Kissing retreats goodbye...

This is in response to an article that I read about a youth pastor who stopped doing retreats in his youth group because they kept arranging them with very little response and very few people singing up for them. Now he has tried to incorporate pieces that he has had in the retreats into his regular ministry. You can read it here for more info on it.

I did not agree with this method. I think that retreats can not only serve as a time for students to connect with God in a deeper way, but they also provide a time for youth to get to know the staff and each other better than they ever could in a Sunday or Wednesday service. I switched youth groups in 7th grade, and it was a very difficult transition for me. I didn't miss my old youth group, but in this new bigger one I just felt like another person and felt completely lost in the crowd. This continued for weeks and I only continued going because my best friend went there and it was time to spend with her. About a month and a half in there was a Fall Retreat planned. I did not want to go, because I thought it would just be more of feeling left out and I did not want that for a whole weekend. But my friend convinced me, and I am so glad she did. At that retreat I met people who are still my friends today, and I also connected with some of the leaders in a way I never had before. The next youth group meeting that following Wednesday was wonderful! I felt completely different! I had people to talk to and no longer felt lost in a crowd. From that point on I never missed a retreat, and on the last one had a very hard time accepting that I would not get to go on the next one. Not only did I connect with people who many of them now are my best friends even here at Bethel, but I was also continuously challenged. I was told that I was, with the power of Christ within me, able to stand up against the things that the world would try to force on me. It was through these leaders at these retreats teaching me about the Bible and faith, and how it should look in life, that I made it through my jr. high and high school years overcoming many of the common obstacles that pull people away. I do not think that these things could be replicated in the context of a few hour youth meeting.