Since that first retreat, our retreats have evolved with new ideas and new traditions that have shaped how myself and other young people in our community see God and live out their lives. I think overall, though, a culture that has been formed over time on these retreats is having a time and space to authentically think about life in a bigger way. So many times we don’t have an opportunity to think about who we really are and who God really is. Life is so filled with busyness that we can’t help but to get swept into. Especially, in high school when you have to first try to balance homework, work, extracurriculars, college classes, friends, family, etc etc. It can sometimes be impossible to set all those things aside and leave room for figuring out who God is and who He wants you to be. Even in our community, where most of us have had some sort of religious education in our formative years, it still becomes difficult to really grapple with these larger questions that each of us has to figure out. This difficulty in answering larger questions isn’t the fault of the education that we give our kids, but that education isn’t the same as having an actual relationship with God. That’s the biggest thing that these retreats help facilitate. That knowledge of Jesus Christ that any of our young people have can meet the actual person of Jesus. That each of their relationships with Him can be found there or grown there. In hindsight, after attending nine out of the ten retreats that we have had it’s been really amazing to see how much the Lord can work for each and every person on this retreat, just by making Himself known and by reassuring those on it that He knows them.
As our retreat approaches in the next couple of weeks I just ask that the whole Most Holy Trinity community can keep us in your prayers. Please pray that the Holy Spirit can be present on this retreat, and that all of us involved can be moved in some way to know and love our God in better ways than before.
God bless, Corey