Thursday, August 11, 2016

Retreat

I am so blessed to be a part of the staff at cLife Church.  I came on board last summer to start the special needs ministry and I've enjoyed every minute of it.  Everyone has been so supportive of the special needs ministry and excited about it's inception.

The only rub is that I am part time.  I also work at school supporting teachings with technology and problem based learning.  I miss out on a lot of things at church. I don't get to go to staff meetings.  I don't get to build relationships with other staff members by working in the same space.  I do my work from home at night and on the weekends.

cLife's annual staff retreat was this past Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and I was thrilled that I was able to attend.   First of all, I was excited to be included since I work part time.  Second, I was excited to just hang out with everyone.  I was not disappointed.

Sunday afternoon Ryan was able to go with me to spend some time with the staff and spouses.  I was glad that he got to put some names with faces.  And it was nice for the two of us to have a few hours to relax with other adults. Ryan went home Sunday night before an epic game of Empires!

The remainder of the time the staff played, reflected and relaxed. It was so cool to be a part of the discussions. I'm not good at doing anything part time or part way. I'm an all in kinda gal. There are times when I feel disconnected from the rest of the staff. Not at the retreat. 


I especially loved spending time with the other women on staff. Some of us traveled to Atlanta for the Orange conference in May. Some of us were together at preteen camp. It was nice to all be together in a more relaxed environment. We watched chick flicks. We watched the Olympics. We told stories. We laughed - A LOT! 


I'm pretty good at feeling awkward. And I did feel a bit awkward for the first ten minutes or so. After that, I felt at home, welcomed, and part of the team. 

My favorite part of the retreat was our prayer time. We were divided into groups of 4. I was with 3 gentlemen that I know but that I don't work with on a regular basis. We each shared 3 prayer requests: one personal, one professional and one for the church. I felt totally comfortable sharing my heart with them. I enjoyed praying for them as well. 

I am so glad that God brought our family to cLife 5 years ago and allowed me to join the staff last year. I'm looking forward to what God is doing through our church and I'm blessed to play the role He has provided for me. 


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