Hot banana bread, bircher muesli and a cappucino
was how we started the Introducing God weekend escape.

"The venue was awesome!" said one guest. "It actually felt like we were on holidays even though we hadn't driven very far from home!"

We hosted the discussion group in our hotel room, so we quickly arranged the chairs and drove to the shops for pastries, lamingtons and bread rolls.

Our guests arrived just before 9am. We walked down to the 'guest lounge', which in a former age, was formerly a men's smoking room. Here was a self-serve espresso machine plus tea and chilled water.

Saturday morning : Talk 1 – Counting the cost

We began by interviewing one of the Christian hosts and asking about the costs of following Jesus. He related how his relationships with family and friends are often strained, but as he is secure knowing that God loves him, he can live not stressed about this.

We read Luke 14 and began a fruitful discussion from the passage.

We watched Dominic's talk via a laptop connected to the flat screen TV on the hotel room wall.

We talked about the fact that becoming a Christian is not without cost. Jesus told us in Luke 14 that there is a real cost involved. Before this weekend I thought this was the last thing you should tell a person considering Christianity. I thought we should tell them it’s free and then after they accept Jesus tell them there is a cost. What crazy thinking!

Our group reacted really well and seemed to be doing a lot of thinking about the cost of following Jesus. I am much more confident now that when they do decide to commit that they will be much less likely to wander off at the first sign of the cost.

We expected an afternoon thunderstorm, so we took the opportunity while the sun was out to have an extended morning tea exploring the beach and nearby wharf.

We had planned a picnic lunch off site, but decided to enjoy the shade of the balcony and rest a little.

In the heat of the day, we decided to do another session instead of go outside. We quite enjoyed reading the passage and discussing it before hearing from Dominic.

Talk 2 – This was on the prodigal son and was a call to come into relationship with God our Father. At the end we were asked if anyone would like to come to the Father to pray a prayer at the end with him.

Thankfully the guest lounge was empty, so we enjoyed another espresso and a change of environment for our discussion.

The sun was still out so we made a short trip and explored the headland. We enjoyed a sensational view of the ocean stretching out to the horizon. This trip gave us lots of time to chat with each other as we walked from lookout to lookout. Sharing this experience as a group has helped us bond together well.

Talk 3 – This was on making decisions for the future highlighting the reality of heaven and hell. Again it consolidated on what had been said so far.

We concluded with dinner at a restaurant overlooking the surf. Unfortunately it was too cool to eat outside and the restaurant was too noisy to have one conversation. So we'll discuss the ideas at our last session during the week.

By holding the sessions in a five star resort meant there was no Christian-cringe factor. Getting away from the city allowed us to relax and enjoy each other's company. The unique location has given the group (no longer Christians and non-Christians) a memorable shared experience that has bonded us together. We all plan to continuing meeting over dinner and looking into the Bible even after the course officially finishes.