New Student Retreat: one down, one to go!

This past weekend we took 8 freshman women and 4 upperclass women on a retreat to Charolettesville Virginia.
Overall, great time to get to know people and start to establish this as a core community for these freshman women.
We tried to get across a couple of key messages--and I think they stuck.
1: Jesus as LORD of our lives. Who is Jesus that we would drop everything, like Peter, to follow him? How was this man this amazing?
Beyond that, what does it mean to follow him? Does it mean attending more Bible studies or doing less "wrong" things? We suggested instead of even making Jesus first priority in our lives he should be the framework for our lives--where everything else comes from (used the chest of drawers illustration from Marty Purks at William and Mary--instead of having Jesus be a drawer of our lives--big or small, Jesus doesn't want to be compartmentalized but instead the framework within which we fit the rest of our lives--academics, relationships--into).

2: Acting as a missionary on campus--these freshman women have an amazing opportunity in college. They will spend the next few years living closely to people of all kinds of backgrounds and opinions. They can choose to love and engage those who are different--or separate themselves.
For this, my coworker created a large chart of how, in their times on campus, these girls could either "Radically Identify" like Jesus or be "radically different" like Jesus. Examples of when Jesus radically identified included when Jesus ate with sinners, wept over a loss, accepted people without judgment. Ways Jesus displayed being radically different in his time on earth included servanthood, loving "wastefully," displaying humility, and being more interested in other people than they may be in themselves.

We prayed that commitments would be made this weekend and bonds would be formed between these women that would last four years--or more.

We know from past experience that, in most cases, if a freshman can be convinced to come on the freshman retreat their involvement for the year--and often all four--is secured. It must be something about the willingness to leave with a group, put your trust in strangers, and how God speaks to people in these times we set apart.

Great conversations with women of all ages going on--also smores, ice cream sundaes and all other kinds of fun. Great time!