Come Away {retreat} ~ Registration Info

To say that I grew up in a day when life was more simple would be an astounding understatement. When I picture the contrast of life in 1979 (I was 15) and 2018 it is almost as if I am picturing two different planets.

A typical day in my 15-year-old life would have included waking up, eating breakfast with my family, going to school where the highlight of the day was walking around the hall during breaks and eyeing the cute boys (yep, I married one of them.) After school there was band practice on Tuesday and Thursday nights and a football game on Friday nights. Sometimes I had a date for Saturday night. I worked at the local pharmacy on Saturdays and Sunday afternoons. Sunday morning and Sunday evening found me in church where the majority of my friends could also be found.

Talking on the telephone meant having a conversation via a phone that was * gasp * attached to the wall by a very long cord that we stretched farther than it should have been so that we could talk in private in our bedroom. We also communicated with our friends via handwritten notes that got passed during class. Awkward!

I read a lot of books, kept a handwritten diary, and did not lay eyes on a computer until my first year of pharmacy school (1984). A mobile phone was not even on the landscape of my mind until 1991, and I had certainly never heard of texting, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or Snapchat.

Life was incredibly simple for me. Today, life is significantly less simple for the majority of people I know, and I believe that is one reason why most of us have a hard time developing an intimate relationship with Jesus. We simply have too much pulling at us.

Mobile devices

Computers

Social media

Kids in every sport under the sun

Activities, activities, activities.

No time to slow down and simply be with Jesus.

It does not take a degreed theologian to see that Satan has found an effective way to keep us from having an intimate relationship with Christ by keeping us busy…focused on things that have little or no eternal value. Which means that if you and I really want an intimate relationship with Jesus we must be the ones to throw up a STOP sign and say, “Enough”.

Is your relationship with Jesus important enough to prompt you to set aside three days to COME AWAY with Him? You see, you will have to be intentional in the pursuit of an intimate relationship with Jesus. It will not happen by accident. You must decide that there is nothing more important to you than that relationship, and you will have to carve out time to meet with Him and allow Him to speak into your heart.

Recently in THIS POST I shared a teeny bit of information about the upcoming Come Away retreat on which the Lord and I are working. You were prompted to consider whether you desire a more intimate relationship with Christ. I told you this retreat would be a time of worship, Bible study, prayer, and time alone with Jesus and I asked you to pray about attending Come Away. Come Away 2018 will offer 9 ladies the opportunity to do just that. May I share with you a few more details about the retreat?

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

September 20-23 will find 9 ladies joining me to spend the weekend together in a beautiful home on Lake Blue Ridge in Blue Ridge, Georgia. There will be four sessions of worship and Scripture teaching during the weekend, as well as ample time and space, both inside the home and outside around the lake, for private reflection and prayer. As we cook and share meals together, we will pray for and encourage one another to pursue Jesus like never before.

At Come Away we will seek to lay aside mobile devices, social media and other distractions in order to fix our gaze on Jesus, Our Beloved. My prayer is that each woman will leave the retreat knowing that she is perfectly safe, deeply loved, and completely accepted by Jesus.

The retreat price will include your accommodations for 3 nights, food, materials, and all sessions. You will only need to bring your Bible, writing instruments, personal items, and a heart that longs to meet Jesus.

This year I have added an extra day to the agenda, so instead of arriving on Friday afternoon, everyone will arrive on Thursday afternoon. We will leave on Sunday morning to return home. Because of the extra day (extra night accommodation, additional meals and additional session material) the price has gone up, but only by $50.

Prices:

Guest house with 4 twin beds in one room and 1 queen ~ $350 per person (5 spaces available at this price)

Private rooms in main house ~ $400 (4 spaces available at this price)

You may pay the entire fee at one time, or in two installments of 50% each, but all fees must be paid by September 1^st. In case you need to cancel your attendance at the retreat (I hope you won’t need to), fees are refundable until August 20th, with the exception of $75.

Because I am seeking women who are serious about an intimate relationship with Jesus, registration requirements will be a bit unique. REGISTRATION WILL OPEN ON JUNE 25TH FOR PAYMENTS.

Beginning now, be willing to commit to pray over your time at Come Away, asking the Lord to give you a prepared heart for what He desires to do that weekend.
In a letter or email, tell me YOUR STORY (where you have been and where you are now spiritually) and why you desire to attend Come Away. If you have attended Come Away previously, tell me what the Lord has done in your life since you were at the retreat and why you would like to return. I will need to have this piece of the registration in my hands before you pay your fee. Do not send money with your letter. I will prompt you to register and pay your fee once I receive your letter. My email address is [email protected] and my mailing address is PO Box 113, Blairsville, GA 30514. YOU MAY BEGIN WRITING AND SENDING YOUR LETTER/EMAIL NOW.
Registration will be first come, first served and I will begin taking registration payments on June 25th.