As I write this post, smoke is furling out of the chimneys of the houses across the street – a heart (and body!) warming sight on a morning when the temperature is -20 Celsius. It speaks of confidence that something inside the house has generated the output that paints the peaceful picture across the sky. Somehow it tells us that there is warmth, fullness, generosity, hope inside – that things are ‘okay.’

At Serena we are at a crisis point of being able to generate the output that meets the needs of so many we serve. Our posts have never been of such a tone of need that I am trying to convey today.

Our teacher-couples and board members work tirelessly to fulfill the needs of those seeking the freeing news of natural family planning.  Repeatedly we hear the cry, ‘How come we did not hear about you before now?’

We have been approached to host a booth at several major events.  Supplies for teaching are needed. More couples are seeking to be trained. Those involved in marriage preparation are requesting information packages. We would like to pay the mileage of our volunteers as they travel across the province for meetings, training sessions, etc. Our budget is the restricting factor.

We know this is a busy time for families and bank accounts. Perhaps some of you could manage even $10 to help us out. A lot of people giving a small amount could make a big difference to Serena. Some of you may even be able to offer $50, $100 or $1000. Remember we are a charitable organization that relies on your generosity, and issues tax receipts. Any gift at this time will be greatly appreciated!

At Serena we are committed to offering hope to couples. Some seek us out because they are having difficulty conceiving. Others are wanting to space pregnancies. Still others are just starting out, and would like to avoid unnatural means of family planning for the woman’s health and for the health of their upcoming marriage.

Can we count on you to help us generate hope for couples?

You can make a safe online donation through PayPal, or you may prefer to mail a donation to Serena Manitoba, 99 Cornish Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3C 1A2. You can contact us for more information at 204-783-0091, 866-317-5362, or mbserena@gmail.com.

We anticipate with hope – and thank you for – your generosity!

The next ‘hope-filled’ Natural Family Planning class is scheduled for January 11, 2010. Call or email us.

Is your New Year’s Day a day of challenges that you set up for yourself for the rest of the year? At Serena Manitoba Inc. we challenge you to have a good look at your relationships, health, reflect on what you can do to help the environment, even challenge yourself to live as your Creator meant for your body to operate, etc. If He made you a Lexus, don’t go to a scooter manual for directions.

If Natural Family Planning is a strategy you decide on, we are here to help you carry through your resolution…for all of 2009 and beyond – afterall, we have already been around for over forty years. We’re not leaving our resolutions anytime soon. We’ll make sure we are around to help you with yours. Contact us to get started.

Here’s a resolute conviction made by an African clergy who was martyred in 1990. Looks like you can’t go wrong with a list like this – in life or death!

I’m a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I’m a disciple of His and I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future is secure. I’m done and finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, or first, or tops, or recognized, or praised, or rewarded. I live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit power.

My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my guide is reliable and my mission is clear.

I will not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed.

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ.

I am a disciple of Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He does come for His own, He’ll have no problems recognizing me. My colors will be clear!

Wishing you and yours all the best for 2009!

As the Christmas season approaches, the media and businesses are doing a great job with their promotion budgets to convince us of the best and most affordable ‘deals’.

In September 2008 the CCCB issued a letter entitled “Liberating Potential“. One of the main points was to promote one of the best deals for couples. They are encouraged to take another look at Natural Family Planning.

There are very few things out there today that can truly claim to be very effective in its purpose, economical and easy to learn and use. That’s us!  That’s what Serena is about!

Besides, many studies show that NFP is also healthful for the woman’s body and psyche. Add to that the value of enriched relationships. These are all important issues for today’s society. (Now, if we could only claim that it is organic…) Actually – practicing the sympto-thermal method of NFP as taught by Serena Manitoba is also good for the environment (no additional hormones entering our water ways).

If you are interested to find out more about the season’s best deal for you, you’ll find us on our Contact Us page.

This past week I received an invitation from a motivational speaker to host his Life’s A Party presentation. Knowing the health challenges this person has faced doesn’t really bring visions of brightly coloured balloons and bubbly champagne to mind.

At the last natural family planning teaching session an observer might have wondered about the spectacle of 21 people offering an enthusiastic round of applause to a couple who just took two hours of their time on a lovely summer evening to tell them that their fertility is something to be respected. And the overhead and transparencies weren’t even surrounded by balloons. ( Overhead projector?! I know – we are looking forward to the day we can offer the good message of NFP with a laptop and LED projector…) Neither was there champagne at the end of the class. Just coffee, tea, juice and water.

Nevertheless, if you had peeked into the room, you would have seen couples who visibly appreciated the freeing news of the sympto-thermal method of NFP. Beverage in hand, small groups formed after the class instruction to share stories. Others counselled with the teacher-couple with regards to coming off contraceptives, NFP after childbirth, or preparing for marriage. Laughter filtered through into the adjoining hallway as couples-in-training to become teachers of the method encouraged one another.

Life is a party. Join us for the next motivating, life-giving session (to your marriage) on Monday, September 8/08. Contact us on the EVENTS page. To life!

I was recently involved in co-ordinating a bridal shower for a university student. The date and location were secured. The invitations went out. The toast to the bride-to-be was lovingly compiled. Food was prepared. The location was adorned with streamers and helium balloons. Tables were covered with tablecloths and colourful edible sprinkles. The head table was lovingly adorned. Smacking lips approved the punch. The centre pieces of tissue paper covered jars were filled with kitchen utensils of coloured silicon spatulas, collapsible picnic plate covers, tongs, etc. A towel ‘cake’ was adorned with Christmas strands. What fun we had preparing for a lovely event for a much-loved person – imagining her delight, while also keeping in mind the practical use of items for many happy years to come.

The day arrived and so did the guests, carrying pretty and practical gifts alike. This young lady was showered with love in the form of gathered relatives and friends, along with thoughtful gift choices made with her in mind.

Fast forward…The joy and busyness of a wedding day. Life planning decisions to be made. Family planning decisions to be made. Mother’s Day. Father’s Day. Possible infertility. A new life to nurture. Family planning after childbirth. Eventual premenopause.

Where is the party? Where is the support? Surely, some seen and unseen hands and hearts will still remember and reach out.

To be sure, Serena Manitoba will be here to help and support, educate and counsel every step of the way. Put us in your planner right alongside your daily notes, investments and future planning. Because that’s what we can be for you. Always there.

The next ‘investment’ session for your future happiness and fulfillment is being offered on Monday, May 26. Serena Manitoba – promoting and teaching natural family planning. Contact us on the EVENTS page.

Resolutions, diets and over-indulged credit card accounts abound at this time of year. Strangely, they have something in common – it’s so fun to participate in their initial introduction! The ‘carrying through’ part causes us more pain.

Unlike the above, ‘carrying through’ the practice of natural family planning just gets more exciting the longer you practice it. If you change your mind part way through the year about what you want the results of practicing NFP to be, you could still have rewarding results! (If the last statement doesn’t make any sense to you, just contact us for clarification.)

We won’t guarantee that 2009 will see your 2008 New Year’s resolutions carried out. We can’t be with you to offer you healthy diet choices. We can’t even promise you a weekly visit from St. Nicholas to cause your over-indulged budget to burb a bit! We certainly hope that when you review your situation at year’s end, any and all noble intentions will have become a positive part of your year.

To get a happy, healthy start to 2008 contact us at Serena Manitoba. We will help you get started in practicing natural family planning, we will give you information that will empower you to make healthy choices, we will supply healthy resources, we will provide follow-up sessions, we will coach you with expert counselling, we will make available excellent tracking resources to monitor your progress, and we will rejoice with you when you achieve the results you choose by your plan of action.

The next starter class is scheduled for Monday, February 4/08. Call us at 204-783-0091, toll free outside Winnipeg at 1-866-317-5362, or email us at serenamb@mts.net.

Happy new you!

As has become our tradition, once again as we gathered for our family gift exchange, before opening a present the recipient shared a ‘thank you’ for something that happened in the past year. We have moved past ‘I am thankful for this present’ to many thoughtful and specific messages of gratitude for someone in our life, for work situations, for good health in challenging situations, for new life, relationships that were enriched, etc.

After the last affectionate goodbye, the door was closed to keep out the winter air that was eagerly swooping across the floor. The Christmas lights were turned out, and one more note of thankfulness poured from my heart. This was indeed a time of shared hope in a sometimes dark world that comes swooping into our lives. We were left with a warm glow and a legacy of hearts that spoke life-giving messages perhaps not heard enough throughout the year. We were all recipients of the wonderful hope-filled message that there is much good and light in our world. Small acts of kindness did make a difference. Hope in our Creator permeates and can renew all situations. That’s a gift we are thankful for and wish for everyone.

Anytime thankful hearts embrace others is truly the most wonderful time of the year.

Merry Christmas from all of us at Serena Manitoba!

We finally received enough snowfall to actually say we now have a blanket of snow covering. Anything left outside is now wearing a glistening white cap – be it pumpkins, the handles of garden forks, or the outstretched arms of park benches. The beauty that covers them now with its wintry white evokes memories of other times and more temperate weather. We enjoy the picturesque loveliness of sparkles on the cold white snow as the same sun shines down on us now that had us shed our sweaters a short time ago. We find ourselves enjoying the temporary coldness with the beauty it has to offer, while at the same time we look forward to basking in the warm sunny days to come.

Couples who practice natural family planning know that if they have discerned that this is not a time to bring the joy of a new life into their relationship, there may be a short time of ’snow’ in the month. At the same time, they recognize the glittering sparkles that cap the proverbial snow, because they are confident of the personal, medical and spiritual benefits they will experience by practicing NFP.

Contact us to register for the next class in Natural Family Planning. You may even gain some tips on how to manage the short time of snow.

Serena Manitoba

783-0091 ~ toll free outside Winnipeg 1-866-317-5362 ~ serenamb@mts.net

Last weekend in Canada we celebrated Thanksgiving Day. Several weeks prior to our gathering the hostess had requested submissions of ‘I am thankful for…’ These ‘thank offerings’ were then posted at the event. Guests were invited to move around the room to read the submissions, making an attempt to match the anonymous writer with the post. There were no prizes offered, but more importantly the exercise resulted in a lot of love and laughter being shared. The conversation generated by this simple idea had the place humming with shared memories, speculation as to ‘who would say that?’, and a feeling of ‘being full’ that went far beyond the turkey and dressing. Perhaps you could even say a feeling of ‘my cup is overflowing’ was quite evident among the three generations present.

A simple shared idea effectively generated ripples of joy and genuine thanksgiving that will flow in the resulting strengthened relationships for a long time, perhaps even into following generations.

Natural family planning is just like that. It is a simple (but effective) method that results in creating strengthened relationships that share love and respect. A strengthened relationship also tends to last longer, and with evident joy.

Pass the cranberry sauce, please. I mean, the notice for the next natural family planning class. Thanksgiving Day may have passed, but the next relationship enriching class in NFP is scheduled for November 12, 2007. You’re invited.

Call or email us to save a place for you. Check out the Events page for up-to-date schedules.

As I sit here at the computer, a gaggle of geese has just written their picturesque way across the screen of blue sky outside the window. I wish I could hit the ‘refresh’ button and watch them again and again. Not possible. But I do hold the vision of what the Canada Geese do best – in my memory bank. With fluid movement their V-formation makes its way across the window of my mind, conveying majesty, order and confidence.

On these refreshing September mornings, perhaps you will be inspired to look up and see the great expanse of sky above you and regain that feeling of being a part of something bigger than yourself. Something majestic and freeing is roused in your spirit. But there is also a yearning for something more.

That V-formation of the geese? It also portrays the synergistic energy of working together. Serena Manitoba has been around for over thirty years helping people just like you. Discover more about and for yourself. Your body is wonderfully made, and it can also help you write something beautiful across the expanse of sky that is your life. When you gain that awareness, you will be free to live your life with majesty, order, and yes, confidence.

The next ‘confidence-building’ class in natural family planning is scheduled for Monday, October 1st, 7-9 pm. Contact us at 783-0091, 866-317-5362, or serenamb@mts.net.