Come Away and Rest A While

“He said to them, 'Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.’ “ ---Mark 6: 3

The focus of our Winter Retreat this year was rest with the Lord. Thanks to our generous donors we were able to have a restful retreat in Seaside, Oregon. Guiding our retreat were the seven types of rest, outlined in the book Sacred Rest by Saundra Dalton-Smith. Often we think rest is just stopping or getting away. While this is good, it may lead us to not feel fully rejuvenated. Each girl spent the weekend identifying and engaging in the specific type of rest they needed and how the Lord was inviting them to rest with him.

Friday evening we embarked on the 4 hour drive to Seaside. When we arrived we ran to the beach just in time to see God paint the sky with a beautiful sunset. It was refreshing for our souls to leave the business of the city and enjoy the calm of the ocean waves.

Saturday morning started with Mass and Adoration at Our Lady of Victories. They were gracious and welcomed us into their community for the weekend. Following Mass we heard a talk on resting with Jesus. We learned about how Jesus invited his disciples to rest and how he still today invites us to encounter him in these restful spaces.

After the talk we entered into free time for everyone to rest. We had a helpful list of the types of rest and ideas of how to tend to that need. For some this involved taking a nap, entering into a time of silence or reading a book. Others went on leisurely walks or spent the day coloring. The Lord really provided a perfect place for us to rest. The weather was beautiful that weekend with temperatures as high as 65 degrees! (For the Pacific Northwest, this definitely felt like summer) In the evening we watched the sunset while we walked to dinner and spent community time together.