By Tey Yee Han, translated by Lester Lim
“Am I the only youth here?” I asked as I arrived at Ma Mum, the meeting place before our flight to our retreat destination. Would I be able to socialise with them? Without years of life experience under my belt, would I be treated differently? Looking at my fellow retreatant, I wondered if I would have a hard time fitting in.
My doubts instantly dissolved when we had our first morning devotion. The solemnity and humility displayed by everyone showed me that as we worshipped our Heavenly Father, we are all His children. No one is above or beneath anyone else in the eyes of God. Our passion to know and serve Him became our common ground and bonded us together.
上帝不时在我们寻觅祂的过程中触动我们。
During this trip, the Christian lifestyle was not just a theoretical concept but was exemplified by each retreatant. The effort, courage, and energy required to host this reading retreat was enormous on the part of Dr Samuel Wang. Rev Eric Chan displayed love and care in preparing our breakfast every single day, as well as managing our funds throughout the trip. There was wisdom, insight and courage exhibited by Rev Rita Wong, who answered our burning questions and boldly praised the Lord wherever she went. Brother John had foresight in scouting out new locations we were going to, and immensely generous to take flattering photos of us as a cameraman. The laughter Peter brought bonded us together instantly, and he was magnanimous to prioritise our well-being over his own. Lee Kim’s high-spiritedness and ability to laugh at herself kept the group motivated. Everyone sacrificed their comfort for the service of others, as it is said in Luke 18:14 “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Every afternoon was dedicated to reading The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning. This protected reading time helped me to focus and peel back the many layers of Brennan’s message. He writes about the current misconception Christians possess: having a karmic relationship with Christ where our good deeds, or lack thereof, determines the grace that God will give us, when in fact we’ve already received the full grace of God unconditionally. (Even post-retreat, I am still gaining insights as I feel the Holy Spirit continually moving me while reading the book.)
The ingenious way of reviewing each chapter was insightful, as we came up with MCQ-style questions to ascertain our understanding. It was intense but rewarding as a deeper level of wisdom was needed to make sure there was only one correct option. Posing these questions to each other also allowed us to explore and discover certain ideas that were not as obvious. Not only was this engaging, but it also enabled us to think more deeply about the message the book wanted to bring across.
I realise that we are all sinners and ragamuffins, and yet we can receive the gospel of grace unconditionally. This book highlighted that we are saved not because of our own doing but by Christ’s actions. Hence we should get rid of any notion of redeeming ourselves with our actions in the eyes of God.
Therefore let us magnify Christ and make his sacrifice known to everyone – not just the righteous but also the sinners, the ostracised and outcasts of society. Let Him be known to all ragamuffins living in this world. Glory be to God!
静修（阅）读的反思
作者郑宇航，翻译者林伟
“我将是聚会里唯一的年轻人吗？” 我在抵达起航前往退修会机场集合点Ma Mum餐馆时问道，“我是否会与他们有代沟？没有相应的人生经验，我是否会受到他们不同的对待？” 我很想知道自己能不能够与退休会弟兄姐妹融洽相处。
对求知上帝的炽热和事奉热情已成为我们彼此紧密联系的共识。
我的疑虑在第一个清晨的灵修时段顿然消弭。每个人在崇拜天父前所展示的庄重与谦卑告诉我，在上帝眼中，大家一律平等、都是祂的子女。对求知上帝的炽热和事奉热情已成为我们彼此紧密联系的共识。
每个参与者也在退修会中力行基督徒生活的理想准则；诸如主办人王琦恩博士主持这次读书退修会所表现的魄力、以及其所付出的努力和精力；陈志强牧师每天为我们准备早餐和管理全程经费所展现的爱心与关怀；黄美兰牧师在解答我们众多疑难所呈现的智慧与洞察力，并在所到之处无惧地赞美主、为众楷模；约翰兄弟寻觅新景点的敏锐感知、时时表露的阔达，他还慷慨地担任团队摄影师，将我们一行人摄入了令人惊叹的影像；彼得兄弟所带来的欢笑将大伙儿凝聚一团，他也大方地将我们的福祉置于自身之上；Lee Kim姐妹高昂的士气和不时的自讽带动了整个团队的活力。每个人都为了服务他人而牺牲了自己的舒适，正如路加福音18:14所说：“我告诉你们，这人下去，倒算为义，弗算为那人下去。因为凡自高的，必降为卑；自卑的，必升为高。”
我们将每个下午都用来参读《破布偶人的福音》。这个受保护的时段有助于我注意力集中、层层剥开布伦南兄弟(Brennan)所欲透露的信息。他写到了基督徒常见的思想误区，以为自己与基督有一种因果互动的关系，即上帝的救恩取决于我们的善恶行为；但在事实上，我们已经无条件、白白地领受到了上帝全部的恩典。（在退修会过后，当我继续深入研读此书，仍不断受到圣灵的启发。）
我们运用一种有效的巧妙方式来解读每一个篇章，通过选择题来确定我们对这本书的理解。因为对应所有问题的正确的选择只能有一个，所以我们必须应用更深层次的思考来挖掘字里行间所蕴藏的智慧。这层对思维的磨砺加工令大家获益不浅！我们也相互提问以矫正那些较为隐晦不确的个人想法。互动的学习方式不仅引人入胜，也让我们更能深刻地思考此书的本意。
尽管都是罪人与流浪乞童（即英译“破布偶人”之意），我们却都可以白白领受上帝的恩典福音。如书中强调，我们之所以得救并不是得力于自己的行为到位，而是完全仰靠基督的作为。因此，让我们宣扬基督，让人人都知道祂为我们所作的牺牲——不仅是为了所谓的善人，也包括所有罪人与所有遭社会排斥和遗弃者。让世上所有在属灵里的流浪乞童都能见到我们高举的基督！愿所有的荣耀都归于上帝！