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Weekend Away Review...
Getting There.
The first challenge of the weekend was finding Cloverly Hall. The print ed directions (supplied by google) sent to everyone seemed pretty clear... All was going well until having taken a left at the round-a-bout we were unable to find the next road on the right. After several u turns it eventually became clear that it should have been a right at the round-a-bout. The fog was closing in and reduced visibility to just a few meters making it impossible to see the side roads and their names. Eventually though we saw a big sign to Clovery Hall, - hurray we were nearly there.... well almost. The fog really wasn't helping but after a few wrong turns we eventually found the place.
It was reassuring (for me as a man) to know a few other people suffered a similar fate at the hands of the dark foggy roads, not least our speaker for the weekend Martin Young who by the time he arrived had spent the best part of an hour driving around looking for the hall.
The Food
There was plenty of food over the weekend, Jacket Potatoes, sausages for breakfast (Jono managed 11), lasagne, chicken and broccoli bake, bacon and even a Sunday roast. For those that were still peck ish in between meals we'd taken along plenty of cakes, biscuits and sweeties, including a birthday cake for Jess.
The Fellowship
There was plenty of time for fellowship over the weekend and people really bonded. We had our own lounge where we were based over the weekend and in addition to being able to shelter from the cold it was always a buzz with people and activity. Saturday afternoon people went off and did different things in groups of about 4 or 5 (a car load), but even with these different groups a lot of people seemed to end up in the same pub for a game of darts and a quick drink to take the chill off. The girls managed to find time to watch the X-Factor results whilst the boys played pool and table football, and Sunday morning there was a real buzz (literally) as phones beeped with news of the safe arrival of Amelia Rose.
The Word & Spirit
Ah yes, there was another reason for the weekend away, it wasn't just about the food and the fellowship - we wanted to hear from God. Martin Young had given up his weekend to talk to us (notes to appear shortly). Martin talked about training our selves and spiritual disciplines. Training was essential for an athlete and the same is true for our walk with God. We need to train our selves so we grow and to ensure that
during hard times, we know God is in control and we know his love and grace.
Fellowship and community are an important part of training our selves and being with each other and supporting each other is also important.
We all filled in a questionnaire, the results of which helped us realise how we relate to God, be it through nature, serving, being with others, being alone etc. We also had an opportunity to wander through the (cold) grounds of the hall alone talking to God and praying for someone else in the group.
Conclusion
We'll update the site with a copy of Martins slide show in the next few days, but on the whole everyone who went enjoyed getting closer to God, and closer to each other. We'll be looking at small groups to support each other, and other ways of helping each other train to get closer to God. A big thanks to Jono who lead worship for the weekend and Martin who came to speak to us.
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Nick Riley, 10/12/2008 |
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