funds to make it happen. I celebrate with a grateful heart each CLLI site coordinator, staff, and faculty member who lovingly cares for those in the incubator.

A Launch Pad

A safe harbor is good for a time, but ships aren’t built to stay in the harbor. An incubator is a place that nurtures growth and development, but eventually you outgrow that space. Something more is needed – a launch pad.

On the launch pad a woman is ready to reach new heights in her leadership journey because of all CLLI has invested in her. One of my favorite Dr. Seuss children’s books is titled, Oh, the Places You’ll Go which I think is a great statement of what happens to women who take flight because of CLLI. 

CLLI positions women to launch into their future with confidence and joy. Some of my favorite stories are from the women who thought they couldn’t fulfill a dream because life circumstances moved them off their launch pad. However, their dream lived on.  These courageous, determined, persevering women found their launch pad at CLLI and worked hard to achieve their dream. You can, too.

I celebrate a loving and faithful God for taking women to places they never could envision because God is able to do so much more in and through women than they ever could imagine.  Praise be to God!

Your Celebration of CLLI

If you have read to the end of this blog, thanks for staying with me. I’ve shared some of the reasons I celebrate CLLI. How about you? What causes you to celebrate CLLI?

Celebrations are best done when people celebrate together. With grateful hearts, let’s celebrate God’s good work through CLLI.