The Complete Leader's Guide to Christian Retreats received a nod in the March 2009 Sojourners! Yay God!
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Monday, February 23, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Love the One You're With Retreat Highlights
This verse from I Corinthians was in my inbox today when I got home from retreat:
"Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (I Corinthians 13:7, NLT)
This is exactly what we wanted to communicate to the women this weekend at the Love the One You're With retreat; I think we were successful...
Friday night...in the Psalms study room, women were awed and amazed that Christine's typed copy of a Psalm asked them to insert their own name everywhere it said me, my or I. In that moment the Word became a very personal message of hope and love to those women. Praise God! In the Confession/Assurance of Pardon room, tears rolled down cheeks as women came face to face with the brokenness each and every one of us live with because of sin and wept as they wrote those sins down, burned them in the fire and received the assurance of pardon that God forgives and his love is from everlasting to everlasting. In the Prayer Labyrinth room, women negotiated the labyrinth path, stopping at stations to reflect and pray, at first tentatively, then with a true pilgrim's heart. This station took much longer than anticipated because the women fully engaged in the moment, kneeling in prayer over the pool of water into which their burden stone had been released, heads bent over journals in which they poured out their hearts. "Do not be conformed to this world but transform your mind so that you can discern what is God's will, what is good and pleasing and perfect." (Romans 12:2) Amen!
Saturday morning...Christine removed fear and anxiety from our relationships with God by talking about the Favor Line and how God erased that with His love, His Son. God does not require that we measure up to a certain unattainable standard. He does hope and pray that we will be faithful, that we will seek Him out, that we will live reconciled to Him, but He does not remove His love when we falter and stumble, a message many needed to hear. Saturday morning also brough dyads and a time to get to know one other woman better on a deeper level. New friendships were formed amidst tears and laughter.
Saturday afternoon...Rachel helped ladies figure out where they were on the Jesus Relationship Continuum (and we tied it into Fireproof!). They heard about how crazy faith and crazy love are what are required to live a life worthy of the one to which God has called us. Inspired by the Shamgar Principle (are you curious? Judges 3;31), they brainstormed ways to deepen their love for Jesus during Lent so that on Easter morning they can wake up and say with unconditional passion, "I love you, Lord, and you alone!" Perspectives were forever changed as we went around a prayer circle naming one person and what s/he had done to show us love...then going around a second time replacing the person's name with the Name above all names, Jesus. Barely enough kleenex to go around...
There's so much more to share about crazy faith and crazy love, but that's a story for another day...
"Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (I Corinthians 13:7, NLT)
This is exactly what we wanted to communicate to the women this weekend at the Love the One You're With retreat; I think we were successful...
Friday night...in the Psalms study room, women were awed and amazed that Christine's typed copy of a Psalm asked them to insert their own name everywhere it said me, my or I. In that moment the Word became a very personal message of hope and love to those women. Praise God! In the Confession/Assurance of Pardon room, tears rolled down cheeks as women came face to face with the brokenness each and every one of us live with because of sin and wept as they wrote those sins down, burned them in the fire and received the assurance of pardon that God forgives and his love is from everlasting to everlasting. In the Prayer Labyrinth room, women negotiated the labyrinth path, stopping at stations to reflect and pray, at first tentatively, then with a true pilgrim's heart. This station took much longer than anticipated because the women fully engaged in the moment, kneeling in prayer over the pool of water into which their burden stone had been released, heads bent over journals in which they poured out their hearts. "Do not be conformed to this world but transform your mind so that you can discern what is God's will, what is good and pleasing and perfect." (Romans 12:2) Amen!
Saturday morning...Christine removed fear and anxiety from our relationships with God by talking about the Favor Line and how God erased that with His love, His Son. God does not require that we measure up to a certain unattainable standard. He does hope and pray that we will be faithful, that we will seek Him out, that we will live reconciled to Him, but He does not remove His love when we falter and stumble, a message many needed to hear. Saturday morning also brough dyads and a time to get to know one other woman better on a deeper level. New friendships were formed amidst tears and laughter.
Saturday afternoon...Rachel helped ladies figure out where they were on the Jesus Relationship Continuum (and we tied it into Fireproof!). They heard about how crazy faith and crazy love are what are required to live a life worthy of the one to which God has called us. Inspired by the Shamgar Principle (are you curious? Judges 3;31), they brainstormed ways to deepen their love for Jesus during Lent so that on Easter morning they can wake up and say with unconditional passion, "I love you, Lord, and you alone!" Perspectives were forever changed as we went around a prayer circle naming one person and what s/he had done to show us love...then going around a second time replacing the person's name with the Name above all names, Jesus. Barely enough kleenex to go around...
There's so much more to share about crazy faith and crazy love, but that's a story for another day...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
God Definitely Has a Sense of Humor
And hopefully I'll be laughing all the way to the bank (at some point, assuming there still are banks)!
The unbelievable saga of my retreat planning book continues... When I started my research last spring, I began calling camp and conference centers around the US to get my data for the "get yourself started" listing of facilities nationwide. I had the hardest time reaching a live person, and often when I did, the person was rather suspicious, like I was trying to sell ad space, not simply obtain basic info about their camp. After working my way through the first 5 states on my list and getting a dismal response rate, I opted to just utilize two online camp/conference databases and only deal with facilities that had detailed web sites. That worked, and my book continued unhindered.
However, after the book came out in December, I asked my Judson Press marketing director if she thought we should send a mailer to all the camp/conference centers in the book to let them know the book was available. I hesitated because I didn't want these places to feel like I was running some kind of bait and switch scam and now I expected them to buy because they'd been included. Oddly enough, though, camps began contacting Judson and asking if they could buy the book in bulk and give it away to all of the groups who use their facilities. That request got the marketing director thinking about a different way to promote the book as both a tool and a blessing for user groups. So, a direct mail piece was done and sent to all the Christian Camp and Conference Association members letting them know about the book and offering a discount for buying in bulk. That's resulted in a small but steady stream of orders every day from the camps, which hopefully will turn into bulk orders down the line. Who knew?
Like I said, I hope I'm ultimately laughing all the way to the bank and that the book continues to be both a blessing and a tool for all who read it! You gotta love God's sense of humor!
The unbelievable saga of my retreat planning book continues... When I started my research last spring, I began calling camp and conference centers around the US to get my data for the "get yourself started" listing of facilities nationwide. I had the hardest time reaching a live person, and often when I did, the person was rather suspicious, like I was trying to sell ad space, not simply obtain basic info about their camp. After working my way through the first 5 states on my list and getting a dismal response rate, I opted to just utilize two online camp/conference databases and only deal with facilities that had detailed web sites. That worked, and my book continued unhindered.
However, after the book came out in December, I asked my Judson Press marketing director if she thought we should send a mailer to all the camp/conference centers in the book to let them know the book was available. I hesitated because I didn't want these places to feel like I was running some kind of bait and switch scam and now I expected them to buy because they'd been included. Oddly enough, though, camps began contacting Judson and asking if they could buy the book in bulk and give it away to all of the groups who use their facilities. That request got the marketing director thinking about a different way to promote the book as both a tool and a blessing for user groups. So, a direct mail piece was done and sent to all the Christian Camp and Conference Association members letting them know about the book and offering a discount for buying in bulk. That's resulted in a small but steady stream of orders every day from the camps, which hopefully will turn into bulk orders down the line. Who knew?
Like I said, I hope I'm ultimately laughing all the way to the bank and that the book continues to be both a blessing and a tool for all who read it! You gotta love God's sense of humor!
Friday, February 6, 2009
Retreat Planning Webinars
Newsflash! Rachel will soon be hosting webinars to make your retreat planning process even easier! Training is being done later this month with the goal of hosting the first webinar in April. During the session, Rachel will walk you through the retreat planning overview and answer all your questions, so you can get your retreat in the works!
Stay tuned for more details/dates.
Stay tuned for more details/dates.
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