Staff Conference

I'm not typically a very sentimental person.....it may come from the hours and hours of going through my grandmother and great-grandmother's piles of "treasures" they saved when I was younger or it may come from the fact that I just like to be efficient - whatever the reason, I don't tend to dwell on the past too much. That is one of the reasons that the barrage of emotions I felt as we pulled up to Pinecove for our annual Red River staff conference surprised me.

Seven years - there's seems to be something significant about going to a place for the last seven years. As I was taking a walk through the woods on the last afternoon I had some time to reflect on the good and the hard memories those woods bring to mind. I remember the first time I walked into the meeting room, I hardly knew a soul and I was terrified. I remember the day my team sat in a room and cried together because something was wrong in our relationships and we couldn't seem to fix it. (We later skipped the meeting and went for Mexican food). I remember late nights eating dessert and playing games around a table full of friends. Many of those friends have moved on to other lives now. I remember meeting new friends for the first time - a couple who had come back from overseas to work in our region - little did I know that a few years later she would be my boss ( and a great one at that). I remember the night that I had to leave the room because the guy who had broken my heart was leading worship and I felt as though I could no longer breath. I remember the accident - after a weekend of laughter and fun discovering that our friends had almost died on the way home. I remember it being a place where God met me in my joy and in my pain.

I can't believe how many people have come and gone over the years....and often I can't believe that I'm still here. This year may have held one of my most precious memories. I walked in on Friday night and sat with a group of staff that I have known my entire staff career. They were freshmen in college when I first showed up on campus. It was amazing to see them sitting at that table....to see what God has done with their lives. I've been so privileged play a small role in their lives. They certainly weren't sitting at that table because of me. I got to walk a little way along the journey with them.....but I believe that the journey they have a far greater influence than mine has had. It was perhaps the sweetest moment I have ever experienced at Pinecove and I'm so grateful for each one of them.