RETREAT! RETREAT! By Vicki Marsh
from your normal routine at work or at home to a peaceful place where you go in order to fellowship (and rest and pray) with a group from church, or work friends or classmates, etc. Taking a short break from your “everyday life” to get to know others better can be a very worthwhile expenditure of your time! Although it might be nice, a retreat does not necessarily mean that you get on an airplane to some exotic location with lots of sun or snow (depending on your preference). A retreat can be just for a weekend, or an overnight or even in your own town. The purpose of a retreat is to give you and the other attendees an opportunity to relax and refresh in an envi- ronment where you can fellowship or even conduct business without a lot of distractions. At one church, we did several “in house” retreats. You would come on Friday night (nursery provided, if needed) for a meal (you are not the one doing the cooking or cleaning up afterward!), music and a good speaker. On Saturday, you would return for breakfast, more music, the same speaker or another speaker and fellowship time. At the end of church and sometimes with an overnight at Bonclarken for fellowship the night before. We would use Saturday morn- ing (after a delicious breakfast), as a time for incoming and outgoing help to make the transition smooth. This was very helpful! A “few years ago,” when I was in the youth group at my church, we went to every retreat at Bonclarken and even took a trip to the beach. (May I add a huge thank you to our leaders? Now that I have been a leader, my admiration for your patience and bravery has greatly in- creased)! These retreats were full of great music, relatable speakers, lots of games and other activities, and I met ARP youth from other churches, many of them attended Erskine when I was there! Over the years, I have attended many ARP Women’s Retreats at Bonclarken. I always learn a lot, eat a lot, walk a lot, and meet many ladies in our denomination. Many of our Presbyterials and several of our individual churches have retreats, either yearly or every other year. The next time that you have a chance to go on a retreat, I encour- age you to go!
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The WM of Second Presbytery is having a retreat at Bonclarken on November 3-4. Any lady in the denomination who would like to at- tend is welcome! Registration forms will be available in late July. You can look forward to music, fellowship, interesting seminars, food, and good speakers. Retreat!
24 The Associate Reformed Presbyterian
private place where you can go in order to rest or to pray.” 2. “A withdrawal from a point or position reached (such
Women’s Ministries
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