We’re just a few short hours away from the Annual Leadership Retreat, so I thought I would post a few ideas of things you can do to prepare for the retreat this weekend. The staff and zone leaders have poured a lot of time and energy into preparing the best event we possibly can, but what you get out of it is ultimately up to you. Here are a few things I would encourage you to do today to ensure that you are ready for the weekend.
Pray
First, pray that God will prepare your heart and mind for the weekend. We believe that Change of Pace + Change of place = Change of Perspective, so ask God that he would prepare you to learn, connect, and grow this weekend.
Prayer primes our level of expectations. In In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day, Pastor Mark says, “The more you pray, the higher your expectations.†Write down what want God to do for you this weekend and begin to pray about it. Perhaps you want to become better connected with other leaders or improve your relationship with your zone leader. Maybe there is a particular area of leadership that you want to learn more about. Your prayer might be that God would give you a bigger or clearer vision for your group or help you develop a systematic game plan or strategy for the semester or upcoming year. Or maybe it’s a prayer that the retreat will jumpstart a personal revival or help you re-prioritize spiritual growth in your own life. Regardless, spend some time praying that God will prepare you to receive everything he wants to give you this weekend.
Read
The theme is Some Assembly Required, and we’ve already started writing about it. Go back to the previous weeks’ Thursday Leadership Lessons and read Some Assembly Required- Part 1 and Some Assembly Required- Part 2.
Meditate on Scripture
Spend a few minutes reading through and meditating on the following Scriptural passages:
You can also read Bible Drill Wednesday articles on these passages as follow:
Build Together (Ephesians 2:19-22)
Cornerstone (1 Corinthians 3:9-17)
Spend some time praying over and meditating on these passages.
Sleep
Finally, get some sleep before coming. We’ll be up pretty late on Friday night. The team competitions will begin in the gym at 10:00, and then the late-night snack tables will be open in the main auditorium.
I am super excited about the retreat this year and, although we say it every year, I’m pretty convinced this one’s going to be the best yet! Thank you for everything that you do, and we’ll see you in less than 36 hours!
So we’re saying I shouldn’t go to my 5 a.m. swim practice tomorrow …?
Amy
January 18th, 2007