Dear Friend,
When it was brought to our attention that we didn't begin our last email (about postponing your second retreat) with an apology our hearts sank.
The decision to postpone was very hard for us to make and the conversations that got us there were painful. We know many of you were committed to coming and had already made arrangements that will now need to changed. Please accept our apologies for neglecting to communicate how sorry we are for any inconvenience or disappointment you may have experienced in that communication. Clearly, this is not the beginning we had hoped for as a your community, but we are trusting that these adjustments will be best for the group going forward.
Additionally, we received many questions about the implications this has had on those of you who are submitting papers. We have decided to extend the due date for retreat #1 papers until March 19th. We hope this will give some of you the extra time to incorporate new practices and write a thoughtful reflection about how you are experiencing God in these rhythms.
Remember that one of your During the Quarter assignments was to create a retreat day for yourself in between our scheduled retreats. There is an even greater opportunity for this now given the amount of time we have until we meet again in April. One of your required readings for this quarter is Invitation to Retreat: The Gift and Necessity of Time Away with God so you should all have that. This book provides concrete and practical support for how to retreat, even if it's just for a day! One way to approach this set-apart time would be to bring this book with you and choose ONE chapter that you are drawn to work with using the exercise at the end of the chapter. Invitation to Retreat includes guidance and practices for each of the seven invitations we explored when we met in November and if you prefer, it is also available on Audible or as an audio book. We hope you will use this extended quarter to say yes to the invitation to pull away just for a little while, to rest and create space to hear the still small voice that will help sustain you in your life in leadership.
Our Zoom call on Monday, February 8th from 10 AM - 11 AM CT will be a great time for us to connect about these and other things. Gathering before April will be important for the entire community and we look forward to seeing you!
Please don't hesitate to let us know if you have other questions.
Grace and peace to you on this day,
The TC17 Team
