If
you walked into the conference room of a beautiful Amish Inn in the afternoon
of
October 31, 2005, you could see three walls that are surrounded by
beautiful windows. While looking at the windows, you can see a hilly
terrain with meadows and colorful trees that display the beautiful colors of
the autumn season. The meeting room has numerous round tables with beige
tablecloths. Colorful notebooks were placed onto the numerous tables
that accommodate approximately eighty people. In one corner of the room,
instruments could be seen. Those instruments were played by several
persons in the morning and evening meetings. During the three-day senior
retreat, the group of about 80 persons sang wonderful, old-time choruses that
blessed the heart and soul of those participating in this wonderful gathering.
[The photo to
your right is a picture of the conference room at the Amish Door Inn in
Wilmot, Ohio.]
Also,
at a later time, the centers of the tables displayed high candle holders from
wrought iron with lovely designs. The top of the wrought iron candle
holders contained large, round candles that were decorated with colorful
autumn leaves. The conference room was filled with seniors that have
walked the valleys and mountaintops of their lives thus far.
On
the morning of November 2, 2005, the final meeting commenced for this 3-day
"Sonshine Circle" Retreat in the Amish Country. [The
word "Sonshine" indicates that Jesus is the Sunshine in the "Sonshine
Circle."] The three-day retreat was an enjoyable repose from the
day-to-day life. What have I learned from those days?
A
powerful, seasoned minister of the Gospel gave tremendous insights and
challenges to the writer of this article, and, also, to the other seniors that
participated in this beautiful autumn retreat.
I
learned that God is a God to all people of various personalities. The
same God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob [the
Book of Genesis]
is the same God of today. It was also so clearly expanded from Scripture
that Naboth was holding on to his father’s inheritance. This is a
tremendous analogy for holding onto the "Inheritance
of Salvation" [Ephesians 1:13,14].
On
November 2, 2005, an 81-year old person played the trumpet. The
beautiful song that he played is entitled "I’m Free".
While this person so skillfully played, I was directed to write the following
paragraph into the notebook that was provided for each person participating in
this wonderful retreat:
"When
walking in life’s valley, remember the Hand of Jesus will bring comfort and
courage so that we may face the coming tomorrows. Savor the good times
and with God’s help you can face the negative situations. Know this,
there awaits a beautiful time in eternity with Jesus and His saints."
JH
The
joys of heaven will be indescribable. When you view a group of seniors,
you do not know for whom heaven will be the next year’s dwelling place.
P.S.
There were many more truths that were expanded from the preaching/teaching
during the Sonshine Retreat Meetings. I close this article with a poem
that was written on October 24, 2005 . . .
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GOD
IN THE VALLEY
AND THE MOUNTAINTOP
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On
a mountaintop life seems to be filled with joy
I
have walked many valleys that talk of pain and toil,
Jesus
is the God in my valleys
He
is also the God when walking the mountaintop.
Life
may be compared to roses
That
bloom throughout the seasons of life,
The
thorns of sorrow may prick at times, but
Prayer
brings understanding in situations that go awry.
I
know God when walking in the valley
I
know God when I walk the mountaintop,
And
some day we will walk side by side
With
Jesus and saints forever to abide.
written
by Johanna Hobrath
October
24, 2005
©
HALO Ministries
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