Men's Retreat
The Men's Fall Retreat took place the weekend of September 20-22. The theme of the retreat was "The Heart of the Father". The men got the experience the love that the Father has for them by also sharing in the joy of brotherhood with one another!
Men's Retreat Reflection:
“This weekend we’ve been talking about God the Father, his Fatherhood and I’ve been thinking about my own relationship with my own father and I’ve just been reminded over and over how grateful I am for my own father but also the other fathers in the room. I just want to say thank you for teaching me and teaching all the young men in the room what it means to be a father and was it means to father young men. It really makes this all understandable, the gift of fatherhood really opens my mind and understanding of what it means to see God the Father as as father. So thank you.
Secondly, in our time of worship yesterday, and I was praying to the Father and the phrase ‘Father, I trust in you’ kept coming to mind over and over again. And I kept saying it over and over again and I finally said it one last time and I realized what I was saying ‘Father, I trust in you’ and the image that came to mind was of me saying that to my own father as if I was standing in front of him and saying ‘dad I trust you’ and I just really experienced the pleasure of the Father hearing that from his son and realizing the depth of what the means as a father hearing from his son ‘dad, I trust you’. What I took away from that is that the Father wants to hear that, he wants to hear that we trust Him. Whether we’re in our 20’s or our 70’s and 80’s, he’s still our dad and so I encourage you in that and I’m really grateful for the Father and all the father’s in the room.”
Women's Retreat
The Women's Fall Retreat took place the weekend of September 27-29. The theme of the retreat was also "The Heart of the Father". The women heard talks about the unique and personal love the Father has for each of his daughters and that we as sisters in Christ are called to share that love with all.
Women's Retreat Reflection:
“I was very much looking forward to being on retreat. I sometimes find the word “retreat” strange for in a battle it means “fall back.” But I realize, more and more with each retreat, that I very much need to fall back, to regroup and hear the battle plans for moving forward once again. Just to be in a place where I hear over and over again I am loved and to be with women of faith that are such an encouragement to me is exactly what my soul needs.
I would say going into the retreat hearing that the theme was focused on the Father, I was questioning what exactly my relationship with him looks like. As the week following the retreat went on, I recognized how I experience [the Father’s] love daily: in the beauty of nature and the love I receive from my husband, children and so many others. In a world that desperately needs unconditional love more than anything, I was deeply blessed to have a weekend where I experienced that in every way."