Solo Soul Retreats

There's a little phrase that the Gospel writer, Luke, uses that has for the past several months wrecked me in terms of conviction and comfort.

The night before Jesus arrest, trials and crucifixion, spent by all that has come to pass and in the midst of all that is to come, Luke writes, "And he came out and went, as was his custom...and knelt down and prayed" (Luke 22:39-41). This was not something out of the ordinary for Jesus. Never ceasing to be "very God of very God," he had regular times of going away alone from the busyness and urgency of His ministry and this night was no exception.

That remarkable little phrase "as was his custom" challenges me to consider how much of my life is lived in dependence upon the Spirit of God to guide and direct in the midst of overcrowded life and struggle.

With this provocation came the encouragement to do something about it. Beyond regular times of reading Scripture, I have worked into the rhythm of my life quarterly prayer retreats. I get away with my Bible and a journal and nothing else. I spend some time catching up on the days I missed on my "read through the bible in a year" schedule and working through some personal evaluation questions that I found a few years back from Dr. Tim Keller. Questions include:

- In what ways do you acknowledge your own limitations as a pastor and not Messiah?
- In what ways do you work out of a flexibility that recognizes God's sovereign authority over all things?
- How do you demonstrate that you are responsible to God first and foremost?
- How are you demonstrating a disciplined lifestyle?
- In what ways are your family commitments a proper priority?
- How are you staying faithful to the commitments to which God is calling you?
- In what ways are you leading people to and in worship of Jesus?


At first, these retreats were a terror, as I am an extreme extrovert and verbal processor. However, I cannot endorse them strongly enough for times of clarity, refreshment and gaining a renewed sense of purpose and encouragement from God.

I will be taking this retreat this weekend and would appreciate the prayers.