Young Adults' Retreat 2022
Our Young Adults (YAs) share about their recent retreat on 8 October 2022. The YAs set aside time to spend together to consider what God's word says about Christian maturity, and how He has designed for us to grow in community.
Before the pandemic, our Young Adults’ ministry used to hold regular annual retreats. These retreats often took place over a long weekend, and encouraged our YAs to set aside an extended period of time to spend in God’s word with God’s people.
It has been a long 2 years since COVID hit and during this period, it has been difficult to hold retreats due to the various regulations. As a result, the ministry has been primarily meeting in small groups that gather regularly to study God’s Word. This has been the primary mode of discipleship of the ministry. God has been graciously preserving and providing for the ministry. Many of the small groups have grown, whether in actual size or depth of relationships.
This year’s retreat was a one-day retreat held in church. The one-day retreat sought to address these questions: What does it mean for me to grow and mature as a Christian? What does it mean to bear fruit?
The organising team – comprising the ministry’s elder, Nehemiah, and deacons, Nicholas, Kagen and Bibianna – hoped that in this retreat the young adults would be able to hear what God has to say in His word about their life as a Christian. The Christian life is not to be lived as an individual Christian, but as a sinner who has been redeemed by God, made alive, and formed together as one body with other believers. They hoped that working through the passages will help them answer the question of what it means for them practically as a young adult in GBC.
The entire ministry came together to study God’s word and to see how God designed for us to mature. The YA retreat was also a timely one as our services have combined and our life together as one body has resumed. One of the difficulties with small groups is that they are only a small part of the local body, and therefore a small part of what it means to live as a Christian. Thus, this retreat was organised with the goal of providing a withdrawal from distraction and a space for the YAs to take stock of not just their own spiritual life, but the spiritual life of others as well.
The YAs had a series of talks and time for them to discuss in groups. The first talk by Nicholas Quek was from Ephesians 2 and focused on the Christian’s identity. Ephesians 2 speaks of who we once were – dead in our sins and walking in death. But God, rich in mercy, saved us and that is no longer the Christian’s identity. The Christian is now a recipient of God’s grace (Eph 2:4-9) and called to walk in the good works that God prepared beforehand. Our YAs were reminded that God has already designed for us to bear fruit, evident through these good works. A maturing Christian is one whose identity has changed, and is not living in light of this new identity.
Next, Kagen Lim took the YAs through 1 Timothy 4, and showed what maturity looks like and what it isn’t. The YAs were shown how God’s word has made it clear what these “good works” hinted at in Ephesians 2 looks like. Faithfulness, holding on to sound doctrine, and striving towards godliness were some of the points that Paul highlighted in this epistle to Timothy, a younger brother in the faith and minister of God’s word.
At the end of the day, the YAs were also challenged to reflect on their own walk individually and in community. They were encouraged to consider how they have been doing, and also how they can help one another grow as part of members of one body. From this retreat, we hope that the YAs are firstly encouraged and refreshed by the fact that only the gospel saves, and will also be prompted to consider what believing and trusting in this good news would mean for their life both as an individual Christian, as well as their life together with others in the church.
The ministry seeks the church’s prayer, that fruit will come from this retreat and in the lives of the YAs. Pray that God’s Spirit will continue to give them understanding and strengthen them as they continue to see to turn away from their sins and obey God in faith.