Chosen for a Purpose

What Our Middle School Retreat Revealed About Identity 

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit.” — John 15:16 

This year’s Middle School Retreat centered around one powerful truth: 

You are chosen for a purpose. 

We wanted our students to understand this not just as a Bible verse, but as something deeply personal. Something that speaks into who they are — beyond grades, beyond circumstances, beyond what the world has told them. 

What unfolded during the retreat reminded us just how important that message is. 

A Moment That Stayed With Us 

During one of our sessions, students participated in an exercise where they shared affirming words with one another. Each student had the chance to give encouragement — and then receive it. 

What we noticed was striking. 

Our students were incredibly thoughtful in giving compliments. They noticed leadership. They named kindness. They affirmed courage. They spoke life over one another.  

But when it was their turn to receive those same affirmations?  

Many struggled.

Some laughed nervously.  

Some deflected.  

Some looked down or avoided eye contact.  

A few seemed visibly uncomfortable.  

It wasn’t pride.  

It wasn’t resistance.  

It was unfamiliarity. 

For many of our students, affirmation is not something they are used to receiving. 

When you grow up navigating economic hardship, academic gaps, or instability, you may learn resilience. You may learn strength. You may learn how to push through. 

But you may not learn how to receive affirmation. 

And that realization mattered. 

Because identity shapes everything. 

Creating Space for Belonging 

Throughout the retreat, we returned to John 15:16: 

“You did not choose me, but I chose you…” 

We talked about what it means to be chosen intentionally. 

To be seen. 

To be appointed for something meaningful. 

In small groups, students opened up about where they feel pressure, where they feel unseen, and where they long for belonging. 

Why This Matters 

When a student struggles to receive affirmation, it tells us something important: 

They may not yet believe they are worthy of it. 

That is why spaces like this retreat are so critical. 

Because when a student begins to believe: 

“I am chosen.” 

“I have purpose.” 

“I am capable.” 

Everything begins to shift. 

How they approach school. 

How they show up in relationships. 

How they lead. 

How they imagine their future. 

We are not just teaching lessons. 

We are helping reframe narratives. 

From Retreat to Real Life 

Retreat plants seeds. 

But growth takes reinforcement. 

And that’s why programs like our summer experience are so vital. 

Summer is not just academic enrichment. It is daily encouragement. Daily mentorship. Daily reminders of identity and possibility. 

It is where seeds planted at retreat are nurtured and strengthened. 

Because when identity takes root, fruit follows. 

Chosen. Appointed. Becoming. 

We left the retreat reminded of something beautiful: 

These students are thoughtful. 

They are resilient. 

They are generous. 

They are capable of more than they often believe. 

They are chosen. 

And we believe it with them — until they fully believe it themselves.