a blessed retreat

we ended our ForeRunner retreat today. it has been an incredible 5 days, with some really powerful devotions, deep and heartfelt sharing, and good fun!

some key lessons that i came away with:

1. God makes us competent to handle the task(s) He has for us

2. Sometimes we are available {Here am I Lord!!!), but God wants to use someone else. like King David who wanted to build a temple for God, but God told him that his son, Solomon, would be given that honourable task. and sometimes, like mary, we aren't outrightly saying "Here am I!" but God chooses us to accomplish His will, and like mary, we should obey faithfully.

3. To every leader, there is Status, Stature (Credibility) and Substance. the most important of all, and the least addressed, is substance. and God wants to work on that area of my life.


during this time, dan, our STINTer, contracted shingles. i was really terrified for a while. i really HATE getting sick, especially when it is physically visible (i'm vain lah), and i was afraid i would catch chicken pox (shingles is a form of chicke pox), since i hadn't had it before.

but i was REALLY so impressed by dan, and how he self regulated himself, purposely not coming too close to me and the kids, and really being a good sport about it. (it's only contagious by personal contact, not by air.) i appreciate you dan!!! =)

anyways, during that time i also got a rash. so i got scared that maybe it's chicken pox or sth, and this evening i went to the doctor to check. turns out i have something called "folliculitis". it's inflamed and clogged skin pores, that happens when you are exposed to intense sun rays for a period of time. no, it's not just sun burn, it's something more.

so anyway, i'm EXTREMELY thankful that it's not sth more serious, and it's treatable with regular use of a cream. =D


something else that ended off the retreat was a time of revealing the org chart for the year ahead. i'm very excited about my new roles in publishing, pr & marketing. especially publishing, which entails graphic design for marketing purposes. =D so cool... i'll be working a lot with joy, my mentor and friend, which is great too!

on monday, it's back to work =). and i'm also looking forward to ikea shopping with joy, who is looking for stuff to decorate her new place near holland v! =D