S.A.L.T. 2008
Another retreat I wasnt going to go on at first, finances as usual, that turned out to be... just what the Dr. ordered!
Ah yeah, I had already told my roomie/aide I was not going to go, so she had a plan to go home to visit family that weekend. What I forgot to mention was that a few weeks later, I got money for birthday and Christmas, and so changed my mind (why does this scenario suddenly sound oh so so familiar?) Needless to say she waws pretty peeved. But at the end she was really glad she had gone. It had been a few years since her last SALT retreat.
Our speaker for the week was John Fischer, who also happens to manage the website for Rick Warren and Purpose Driven Life Ministries. John also has his own website and you can visit that here.
Tbhe fist two days were just okay to me. I actually questioned what I was doing at the conference. Maybe I wasn't meant to come. However, I did have a few comments strike me.
"The more you get to knwo Him, the more you need Him"
Isn't that the truth?
"We minister best out of our own need. It provides me a ministry to others."
Wow, did I chew on this for a while. I could see how this was so true.
I got the most out of the last two days of the conference. Oh dont get me wrong, the entire conference was great, but the last two days are what God used the most.
It was Thursday night, and earlier in the week, there was talk of a worship night. I was excited. God had an incredible night in store for me and I had no idea.
When I wheeled into the room where our main meetings were held, I noticed it was set up a bit different. What I saw first were two tables set together with candles all over and large river rocks neaer each candle. Scriptrue verses printed off the computer were scattered on the tables. I read a few before we were instructed to sit toward the fromt where chairs were set. We were told that there were various worship 'stations' set up around the room and we could check them out at any point in the evenings service. Our very own worship band played for most of the evening.
After many worship songs, I decide to go to the back of the room and read through the verses on tables. Each verse had the word 'rock'. I decide to write down the verses and starred the ones that really spoke to me.
Isaiah 26:4 - Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal
Psalm 19:14 - (I have made this my prayer) May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
1Cor 10:4 - and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
Deut 32:4 -He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
1Sam 2:2 - "There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.
2Sm 22:2 - He said: "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
Josh 4:21 - 24 -He said to the Israelites, "In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, 'What do these stones mean?' 22 tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.' 23 For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God."
Earlier in the week I had been to a seminar where at the very end, our speaker had given a prophetic word to a few in the room. I was slightly dissappointed that one of these people were mot me. However, at the worship night later, God royally blessed me with not one but three people encouraging me with a word and a fourth person praying for me. Here is just a snippet of what was said (that I could remember anyway).
Another person came to the front and gave a word to the entire crowd
"God never blessed anyone who gave up".
(I was close to giving up on my dreams for the future as I thought they should have happened by now.)
When I finally felt like I was able to leave, I was so fillled up in the Holy Spirit, I couldn't wheel out of there in a straight line!!!
Throughout the week, God further touched my heart with verses from various songs we sing in church, songs I have been singing for years that spoke differently this week
From 'Blessed be the Name of the Lord' -You give and take away
From 'Amazing Grace' -Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
Oh great light, my Hope and my Salvation
'Draw me Close to You' -Lay it all down again
'God of Jacob' -Let us not lift our souls to another
who knows now how many times I have been to MSU's XA pastors seminar on the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. You would think I would have it all down by now, but each year I get something new from it.
"Jesus speaks a lot more than we give Him credit for."
And sometimes I dotn take enough time to just sit back and listen. There always seems to be something I'm forgetting to do.
"Walking by the Spirit is something that is beyond human logic."
excercising my prayer language I always fear as though I am just making it up (didnt we cover fear being a sin?)
I AM AN ATOMIC BOMB to the DEMONIC
Obedience = Taking a Risk
Tongues
not our of our intellect but Gods
unknown to me but not God
Friday night was the final time we were to be together as Saturday morning we were to pack up and go back home. God had one final thing to reveal to me before I went back home. in our speakers message, he touched on Chi Alpha's mission -Reconciling students to Christ transforming the Uniniversity, the Marketplace and the World. He went on to give examples of those in teh University (professors, and the like) the Marketplace (doctors, lawyers, teachers...)
When he said teachers, I about fell out of my chair, sobbing because I finally understood that this was definately where God was calling me. And then he said one more thing, "You don't have to feel guilty about not being called overseas".
I would go overseas in a heartbeat if I knew for sure thats where God was calling me. I think it would be interesting to see how people outside of my world live. Especially those who share the same issues I do with disability. It was hard enough going 23 hours to Texas in a little car a few summers ago, and I can hardly stand a few hours on a place from here to San Diego. I can't imaging myself sitting in an airplane for an entire day.
Here it is, weeks after the retreat and still excited about what God did those four days. No longer do I have such an uncertainty about my future, but look forward to it with much greater anticipation. I am excited to see what God does with my dreams.
Ah yeah, I had already told my roomie/aide I was not going to go, so she had a plan to go home to visit family that weekend. What I forgot to mention was that a few weeks later, I got money for birthday and Christmas, and so changed my mind (why does this scenario suddenly sound oh so so familiar?) Needless to say she waws pretty peeved. But at the end she was really glad she had gone. It had been a few years since her last SALT retreat.
Our speaker for the week was John Fischer, who also happens to manage the website for Rick Warren and Purpose Driven Life Ministries. John also has his own website and you can visit that here.
Tbhe fist two days were just okay to me. I actually questioned what I was doing at the conference. Maybe I wasn't meant to come. However, I did have a few comments strike me.
"The more you get to knwo Him, the more you need Him"
Isn't that the truth?
"We minister best out of our own need. It provides me a ministry to others."
Wow, did I chew on this for a while. I could see how this was so true.
I got the most out of the last two days of the conference. Oh dont get me wrong, the entire conference was great, but the last two days are what God used the most.
It was Thursday night, and earlier in the week, there was talk of a worship night. I was excited. God had an incredible night in store for me and I had no idea.
When I wheeled into the room where our main meetings were held, I noticed it was set up a bit different. What I saw first were two tables set together with candles all over and large river rocks neaer each candle. Scriptrue verses printed off the computer were scattered on the tables. I read a few before we were instructed to sit toward the fromt where chairs were set. We were told that there were various worship 'stations' set up around the room and we could check them out at any point in the evenings service. Our very own worship band played for most of the evening.
After many worship songs, I decide to go to the back of the room and read through the verses on tables. Each verse had the word 'rock'. I decide to write down the verses and starred the ones that really spoke to me.
Isaiah 26:4 - Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal
Psalm 19:14 - (I have made this my prayer) May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
1Cor 10:4 - and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
Deut 32:4 -He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
1Sam 2:2 - "There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.
2Sm 22:2 - He said: "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
Josh 4:21 - 24 -He said to the Israelites, "In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, 'What do these stones mean?' 22 tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.' 23 For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God."
Earlier in the week I had been to a seminar where at the very end, our speaker had given a prophetic word to a few in the room. I was slightly dissappointed that one of these people were mot me. However, at the worship night later, God royally blessed me with not one but three people encouraging me with a word and a fourth person praying for me. Here is just a snippet of what was said (that I could remember anyway).
God never forgets about His people
He has great things in store for you
God gets excited to hear your voice in the morning
He is closer than you think
Confidence and fulfillment in Him
God - "Don't give up on your dreams".
"Faith as a mustard seen can still move mountains
Another person came to the front and gave a word to the entire crowd
"God never blessed anyone who gave up".
(I was close to giving up on my dreams for the future as I thought they should have happened by now.)
When I finally felt like I was able to leave, I was so fillled up in the Holy Spirit, I couldn't wheel out of there in a straight line!!!
Throughout the week, God further touched my heart with verses from various songs we sing in church, songs I have been singing for years that spoke differently this week
From 'Blessed be the Name of the Lord' -You give and take away
From 'Amazing Grace' -Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
Oh great light, my Hope and my Salvation
'Draw me Close to You' -Lay it all down again
'God of Jacob' -Let us not lift our souls to another
who knows now how many times I have been to MSU's XA pastors seminar on the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. You would think I would have it all down by now, but each year I get something new from it.
"Jesus speaks a lot more than we give Him credit for."
And sometimes I dotn take enough time to just sit back and listen. There always seems to be something I'm forgetting to do.
"Walking by the Spirit is something that is beyond human logic."
excercising my prayer language I always fear as though I am just making it up (didnt we cover fear being a sin?)
I AM AN ATOMIC BOMB to the DEMONIC
Obedience = Taking a Risk
Tongues
not our of our intellect but Gods
unknown to me but not God
Friday night was the final time we were to be together as Saturday morning we were to pack up and go back home. God had one final thing to reveal to me before I went back home. in our speakers message, he touched on Chi Alpha's mission -Reconciling students to Christ transforming the Uniniversity, the Marketplace and the World. He went on to give examples of those in teh University (professors, and the like) the Marketplace (doctors, lawyers, teachers...)
When he said teachers, I about fell out of my chair, sobbing because I finally understood that this was definately where God was calling me. And then he said one more thing, "You don't have to feel guilty about not being called overseas".
I would go overseas in a heartbeat if I knew for sure thats where God was calling me. I think it would be interesting to see how people outside of my world live. Especially those who share the same issues I do with disability. It was hard enough going 23 hours to Texas in a little car a few summers ago, and I can hardly stand a few hours on a place from here to San Diego. I can't imaging myself sitting in an airplane for an entire day.
Here it is, weeks after the retreat and still excited about what God did those four days. No longer do I have such an uncertainty about my future, but look forward to it with much greater anticipation. I am excited to see what God does with my dreams.
posted by XAgirl @ 12:37 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home