"In Christ, She..." Women's Retreat

On April 12-13, thirty-three women from ARC and the community attended the In Christ, She… ARC Women’s Retreat.  The theme of the event—In Christ, She—challenged and encouraged women to find their identity, value, and courage in Christ.  The retreat featured a variety of practices to help engage with the content:  worship, media presentations, live teaching, time to reflect in solitude, and small group discussions.  The program for Friday evening featured media presentations, as well as the story You Are Special by Max Lucado.  The focus was to help women find their identity in the truths revealed by God throughout Scripture, instead of defining themselves by the standards of the world.  Saturday featured teaching from Angie Hamstra and Jill Kohlhagen.  The theme of Angie’s speaking was, “In Christ, she stepped bravely into the unknown.”  Her message focused on Luke 5: 1-11, while interweaving her personal testimony as well.  She emphasized the truth that Jesus sees us, while leading us to deeper waters, which yields greater challenges as well as abundant blessing.  Jill’s theme was, “In Christ, she knows who she is, faces her fears, and walks by faith.”  She drew on the life of Moses, highlighting his call at the burning bush, leading the Israelites across the Red Sea with Pharaoh’s army in pursuit, and being refined in the wilderness.  She also shared part of her personal testimony and emphasized finding courage in Christ when you can’t go back, you can’t stand still, but you’re terrified to go forward.

 Some of the truths that attendees took away from the retreat were:  “It’s okay to not be okay.”  “Trust God.  He Sees me!”  While many enjoyed the comradery of the retreat, the chance to connect with other women about life challenges was beneficial as well.  The theme of finding one’s sufficiency in Christ resonated with many and may it continue to daily impact each of our lives.