I love leading retreats. I mean I LOVE leading retreats. Seriously. It does not get any better for me than planning and leading one-, two-, or three-day retreats where we all hang out and eat good food and get loved on by God. Pure heaven.
I’ve known this was my passion for a while, but having just returned from St. Michael’s, Maryland where I spent the most amazing weekend with sixty women, I can say with renewed strength, “I love leading retreats!” 
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying I don’t love leading prayer bead workshops. I DO love them. But retreats are like having your cake and eating it, too, because they generally INCLUDE a prayer bead workshop. So you get the good news of the prayer beads set in the larger context of a retreat theme. For example, this past weekend our theme was, “Be Still.” From Friday night to Saturday afternoon we talked about being still: why we need it, how it’s not easy to do, how we can do it, what benefits it brings, etc. Tucked in there was a full prayer bead workshop, which meant we could then use the beads we made to practice being still. It was awesome. And we really did eat cake.
Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. ~Howard Thurman
I would love to do a retreat with you, so let’s get together! Let’s talk about a theme and a time and how we can make this happen. This is about putting a dream in motion, and together we will see how to make it come alive. Don’t let finances stop you. The group in Maryland this past weekend was a collaboration of about five or six churches who came together to plan and support the retreat. Then they opened up participation to women throughout the area, which meant we had a great group of women under one roof.
Remember, too, our September Giveaway: 50% off my retreat leadership fee to one lucky winner, and 10% off my fee to all who enter. Read the details here. And if you’re interested, there’s endorsements from past retreat participants here.
I love to lead retreats. I love having an extended period of time to share God’s deep love with others. That’s my passion and my gift. I’ve love to share it with you. Together, we can eat cake.
Kristen, Your passion for retreats rings clear! Here in Middle TN, we have Beersheba Springs as a location for both Pastoral and Laity retreats . I love feeling God there. I plan to present a program to our Columbia District’s UMW to include the 5 week Prayer Bead study. It would be wonderful if after that, a retreat to Beersheba could happen with homemade beads in hand! God has place you in my life for such beautiful work to be done. I am currently taking another advanced Lay Servant Ministry course to keep my certification. “Evangelism”! Go figure! Blessings to you! Barbara