Dear friend,
We are so glad you have chosen to join Transforming Community #16, February 25-27, 2019. A wonderful group of pastors, leaders, and influencers is coming together to form this community and we are deep into our preparations for your arrival. With this e-mail, we officially welcome you and offer information and encouragement as you prepare for the first retreat.
Why do we do it this way? Real change takes place incrementally over time with others in the context of spiritual disciplines that open us to God’s transforming presence. The Transforming Community is an invitation for you to enter into an experience of spiritual transformation in community with other leaders and to learn how to lead from that place. The most important thing to keep in mind as you prepare for this first retreat is that a spiritual retreat is an opportunity to take ourselves out of the action for a while so we can give God our full and undivided attention. As Christian leaders, we need this kind of time more than we need anything else.
What to Expect on Retreat—In her book Wilderness Time, Emily Griffin observes: “When we go on retreat we clear space for God’s action in our calendar… Making a retreat requires a certain kind of trust. We need to trust the Spirit. In contrast to vacations or holidays in which activities – planned sight-seeing, sports, entertainment, or events – are within our control, retreat leads us into a less predictable situation. We don’t know what God has in store for us, but we are willing to risk what we will find out.”
Please come prepared to trust God with your concerns about what you are leaving behind. Retreat is an invitation to let go of your normal patterns of being and doing in order to risk being open to what God has for you during this time.
Each retreat in the Transforming Community experience will include time for rest (most of you will come very tired!), teaching and reflection, fixed-hour prayer and worship, extended time in solitude and silence, guided experiences with spiritual practices, and sharing in community with other leaders. The two-year experience is based on content found in Sacred Rhythms, Invitation to Solitude and Silence, Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership and Life Together in Christ. These books are required reading throughout the community experience and will be available for purchase at the book table along with other assigned and recommended resources.
In preparation for the first retreat, however, we are asking you to obtain a copy of Invitation to a Journey by M. Robert Mulholland, Jr. (InterVarsity Press) and Thirsty for God: A Brief History of Christian Spirituality (Augsbury Fortress) by Bradley Holt and read them before the first retreat. We have copies through our online store (click here) or you can order directly from IVP, Amazon, etc. If you have previously read Invitation to a Journey or Thirsty for God, please re-read them in preparation for this new commitment.
Arrival and Departure—When you arrive on February 25th, plan to give yourself sufficient time for finding your way and getting settled into your room at the Q center. Plan on 20 minutes to check in, park your car, and gather materials. For the first retreat only, please plan to arrive between 3:30-4:30 p.m. for check-in. If you arrive prior to 3:30 p.m., Q Center might be able to check you into your room, however the TC registration team will not be able to check you in prior to 3:30 p.m. Enjoy getting settled into your room and browsing the grounds.
At the TC check-in table, there will be people to greet you and show you to your room. You will also receive your retreat folder which contains additional information. We will have a time of welcome, teaching and orientation from 5:00-6:00 p.m. Dinner will be 6:00-7:00 p.m. and the second session will begin at 7:00 p.m. The retreat will end at 1 p.m. on Wednesday.
Travel Arrangements—Many of you are flying in from different places in the country. O'Hare (ORD) is the airport most convenient—about 35 miles from the Q Center. Midway (MDW) is your next best option at about 55 miles from the the Q Center. More travel information can be found in your welcome packet at the end of this email.
Prayer—We are praying for you as you make preparations to come—that God will help you to press through any obstacles that come your way and bring you safely to retreat, prepared to receive what God has for you. There is often spiritual warfare around our attempts to pull away from the busy-ness of our everyday lives in order to be fully available to God during this set-apart time. The evil one knows that it is possible for us to know God in the stillness in ways that are profoundly different than what we experience in the noise of our lives (Psalm 46:10) so we are praying specifically that you will be able to press through any obstacles that come your way!
Click here to view our Transforming Community welcome packet with information about retreat dates and schedules, travel and payment. Please view and print.
Grace and peace,
