***To be on staff you should agree with and believe in the mission of the retreat. Please read below to be reminded of the mission in its fullest. If, after reading this and in light of the requirements for staff on the previous page, you are ready and excited to give your time and talents to serving this ministry then please proceed with the rest of the application.

The overarching mission for the retreat comes from Jeremiah 17:7-8:

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

Based on this verse, the three Pillars of Our Mission - "To help incoming freshmen and transfer students..."

1. “…be rooted in Christ” – The retreat exists to help incoming freshmen and transfer students come to trust the Lord for their salvation if they don’t already, and to trust Him with their college experience and thereby root themselves in Him and His will for their time in college. We seek to do this first and foremost by clearly articulating the Gospel to freshmen as that is the firm foundation of all the ministry we do. Our hope is that it would be their foundation as well. The retreat will emphasize inward growth, in order to encourage our brothers and sisters to become true disciples of Christ. We pray that the retreat will be instrumental in helping these freshmen be firmly rooted in the Word of God and unwavering in their biblical convictions. Their counselors will come alongside them and spur them toward greater love, worship, prayer, and spiritual discipline as they draw nearer to the Lord. The role of the counselors is extended in this aspect throughout the entire freshman year for the purposes of accountability and a type of mentorship.

2. “...be strengthened through Christ-centered community” – The retreat is led by upperclassmen who are living for Christ in college in order to help freshmen see that such is possible and to give them someone to help guide them into doing so as well. The retreat also provides an environment for incoming freshmen to form lasting friendships with other like-minded freshmen so they start to develop a community of Christ-followers around them to help their “leaves remain green” when the heat of college comes. Furthermore, by partnering with Christ-centered, Bible-teaching churches and campus ministries, the retreat will give freshmen the opportunity to get to know these ministries and those involved with them, so that when they arrive on campus they can quickly and vibrantly connect to a church and get involved in campus ministries. They will have the opportunity to build relationships with people from different churches and organizations, helping them find a community that matches their beliefs, passions, and convictions as churches collaborate to get every student connected in a meaningful way to Christ-centered community as soon as possible.

3. “…bear fruit on their campus.” – Our final hope for the impact of the retreat is one that extends well beyond the retreat itself - we seek to leverage the time at the retreat and the example of our counselors to lead incoming students to see their campus as their mission field, and to see God’s unique calling for their ministry during their time in college. We want to lead each incoming class to joyfully and vibrantly spread the good news of Jesus Christ all over their campus. Our prayer is that not only would freshmen be able to view their campus and surrounding community as their mission field, but that they would be actively seeking to bear fruit in whichever ministry or segment of campus the Lord calls them to.

We chose the name “The Forge Retreat'' to come alongside Birmingham’s long history of iron production and furnace works. But there is a clear biblical purposefulness to the name as well. A forge is a furnace where metal is formed and molded from basic elements into strategic purposes. In general, to forge something is to form it. Our prayer is that The Forge Retreat will be a place where incoming students to Birmingham campuses will be forged/formed into the image of Christ and choose to live out that image on their campuses for their college careers. This happens not just through an event but through the relationships that start at the event and carry on throughout the year. We believe that the forging, the shaping is an ongoing process that requires on going relationships. This is most clearly stated in Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.”

“3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:3-9)