	From the Executive Director

	Dear Friends: On behalf of the Souly Business board of directors, I hope this finds you well and trusting in God’s grace during these uncertain times. For Souly Business, it has been another year filled with lives transformed by the love of our Heavenly Father. As a board, we continue to be focused on expanding the breadth of the ministry, while God continues to bring us new opportunities to expand the depth of the ministry. For 2008, here is some of what’s been accomplished: Three north Georgia conferences were hosted at Strong Rock Retreat serving about 300 men The Johnson City, TN group hosted their 3rd annual conference serving about 80 men Souly Business AM completed its 2nd year of serving men at its Friday morning gatherings The Souly Business Mentoring Program was piloted with two mentor/mentoree groups For 2009, in addition to hosting another three Georgia conferences and one Tennessee conference as well as continuing Souly Business AM and the mentoring program, here’s what on tap as we seek to fulfill our purpose of connecting men in the workplace with our Heavenly Father…and one another: Staff leaders from Northpoint Community Church and Buckhead Church will be joining us at the February conference to evaluate the possibility of a Souly Business/Northpoint partnership We are considering a partnership with Strong Rock Camp involving a combined church building mission trip and Amazon River fishing expedition to Brazil. In January, we will be introducing the Souly Business “LinkedIn” User Group as an additional resource for facilitating professional and personal connectivity. As with many ministries, our greatest challenge for 2009 will likely be in funding our budget. With that in mind, I’m asking you to prayerfully consider including Souly Business in your year-end giving for 2008 or making a pledge of support for 2009. If through Souly Business, your life has somehow been enriched, please help as God continues to use this ministry touch the lives of others. We are a qualified 501(c)(3) and your donation is tax-deductible. Donations can be made or pledged and sent to: 1080 Holcomb Bridge Rd Bldg 200, Ste 140 Roswell, GA 30076 or by clicking on the Donations tab at www.soulybusiness.org. On behalf or Larry Green and myself, along with our entire board, thank you so much for your participation, prayers, and financial support. We wish for you and those you love a blessed and Merry Christmas! Your Friend in Christ, Kevin Latty, Executive Director

	Souly Business -My Story By Tim Jett

	I attended Souly Business in February 2008- and my life was forever changed. I arrived with mixed motives and a heart that was only “half pure.” I wanted to learn and enjoy a spiritual experience, but “networking” was also on my mind. However, after the very first speaker, I whispered a prayer that went something like this “God, I would still like to meet a few people with similar business interests, but I’ll deal with the networking some other time. I surrender myself completely to you. I see this event as a chance of a lifetime. Thank you for getting me here.” I arrived on Friday with a brokenness- and I had been suffering from its affects for quite some time. My brokenness was found in my history. At one time, I was a successful business and family man, but was brought to the point of homelessness by alcoholism. As an alcoholic, I hurt a wonderful former wife, a son, and the best friends a man could have. I lost of everything for which I’d worked…my career, community leadership, and possessions. I began Alcoholics Anonymous with “assets” equal to a small bag of thrift store clothes. My “liabilities” were guilt, remorse, and shame. Through AA, I re-engaged life. And efforts at rekindling my Christian walk had worked very well to a point, but an undefined brokenness remained. I had prayed many times “God I know you’re not the author of confusion. Please reveal to me the truth about my condition.” But I was too consumed with negative self-worth to see the truth of who I really was in Christ. At Souly Business my table leader said “Tim, everything you say points to a lack of worthiness.” That same day, my condition and the solution to my problem were explained by one of the speakers. Through the “Identity in Christ” talk, I realized that I had allowed my self-worth to be determined by my history…rather than by my identity a child of God. My history was nothing more than a set of facts about my past. But it no longer had to define me. I resolved to meditate on what the speaker said and to get down to business when I got home. The Lord however, had me on another schedule! That afternoon, I was asked spend some time alone and ask God about the things that stood between me and an abundant life. In my time alone, God revealed that I was to lay my past at the foot of the Cross and to accept His forgiveness once and for all. In so doing, I could glorify Him and be a witness to others through His redemptive work in me. Several months later, I saw the speaker who gave the “Identity in Christ” talk at Souly Business. We were alone for a few minutes and he said, “Wow…you’ve changed!” Interestingly, I’ve received many similar comments since February. When invited to Souly Business, I said I couldn’t go. I had too many pressing problems. Today, I see problems in a new light because of my experience at Souly Business. And among other things, through this ministry, I’ve made friends for life. However, they are more than friends…they’re a “Brotherhood.” And about my former homelessness and alcoholism? Well…according to Romans 8:28, “we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, and who have been called according to his purpose.” (I wonder if I’ll ever get around to the networking?)

	Souly Business -My Story By Randy Ross

	God continually surprises me. That was certainly the case when I attended the Souly Business Men’s Retreat in October of 2008. To be quite candid, the last thing I wanted to do with my weekend was traipse off to a secluded campground with a bunch of men that I didn’t know for a “spiritual retreat.” Having been reared in the church and actively involved in ministry all of my adult life, I had attended more retreats than I care to count. I guess you can say that I have “experienced” quite a number of spiritual mountaintops in my days. Each and every one of them added insight and value to my spiritual journey, but I wasn’t sure that another retreat was really what I needed to be doing with my time. I was in for a surprise. The first thing I noticed as I entered the conference room was the boxes of tissue on each table. My first thought was that there couldn’t be that many men at a retreat with allergies serious enough to warrant such preparation. And, surely they weren’t there for tears. This was a men’s retreat for goodness sake! As each speaker shared his story, it became clear that God was up to something special. The subsequent table discussions slowly opened up honest dialogue as walls of pretense began to crumble. The themes touched on common life experiences as men dared to be vulnerable. A captivating web of community was slowly spun over the course of forty-eight hours that was inescapable. On the one hand, it was unnerving…as that web of community trapped the hopes, fears, dreams and demons of each participant. On the other, it was comforting…providing encouragement and support as it insured that no one would suffer a devastating fall. As for me personally, I came into the retreat rather self-satisfied. Sure, I had been under the stress of starting a new business. And things on the home front could have been better, but I am the eternal optimist. Life was good. But, I had no idea how disconnected my head and my heart really had really become. I was putting up a front, trying to suppress the pain that had dulled my heart and, consequently, my ability to hear God. I had been “toughing it out” for years. During the introduction, Larry challenged all of us to “take the time to let our souls catch up to our bodies.” In that moment I knew that my body had out-paced my soul and left it in the dust long ago. The rest of the weekend was a blur. I can tell you that I left the retreat with a notebook filled with very personal and profound insights. More importantly, I left with a heart that was at peace. Over the course of those two days, God met me personally in a way that freed me from the bondage of an unforgiving spirit. I came to terms with the humanity of others that had left deep scars on my soul, but only after I was forced to face my own humanity. Funny how God does that. During one of the quiet times, as I lay on the dock, trying to assimilate all that I was hearing, God met me at the point of my fear and anger. I had been projecting my life through a lens of pain that I thought had been previously dismantled. It became clear that His work wasn’t done. Somewhere in the mix of authentic leadership, heart-felt worship, a band of brothers and time alone with God, something unexpected happened. I found my heart again. And when I did, the tears flowed. I was glad to have a box of tissue nearby.



	Connecting men in the workplace with our Heavenly Father... and one another
	Upcoming Retreats North Georgia Men February 6-8, 2009 May 15-17, 2009 October 23-25, 2009 NE Tennessee Men November 13-15, 2009 ------------------------------ Souly Business for Men REGISTER today ------------------------------ Testimonials "...nevertheless, it's extremely hard for me to put into words what this weekend meant to me, and the level of impact it has had on my life." -Jared "I learned that I share my faith at work by serving others, by doing my job with excellence, by displaying Christ-like character, and by working for an audience of One." -Brian