I felt like little No. 3 Ewan all ready for the BLC Retreat 2009. It’s nice to have a strong desire to get away from the noise and intensity of life in Kuala Lumpur. As the month draws to a close, it’s been quite a month with the Lutheran Church in Malaysia & Singapore Convention 2009, the Luther Centre celebration programs, and regular BLC responsibilities.
On top of that, I could add involvement in a workshop with Christian Conference of Asia at the CCM Office, the whole “Fast for the Nation, Peace for Malaysia” initiative, and supporting the launch of Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia.
Let’s not forget, three young children, one wife – i.e. a family that needs attention.
So like little going to be 2 year old Ewan, I found myself excited about heading to El Sanctuary for this year’s BLC retreat entitled “God in All of life” (which behind the title I was also reflecting on “All of life in God!”
There was slight traffic jams as we passed by Nilai, and later Seremban, but after that it was smooth sailing. Elysia, Gareth, Ewan as well as May Chin and I had some nice Kettle Chips during out trip! 🙂
A pleasant surprise was quite a number of us arrived at the same time. One of the main thoughts in my mind was apart from nurturing my soul during this retreat, it’s also the chance to nurture relationships with others.
The kids loved the place! At first, Elysia was a little afraid of the free roaming pet dogs at El Sanctury, but now I think they are friends. At least, that’s true for Gareth. It’s good to see our city raised children appreciate nature.
Once again, the relationship of nature and the nurturing of one’s spirituality as well as humanity comes to mind. There’s something special about even now having the music of the insects ringing at the background this cool morning.
I get the sense for many of the campers, apart from the need to get away from the stressful life we live in, deep down there’s a yearning to connect or reconnect with God – our Abba Father.