Retreat
This week our staff went to John and Dodie Brunton’s beach home in Seaview, Washington. Their home has been in Dodie’s family for many years and they were so willing and giving of their resources to bless us. Thank you John and Dodie! For the first time we invited our spouses to come with us and it was a rich time of getting to know one another.
The home is close to the beach and some of us even went four-wheeling on the beach with Blake Wilkes at the helm! There is nothing like walking on the beach and being in God’s creation to ignite in me a desire to be grateful for all that God has done and to acknowledge His faithfulness in my life. It’s been said that a retreat like this helps to build the team as relationships can go deeper than just meeting once a week.
Our three-day retreat began with a morning of solitude and silence giving each of us a chance to connect with the Lord and be in the Word. It was great to see the different scriptures that were shared and how the Lord revealed Himself through His Word or even a walk or run on the beach. Prior to the retreat we were given several assessments for each of us to take, such as our personalities, values, team and spiritual gifts profiles. I believe having each one share who they are in these different assessments helps to make the team minister better together. It also helps us to understand each other more and appreciate our differences and celebrate our strengths. Doing these exercises helps us to do the ministry more effectively thus bringing honor to the Lord.
It’s been great to pray together for our church and to encourage one another as we shepherd our people here at Greater Portland Bible Church. Once again I just want to thank Pastor Wayne for his leadership with us as a staff and how he shepherds us to carry out the mission of the church of Helping People Follow Jesus Together.