A Leader's Journey into Solitude and Silence Retreats
"Thank you from the very essence of who I am for creating a nourishing and healthy place for solitude and silence. I was able to let go of all of the other relationships and demands in my life like I have never come close to before and simply spend time with God. I came to realize that I was really there for relationship with God and everything else was secondary. I was and continue to be transformed by the experience.
I want to particularly thank you for your guidance on Tuesday morning about taking time to journal what had happened over the retreat time. Through doing that, what did happen during the retreat was imprinted in my soul in a permanent way and in some mysterious way has primed (like priming a hand water pump with a small amount of water) the springs of living water in my soul.
During my 7 1/2 hour drive home I was amazed how the radio and even my most meaningful worship music seemed "noisy". I spent most of the drive in silence - not planning a sermon or rehearsing my next week's schedule, but simply journeying with God. Thanks be to God!"
--Tim Wright, Pastor, Greensky Hill Indian Mission United
Methodist Church and Horton Bay United Methodist Church
“I have led retreats and gone away for personal retreats for planning and message preparation, but this was the first time I went away for a guided retreat experience -- where I was solely a participant. The most stretching and rewarding part was the two extended periods of silence -- given to spend some significant time alone with God.
The value of a guided experience is that you are challenged to think about various questions. Instead of giving yourself the quick 'Sunday School answer' you give yourself permission to 'sit with the question' for a longer period of time. With the extended time, God begins to strip away the facades and masks we tend to hide behind.
After a long walk and some periodic seasons of prayer, I gained some clarity on some questions that have perplexed me for some time. The answers came slowly and are not yet fully answered -- but some significant pieces came together because I slowed the RPM's long enough to give God a chance to address my heartfelt questions."
--Pieter Van Waarde, Sr. Pastor, Woodcrest Chapel,
Columbia, Missouri
"I so appreciate your deep love for the Lord, but more importantly your confidence in who you are in Christ. You have taught me about 'sitting still' long enough to see where I am with the Lord today. You taught me how to feel the very presence of God in the depth of my being, which has allowed me to move forward in my own journey to wholeness and completeness in Christ. I can sense the power of the Holy Spirit surrounding you as you share your gifts with those around you."
--Nancy Miller, La Crosse, WI
"Praise our Lord, I have experienced deep healing on all fronts since attending your Silence and Solitude retreat back in June."
--Professor, Illinois
"I wanted to take this time to tell you that the Solitude and Silence retreat saved my life last summer. Besides helping me through a difficult move, it gave me the strength I needed to get through a challenging season, including having our house broken into, and my husband suffering two heart attacks and undergoing angioplasty and stent surgery. Several months after all this, I realized I had been in major depression and would probably still be there without the immense strengthening and enrichment I received from everyone on the retreat leadership team as well as from those in attendance. Truly, the Comforter was there in a special way."
--Sandra Meyer
