Dickson Valley Retreat Center with Immanuel Presbyterian Youth Group

This past weekend, Craig and I had the privilege of going on a retreat with our church's youth group. It has been a while since we have belonged to a church that has a youth group and we were soooo excited when the youth pastor, Anna, asked us to go. Not only did we both get to attend the retreat as youth sponsors, but Craig got to be the main speaker! We had a wonderful time and enjoyed getting to know all the teens. They are sooo smart and asked great questions!  They were incredibility warm and welcoming to us, and we appreciated getting to know each and every one them. On the flip side, I quickly came to the realization that I am an old lady now. It just about killed me to stay up till midnight and sleep on a crummy twin size mattress in a sleeping bag. Not to mention, I was so sore that I had a hard time sleeping thanks to the tubing hill, ga ga ball, air ball, outdoor laser tag, geocaching, Nuke 'em, and many other games/activities that required me to get into body positions I haven't assumed in a while.

Craig's text came mainly from James 1 and 4, Proverbs 4:23, and Genesis 1 and the topic was God's love. We discussed how God doesn't get anything out of loving us and that He doesn't need us which is great news! He loves us no matter how sinful we are and when we sin it only destroys us and our relationship with him. He gave us the capacity and capability to love Him and when we choose to love other things like money, success, beauty or popularity we are desiring finite things that will never fully satisfy us. Ultimately, Jesus had to die a horrible death on a cross to demonstrate to us the result of not loving God--death!

James 1:17
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."

Genesis 1:26-27
"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. An let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of heaven and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on earth.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."

Proverbs 4:23
"Guard your heart above all else for it determines the course of your life."