Retreating, Idol Removal, and Other Adventures

Warning: a long update lies ahead.  Proceed with caution.

A few weeks ago I mentioned a retreat that I had taken with my youth kids.  I've taken some time to think through and process all of the things God did and the best way to describe it is amazing.  Of course, I expect nothing less when it comes to God.  The group that went was a good mix of newbies and veterans to this particular retreat center.  The couple of weeks leading up to the retreat, I spent a good amount of time in prayer and I also asked my youth team to be praying as well.  The day before we left on the retreat I had a phone prayer time with the other leader who came on the retreat as well.  Many of our congregants were in prayer too.  It's such a blessing to have so much prayer support and I'm convinced that the retreat went the way it did because it was completely covered in prayer.  Thank you to those who prayed with us.

Everything went smoother than I ever could have hoped.  We never have any behavior problems (so far), but everything else ran very well too.  The trip up to the retreat center was a blast.  After we got settled in, we went for our first time of corporate worship.  It's always such a refreshing time for me to be able to just be with my kids without having the pressure of preparing huge lessons and teaching.  I got to just sit with them and worship Jesus.  How cool is that?  After worship, they went to their age group meetings and the leaders had a meeting.  After that we met back up with just our church in our designated room.  What an amazing time of vulnerability.  My other leader led a short devo for us, we chatted, prayed, and then went to play wallyball until bed time.

The next morning at breakfast we found our assigned tables for our church, but instead of splitting into two groups, we all decided to cram around one table.  It was then that I knew the retreat was going to be nothing short of awesome.  My kids, ranging in age from 12 to 18 actually WANTED to sit together.  They were genuinely enjoying each other and loved getting to know the others.  My heart was swelling with pride in that moment.  After breakfast we went to morning worship and then the kids went to two seminars of their choosing while my other adult leader and I met to pray and pick music for our church group time later that night.  Again, that time of prayer and worship with the other leader was incredibly important and definitely prepared our hearts for our time with the students later that night.

Volleyball tournament... heading to the 2nd round!

The afternoon was spent playing in a volleyball tournament, sitting in a hot tub and sauna, swimming, and playing more wallyball.  Our kids stuck together the whole afternoon... again, they really loved their time together.  After dinner came the talent show and then evening worship.  My leader and I had been praying specifically for the evening worship service because as is the norm on retreats like that, it was going to be the alter call night.  I knew I had kids who didn't personally know Jesus and my prayer was that if they made that decision, it wouldn't be based on the pure emotion of the moment.  My prayers were answered and the college kids leading the weekend did a fantastic job of presenting the Gospel and opening the alter without trying to coerce the kids into anything.  I believe that the decisions made that night were very genuine.  During the music, though they were playing songs I loved, I couldn't do anything but pray for my kids.  And then during the alter call I had the opportunity to pray over each of my students individually.  It was such a privilege to kneel beside them, ask if I could pray, and then pray for them.  Thanks be to God for leading in that way.  All glory to Him for the souls that were saved that night!  After that, our church group time was a fabulous time of worship and fellowship.  We got hear from the kids and talk them through what they had experienced and then of course, we ended the night with a crazy game of wallyball.

By the time Sunday morning came, we were all a bit sleepy, but still somehow energized by God's movement.  The closing worship was great and our church group time was a sweet time of worship and sharing.  The kids expressed their love and thankfulness for one another and I, of course was amazed by them.  I talked with them about reentering the unchanged world as changed people and how to keep moving forward.  God gave such clear words to share with them and it was so encouraging to hear their responses.  We ended our time by having a picnic as a group down by the lake, which was also a sweet time.

Aren't we cute picnic-ers?

I love this group of people!

Our trip home was as fun as the ride up was.  Leaving is always bittersweet for all of us, but I was definitely ready for a nap!  Again, thanks to all who prayed for us and thanks be to God for a life changing weekend.

Since then, life has continued to move quickly.  The Yield service continues to go well, and again, all glory to God for that.  I absolutely love Saturdays... more than before we started Yield.  Preaching still challenges me (in a good way) and I really love bringing the message each week.  I also love the music we've been doing lately... not that it was not good in the past, but as our repertoire expands, my heart overflows with love for the Lord.  There are weeks when I'm sitting at the piano, playing and sing, and I just can't keep from smiling because I'm overwhelmed by His love and mercy.  So thankful!  Two Saturdays ago, I even got the chance to play guitar again and that was refreshing too.  I found that I'm a tiny bit rusty, but I've missed playing guitar and Jesus loved even the few botched notes because they were for Him anyways.  

Last week, my former youth kid (and current friend :) came to visit for her spring break.  It was a wonderfully busy week and I'm so thankful for such good times with her.  The first weekend was kind of low key and chill, but as the week began it was full steam ahead.  Tuesday we explored the shore a bit.  Neither of us had ever been to Atlantic City, so we wandered around there for a couple of hours.  We were such nerds as we drove on the "Monopoly" streets excitedly.  The boardwalk was pretty much clear of snow so we walked around for a little bit before getting too cold.  Then we headed up the shore to Seaside Heights... made famous by the Jersey Shore series on MTV.  Some of our friends were really into that show a few years ago, so it was fun to explore Seaside and see all of the stuff we had heard about and/or seen on TV.  We had made reservations at an Italian place in Tom's River called Rivolis, also made famous by the show, so after leaving the shore we headed to dinner.  It definitely lived up to our expectations... HUGE portions and delicious.  Good thing it was Fat Tuesday.  

Seaside Heights, on the boardwalk

Wednesday was spent getting some work done and shopping.  Jodi needed clothes for an interview and also wanted to get a hair cut... a spring break tradition for her.  Instead of going to a salon, which is what I normally do when I need a haircut, Jodi suggested we just go to Great Clips.  She's not as crazy about her hair as I am.  My hair has always been something I've paid way too much attention to, and my mom, being licensed, has always cut my hair... so having someone other than her cut it is a huge deal.  I would never consider Great Clips because I'm a hair snob.  I've been contemplating getting my hair cut quite a bit shorter for a few months now.  It had even become a distraction for me.  As I sat next to Jodi and watched her cut 5 or 6 inches from her hair, I realized just how invested in my hair I had become.  It had somehow become an idol for me.  When you've got 6 or 7 different kinds of shampoo and conditioner in your shower, you've got a problem.  Right there, in that chair, I knew I needed to let go of whatever stupid pride I had and get rid of the idol I'd been carrying around so proudly.  So, I told the girls I wanted mine cut too... for $7.99... at Great Clips.  4 or 5 inches later, the drama was over and my hair was gone.  Honestly, I felt completely free after that.  It's been wonderful and my hair is so easy to do these days.

Thursday we spent the day in Philly with an amazing family from my church.  We went to the flower show at the convention center and then got cheesesteaks from Geno's and Pat's.  All in all, it was a great day filled with WAY too much food.  

Emma, Carrie, Jodi, me, Nancy

And then on Friday, we drove up to north Jersey to meet a friend of mine to go skiing.  Neither Jodi nor I had ever been, so it was a nervous drive up there.  My friend has gone skiing a lot, so she taught us on the bunny hill and was extremely patient as we fumbled and learned.  We had an awesome day and I definitely can't wait to go again!  Too bad it's such an expensive sport.

Jean, me, Jodi

I took Jodi the airport at 4am on Saturday and our whirlwind week ended.  It's always so refreshing to have someone from home visit.  It's like a vacation for me too since I get to do touristy things when people come.  It's definitely more fun to have someone else to explore and go on adventures with.  

This week I'm getting back in the swing of things and preparing for an insanely busy weekend with the youth.  Prayers are very much appreciated.