León Pastoral Retreat

Last weekend 20 people from three pastoral families in León and myself piled into three vehicles and took off for the beach. We rented a house near Gran Pacífica and spent Friday and Saturday relaxing, singing, and reflecting on the Word together. The house was a large VRBO find with five rooms and multiple double beds. The three pastoral couples who participate in the Church Friendship Program in León brought their households. As well as eating together, watching a movie, swimming, and taking walks along the beach, we went through five discussion themes.

First, we "unpacked" by asking ourselves how we are feeling at this moment, what stresses are we taking into this retreat, and giving these burdens to God. José, one of the young men at the retreat, said that he wants to implement the "unpacking" method of considering his emotions and tasks and bringing them to God more often.

In León, three pastoral couples participate in the Church Friendship Program at the Nehemiah Center. They brought their children and some close family members to the retreat, depending on the size of their family. Most of the people at the retreat are involved in ministry at the churches Getsemaní, Belén or Monte Horeb. We made quite a good chorus with the guitar that the pastors took turns playing because there was at least one worship leader from each church present. You can check out the choir in the videos. When we shared "Thanksgiving" time, it was hard to reel us in from the singing and sharing testimonies of how God has worked in our lives and lives of people around us.

Our homework for "Adoration" was to walk around and see how God talked to us through the creation of God in nature. It was raining lightly so many of the participants stayed at the house, but I decided to wander the beach. It was a lovely, overcast afternoon, and the raw beauty of the rocks and the plants along the shore reminded me that God is always bringing beauty from places we don't expect it. People see rocks as obstacles to swimming, and I saw them as beautiful texture where the water pools and the shells collect. It was a good afternoon of praise.

 

Another of the reflections was about "Confession" and asking ourselves what makes us hide from God or blame other people. We spent time quietly journaling after focusing on Genesis 3 and then affirming Christ's forgiveness in our lives.

The objective of the retreat was for the pastoral families to spend time together in quality time, reflect on the Word, and grow closer together with the other families in the program. From swimming in the Sea Salt pool on Saturday afternoon to teaching one another UNO to sharing meals together, I think that objective was reached. By the end of the retreat, people were expressing appreciation for each other and the time they could spend together.

 Our final reflection was based on John 15 and Jesus telling us to "Remain" in him. We shared our thoughts, and many of the participants shared that the way to remain in Christ is to bear fruit. May God be glorified by the fruit that these pastoral families produce in their lives, churches, and in the testimony of the unity of Christ in the Church Friendship Program.