What a weekend! Journey was a weekend-long growth retreat in the mountains of wild and wonderful West Virginia. I think "wild and wonderful" is a accurate description of the weekend. We had lots of fun--games (striking arrow path master), skits (luuuu luuuu!), movies, and hang-out time. We also had lots of time to reflect on our relationship with God in a beautiful setting. Worship, talks, small groups, quiet time, and journey journals were part of the trip as well.
One of the mantras for the trip was "lets meet God in West Virginia". I think God was faithful to that, and met us there in a real way. It was a great opportunity to really get to know some of the amazing students in our church a little better and see how God is working in their lives. We hit some tough issues over the weekend, issues that even mature Christ followers struggle with, and the students were great examples in the way they took them on. Some of the topics we hit over the weekend were:
Upward: your journey with God. This was a lesson on "putting on Christ" (sanctification) and how sin slows this down.
Outward: your journey with non-believers. A lesson on evangelism, and how God uses us as lights to others.
Inward: your journey in the church. A lesson on what it means to be the church, not just go to church.
Working with the leaders that served this weekend was such a blessing. I know I was sharpened by being around these individuals, and seeing their commitment to seeing high schoolers affected with Christ's love. These are truly amazing individuals who sacrificed a lot to make a difference in the lives of these students. One of the leaders even was in West Virginia for her birthday!
Thanks to everyone who made this weekend special! Thanks to the students who came, the parents that gave up their kids for a weekend, and the leadership that made it happen.
Look forward to doing it again with you all!
Sincerely,
Kevin
