The Church: Christ’s Gift
“Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15-16)
Dear Friends and Members of IBC,
The beautiful, rainbow picture above was taken by an IBC member at about 10:00 p.m. on a Saturday evening, just as the previous 36 hours of gorgeous sunshine slowly began to change to persistent rain. As well as being grateful for the weather, when I look back at last weekend’s church retreat, I realise there are many things to be thankful for. In this week’s Word for the Week, allow me to number just a few of them.
GRATITUDE LIST
- The heterogeneous mix of people. The amazing diversity on display could only have been brought together by Jesus Christ as our mediator. We can sometimes be quick to dismiss this or celebrate it prematurely, but Christ’s bride isn’t meant to look indistinguishable. It was wonderful to see such a rich mix of ages and nationalities fellowshipping together.
- The times of worship and teaching. We were blessed to have a comfortable worship hall, surrounded by dense, leafy trees, where we could loudly sing together and listen to the exposition of key verses on what the church is meant to look like. There were no technical difficulties, everything ran smoothly.
- Fun and laughter. At our Saturday evening quiz night, we laughed and cheered one another on as we attempted to answer questions on world capitals and James Bond’s favourite drink (Vodka Martini!), whilst eating licorice as quickly as we could.
- The quiet location. Yes, the internet connection was a bit iffy, but this only added to the ‘get away from it all’ character of the retreat center, which was located in the middle of a wood, off the beaten track. It was also great that our church were the only guests at the center, so we had the whole place to ourselves.
- The conversations. We had the chance to get to know people we didn’t know before, and there were unique opportunities to have in-depth conversations either at breakfast time or late into the night about topics ranging from how to best evangelise people of different faiths to our own personal struggles and joys.
I am grateful to everyone who was there, it was a special time. I hope to see you at our next church retreat in June 2025!
God bless you
James
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