February 14-20, 2011
Church Ministry News
Spring retreat for Hakka youths refuels passion for prayer and missions
Reported by Chen Wei-chien
Written by Lydia Ma
After 4 years of hiatus, Hakka Youth Spring Retreat recently resumed and a retreat was held on February 6-9, 2011, with particular focus on prayer and nurturing an intimate relationship with God. This year’s retreat theme was “I pray for more time with God” and the retreat included seminars with pastors on how to pray different kinds of prayers, including prayers of repentance, prayers for guidance, prayers of thanksgiving, and prayer marches, as well as planning out daily devotional times.
The retreat’s closing ceremony featured Hakka Committee chairman, Rev. Tseng Chang-fa, as the main speaker. He retold the story of Thomas Barclay, a missionary who offered his life to God and full-time ministry at the age of 16. Tseng concluded his message by encouraging youths to consider dedicating their lives to full-time ministry. An altar call for such a dedication was held at the retreat.
Besides guiding Hakka teens in nurturing their relationship with God, the other purpose of this retreat was to train and raise up youth leaders within Hakka Presbytery.
“I hope that Hakka youths will rise and become youth group leaders in our Hakka Youth Department. Through this camp, we’ve given them a first-hand look at what they need to do if they become committee members. We hope that it has inspired them to take on the challenge, ” leader of Hakka Presbytery’s Youth Ministry Rev. Chen Ke-an said.
