2024 LWQ Retreat Report

71 Ladies and 16 men arrived Friday afternoon ready to enjoy a relaxed weekend belonging to one another in Christ as Lutheran Women of Qld. Re-shifting our focus and opening our senses and heart to God centring around Faith, Friendship and Service in the love of  God  that will enrich us. With the added Treat of (No food preparations – No dishes in the sink). Thanking God for the opportunity to delve into our word in the Bible and to experience a sense of belonging in you.

Naomi Marks Pres. BS&GC Zone welcomed all.

Our Theme Bible verse for this weekend is from Proverbs 27:9 “A sweet friendship refreshes the soul”. Let us be reminded of our aims as Lutheran Women of Qld.

1. To encourage deeper consecration and greater service to Christ and His church, in particular through the study of Scriptures and to share especially with women the good news of God’s salvation in Jesus Christ.
2. To co-ordinate and give impetus to the work of women of the LCA.
3. To foster the bond of Christian fellowship among women of the LCA Qld. District. With these thoughts in mind let us relax in Christ and build one another up in Christian love.

Naomi introduced the team leaders: Leanne, Colette, Shirley, Sharon, Sue, Narelle, Helene, Kay and herself. Explaining the importance of having a “Buddy” for the weekend.

Pastor Jordan Bennett – newly appointed Spiritual Leader for LWQ was introduced and asked to say a Blessing over the weekend.

 Each table was decorated with an ocean theme and each session we moved to a different group thus meeting someone new each time.

Beach. Bible, Belonging: There is something magical about the beach, It is the magnitude of God’s creation and how we are a small part of something huge. As we throw a beach ball around and between our friends we are reminded the ball is a circle – no beginning – no end! And we realise the treasures of friendship.

What does the Bible say about the beach and the river? We heard Lots of Bible verses relating to both with the last one, Isaiah 66:12 “And behold the Lord said: I extend peace to her like a river”

Next we took a beach excursion around the world, without leaving the room and looking at the power point of pictures of Beaches and guessing where they are situated on a map of the world provided on our tables, the narrator gave us clues for us to pinpoint on our map, which did test our knowledge of the world.

Saturday Morning Devotion: Sunrises and sunsets at the beach are spectacular. We are in awe of the colours God paints across the sky. The beauty of the sunset fades to darkness so His stars can shine brighter. A small child’s thoughts: The sun has to fade so the stars can come out and shine! Let’s shine His light in the world He’s placed us!

Praise time: followed by Discovering the Bible:

How do we find what’s in the Bible?

God wanted to show how much He loved His people. So he gave them a special book – THE BIBLE.

66 books – 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament.

When was the Bible written?

The Bible is a collection of writings, and the earliest writings were set down nearly 3,500 years ago.

The earliest writing began when symbols were scratched or pressed on clay tablets. The Egyptians refined this technique and developed an early form of writing, known as hieroglyphics. And so we learnt a lot of just how we have come to know and love our Bible. Finishing the morning with prayer; Thanking God for the life-changing truth of who we are and how He loves us.

Praising Him through singing – songs of praise.

Belonging to God in Christ: For everyone, a place of belonging starts with our relationship to God: If we could ask God one question what would it be? How do we describe our relationship with God today?

One story of Belonging is told by Luke in his gospel story about Jesus 7:36-50. V 50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Belonging to each other in Christ. Eph.3:14-21 tells about Christ’s love and power in the life of a believer. Paul prays for the church of Ephesus and the surrounding churches……..

Relaxation before afternoon tea we participated in a Round Robin competitions by belonging to our groups and following the leader to participate in the games.

Saturday night dinner, our men folk joined in with a roast meal after a trip around the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast.

Laugh, the Bible laughs with you:

After the meal each group was presented with a script, and given 30 minutes to prepare then with minimal props and memorization return a fantastic performance. The Bible does not say “Blessed is the sourpuss” In fact this weekend we have discovered that the Bible is a book of JOY. Its words of happiness far outnumber its words of gloom. So tonight we are here to laugh, to have fun, and join in the spirit of humour and excitement. Welcome to “Laugh & the Bible laughs with you” LWQ Concert for 2024”. Our MC Leanne will adlib in her introductions to each item. The first item we wished to acknowledge our gentlemen attending. Lots of fun and Laughter was the order of the evening.

SUNDAY: WORSHIP CELEBRATION.

Led by Pastor Jordan Bennett.  (LWQ Spiritual Adviser) 

Worship is a remembrance of Christ’s Crucifixion and resurrection through,  ”The way of the Cross”. Finishing with the Empty Tomb John 20:1-18. The Lord is Risen! We lit the Candle on our tables representing Christ who shines His light to the world. Easter eggs to share representing how Christ came alive out of the tomb

During the service we received Holy Communion, Thanking God for the forgiveness that is ours because of what He was willing to do for us. Finishing with the final Hymn “May the feet of God walk with you”.

After the service we heard greetings from LWA President Grace Kroehn,  read by LWQ President Val Kath. The announcement of the next year’s Hosts: WBB Zone.

Many thanks to BS & GC Zone for hosting us! Grace for our lunch and final farewells until 2025.