Finding the Thin Place
Reflections from the Malibu Club Men's Weekend
From Sean Christensen, Lay Elder at SVA Church:
From May 15 to 18, I joined 4 other men from SVA to attend Young Life’s Men’s Weekend at Camp Malibu in Canada. Malibu is one of Young Life’s premier locations in the world and is personally very special for me (I met my wife there 32 years ago ?). Attending this camp was our inaugural SVA Men’s Weekend. Many churches from around western Washington state use this weekend as an annual opportunity for men to engage with other men, listen to amazing speakers talk about their walks with Christ, eat good food, and enjoy God’s amazing creation around us.
Malibu’s Men’s Weekend has been going for over a decade, giving men the opportunity to come together to encounter and grow in their relationship with Jesus. This year we unpacked a number of topics in smaller discussions from estrangement, poetry in prayer, the power of small groups, and handling our emotions. Corporately we learned about understanding the rhythms of our lives, and the need for rest and even restoration within these rhythms under the banner of Gods grace. Each topic nourished our hearts, minds and spirits, providing comfort, conviction, and challenges that deepened our understanding and relationship with Jesus. Combine this with the power of 200+ men singing at the top of their lungs to our savior, and you can’t help but be impacted. Each of us came away closer to each other, closer to our God, and most certainly wanting to share this experience with more next year.
From May 15 to 18, I joined 4 other men from SVA to attend Young Life’s Men’s Weekend at Camp Malibu in Canada. Malibu is one of Young Life’s premier locations in the world and is personally very special for me (I met my wife there 32 years ago ?). Attending this camp was our inaugural SVA Men’s Weekend. Many churches from around western Washington state use this weekend as an annual opportunity for men to engage with other men, listen to amazing speakers talk about their walks with Christ, eat good food, and enjoy God’s amazing creation around us.
Malibu’s Men’s Weekend has been going for over a decade, giving men the opportunity to come together to encounter and grow in their relationship with Jesus. This year we unpacked a number of topics in smaller discussions from estrangement, poetry in prayer, the power of small groups, and handling our emotions. Corporately we learned about understanding the rhythms of our lives, and the need for rest and even restoration within these rhythms under the banner of Gods grace. Each topic nourished our hearts, minds and spirits, providing comfort, conviction, and challenges that deepened our understanding and relationship with Jesus. Combine this with the power of 200+ men singing at the top of their lungs to our savior, and you can’t help but be impacted. Each of us came away closer to each other, closer to our God, and most certainly wanting to share this experience with more next year.
Irish folklore talks about a “Thin Place” as a physical location where the physical world and spiritual world cross over. For me, Malibu is that Thin Place where Heaven meets earth, where the Holy Spirit has the home court advantage, and where God will meet you where you are at a very personal level. To spend any time in this place you will come away changed.
It's my hope that more people will join us in the future. My prayer is to see every man at SVA and the Snoqualmie Valley have the opportunity to experience the power of Christ and the magic of this place called Malibu. Next year would you consider joining us and coming along?
It's my hope that more people will join us in the future. My prayer is to see every man at SVA and the Snoqualmie Valley have the opportunity to experience the power of Christ and the magic of this place called Malibu. Next year would you consider joining us and coming along?
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1 Comment
Sounds like an amazing time of connection and worship. I would have loved to have known about this as I most certainly would have gone. Was there an email sent out to the men of SVA? What is the date for next year so I may put it in my calendar. I live hearing how God moved you during this weekend.