GVCC Church Retreat Testimonials
Dr. Peter Droubay:
What ministered to me: Learning more about God’s highest creation: his church while being in the midst of such a blessed church. The amazing undeserved honor to be an active part of His body; and to seek to exercise our gifts for the common good of His body. To be among such godly and learned men as my pastor and the elders and all the people: it is a taste of heaven.
Nathan Kesling:
My wife and I come away from the retreat this year very built up in our walks and inspired to make changes in our lives in accordance with what we heard from Pastor. One topic which spoke clearly to us both was the existence of at least one gift in each of us. These gifts are to be used for the building of the body, and in humble service to Christ. We look forward to finding more opportunities to serve the church, but more specifically to discern what our callings are from God and how best to implement them in the construction of Gods kingdom here at our home Grace Valley.
Loyda Youtsey:
I was greatly blessed by Sharon’s ministry to the women on Friday night at the retreat. Specifically, she mentioned that we are children of the King and so we should not be scraping a spiritual life, living a defeated life. It’s not about surviving but thriving in your walk with Christ. I realized I need to “Get up!” and do the work He has called me to do (because He loves me, even me). It’s up to me to do the work and I should not depend on my husband’s Christianity or anyone else’s to do it.
Deborah Thompson:
What a blessing it has been to meditate upon the teaching about the church that we received last weekend. I realize how little I have understood about this greatest treasure which God has created. It is unfathomable to think that I am God’s delight and that he has set me, a big zero, as a living stone in this glorious creation called the church. To think that God uses me in it as a vital part is amazing. I am thankful that we are given many opportunities to serve and to discover our gifts in this church. May I use the gifts God has given me for the benefit of the church and encourage others also as we work together. I am so very thankful for our Pastor, who has faithfully preached truth all of these years. He has been a Pastor in the truest sense of the word, carefully preaching the word, training others in the Word, warning us of societal dangers that war against our souls, watching carefully over each sheep. I pray that I will not be a baby in any sense of the word, but instead, make his work a joy by working as unto the Lord.
Jung-Eun Shin:
During the retreat, Pastor called us to grow up to Christ’s standard. As he spoke, I saw that I fell far short of God’s standard. I was pondering how I could grow in my salvation when Pastor preached that this is of first importance: to read the Bible and be governed by it. Throughout the retreat, Pastor described many blessings of the Word of God: We can see God, it causes us to be humble, it keeps us from sin, and it encourages the church. But I had been missing out on all of these blessings because I did not hunger and thirst after the Word nor did I hide it in my heart. Pastor exhorted us to have personal devotions that include intelligent study of the Bible and to have family devotions so that we can begin and end the day with God. As I listened to Pastor, I realized that a majority of what he speaks is directly from the Bible because he is filled with the Word of God. So when he again commanded us to engage our minds in the study of the Bible, I understood that I need to meditate, examine, memorize, and obey the Scriptures in order to store his words in my heart. In his mercy, God gave me a renewed desire to hear and do his Word and keep it with me at all times. No longer just a book, God opened my eyes through the retreat to see that the Word of God is life, food, and power for my Christian walk. The Word of God must always govern my thoughts, speech, and actions. If the Word dwells in me, I will be governed by the Lord so that I may be able to grow up to Christ’s standard.