April 16, 2012

Retreat and Catch your Breath

Each time I get ready for another retreat, I ask myself the question, “Why are we here?”  There are so many reasons to be at a retreat.   We come to get away, to grow closer to our friends, to meet members of the opposite gender, to spend time with our role models, and to have some Camp-Phillip-style ridiculous fun.

We also come because we know that a part of being a Christian is spending time with God.  We aren’t always sure how, but we expect that time away from our normal life will allow God to encourage our spirits, to give us hope, and to rekindle our faith.

God has used a time away to prepare so many of his servants throughout history, and he does the same thing at Camp Phillip. 

There is a pattern to the way that he works during a retreat.  The retreat begins with excitement at arriving at a new place, and anticipation of a new experience.  Camp is fun, and new, and exhilarating.


Sometime later, in a devotion or Bible study, or in a conversation with another Christian beside the fire, the retreat cycle continues.  God uses his Word to show us something that we couldn’t see clearly at home.  We arrived at Camp, like someone who has gotten used to a bad smell.  There are things in our lives that we have grown accustomed to, but the time away helps us get a whiff of the stench of our sin.

The new perspective helps us shout with Paul, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?”  (Romans 7:24).

The next thing that happens is that we get to take a deep breath of the freedom that comes through forgiveness.   God uses Scripture, devotions, songs, and deep Christian friendships to give us a sweet taste of the Gospel. 

So many of us in the Camp family can proudly proclaim that God used Camp Phillip to introduce us to some of the best friends we have known.  I would even go so far as to say that I didn’t learn what a good friend looked like until Camp.

God uses the retreat to give us a breath of fresh air.  He leaves that taste in our mouths, and he teaches us how to avoid some of the pitfalls that we had been stumbling into.   God has used the time to plant a seed of truth, and to nurture in us the new creation he has made. 

I pray you are able to join us for a retreat.  I pray the God gives you many other opportunities to catch your breath.  But even more, I ask that “the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  -Romans 15:5-6