Goal:
The retreat is based on the fruit of the spirit joy. Many are searching for true joy in different things. In ministry we often get focused on the work of multiplying talents and forget to share in the Master’s true joy. The goal of this retreat is to have the Core Team understand the gift of true joy and how living in our “Master’s joy” frees us to love and serve.
Why Do a Core Retreat?
With everything else that fills the youth ministry calendar, why take more time to do a retreat for the Core Team? This is a good question with an even better answer. Simply put, we cannot expect the teens to take time to encounter Christ on a retreat if we do not do the same. We cannot expect to lead the teens to a profound relationship with God if we are not developing one ourselves. God brought you into youth ministry not to just transform teens’ hearts, but to transform yours as well. It is a sacrifice to take time away from families and busy schedules, but God is never outdone in generosity.
We recommend that the Core Team make a yearly retreat together. This resource is just one of many retreat outlines for Core Teams published by Life Teen. Choose a retreat date well in advance and encourage the entire team to schedule accordingly. This retreat should not be a “planning weekend/ retreat.” Set this aside as sacred time for prayer and use other meetings for planning youth ministry events.