4 days until I leave for Bangkok!
Last week I spent the week at the Billy Graham Retreat Center in Asheville, NC for a spiritual retreat. I met up with my teammates, Kristen and Walker, and some of the staff and board members from UWM. It was such an amazing week hanging out with everyone and getting to spend some time resting before the craziness begins. The retreat center was beautiful and I spent most of my days sitting in a comfy lounge chair by the fire and hanging out with the Lord. It was so cozy and beautiful to go out on the deck and see the mountains in the distance. It even snowed one day! I loved getting to see it snow as I know I won't be seeing anything like that in a long time.
I didn't really know what to expect going into the week but was excited to get the chance to slow down and meet with Jesus out of the chaos and confusion of life. We went through a series of spiritual exercises reminding us of who God is and our chief purpose of being created. Most of the week was focused on how to really have a relationship with Jesus, which I fear is a topic that is so overlooked in churches. We spent a lot of our time alone in reflection which I struggled with because of my constant need to be around people. However, I realized how I was in desperate need of solitude with the Lord and it was so nice to have it forced on me. It was a much needed time for me to reflect on leaving and get ready for what is to come. It was also really special to spend quality time with my UWM family and get to know them better. I am so thankful to be apart of UWM and the family that they are. I love how intentional UWM is about ensuring their missionaries are spiritually healthy. This same retreat is being done all over the world with other UWM missionaries. What a blessing!
The entire week was amazing and I really felt renewed and ready to conquer the next stage of life. These quotes really hit me hard on the first day and I was constantly reminded of them throughout the week. I was struck by how true these words were and how sad I was to admit it. I was reminded over and over again how much God loves and desires a relationship with me. I am so thankful for this love.
"....The real issue is why the church is so unaffected by the transforming presence of the living God."
Erwin McManus
"North American Christianity is 3000 miles wide and 1/2 inch deep."
J.I. Packer
a few snapshots of the week:
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| view from the deck. |
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| yay snow! |
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| breathtaking. |
lobby at the retreat center.
my nook for the week.
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| timeline of billy graham's life. |
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an inspiration.
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| the lovely lisa pointing out our trail route. |
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| the lovely karen who processes all my donations to UWM. teammate kristen. |
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| some of my favorite ladies. theresa. kate. lisa |
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| the girls. |
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| friday night mountain music. oh, what an experience. |
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| woody himself. so presh! |
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| just loved this. |
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| spiritual friendship group. me. theresa. kristen. |
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UWM family.
"my heart is restless, o God, until it rests in thee."
saint augustine
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