Session Six | Team and Relationship
Building Retreat

Weekend afternoon (preferred) or multiple small sessions in the course of a week

Take time to get to know each other’s stories well. Don’t rush. As we share and listen to one another, we are practising an important skill for our time in Africa. As we go on Holy Home Visits, sit with children at the Life Centre, and participate in Relationship Groups with Care Workers, we need to be prepared to share our stories and listen to the stories of others. We all have a unique story to tell, one that belongs only to us, and one that matters. Relationships are the backbone and foundation of who Hands at Work is.
Some questions and prompts for this time could be:

• What are some defining moments that brought you to Christ?/What defining moments have shaped you?

• How has your life in Christ made a difference?

• If the person sharing is not a Christian, they can feel free to talk about their life growing up and where they are at now.

• An example of a personal testimony can be found in the book of Acts, chapters 22, 23 and 26. Paul takes a “before, how and now” approach to telling his story.

We are before we do

At Hands at Work, we have a saying: ‘We are before we do’. This means that our relationships with God, ourselves and others come before our tasks and activities. We all know that relationships with others can be the biggest blessing, but they can also be very challenging. Relationships can be especially challenging when we are under stress. As such, we’d like you to spend some time looking at your own personality, and the other personalities within the group.

Personality assessments

Choose one of the following personality assessments for all team members as well as team leaders to undergo:

• Enneagram

• 16 Personalities

Use the results of the assessment as a starting point for a discussion about our personalities and how we interact with others. 

Consider the following questions:

• How are we the same? How are we different?

• What are my gifts? How will you see me serve?

• Are there any skill/gift gaps in the team? How could we compensate for this?

• Do I consider myself an introvert or an extrovert? A morning person, or an evening person? A details person, or a vision person?

• How do I react under stress? (for example “When you see me doing this, I’m under stress…”.) How do I react to others' stress?

• What helps me to reduce my stress?

• How can we be supportive of one another?

We hope this activity will help the team to see that we are all different and that the uniqueness of individuals is what makes a team great!

Team Member Roles

There are many different roles that are needed for the team to run smoothly. From drivers to pastoral care, to timekeepers… there are many roles that team members can take ownership of. As a team, consider what roles you might need and ask people to volunteer for them.