The Methodist Church Anguilla Circuit gathered in Retreat from Friday 27 October -Sunday 29 October 2023.
The Facilitators for the three day Retreat were Rev. Dr. Adrian Smith, Moravian minister from the island of Barbados, a powerful man of God whose focus is on facilitating change for the benefit of building God’s kingdom through transformed and empowered churches; Mrs. Arlene Timber-Henry, a training and development specialist out of the island of St. Eustatius, who is passionate about motivating and inspiring others towards fulfilling their personal and professional goals as she uses her gifts, talents and graces to serve the body of Christ and further the church’s mission; and Lindsay K Richardson, an ordained Methodist minister from Anguilla, who is a certified Counsellor and Trainer currently serving as the Chaplain to His Majesty’s Prison (HMP).
The first two ev
ents which unfolded under the theme “Relationship Matters to Fulfill Your God-given Purpose”, were hosted at the Blue Ridge Conference Centre, while the joint Circuit Service that brought down the curtain on the weekend was held at the historic Ebenezer Chapel.
On Day One, participants were encouraged to build godly relationships based on 4 Principles: their relationship with the Environment; with the Individual Self; with Others; and most importantly, with God. Essentials for Building godly Relationships were explored based on the premise that {to} Know Relationship – {is to } Know Discipleship and {if there is} No Relationship – {there can be} No Discipleship.
On Day Two, the focus shifted to the importance of pursuing Unity, as tools for Getting Along and Working together were shared. The practical reality of fulfilling your individual call to Mission and Service was also explored.
Both days were punctuated by lively, inspirational periods of Praise and Worship that helped to create the atmosphere for a fresh encounter with the Holy Spirit which underpinned the Objectives of the Retreat and contributed to the real sense of Revival and Renewal that the Retreat generated.
The Retreat climaxed with a moving Joint Circuit Service of Adoration, Praise and Worship with a rousing message delivered by Rev. Dr. Smith which exhorted the congregation to examine the nature of their report, and to believe in their ability to achieve the goals of their mission; to believe in the integrity of the mission; and to believe that individually, each one is capable of playing their role in achieving the mission. The message of encouragement was based on a reading from the Old Testament Book of Numbers 13:25-33, captioned The Report of the Spies, which invited the consideration of three fundamental affirmations: I believe I can DO it; I believe I can GET it; and I believe I can BE it.
The Anguilla Methodist Circuit extends sincere thanks and appreciation to all those who contributed in various ways to the success of the retreat, and thanks all those who turned out to support the events in spite of the inclement weather conditions.
