Wagon-Train
Spirituality
We explored how the trip on the Oregon Trail is similar to our Christian journey. Jesus, the great pioneer and trail-blazer of our faith (Hebrews 12:2- 13), calls us to:
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Be committed to a communal journey
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Make sure all complete the journey
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Gather others along the way
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Deal with problems as they arise
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Make the trip enjoyable as possible
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Prepare one another to live as responsible citizens of the new land to which we are heading
During this time we will create individual wagon teams (small groups) and get to know one another better.
[Friday night's presentation
with PowerPoint and small
group interaction]
The Church's Journey of Faith
A community is shaped by its common stories and experiences. We had everybody except little children join us as we collectively retold the congregation's history, and looked for common themes, lessons learned, and direction for the future.
[Saturday morning's exercise. Surprisingly the youth were interested and interacted themselves as we came to their own time. We were also able to name some skeletons in the closets and hopefully help redirect the energy used to "hide" the facts to more constructive tasks.]
Our Personal Journey of Faith
God works in each of us in unique and surprising ways. In small groups, we listened to our individual stories and prayed for one another. Each individual prepared a chart or timeline showing how their faith grew, and after sharing, others in their small groups prayed for them.
[Saturday afternoon was free time, and during that time each person had an assignment to create their personal journey of faith timeline or chart.
The youth tried to do the exercise together as a large group but that broke down when some, who came from broken homes, started crying. Even with some tears from youth and adults, the time together in their small groups was one of the highlights of the retreat.]
The Journey's End
Sunday morning: personal Quiet Time, alone as individuals, studying and meditating on Revelation 21:1-8. It was a time to think about our final resting place: with God upon the new earth, where there will no longer be any tears, sin or sorrow.
Afterwards, we gathered together for praise, worship and a guided meditation of losing all of one's abilities, precious items and friends, and then dying in a nursing home alone. We then moved outside and reaffirmed our belief that through Jesus and the resurrection, death does not have the final say in our lives, and then we celebrated communion together.
[After lunch, the leaders of the retreat gathered together to recap and evaluate the weekend. We accomplished all that the leaders and the participants had wanted, and people are excited about what will happen next year.]