church retreat

was very enjoyable.

amidst all the praise i received about being a good interpreter and whatnot, it was actually when i stopped my interpretation duty that i really started to have fun.

initially i'd thought i had to give up this and give up that. hearing howard tell me about how he could play citadels up till 3am, and hearing about the ywav-ers hanging out and having a lot of fun together wasn't exactly very encouraging, given i had to spend my afternoons and nights reading up and preparing for the next sermon. granted the preparation part itself wasn't actually very long, because i had no idea what the speaker was going to talk about, so i only had to read the relevant Scripture parts. still, it meant that while other people were having fun in genting, eating more meals than they should, or even just lounging around like lizards (to borrow a phrase), i was in my room either: a) studying biology, b) reading the Bible (either for quiet time or preparing for the sermon) c) watching dvd sermons by pastor prince (the smartest thing i did on this trip; bringing the dvds along).

but, but, but, a thousand times but, my Heavenly Dad really blessed the last day of the retreat. after the last sermon, the responsibility (it wasn't really a burden) of doing interpretation was over, and that meant that i could really have fun. don't misunderstand me, it is both an honour and a joy to serve. but being freed from having to prepare for the next sermon really allowed me to have some time to fellowship (mingle) with my peers. and thursday afternoon and night were really enjoyable, since i was reverting back to the identity of just a participant in the camp. alvin the servant had finished his duty.

and boy, was it a day to enjoy. playing basketball in the afternoon with howard and the ywavers was really enjoyable, maybe because i scored 19 out of the 21 points we scored, including a 3-point shot. =P but i think i've used up my exercise quota for the year as well, even though we only played 2o mins or so.

at night we had lots of fun during the concert, listening to and watching the performances. i even managed to sit somewhere which wasn't the first row! (for all previous events, i had to speak beside the speaker. i'm the interpreter, remember?)

but the fun was going to last waaaayyy beyond the concert. we later went to the ywavers' room and proceeded to play 20-man heart attack, then mafia (an alternate version of "polar bear"), which lasted till around 1.30am. we later moved to someone else's room, and despite my tired self, i somehow managed to last till 3am (inclusive taking some personality test) before finally trudging back to my room. howard seemed more reluctant than me to leave. and to think he was initially pretty reluctant to even join the ywavers. but thanks to the awesome persuasion powers our great kin shun wields, we both made the right decision that night.

now, i wouldn't go so far as to say i know a lot of ywavers, but i'd venture to say i can at least recognise some of them. which is saying quite a bit, since this time last year i didn't even know more than half the soar-ers.

after the camp i've had a newfound love for the church, which, i freely confess, wasn't truly there before. and it's because of this that i wish the shepherds would stop beating the sheep. feed them and they'll grow. if you keep hitting them on the head, how are you going to get a strong church? a good church?

Dad, we need Your help.