Dolly Mink: Years of experience in Christian leadership and service have given Dolly Mink a unique perspective, and she is eager to share her observations, insights, and words of encouragement to the women of Virginia. Dolly seeks to accomplish this through teaching, training, and writing. In addition to her role with the SBCV, she leads women’s Bible study at River Oak Church in Chesapeake, where she and her husband are members, and she writes short stories and blogs at 
There are times when you know that the Lord has you involved in something that is specifically designed for you, where He is fulfilling His Word found in Ephesians 2:10, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.” Whether it’s nurturing your family or comforting a neighbor, or maybe performing a task at work that you are particularly suited for, God will use you to fulfill His purpose in His economy. And when these times arise, it’s important to seek His will and be in a spirit of prayer and submission so that the Holy Spirit will guide your decisions and actions.
Over a year ago, when the SBCV Women’s Ministry Leadership Team planned our final Equip conference for Abingdon, Virginia, and prayerfully selected the date of October 12, 2024, we had no idea that it would come just barely two weeks after the historic flood brought about by Hurricane Helene. Roads, homes, churches, businesses, and infrastructures over several states were totally destroyed, or in some cases, totally washed away. Rivers and streams were re-routed. Massive landslides took homes and everything in their path. Tens of thousands of trees are down all along the Blue Ridge Parkway, Appalachian Trail, and Virginia Creeper Trail. I could go on and on, but it breaks my heart too much, because my heart is in the heart of Appalachia.
You see, this area is deeply special to me. Not only do I have family here now, I am a product of family raised in this area—for generations. My roots run deep into these mountains and the surrounding towns, and so do my husband’s. So, when this tragedy hit, it hit personally.
When I finally began to grasp the depth of what had taken place there, and I looked at the almost insurmountable recovery effort needed to meet the immediate needs of the community, my first thought was that we needed to cancel the conference. I thought the last thing these good women of Southwest Virginia need is to be concerned about our team coming to town. I thought we had no business coming in and putting on some kind of “conference” that would take up their time and energy.
But as I continued to pour my heart out to the Lord, asking for His guidance and direction, it became clear that He did not want me to cancel. I consulted with my leadership, the leadership of the church, and the team members who were even more willing than before to travel to this grief-stricken area. Instead of thinking in terms of what it may cost these women, and the men who are eager to support events like our women’s conferences, the Holy Spirit led me to think of how we can revise the event to be even more prayer-focused, asking the Lord to meet their needs as only He can.
Our speaker, Dr. Sara Robinson, state leader from Kentucky, was deeply committed. She mapped out several routes to take, driving to Virginia on roads that were just reopened or detours for routes that may not be open for months to come. Team members left vacations early, some of their husbands driving them across the Commonwealth in order to set up early and be ready to greet any dear woman who could manage to come.
And they, indeed, did come. To be honest, I was expecting maybe 25 women who would be able to leave their homes on a Saturday, two weeks after a flood of biblical proportions. Instead, over 100 women came through those doors and into the sanctuary! Praise Jesus!
Determined not to be just another “event,” we asked the praise team to pivot, revising their schedule and offering soft music while we went into a season of directed prayer from the stage, each leader praying for a different aspect of life as these dear sisters know it now.
We opened the altar for prayer, and we asked any dear sister who wanted to share how she has seen God working to do so. And they did. Over and over and over. Our prayer room was open and staffed throughout the day, ready to go before the Lord with everyone who desired prayer.
The Lord moved among His daughters that day, and lives were changed. In my next blog, I’ll describe how He moved, and how you can join Him in making a difference.
