Senior Retreat in Yosemite
Arriving after a few weeks of winter break, this past senior retreat was an uplifting and refreshing time for me and many of my peers. Yosemite –a long time favorite of our church- was our destination. We did a lot fun things, such as sledding, snowball fights, and indoor games. We even had a friendly Sisters vs. Brothers game of Family Feud. I must say, though the answers in the survey were clearly biased towards the masculine train of thought, the girls emerged victorious.
I was personally so blessed by this retreat in so many ways. I really felt the need to develop my character as salt and light and concretize my identity as a faithful Christian woman. Being a naturally fearful person, Pastor Ed's exhortation to not give in to our fears was challenging, especially in light of the many fears and insecurities that I will have to confront as graduation approaches. Pastor Ed had us make a timeline of our lives, noting the major markers in which we can clearly see God's hand at work. This exercise was encouraging for me because I was reminded again that God indeed is in control and I was urged to entrust my future, my life to Him in daily surrender with faith that He will continue to lead and guide me. Seeing Pastor Ed and Kelly co-laboring for the gospel and recognizing the growth in relationships of my own peers heightened my awareness of being a part of a community –a family. And as we took our last group picture against an ethereal orange sunset, I was filled with thanksgiving that God would allow me to experience a bit of heaven in this wonderful body of Christ.