COV LIFE BLOG

Presenting CLC’s Women’s Retreat: Joy in the Journey

Sometimes I feel weary from trying so hard. Between the self-replenishing piles of laundry and the nagging reminders of my own sin, I quickly lose a childlike wonder of beholding and enjoying the Lord. I can only seem to think of all those women I know who are doing a whole lot better than I am. This hurts community and paralyzes my effectiveness. I think a lot of other women in our church family find themselves going through this same dangerous path. A lot of times, we might be aware we’re losing sight of truth, but when we open our devotional or even go on a Christian retreat, we just hear more and more about what we need to change and how we can do better. There’s a place for that, but I’m so thankful that this year’s Covenant Life Women’s Retreat aims to help us remember whose we are and why that should be deeply and immensely life-giving in everything we do and think. No matter what life stage we find ourselves, the benefits of knowing the Lord give us every reason to have Joy in the Journey.

This year, Trillia Newbell will be our speaker, and I am so excited about that. I feel like her articles and interviews are always popping up around Desiring God, the Gospel Coalition, Moody Radio, and other helpful Christian resources. She has written two books, Fear and Faith and United: Captured by God’s Vision for Diversity, and though I haven’t had a chance to read either yet, I’ve loved everything else I’ve read or heard from her. If you watch her speak or spend two minutes scrolling her Instagram feed, you’ll quickly see that she powerfully radiates a really sweet joy in the Lord, so I cannot wait to hear her talk about joy and rest in Jesus.

I’m really excited to be considering such a great topic for two days with some of my favorite people (you, CLC women!) This year we will be staying at Bethany Retreat Center in Lutz. It’s only about 30 minutes from Tampa, but I was able to tour the facilities a couple months ago and can personally testify that it feels like a totally different place. Whoever designed the buildings at Bethany Retreat Center was intentional to utilize natural light as much as possible; from the conference room to the dining hall to the cottages, everything feels light and dreamy and…restful. Homey and well-decorated cottages overtake a large and beautiful lake surrounded by a nice walking path. Each gathering room of the cottages has a common room that looks perfect for group discussions, snacks, and (hopefully) some intense board game-playing. The meals sound really good too. As I looked around, I couldn’t help but think about how much our women would love this place.

The cost for sharing a room with a friend is $120, but this includes meals, a book, and other goodies. If you want a room to yourself, it’s $180, and if you want to commute and share the meals but can’t stay overnight, it’s only $60. This might feel like a lot of money, but I can guarantee it is so worth it to live without coffee or eating out for the rest of the month in order to make it for this weekend. If you really can’t afford it, email Jessi as some partial scholarships are still available.

The dates are Friday, July 31st (dinner begins at 6) through Saturday afternoon, August 1st. Please sign up today. I can’t wait to see you all there!

Hope Henchey