AIA Winter Retreat

What an amazing weekend we had at the retreat! It was a wild & crazy ride up to Camp Iawah...literally. As we were leaving Ottawa, we got hit with freezing rain. A few cars slid off the road, I almost rear-ended a truck as we were both slowing down, a deer ran across the highway....and to top it all off, I missed a turn-off and it took us an extra hour to get to our destination. BUT, we made it :)

I didn't know what to expect at the retreat because I had never been to this one before. It is targeted to university students; kids a good 15 years younger than me! "What am I going to offer these people?" I thought. I came in with very low expectations, asking God to use me as He saw fit.

And use me He did! I was able to connect with 2 girls in particular and was able to share my story with them! They were open, honest, vulnerable and ready to hear. So I said silent prayers and just let God speak through me.

It was amazing to see the truth release them from the struggles they were dealing with. One girl, Melissa, after opening up to me about her upbringing and her journey to faith, broke into tears when I shared with her that she should not feel guilty for things she did in her past. That guilt is not from God but from the enemy. I explained that God is so merciful and compassionate that He does not nor will He ever look down in condemnation but rather He loves us so much. I shared that our sin is covered by Jesus' blood on the cross and that what God sees is purity, perfection, beauty. She said that she never heard that before. Her life before coming to faith was very much guilt driven and this was such a new and refreshing concept for her.

God in His amazing way, planned for that conversation to happen because after she & I spoke, our speaker highlighted those truths in a very very clear way. Actually many if not all the things Melissa and I spoke about were brought up again during the speaking sessions. Obviously God wanted her to hear it and believe it.

Another young woman, Jaclyn, and I hit it off during our time at the retreat. She and I (pictured above) took quite a bit of time going through some things she is struggling with. It was actually uncanny because many of these things I struggled with at her age. Of course God knew this and paired us up :)

When I first thought about joining the Campus Ministry, I kept wrestling with the thought, "What do I have to offer these girls? I am 15 years older!". However, this past weekend God spoke very clearly to my heart. "Rachel, you have gone through things and struggled with things that they are now or will very soon be dealing with. Offer your heart and ME to them." WOW!

After the weekend, I was just in awe of how God worked. I know these girls didn't approach me to talk because of anything I did or said but because God knew that He could use my experiences 10-15 years ago to speak to these girls. Incredible!

TEAM, please join me in:

• PRAISING GOD in how he used little 'ol me to reach 2 precious young girls
• Praying for Melissa & Jaclyn as they live out their faith and apply what they learned at the retreat
• Although they live in Southern Ontario, I offered to have a weekly call with them in order to support them in the things they are wrestling with. Please pray that the calls take place and that I will follow the Spirit's leading as to what I should say...or NOT say

Thank you TEAM for your amazing support of me in my ministry with AIA. I am so excited for what God has in store and I am thankful you are on this journey with me.