A Little Closer

"The Lord had already been speaking to me about a closer walk with Him. This retreat reinforced what I was doing and added Lectio Divina as another tool. I want to learn to walk peacefully with Him, doing what I see the Father doing, using words the Father gives me. This retreat brought me closer to that day.

"I have too much activity in my life which causes mistakes and wastes time and energy. I must slow down and pay attention to what God is saying and doing all around me, and in places I've yet to go.

"I must love, but to do that, I must continually be re-filled by Him, by the love He has for me."

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Everlasting Love

"The silence and solitude gave me strength and obedience to the Word of God. Iwill be able to trust God through difficulties and the storms of life. Even in times as troubled as today, m y hope is in the Lord. I will remember this day and the joy of His presence. May I live a life worthy and pleasing to you, My Lord."

The Springs is amazing. Solitude time with God, being in His presence and love. The continual reflection on the truth that "the everlasting love of God is forever." Enjoying the presence of the Lord, praying, reading His Word...waiting to hear His voice: "I love you, my child...Come...Listen."
--Priscilla

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A Must for the Bucket List

"The Lord blessed me with His presence when I felt it had been lost. He embraced me and comforted me. He opened my eyes and my heart with such tenderness. He reminded me that it is He who is in control of all things, all things for His purpose!

For those who have never been, the Springs is an amazing time of communion with the Lord! a must for the Bucket List!"   -- Catherine

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Early Morning Stretch

The songs that Christy used for the early morning stretch:

"Chant" by Michelle Tumes on her cd "Center of My Universe"

"I need thee Every Hour" by Jars of Clay on "Redemptions Songs"

"Strength of my Heart" and "Desire" by Tanya Riley on her cd "Captured" (highly recommend the whole cd - love it)

"Be Thou My Vision" by Ginny Owen on her cd "Without Condition"

"The Fall" by Gungor on "Ghost upon the Earth"

"Beautiful Things" by Nicole Binion on "Follow You"

And the song Christy played in the last chapel was "Agnus Dei" from "Amy Grant Christmas: The complete Collection"

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Loved

"The Lord helped me to truly understand what it means to be loved by Him--that He loves me despite all my flaws and mistakes. Also, He taught me that He has been, and always will be, with me."

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Like coming home

"The Springs is an opportunity for me to spend time with God and develop my relationship with Him; a time to be in silence with Him and listen to His guidance in a safe environment.

The Lord used this time in my life to give me rest, to refresh me, and give me some direction to my questions. The Scriptures are finally beginning to speak to me, or rather, I'm finally able to hear God, through the Scriptures. Coming to The Springs is like coming home to my Father's arms, but not like any earthly father I've ever known. In Him, all of my needs are simply yet lovingly met, providing me the space and time to listen, pray, assess, ponder, steep myself in Scripture and sometimes, most importantly, rest in His loving arms. There is the perfect balance of fellowship, leadership and solitude among women who are turned toward God and this is an encouragement and blessing for me."  -- Lamia

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Love deeply

Live life deeply in love. Meditate on the truths from Scripture that God loves you, has called and chosen you, and is with you always. Experience his love in the gifts He gives -- in flowers and sunsets, in friendships and family, in meaningful work and sacrifical service. Let His love nurture your soul.

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A Mountaintop Experience with Jesus

"I need a time to get away from the busyness of my life to spend quality time with my Lord. To fill up, be refreshed, enjoy the beautiful creation that God has blessed us with, and to feel that peace that passes all understanding and to just be alone with Him."

"This retreat is a wonderful time to get away and spend a mountaintop experience with Jesus."
                                                                          --Carolyn Mendes

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It feels like Family

Group Photo - The Springs, March 2012

"The Springs is a life-changing event that will stay with you forever and you can use the tools given to you at any time or any where. It's also nice to have a nice room of your own and the beauty of the wildflowers, grassy hills, and wild life to take your stress away! It would be so great to have one more day to be alone with the Lord.

"The Lord used this time to de-stress me. I love nature and everytime I come, it feels more and more like family. The women here share the same struggles as other leaders do. So the prayer time is a special time. But the time alone just goes by too fast. I would love to have more alone time. I love the team. You now feel like family and when we arrive and see your faces, it's like coming home to family: a great, happy and warm feeling. God bless you all and thank you from my heart."
                                                   -- Summer Farris

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No Need for a "Church Face"

"The Springs is a place to pull away from all of life's to-dos and noises. A place to rest. A place to meet God without your "church face" on. It's a place to hear God.

"The Lord used this time to give me rest, for communication with Him. It was a time when I could pray. It has been a shot in the arm of refreshment, in and with Him."

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God's at Work

"I feel like The Lord blocked out everything so I could hear him. I still struggled with feeling him, but I heard him clearly. For those who have never been, the Springs is something that you can't imagine. I was scared to spend time in silence. But God works and teaches in ways I never before experienced." --Marty Angarole

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Out of the Dirt - Fruitful and Abundant

Gina used her paint brush to express her praise to the Lord for what He is doing in her life. This picture is actually two panels that can be join or separated. She presented her art as a praise to God at our closing chapel.

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Refreshed

"The Lord used this time in my life to bring me into the company of women who love God/Jesus and live their lives with that love at the core of their very existance. Many people are turned off (or away, if you will) by Christianity because there are (what they call) too many hypocrites in the churches. The women of NEWIM are true examples of people who walk their talk. It has been refreshing and inspirational to be among them.  Thank you and bless you all!

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A Unique Time

"The Springs is a very unique time where you have the opportunity to turn off the world and use your spiritual senses to experience the Lord.

"My time with Jesus was so sweet. The Lord led me to rest, read, and receive His revelation. I'm always so surprised how all the silent time is gone before I expect it to be. Now, having been here a few times, I'm done with having so many expectations and wants that I don't give time to turmoil. The Lord knows what I need and always puts my focus on exactly what will speak to me the most. I have learned more about the character of Jesus and how wonderfully He values who I am."  Rachel

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A God-filled time

"I loved every minute of this retreat! It was a peaceful, God-filled time. Wonderful! I was able to really rest, stop, pray and focus on the Lord. It's so hard to do that in my busy life. Slowing down really helped me to re-charge and focus on who God is, and what He wants me to do and be--mainly on what he wants me to be!" -- Linda Peters

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Learn more about The Springs

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Describe the Springs

Here are 12 quotes from different women who attended the Springs Retreat in November. This is how they said they would describe the Springs for someone who had never been.

"The Springs is a retreat for creating space (with guidance) for God to speak into your life."

"A wonderful time of being quiet with the Lord."

"It's an awesome time alone with God. I experience a spiritual refreshing and my soul finds rest in God."

"It is about getting away from the demands in your life so you are free to focus on the Lord and be in a place where, just perhaps, without the din of noise, you canhear his still, small voice clearer."

"A time of rest - to hear fromthe Lord, connect with Him through others."

"A beautiful place where you can spend time knowing and worshipping the Lord."

"Time to be with the Lord in silent retreat, gently guided by chapels to bring you refreshment, renewal, and restoration."

"This retreat is the greatest gift - time alone with God without interruptions."

"The best retreat a woman could ever attend because it not only offers refreshment, fellowship and teaching, but most of all your time is spent alone with God getting to know Him better."

"It is a very peaceful time with God, enjoying His creation."

"Time for quiet restoration of the soul."

"A time to spend with God."

 Join us for our first weekend retreat, March 9-11, 2012 at St. Anthony's. Go to NEWIM's website to register. We'd love to have you join us!

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What did you do at The Springs Retreat?

What did I do? Whew! The Lord and I cleared the air about a lot of things! Many things were surrendered, laid at the foot of the Cross, and then, God and I had fun! How marvelous to be in the presence of the Lord."

--Scotty, Youth Pastor's wife

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Soul Work

It is our duty to be loyal to God’s desires.


Beware of allowing externals to take control of your life. “Eat, drink and be merry,” became the life purpose of the farmer who had lost his soul. He failed to live rich toward God and only focused on amassing wealth for this life.

Our souls are not designed to be floundering on their own but are to be deeply rooted in God.


Open your inner world to the Lord and sit in his presence for a few minutes, without words, just inviting him in, that you might experience his love for you. Gently ask him to show you a glimpse of your inner world. As you sit in the Lord’s presence, do you sense he is opening you to something? Make every effort not to resist God’s work. If you find negative emotions, don’t pretend they are not there. Welcome them and release them to the Spirit. As you open yourself to the Lord, he will transform you.

As Christians, we can fail to live “rich toward God.” When we allow a busy life to keep us from a profoundly rich, soul-expanding, all-encompassing love for Jesus, we have become the farmer, living a profoundly impoverished life, living as if this life is all there is.

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Keeping the Lord before us

“The first fruit of love is the musing of the mind upon God. He who is in love, his thoughts are ever upon the object. He who loves God is ravished and transported with the contemplation of God .”


One of the most essential practices of the spiritual life is to keep the Lord before us all of the time. David knew this: "I keep the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also rests secure" (Psalm 16:8-9).

So how do we do this? When we take some time to retreat, we have the time to quiet our “inner noisy workshop.” Sometimes it takes 24 hours of solitude before we can begin to be present to the Lord. I've found some ways that help me to quiet the inner noise - things as simple as keeping a list so that my mind doesn't have to be continually reminding of things I don't want to forget.

Along with quieting the inner noise, we need to fill our minds with Jesus. We open ourselves to him and direct our thinking toward him. This is another goal. We can develop the habit of keeping the words of the Gospels in our minds by reading them carefully day by day, and re-reading them. We can memorize them. I find that when I am actively working on memorizing a passage, I naturally recall it throughout the day.

Keeping the Lord before us is a choice, a habit, a skill that we can practice and become better at. If we stick with it, keeping our mind focused on the Lord and at peace in Him will become the default. Our minds will return to him naturally, as a matter of habit.

Memorizing Scripture is such a gift as it helps our mind muse upon God.

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Arrange Time for Communion

"We understand anew that God will not compete for our attention. We must arrange time for our communion with Him as we draw aside in solitude and silence."

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Soul Care

"Allowing service for Christ to steal our devotion to him is a radical failure in personal soul care. But it is one from which the practice of communing with Christ in times of solitude and silence can deliver us."


How many times have we gotten to the place where we are absolutely empty, poured out, exhausted...and how many times have we found that the rest and refreshment of a three day spiritual retreat, where we have a private room and time to take a nap, walk in a natural setting, read our Bibles, and simply be silent and alone with the Lord has completely restored us?

Silence, Solitude, and Time are essential to our soul care.

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What did the Lord show me during our Retreat?

The Lord shared his love with me and let me know that He is here for me. And I learned that the Lord's love is unconditional and He has always been my Father watching over me.

"The Springs retreat is held in such a beautiful place where you can spend time knowing and worshipping the Lord." 
- November 2011 retreatant

"The Lord blessed this time for me in too many ways to say. I felt loved by Him in everything here - from the thoughtfulness of the team putting all of the details together - in small things -- to the beautiful promises with my name put in there personally - it was so sweet.

"I found the chapels so beautiful and driven by the Holy Spirit. I loved the freedom I felt in Track 3 - and when I took some of that freedom, I never felt pressured by anyone to do anythingin particular, which is so important to me, here.

"I appreciated the "silent" table too...God took me on a journey I'm not soon to forget and I thank Him for that! Thank you for allowing me to come!  Thank you!"  - Laura T.

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Why did you come to the Springs?

"I came to the Springs retreat in 2009 for my first retreat and took home many tools to use in my life for the next year. God knew I would need them for that year. My sister moved out and I suddenly became a full-time caregiver for my husband. His Alzheimer's progressed. I had tools to work with so that I could "live in God's love."

My husband is with Jesus now and I need to find myself again, and see where God will lead my life. Thank you, Jesus.

--Patty Sue, November 2011 retreatant

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Not what I expected!

"I have felt like a wanderer, not excited with where I am headed. I was very frustrated with the Lord and wasn't sure how this retreat would go... I held on to verses that I have memorized and thought of his love for me in a different perspective. Romans 5 was something I stumbled upon which was helpful. I now am questioning more than ever what my purpose is... I might go back to school and I may look into ministry as I felt a tug on my heart. Overall, this retreat calmed my heart but showed me that I need to get down on my knees a lot more and be still and listen for what the Lord wants me to hear. NONE OF THIS WAS WHAT I EXPECTED (in true God fashion)!"

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The Springs Retreat

"The Springs was used by the Lord to give me time to dig into the dark places in my life, cleaning out the junk and lies, replacing them with who God says I am. It was a time of peace and no agenda. I just wanted what God wanted for me. I was refreshed and energized to go home and handle circumstances in a whole new way. I saw visably that God cared about my desires. He met me in the low dry valley and he met me on the mountain top. He used this time to tell me He loves me no matter what."

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Describe The Springs for someone who has never been

"The Springs is a time to detox from the demands and pace of life. Newim provides a perfect blend of supplements, discussion, teaching and quiet time to help the beginner, as well as seasoned followers of Jesus, to maximize their time to hear and share with our Lord and Savior through the discipline of solitude."  -- Pam Carr, Director of Womens Ministries

"A very peaceful time with God, enjoying His creation." --Dana S.

"A desperately needed time set in my busy life to go away with the Lord. A transformational experience every single time, but never what I anticipate or expect! A chance to fully experience alone time with the perfect love of Jesus Christ." -- Ashley Budd

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Principles of Devotion

Know deeply that I am whole in God’s eyes – beloved. He values and loves me. Because I am so loved and completely forgiven, I can love and forgive others.


Know yourself – your strengths and their accompanying weaknesses. Know how you promote and defend yourself.

Surrender to the love of God and entrust yourself to his loving intentions. Consent to his supremacy in all things. Be willing for God to be your Father.

Release control of your time, tendencies, inclinations, motivations, desires, goals, finances to the Lord. Be aware of what you might be holding back.

Find contentment in trusting in the goodness of the will of God, assured he has done and always will do well by us.

Fully participate, using your intelligence and energy to accomplish God’s will in the world.

Present your body to God—release each part to Him, ask him to take charge of your body, fill it, use it for his purposes. Use fasting as a strategy to help you know that the Lord is the Provider of nourishment for both your body and your soul. You are in charge of your body.

Stop idolizing your body. Care for it as it serves God and don’t worry or fear what will happen to it or what it will do to you. Entrust it to God.

Don’t misuse your body – not as a source of sensual gratification outside God’s will or to manipulate others by how you dress, or the things you say, or by using your words to exclude others.

Properly honor and care for your body—it is holy, set apart to God. Eat well and exercise. Enter into contrary practices like Sabbath resting and fasting to break the force of a habit that you don’t seem to be able to resist. When you feel tempted, turn your attention to deeply receiving the truth of God’s love for you. Rest. Sleep well.

Be in a community of trusted friends that are willing to open their inner lives. Be as honest as you can be about who you are.

Reflect on God’s Word each day.

Have a daily time to reflect on what the Spirit is doing in your heart and life. To do this, you might journal reflectively about: What insight did you receive today? What are you most grateful for? What do you want to hold on to? What do you want to release?

Take the opportunity to go on a spiritual retreat where you have the luxury of several days focused on being with God.



 

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What I learned at the Springs this year

"At the first chapel, I nailed down some hurts I needed to give to Jesus and I did! Thanks Christy!"

"The Lord used this time in my life to refresh and renew my spirit. It was a delight once again to see each of you - you make a dynamite team! I continued on my learning curve of solitude and silence -- it's getting a little easier. Luann has helped me a lot with that through conversations we've had and the awesome papers she has written on it that are available on the Resource Table. I'm trying to free myself of rules and expectations - it's coming!

"Thanks to each of you for all the work you sink into this very worthwhile project! Two resources that really meant a lot to me this year were "Hearts Unfold like Flowers Before Thee" and the 2 pages of God's promises from Scripture - that was amazing."

-- Sue, Nov 2011 retreatant

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He Will Answer

Psalm 86:7 “In the day of my trouble I will call to You, for You will answer me.”
The truths of this verse are so precious to me. In times of trouble, or times of need, maybe times of loneliness, or fear about the future, it feels like He’s used this verse to teach me something…
He doesn’t always answer our questions, but He always answers our cry.

Sometimes His answer is “I am with you.”
Sometimes it’s “Be still and know that I am God.”
Or maybe it’s “Do not fear.”
But what has overwhelmed me lately is that His answer is always, “I love you.”
Regardless of my circumstances, or emotions, or thoughts, or needs, He loves me. That never ever changes.
I wonder how many times the Lord answers my cry, but I don’t hear? Because I’m looking for a different kind of answer. I often want an answer that will speak to my situation, yet He longs to speak to my heart. I usually want an answer that will cause me to know how things are going to work out, but He wants me to simply know more of Who He is, and that He is in control.

Psalm 86:7 “In the day of my trouble I will call to You, for You will answer me.”
Thank You, Lord, that Your answer is always, “I love you.”

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Describe your retreat for us --

"The Lord has taken me into the quiet place and away from all the distractions to just love on me. I was not aware I needed this so much. He took my eyes off myself and as a result, I saw him everywhere.

"Thank you for your many hours of preparation and organization. It is evident much prayer went into this retreat."  -- Leone Krohn

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How did the Lord use the Retreat in my life?

The Lord brought a long-hoped-for transformation to fruition.
He led me to find some answers to troubling questions and resolution.
He showed me his unconditional love and helped me pass it on.
He showed me His amazing creation through women and nature.
He made my heart sing through song.

Thank you Lord!  Thank you the Springs!

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Thank you for the Scholarship!

"I am so deeply grateful for the scholarship. I wouldn't have been able to come without it. And the Lord has really used the women in my small group and the time here to put me on the path of freedom."
--Sarah Schmidt, November retreatant

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How did the Lord use The Springs Retreat in my life?

The Lord allowed me to see how He had been at work in our family's life bringing us together and knitting our hearts to each other.

He showed me that I have a proud heart and need to be a broken Christian...that this brokenness is an admission of need and dependence on the Lord...a pulverization of my self-will.

He showed me that I still feel overwhelmed and trapped by my own expectations.

He showed me that all I am required to do is to love God and love people and let go of everything else.

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He Chose Me

By Kim Bagato

On my first retreat at The Springs, I sensed great peace as I settled in. I’d contemplated what it would be like to spend time at a Catholic retreat center. The family I grew up in did not attend church every Sunday. We didn’t even go on Christmas or Easter. Therefore, my religious training was scant.
I had a lot to learn when introduced to Jesus in the early 1980s as a young adult. I still discover gaps in my understanding of religious traditions. The Stations of the Cross is one of those areas I didn’t know much about.

The first night of The Springs retreat we gathered in the chapel. My eyes were drawn to Jesus on the cross. I believe it was the first time I saw his humanness—He was a man. Jesus is God, but I saw him that night as human. It struck me how sad and hard and unnatural it looked to see him hanging there so vulnerable and in need of care. Memories appeared in my mind’s eye of my husband, son, dad, grandpa and friends I’d seen in hospitals, in pain, near death. Men—strong healthy men—injured, ill, vulnerable. They are the ones I lean on and look to and seeing them incapacitated is difficult for me.
Christ on the cross was a startling reminder of the pain he endured and the humility and abuse he met from men he could have overpowered.

He chose not to.
For me.
He.
Chose.
Me.

The following afternoon, I walked the path through the Stations of the Cross. I’d never done this before. Each pure white statue depicted a scene of Christ’s journey from trial to crucifixion and each seemed to emanate an historic peace. This bothered me. I’d read the gospel accounts, and my memory recalled the brutality of this course of events. These colorless sculptures left me with questions so I returned to the quietness of my room to study the scriptures and gain a better understanding of Christ’s final hours.

I did some research and discovered the titles and themes of each of the 14 Stations of the Cross and learned some background. I delved into my Bible searching for truth. (See Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23 and John 19.)

I found it.
Violent.
Harsh.
Abusive.

Quickly I realized that type of punishment couldn’t be fully reflected in cream-colored carvings. I’m uncertain if I’ll ever fully understand His horrendous yet supernatural sacrifice. That is not a pretty, holy, serene looking Jesus. He endured more than most of us will in a lifetime.
Deeply humbled and nearly in a state of shock, I allowed the gravity of that tragic injustice to soak deep. The profound truth of Christ’s unwavering expression of faithfulness, love and obedience to the Father’s will silenced my mind and granted me peace as I prayed:
Oh, God I don’t ever want to discount or squander your sacrifice and the unimaginable cost you paid to save my soul. It’s so valuable and heavy I can barely carry it.

© Kim Bagato 2011

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How did the Lord use The Springs Retreat in my life?

I came here to be refreshed - I received it.
I came here to hear from God - I heard Him.
I came here to worship and praise Him - I did that.
I came here for a greater intimacy with God - I got it.
I came here for direction - I got it.
I came here to fellowship with other believers - it happened.
I came to learn - I learned new things.
I came to relax - I relaxed.
I came to get away with Jesus - I did.

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How did this Lord Use The Springs retrteat?

"I love my time here. Just being quiet and enjoying the silence. For me, this is not something I can replicate at home. I have small children so the reality is that if I want a full day of quiet focused on God, it has to be away from home.

"This retreat I really concentrated on studying a book on learning how to crave God. We are made to crave but I've been filling my cravings with things and food and drink and fueling self-hate. I've been sluggish and down. I'm going to replace those habits with God. Give me more God! I'm created to crave Him. By his grace I'll find freedomfromthe vices that consume my thoughts and my heart. Give me more God! His grace issufficient for me."

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What are your taking home from your retreat?

"During this retreat, the Lord caused me to stop and listen and record what He wanted me to know at this point in time about family circumstances, ministry circumstances and primarily about my need for Him to fill me daily with His love."

"The Springs is a way to come close to the Lord in quiet solitude."

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How did the Lord use this Retreat?

"He answered my cries. He satisfied my spoken needs before the retreat even started. He used the rest of the time to clarify confusions I've been struggling with for a while. He even opened up a new path for my future and gave me a new guide. Amen!"

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Soul Rest

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. Psalm 23


It’s stressing over outcomes that makes me nuts. This is not the spiritual life. The spiritual life involves surrendering all outcomes to Jesus, drawing close, listening to his Spirit to follow his leading, and doing my best but not with a compulsive, obsessed, “driven to prove myself” mentality.

This is quite a challenge when you are being held accountable for results and you really can fail, lose funding, lose your job.

“The Lord is my shepherd.” He is the one who provides. He is the one who makes me lie down and rest secure. He is the one who nourishes and refreshes and leads the way. He is the one who restores my soul. He is the one who guards me from evil and takes away all my fear because I know he is right there beside me, able to protect me. He is the one who vindicates me in the presence of my enemies and honors me and blesses me. “Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all of the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

Soul rest is possible because I learn from Scripture that the criteria for success in Jesus’ kingdom is not the outcome I’m striving for. That’s the world’s measure. Success in God’s kingdom is defined by God and is based on our love for him and others, our dependence and humility before him, our fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. When we live in the kingdom of God we can lighten up, have fun doing our best, because we have been set free from having to prove our worth by producing results. God wants our hearts and he’ll produce success according to his measure. He may even have us fail in order to form our character in the crucible of suffering and difficulties. So rest.

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Spiritual Gluttony

Rest rekindles the fire.


There is such a thing as “spiritual gluttony” – when we compulsively want more and more spiritually. The compulsion to do more ministry, glean more insight, meet with more people, pray longer, give more, sleep less. Passion that morphs into an obsession can ruin us.

On a regular basis, we need to stop and take a true Sabbath’s rest. If we don’t, we can become spiritual gluttons. Passion everyday can squelch our passion. Lay down everything you are doing and stop all of your mental activity and truly rest.

Rest rekindles the fire.

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