Dear friend,
It was a joy to be with many of you in July and to see this new Transforming Community begin to come together. We have been holding you in our prayers since then, asking God to continue to do his good work in all of us as we are apart during the quarter and as we prepare to be together again October 28-30, 2018. This e-mail will offer some simple guidance as you are preparing for the October retreat.
Reflecting on the Last Quarter...
The theme of our first retreat was the nature of spiritual transformation, the significance of a leader’s ongoing commitment to his/her own process of spiritual transformation and the importance of desire as the dynamic that fuels the spiritual journey. It is important not to rush this part of the process. So, how is your desire? Are you still in touch with the longing you named in God’s presence on retreat? How are your longings calling you to cultivate spiritual rhythms that are consistent with what your heart most wants? As St. Augustine said, “The entire life of a good Christian is never less than holy desire.”
Desire is sometimes frightening in its intensity. It can be hard to stay true to our desire, especially if it seems too far out of reach. However, as we learned from Bartimaeus, naming our desire in Christ’s presence, while it feels risky, opens us to God's fulfillment of those desires--sometimes differently than we expected or envisioned.
Preparing for the Upcoming Retreat...
In preparation for the October retreat, please spend time reflecting on our first retreat, along with your experiences and readings over the quarter. Then prepare a 2-3 page reflection paper. The following questions might help to stimulate your thinking:
- What was the desire that you began articulating while on retreat?
- How are you experiencing your desire these days? Has it intensified, lost intensity, stayed the same?
- What choices or changes have you made in response to clarifying your desire? What new rhythms have you explored that enable you to live in ways that are more congruent with your heart’s desire
- How have you experienced God with you and for you in the midst of your desire?
- What questions or challenges have arisen for you in the context of your reading and exploration?
Be sure to interact with Scripture and with the required readings that have been valuable to you. The written reflections are for your benefit in summarizing the learning and experiences of this quarter and they will also form the basis for your sharing in community. These questions can also be found in the During the Quarter handout in your folder.
The written reflections should be emailed to tc15papers@transformingcenter.org by the Friday prior to the October retreat. Please refer to the Spiritual Readings and Reflections document that was sent in a follow up email after the retreat or click here to review.
2. Small Groups. Small groups will be announced at this retreat. As I mentioned during our last retreat, the process of assigning the small groups is covered with intercessory prayer and we would appreciate your prayers regarding this important component of the Transforming Community experience. If any of you know other TC15 participants from any other area of your life (past or present church, community or employment), please contact us by Friday, October 12th, so we will not place you in the same group. If you already did this at the last retreat or via email, thank you!
3. Community Commitments and Covenant. Please reflect on the teaching regarding spiritual community and go over the Community Commitments and Covenant handout we distributed at the first retreat. At the upcoming retreat, we will take time to discuss the covenant, receive your feedback and then commit ourselves to it together.
One final note of encouragement: if you have struggled with incorporating the basic rhythms we talked about on retreat into your life back at home, don’t let it discourage you! The last thing those of us in leadership need is more burden or self-incrimination. You still have time to work with the teaching and rhythms we explored and to engage the readings and reflections offered in your handouts. God is faithful to honor whatever time and space we are able to create for him.
You will receive an additional e-mail shortly with some logistical details. In the meantime, may God enable you to stay faithful to the journey of spiritual transformation he is inviting you to and may you discover delight along the way.
With you on the journey,
