Love Springing Forth

By Jody Doo December 10, 2010December 16, 2010

Retreat goers drew closer in love at the YK District adult retreat.

On Nov. 28, 235 individuals from the YK District in City Harvest Church drove up north from Singapore to the Pulai Springs Resort in Johor Bahru.

Although the rain poured and the convoy of cars almost lost its way, the company was not deterred from the three objectives on their agenda—Eat, Pray and Love.

EAT

In their first meal at Pulai Springs, everyone was treated to an eight-course dinner at the Qing Palace. From appetizers to golden crispy breaded prawns and pearly white steamed fish, it was food that satisfied both body and soul.

It seemed that the committee was out to spoil the happy campers. Breakfast was a “all-you-can-eat” buffet spread and the icing on the cake was the pastry corner where there were chocolate muffins and jam-filled kuih bahulu.

Dinner for the next day was a poolside BBQ dinner. Although the rains fell, the blessing in disguise was having the kitchen crew prepare the food instead. Everyone got to enjoy generous portions of steak, lamb chops, prawns and fish. It was a hearty meal topped up with uproarious performances by different individuals.

Even the children had some tricks up their sleeves. While the adults were participating actively in the camp, they were busy preparing a song item. It was a touching moment when the little ones sang “You Are My Sunshine” to thank their parents for all the sacrifices they have made. Though not pitch perfect, the heart-warming factor was a perfect 10.

PRAY

Morning prayer sessions were scheduled each day from 7 to 8 a.m. Initially, the committee was worried that the retreat would be physically draining. But the people turned up with enthusiasm and each session was fully packed with people.

Goh Yock Kiang, district pastor of the zone, shared during the different sessions, and prayed for those with different needs. In one particular session, Goh felt led to pray for couples who were experiencing difficulties in their marriage. In another session, he prayed for those who felt their love for God had diminished. Many of the members left the sessions feeling encouraged and refreshed.

LOVE

Love was exemplified at different levels. An angel-mortal game was played during the retreat where every individual was an angel who had to “care” and “bless” a mortal assigned to him or her. Everyone had to bless his or her mortal in creative ways.

The rain stopped just in time for team-building activities to take place outdoors. There were eight different stations where some required strength while others, pure wit. Riotous roars could be heard throughout Pulai Springs. The most challenging station of all was the Ice-Breaker station where teams were given a huge block of ice and were required to melt it using friction. It was hilarious to see how creative everyone became—some gentlemen even took off their shirts and offered to have the ice rubbed on their backs.

Another highlight of the camp was the workshops for the singles and married couples respectively. Tan Ye Peng, deputy senior pastor of CHC shared with the married couples on how to strengthen their marriages and fall in love with each other all over again. Jeremy Choy, assistant pastor of CHC shared with all the singles on how to be a great gift to his or her future partner. Though both workshops served different purposes, the central theme really was love—to love God, partner and self.

Goh, who was also the chief camp commandant, shared, “What touched my heart most was the time of testimony sharing during the last session. Unbeknownst to all, a couple had actually quarreled before coming to the retreat, while another couple’s car broke down on their way here. Yet another couple made a tough decision to leave their autistic son in the care of a relative as they felt they needed to come for the retreat. At the end of the day, all who turned up agreed that being at the camp was one of the best decision they made this year.