Spirit Filled Spirit Led Women's Ministry

04/01/2026

Bill Cosby speaks

04/01/2026

Man who challenges You?

03/31/2026

To every woman who was in the room at The State of Women Retreat — this one is for you. 🤍
You trusted us before you even knew what you were walking into. You had no idea what the retreat would cover, what the theme would be, or what God had planned for those two days.

You simply trusted the vision of Mother Patricia Hogue and me — and you showed up.
And I want you to know — Mother Hogue trusted the vision first. When I brought her the concept for The State of Women she heard it, she believed in it, and she said yes. That yes made everything possible.

Sis. Jakala Hogue and Sis. Virtosha Little, our Workshop Coordinators, did a superb job bringing it to fruition. None of what you experienced in those sessions happened by accident. It happened because these women worked, prepared, and poured themselves into serving you well. Thank you both — again — for your excellence. 🔥

And then there was you.
That first night, when we sat down for a heart to heart conversation, something began to happen. We started to open. Slowly at first — and then beautifully. By the next day the room felt different because we were different. More open. More free. More ready.
You trusted us with your heart, your feelings, and your spirit — and we did not take that lightly. Not for one single moment.

From hearty food to hearty exercise. From creativity to mental health checkups. You stayed. You received. You allowed yourselves to be served and loved upon — and that is no small thing for women who are so used to pouring out.

It is an honor to be your Co-Director. It is an honor to serve you. And it is an honor to watch God move in a room full of women who simply said yes.

We are already looking forward to seeing you at our November State of Women Retreat!
Save the date. Tell a friend. Come back ready.

With love — Marlo Hogue, Co-Director, SFSL Women's Ministry
Be encouraged, Warrior

03/31/2026

Celebrating our 6th year on Facebook. Thank you for your continuing support. We could never have made it without you. 🙏🤗🎉

03/31/2026

Behind every great moment at The State of Women Retreat was a woman with a lens, a heart, and a calling.
Her name is Alexus McGee. 📸🤍

Worshipper. Vocalist. Author. Business Owner. And the creative force behind Gracefully Captured — her photography business that is every bit as beautiful as its name. Alexus came to The State of Women Retreat and did what she always does — she showed up in excellence and she showed up in full.

She captured us. Every candid. Every breakthrough moment. Every laugh and every tear. And she did it in a way that made every single woman feel as if she was having her own private photo shoot. That is not just skill. That is intentionality. That is care.

And if that wasn't enough — on Saturday she also ran our sound and camera. 💛. Let that sink in.
One woman. Multiple roles. Zero complaints. All excellence.
It is a beautiful thing to watch the Lord work through someone across so many environments — behind a lens, behind a mic, behind the scenes — and never once lose the grace that makes her her.

Alexus, thank you for the gift of Gracefully Captured. Thank you for seeing us, honoring us, and preserving these memories with such care. Working with you is truly a joy. 🤍🔥
More spotlights to come.
Be encouraged, Warrior. — Marlo, Co-Director SFSL Women’s Ministry

03/30/2026

When women come carrying their painful pasts, their raw right now, and their expectant futures — you don't just need a host. You need a covering.We had Kathy Hogue. 🤍

From the very first night, First Lady Kathy Hogue, our Host, set a tone that said you are safe here. Kind and compelling. Tender and aware. Her voice alone had the ability to soothe a room while never missing a single thing happening inside of it.

On the second day, she brought something else — that vibrant, luminous spirit of hers, wrapped around a steel spine. 💛

That combination? It was exactly what we needed.
She kept us relaxed. She kept us engaged. She kept us moving and pulsing all the way to the last amen and the last hug. And when women needed more than a word — she prayed🙏🏾

First Lady Kathy has always been a willing prayer warrior. At this retreat she was no different. She prayed with women. She prayed for women. She met them right where they were — in their tears, in their breakthroughs, in their quiet places of surrender — and she took them before the throne.
That is not a hosting skill. That is a calling.

First Lady, thank you for your precious heart toward God and toward His women. Thank you for knowing how to hold a room, release it, and then cover it in prayer. You are a gift to every woman who walked through those doors. 🤍🔥 final Spotlight to come.

 Be encouraged, Warrior. — Marlo, Co-Director SFSL Women

03/30/2026

As I close out the last three recaps of The State of Women Retreat this month, my mind keeps going back to a question we asked on the very first night —
"How has the 'Strong Woman' trope helped us… and most of all, hurt us?"

The room got quiet. And honest. And real.
What was unlocked in that first conversation was carried even deeper the next day by our resident nurse and mental health advocate — my sister, Kala Hogue

Jakala didn't just present information. She showed us how to recognize what we're carrying. How to treat it. She reminded us, without apology, that therapy and Jesus go together — and that Christ is not silent on our pain. He has answers in His Word and in the healthcare professionals He has gifted and placed in our lives. These two work hand in hand.

She walked into a room full of women who had arrived in various states — different heartbreaks, different burdens, different places in their minds and spirits. And she handled every single one of us with care and precision.

Astute. Attentive. Compassionate.

Jakala, thank you for sharing your passion for medicine and your heart for God with us. You gave us language for things we had been carrying without words.

Warrior — when did you last give yourself permission to tend to all of your healing? Mind, body, and spirit?
More presenter spotlights to come. Every one of them earned. 🤍🔥

Be encouraged, Warrior.
— Marlo, SFSL Co-Director

03/28/2026

03/27/2026

Friday night we asked the women a question — who were you as a little girl, and how did you create?
The room came alive. 🌸 Coloring. Drawing. Dancing. Jumping rope. Climbing trees. Woman after woman remembered a version of herself she had quietly set aside somewhere along the way.

We missed our little girl. The State of Women Retreat room was buzzing.

Then Saturday came — and Sis. Virtosha Little walked in, used the Word of God and brought her back.
She reminded us that God is a Creator — and because He made us in His image, creativity is not a luxury. It is who we are. She gifted every woman beautiful affirmation stickers of Black women for their journals and y’all — the giggles, the joy, the freedom in that room was everything. 😂🎨

And that same woman? She also was co-coordinator of our retreat. She did our décor and our gift bags. 🙌🏾 She made sure every woman walked into a space so warm and so beautiful that you felt it the moment you came through the door.
Sis. Virtosha didn’t just teach about creativity. She lived it out in every corner of that room.

Thank you, Sis. Virtosha. You showed us what it looks like when a woman walks fully in her gift. 💚🌸

03/26/2026

Nobody told us to bring workout clothes. 😂

But after lunch, during her keynote “The State Of Women and Their Physical Health”— Lady Kay said GET UP. And we got up.

She led us through a mini workout right there in the room and y'all — the laughter, the smiles, the joy that broke out among these women was something else. We came in full from lunch and left that session FULL in a whole different way. Reinvigorated. Alive. Reminded that these bodies were made to move.

She challenged every one of us before she sat down: move every single day.

She even gave us the schedule of her classes in the Upstate ( in the comments!) to join her. And prayed with and over us at the end.

Not sometimes. Not when you feel like it. Every. Single. Day.

Because we cannot walk into our kingdom assignment running on empty. 💪🏾

This is what The State of the Women looked like. Real women. Real movement. Real joy. 🌿