Ministry Update

Dear Friends, 

We, the NET Retreat Team, had a good and fruitful few weeks back after Christmas break. We were all fortunate enough to be able to go back home for the break and got some well-deserved rest. We came back to January Training rejuvenated for the coming months ahead. January training was amazing, and we were able to catch up with all of the teams and refocus on the mission. 

After January Training we set off to Tottenham and Barrie, where we ran a few retreats for grades 7 and 8. It was so amazing to be able to get back into ministry and to be able to spread the good news in Ontario. The theme that we were focusing on was “A Quiet Place” where we explore how God can talk to us through silence, and how important it is for us to make room for Jesus in our busy and sometimes stressful lives. 

There are so many ways that the Lord has been working. For example, when we were in Barrie, ON, there was a lot of youth at the retreats that said that they had been able to feel God’s presence during the prayer time. One of the youth said that she had grown up with the faith but was now starting to explore the faith for herself. She said that during the prayer time on the retreat, she had experienced God’s presence, and it had brought her closer to God. Many of the youth expressed experiencing peace during prayer time that they didn’t usually experience in their everyday lives. After these retreats, we came back to Ottawa, where we ran a couple of retreats in different schools and parishes. 

We then drove for a long five days to Rocky Mountain House Alberta, where we have been running retreats and youth nights. It has been so much fun to get to know the youth in this community more and to be able to journey with them for a few days. At the youth night that we put on, we had the privilege of being able to have adoration and confession and many of the youth there said that Adoration was their favourite part of the night. We gave the youth the option of remaining in the church to pray for a little bit after Adoration, and many of them took the opportunity. It was so beautiful to witness!

As we head into the second half of the year, we are so excited to see all that the Lord has in store for us and for all the youth that we encounter. Please continue to pray for us. 

All the best, 

God Bless, 

The Retreat Team (Chris, Amy, Sabin, Aoife, Jean-François, Estelle, Cameron and Lucy)