Alpha Weekend Away

I joined this Alpha Course as a chaperon rather than a participant. I was supposed to bring two participants to this course.

The Introduction to the course was on a Sunday which was also Mothers’ Day. One intended participant excused herself because she had a Mothers’ Day Lunch. The second participant, my son, Hon Cheong, came for the first day, but dropped out.

I had attended an Alpha Course quite some years ago when it was introduced to our Trinity Methodist Church, albeit I did not complete the course. So I thought I would attend this course with the dual purpose of going through it with a determination to complete it this time and to bring two participants. I failed in the latter as both the would-be participants dropped out and the former has yet to be fulfilled.

I thought it might be quite boring as I would be going through old grounds. How wrong it turned out to be! As the course progresses, going through the old video tapes and seeing the new ones which I missed out at the first Alpha course, everything seems new again. And what more with lively leaders such as Lim Say, my group leader Hor Chee Wah, Jeanne Cheong with Roy Shu, the singing team and Yen Choo, the overall leader and also caring provider of every home-cooked lunch, the current course has never been dull nor boring.

When it was announced that there will be a week-end away from 6th till 7th July, 2013 at Genting View Resort, I decided not to join in as I have physical and medical impedance. But Yen Choo assured me that things will be taken care of and she and her assistants were quite persuasive. So I decide to take the risk and I am glad I did.

The Alpha Weekend Away was indeed a time of spiritual discovery and renewal and for those who already believe, a time of deepening spiritual understanding of God’s love and the Christian life. The video presentations gave us an insight of God’s intention, our purpose of life on earth and His never ending reaching out to us. As we were a captive audience we were able to share our time and had good fellowship and there was much sharing and it was very evident to me that there were participants who dropped their reservation and self-consciousness and came out of their so called “shell”.

As for me, I discovered new talents among the participants who could lead and hold promise for the future of evangelism and spreading the Good News of God. As member of Trinity Methodist Church P.J. since 1959, my generation of contemporaries have passed on and I see new young and fresh faces. Their enthusiasm and faith showed when they led the whole session in the Weekend Away.

On the lighter side, there was a Talent Session, in which each group had to dramatize a story or parable from the Bible. Surprisingly, some hidden talents were discovered and all had a happy and hilarious time! Some participants were surprised themselves that they had talent untapped!

I must thank the Rev. Dr. Timothy Ong and Mrs. Dorcas Ong for giving up their double-bed room to me because I needed an attached bathroom. I was also involved in a silly incident when I was so taken up in a discussion that I spilled a cup of hot Milo drink on my abdomen. Fortunately I brought along a spare pair of shorts and a shirt. The pair of shorts was new and it didn’t quite fit me. It was sort of baggy and clownish but the participants were kind enough not to have a laugh at me!

All in all, the week-end away was not only refreshing physically, mentally, emotionally, what is most important was a deepening of our faith and spiritual understanding of God’s love

For those who are new in faith and those who seek for spiritual haven and refuge or those who feel mature and know much, this Alpha course has much to offer to all!

Yong Chee Seng