By Mateo Hillman and Abby Ciona
Living in Chatham, Ontario, pastor Mateo Hillman loves MBC, especially for the Men’s Breakaway retreat with his church family.
“MBC has impacted my life in a powerful way. I would always make excuses not to spend the time I needed to with Jesus, whether it was work, ministry or family. I was distracted and my priorities weren’t where they needed to be. It was a year ago when I went to MBC for the men’s retreat that I had an awakening.”
Waking up early with the stillness of the morning and the sound of geese flying in on the lake is when Mateo feels God’s presence all around him.
“When I looked across the water in the morning, God spoke to my heart through John 6:35, where Jesus said, “I am the
bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (NLT).
“This encounter with Him changed everything in my life. It removed my pride and clothed me with humility instead. This fueled a desire and hunger to pursue Him like never before. The truth of John 6:35 changed me into the man, the husband and father I am now and even opened the door to me becoming a pastor.”
Mateo saw these changes not only in himself, but in the men of his church, as well.
“As a pastor, I encourage our men to step out in faith and embrace Jesus and the plan He has for their lives. So many struggle with fear, anxiety and low spiritual self-esteem, so it has been challenging to get men to step up and serve within the church.”
“Through prayer and discipleship, we have slowly seen a change, but we needed something to push them over that edge. That push comes through the Men’s Breakaway experience. Men who struggled with low self-esteem are finding their identity in the Lord and encouraging other men to push closer to Jesus. I have seen men who were shy now praying for other men in our church. Men who stood on the sidelines are now ushers and leaders.”
Mateo’s church also works with a faith-based addiction recovery home in their city called Journeys. Last year, they brought some men from Journeys to the Men’s Breakaway retreat at MBC. Men who knew the restrictions and loneliness of jail and addiction felt the freedom that only Jesus’ presence could bring as they were immersed in an environment of brotherhood where they could raise their hands in worship, canoe on the lake or sit at a table and share their testimonies.
“It has really impacted these guys, and they still talk about their experiences in Muskoka.”
Of all his experiences at MBC, Mateo’s favourite memory of the Men’s Breakaway retreat is the times of musical worship.
“Men from all over the area and from different denominations are under one roof worshiping our Saviour and our King. We are not worried about doctrines or titles. We are singing anthems of our hearts to Jesus. It shows that there is a spiritual fire burning in our areas, that churches are catching onto the fire, and I see that in the men coming to the retreat.”
“I want to thank MBC for what you have done and what God is going to do with the services you provide. He is using MBC to plant and water seeds and now we are seeing growth.”
Mateo Hillman is the care and outreach pastor of Praise Fellowship Church in Chatham, Ontario.
Abby Ciona is MBC’s Editorial Assistant.