October 07, 2016
We had fun this month at Camp Barkeley!!! In our last blog. We wrote about Kingdom connections and how God uses the body of Christ. We are all just thread being woven together to create a beautiful tapestry. That tapestry being the will of God. His sovereignty in the will and destiny He has planned for us, far outweighs our ability to plan and push for things to happen. Like a potter making a clay pot, we are in the hands of the Almighty, yielding, allowing Him to shape and mold us how He desires. We are, if I may say, ‘Along for the ride’.
We have enjoyed seeing how God is moving here in Abilene! We are going deeper into relationship with Jesus, as well as receiving a greater revelation of His immense love for us as we yield, submit, and surrender to Him. This newsletter is more than us sharing with you about cool things that are happening here. It is about taking time to reflect, and communicate the goodness of God in hope that you would be spurred on to greater depths of intimacy and relationship with Him.
This month we had the honor of hosting three retreats at Camp Barkeley. The first one was with Gracepoint Church. Gracepoint is an incredible church filled with sold out lovers of God, and mothers and fathers in the faith. It was really sweet to see how God orchestrated this because Norm and Angel Poorman, our trustworthy leaders, had forged an incredible relationship with those at this church and have sat under their leadership in years past. During the retreat, they got to connect, and share testimonies about what all God has been up too!!! It was really encouraging and life-giving for those that were able to participate!
The second retreat we hosted was Beltway Park 6th Grade Basic Training retreat. With students and leaders combined there was about 50 participating in this retreat. The vision of this weekend was ‘’Basic Training”. The leadership went over the fundamentals of identity, the power of the cross, and How Jesus can advance His Kingdom in and through our laid down lives. Many were spurred on and equipped with life altering truths, and encounters with the Holy spirit. We are excited for what God is doing in this generation and we eagerly wait expectantly to see what will become of those that whole heartedly folly the Holy Spirit and learn to abide in Him through the spirit of adoption.
The third retreat we hosted was with Transformation School of Supernatural Ministry or TSSM for short. TSSM has now come under the covering of IRIS Abilene and a partnership has been formed for greater unity and transformation throughout the city and the nations. We are thankful for the family that God has given us in TSSM and we look forward to all of the amazing moments we will get to share with them.
Well that’s all for now! We have many exciting events coming and we will be sharing them as they unfold. Stay tuned!! Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook. We will be sharing more on there throughout the week!
Starting in October we will be partnering with Restoring the Foundations and launching our first eight-week training intensive. During these eight weeks, students will be trained in Issue- focused Format, which is a format that deals with one specific issue, in a three hour time period. We will also be training students in Thorough Format ministry, which is a fifteen hour ministry that deals with issues throughout the span of life up to present time. Through this training, students will have the opportunity to learn, and to receive. They will receive fresh eyes, new insights, and most importantly, they will connect with God in such a way that will bring healing to lifes’s struggles and hope for a renewed future. Please consider joining us in prayer as we approach this training!!
We are thankful for all that God is doing here and all that He will do in the days to come! Visit our website for updates on pictures, newsletters, events, and more!! If you would like to come visit us, please go to our website, campbarkeley.com, or, Irisabilene.org to book your reservation now!! We would love to connect with you!
Love and Unity,
Iris Abilene: Camp Barkeley Family