The last two years have been hard for so many reasons. We have all experienced losses and disappointments due to the pandemic. However, there is hope on the horizon for the arrival of new International students in the second half of this year. These circumstances have caused Allen and I to revisit the purpose of the ISMNZ workers retreat. We think that our gathering provides an opportunity to address four key areas related to our calling as ISMNZ workers:

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1. Listening to God and each other

2. Core skills we need for ministry

3. Revisiting and co-creating our ISM calling

4. Preparing for a new season among International students

We need more than just recovery from the disruption brought by Covid. We need ourselves to be renewed and realigned to what God has called us to do. We hope that you are looking forward to this opportunity to be refreshed, to gather together again as a people with a mission, to consider again our core purpose, and to upskill and prepare for the future. We’ll now provide you with a revised brief overview of the weekend.

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Jesus provided his disciples with a manifesto of how we wanted them to live in Matthew 5-7, and he started with the beatitudes - the supreme blessings that God gives to his followers. On Friday night we will explore together what the beatitudes mean for us.

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On Saturday morning we want to focus on acknowledging the impact of the losses we have experienced in the last two years. We attach a link to an article on disenfranchised grief – something we have all experienced and need to talk about and deal with. Later in the morning we will consider how we can take care of ourselves in life and ministry.

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Saturday afternoon focuses on core skills in ministry; this is about what we model and pass on to our students, and how that influences their resilience and effectiveness as followers of Jesus when they return home.

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On Saturday night we will evaluate our ISM calling - our DNA  - why we exist and why we do what we do. We need to fashion and co-create our calling in order to own it.

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On Sunday we will meditate together on a Psalm that talks about finding hope and confidence in God as we consider the future. And in conclusion we will give practical consideration to how we prepare for a new tomorrow with new International students in it.

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We look forward to seeing you at the retreat.

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Allen and Paul