On the 13th of this month, 90+ full-time, part-time, and volunteer staff from all over the state of Kansas are going to gather together in one place to sing, pray, hear God’s Word, eat, laugh, serve, and play together at our annual All Staff Retreat. We intentionally set this time aside each year for rest, recuperation, and realignment of our staff. With our families, busy ministry schedules, and geographical spread, it might just be the most important thing our staff does each year.
I write this not just so you can be informed, but in hopes that you can add the All Staff Retreat on July 13-15 to your prayer list. Here are a few ways to guide your prayer for this All Staff Retreat:
1. Safety. Pray for physical and spiritual protection for the staff. Our staff will collectively drive thousands of miles for this retreat. Pray for God’s protection as many travel to make this retreat. We also ask that you would pray for protection from the enemy as we know that he prowls like a lion waiting to devour Christians (1 Peter 5:8). I’m not saying there’s a demon behind every bush, or that our leadership anticipates a special kind of spiritual warfare, we just want to be vigilant to stay on guard against our sinful flesh and the attacks of the enemy.
2. Rest and Refreshment. One of the attributes that our staff strives to embody is grit. We aren’t meandering through life and ministry, but rather steadfast in our commitment to the mission God has for us. This is a beautiful thing, but God didn’t just make us to work hard, he created us to rest well too. This retreat is not an attempt to vacate from reality, it is meant to be an intentional refilling of sorts. Please pray that the retreat would serve to provide rest and as a reminder that encourages our pastors and staff to have healthy rhythms of rest and work throughout the year.
3. Unity. I already mentioned our geographical spread as One Church in Many Places. Our pastors and staff are like a big family, and this event is an annual reunion of sorts for our staff. There’s a deep sense of joy in my heart as I anticipate having everyone together. More than a warm fuzzy, the truth is that we are better when we link arms together in the mission of God. The unity we have is a gracious gift from God that we don’t want to take for granted. We want to fight to preserve it. Pray that God would continue to unify our staff in the gospel so we can continue to lead and serve well. “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” (Psalm 133:1). God is glorified and we are strengthened in God’s mission when we are unified in Christ.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for praying. Thank you for linking arms in the greatest mission on the planet: making disciples of all nations for the glory of God.