Youth Leader's Camp 2012
Greetings! First of all, this post has been delayed for like one month lol. Actually, I think almost all of my posts are delayed anyway. Now I should REALLY hire someone to blog for me. My blog is so dead. I challenged myself to stop blogging for 20 days and see what's gonna happen. Well, been there, done that and it's not a pleasant one, so I figure I better continue blog :D. Sorry I had less pictures this time. Pics are all thanks to Schoffal, my big lovable bro. So, I attended this spectacular spiritual camp on the 2nd of Feb- 3rd of Feb at St.Mary's Cathedral, Sandakan.
Romans 8:28 tells us that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. It was through this promise pointer that God gave me hope and kept me on edge on the Youth Leader's Camp (YLC). I first heard about this camp from my close friend, Varrelene J. "I will go", I promised, no matter how much problem I had to hurdle in order to participate. Being punctual is useless if you're not in it wholeheartedly. It's like you're going expecting nothing.
Romans 8:28 tells us that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. It was through this promise pointer that God gave me hope and kept me on edge on the Youth Leader's Camp (YLC). I first heard about this camp from my close friend, Varrelene J. "I will go", I promised, no matter how much problem I had to hurdle in order to participate. Being punctual is useless if you're not in it wholeheartedly. It's like you're going expecting nothing.
During the early days of 2012, I am still struggling with myself, battling against the world. Shame on me, I depended only on my strength back then. The fire of serving the Lord seems to turn dull with it. I feel like I have only a seed of faith as the challenges in life grew. In between those times, I prayed to God and asked God to bless me and also open up a way for me to get my life straight. YLC is a blessing disguise and an obvious answer to my prayers. I am so happy and I thanked the Lord for this opportunity! I am seeking God's will, seeking God's face, seeking God's direction and seeking God's guidance, and believe it or not I found all those through YLC! Anyway, to compact a 4 day-4 night event in a single post sounds impossible, so I'll tell bits and pieces of moments that really reached out to me only.
John 15:16 says 'You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.' The word 'I chose you' brought me chills and it still does today. The first session was from Bishop Julius Dusin Gitom, entitled My dream, Your Dream, Our Dream. It was a great session because I could envision my hopes that I truly wanted to achieve as a leader. It was also a great start for such a camp. Jesus's dream is the church. What's your dream?
The other activity that inspires me was a session called PDP by Roselinah Francis ,which stands for Personal Development Plan. I was a birdbrain at first, putting on vacuous expression and just sit there like a stone. As I pray, my eyes are opened up to what God really wants for my life. I came face to face with questions like 'What would God want me to do in life? and which path or direction should I take?'. It really helps me to organize my future plans and doing it alongside God's plan for me too. I experienced tremendous thirst for God. From there, I determined to mature in faith. No more drinking milk this time, it's about time to eat some meat!
I really thank God because He also invited Unc. Francis Kamuntah to talk about keseimbangan which means balance in our lives. As we know, the world now are in pursuit of wealth and success. He is so energetic and hilarious the atmosphere was never dull! He's the one who reminded me that knowing and living the Bible are two different things.
Through YLC, I have gained experience of different forms of prayers which includes Praise and Worship (I am sure it is common enough), Taize prayer, Body Prayer, Centering Prayer and Adoration. On the second night of our camp, the adoration moment was my first and unutterably beautiful. Before that, Sister Lilian emphasized the importance of prayer and silence as Jesus himself also took time to pray with the apostles ( Mark 6:31). It's hard to express what I've been through because it's simply not of the earth. The thing is, I can't fully engross myself in the adoration at first. I prayed to God asking for extra strength considering that I am so tired that night and can't help myself from dozing off every minute.
Suddenly, I was shaking all over and there was that familiar goosebumps again. I opened my eyes to take a peek at everyone else. "They seem to be fine", I thought. "So what the heck wrong with me?!" At the same time I felt a strong urge to offer a prayer, as most of them are doing so. Because I shake so much, my sleepiness are gone. God told me that "If you're not going to pray, you're gonna continue to shake." hahaha!! It was so funny I almost laugh out loud in the chapel. Of all the things God can do to make me stay awake was to make me shake! God sure has His sense of humor! XD
My other significant moments in YLC would be the '"You are special because..."' session. Each and every one of us are given an amount of heart-shaped cards and we're supposed to write words of encouragement, love and appreciation to those around us. I got 25 hearts in return and each of them is priceless! Thank you all for the beautiful wishes and messages you've given me! I love you all! It was such joy. In leadership, teamwork is essential. It becomes the foundation of any organization or even the church. As a chairman of Christian Student's Movement in my school and TRBR member, I am truly glad to say that both Team Building session on the 2nd and 3rd day has impacted me on it's importance. One thing that I remember most ; Silence is not an option.
Apart from that, I also got to meet new friends from other churches from miles away, perhaps miles and miles and miles and miles away too. Who ever knew such a fate of God that brought us together huh? It was through their sharings that I learned to put myself in others' shoes and take their story as my own inspiration.,as well as to include them in my prayers. Sharings brought me joy because I know the Holy Spirit is always working through His children. I love giving the glory back to God.
A special dinner fellowship @ Father Mulder's. Dine under the stars w/ no cutleries and electricity! Now that's traditional. I also think it's time to appreciate the time of our ancestors where they only used candle lights XD
The other activity that inspires me was a session called PDP by Roselinah Francis ,which stands for Personal Development Plan. I was a birdbrain at first, putting on vacuous expression and just sit there like a stone. As I pray, my eyes are opened up to what God really wants for my life. I came face to face with questions like 'What would God want me to do in life? and which path or direction should I take?'. It really helps me to organize my future plans and doing it alongside God's plan for me too. I experienced tremendous thirst for God. From there, I determined to mature in faith. No more drinking milk this time, it's about time to eat some meat!
I really thank God because He also invited Unc. Francis Kamuntah to talk about keseimbangan which means balance in our lives. As we know, the world now are in pursuit of wealth and success. He is so energetic and hilarious the atmosphere was never dull! He's the one who reminded me that knowing and living the Bible are two different things.
Through YLC, I have gained experience of different forms of prayers which includes Praise and Worship (I am sure it is common enough), Taize prayer, Body Prayer, Centering Prayer and Adoration. On the second night of our camp, the adoration moment was my first and unutterably beautiful. Before that, Sister Lilian emphasized the importance of prayer and silence as Jesus himself also took time to pray with the apostles ( Mark 6:31). It's hard to express what I've been through because it's simply not of the earth. The thing is, I can't fully engross myself in the adoration at first. I prayed to God asking for extra strength considering that I am so tired that night and can't help myself from dozing off every minute.
Suddenly, I was shaking all over and there was that familiar goosebumps again. I opened my eyes to take a peek at everyone else. "They seem to be fine", I thought. "So what the heck wrong with me?!" At the same time I felt a strong urge to offer a prayer, as most of them are doing so. Because I shake so much, my sleepiness are gone. God told me that "If you're not going to pray, you're gonna continue to shake." hahaha!! It was so funny I almost laugh out loud in the chapel. Of all the things God can do to make me stay awake was to make me shake! God sure has His sense of humor! XD
My other significant moments in YLC would be the '"You are special because..."' session. Each and every one of us are given an amount of heart-shaped cards and we're supposed to write words of encouragement, love and appreciation to those around us. I got 25 hearts in return and each of them is priceless! Thank you all for the beautiful wishes and messages you've given me! I love you all! It was such joy. In leadership, teamwork is essential. It becomes the foundation of any organization or even the church. As a chairman of Christian Student's Movement in my school and TRBR member, I am truly glad to say that both Team Building session on the 2nd and 3rd day has impacted me on it's importance. One thing that I remember most ; Silence is not an option.
Apart from that, I also got to meet new friends from other churches from miles away, perhaps miles and miles and miles and miles away too. Who ever knew such a fate of God that brought us together huh? It was through their sharings that I learned to put myself in others' shoes and take their story as my own inspiration.,as well as to include them in my prayers. Sharings brought me joy because I know the Holy Spirit is always working through His children. I love giving the glory back to God.
A special dinner fellowship @ Father Mulder's. Dine under the stars w/ no cutleries and electricity! Now that's traditional. I also think it's time to appreciate the time of our ancestors where they only used candle lights XD
After 'Send Off Mass' w/ my new friends :)
I had so much to tell but so little time!! So, I figure those are my significant moments that I'm really itching to share. All in all, I felt that there's huge change in me. I am more confident stepping out as a leader. On the last day, we are all invited to serve the Lord through the Church and with the Church. I know that God has called me to this circle of life and I am not ashamed to say that "YES, I AM READY'. If God called you one day, will you say yes too?
God bless you all, thanks for reading!! :) For more pictures and stories regarding YLC, do head to http://newsupdatedospo.blogspot.com/
Sign out, sleep.
how inspiring! Hehe... your essay will always continue to inspire me.. my faoundation.:)
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