Reflections from Stephanie: the 2017 Spring Retreat

Last month we hosted our annual spring retreat in the cozy mountainside city of Leavenworth, WA. As always, it was an incredible time of growth and intimate fellowship. We truly wish we could open the event to all 1,000+ girls that are apart of our online community. And yet the intimate setting of 25 girls and leaders also allows for relationships, connections, and hearts to grow in such a powerful way. Below is Stephanie Nunley’s reflection on her time at the retreat, as well her gorgeous images!

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Luke dropped me off early Wednesday morning before heading back through the mountains to the Seattle airport. It was a slow morning, as some ladies left to run errands and others got ready for the day, drank coffee, and began preparing for girls to arrive for the Delight Retreat the next day. We spent Wednesday in preparation, with leaders arriving at intervals all day long and lots of hugs in between.

Almost all of the girls arrived on Thursday, and our first official event together was dinner that night, followed by worship and introductions. Each day, we spent the morning worshiping and spending time with the Lord, followed by a main speaker. After lunch, we had breakout and creative sessions, which were more focused on the creative arts and growing each girl’s skills. After a full day of creativity and fellowship, we ate dinner together, then spent the evenings focused on the Lord.

While there was incredible creative talent this Spring, I definitely noticed that the girls this year seemed far more interested in learning about Jesus than they were in learning about the creative arts. Which was incredible. So instead of being a time where we talked about photography non-stop, we talked about the Lord. And simply did life together.

We laughed.
We cried.
We confronted our sin and we prayed for each other’s hearts.

Simply, we were the church, doing what the church does. Loving one another as we loved Jesus, together.

I never thought I’d be involved in a ministry for teen girls. To be honest, I’ve never really known what to do with teenagers and feel like the least likely candidate ever to be speaking into their lives.

But, ya’ll. I love Delight more than I can explain. I love these girls, and I love my little role in this ministry. Every Delight event that I’ve attended has been so special to me, and the Spring retreat was no different.

Praise God for community – for women discipling women, and for the place God has put me to do that in Delight.