Our 3rd annual soul care retreat has come – after much preparation and prayer – and gone for another year. Our labor of love was beautifully positioned at the Royal Poinciana Chapel, and well received by 98 attendees. We did just what the psalmist commands here:
“Sing to God, sing praises to His name; lift up a song for Him who rides through the deserts, whose name is the Lord, and exult before Him.” Psalm 68:4
Moments of praise, and prayer, punctuated our day together, and were lifted up as a praise offering to the One who protects fatherless and widows the world over. “A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, is God in His holy habitation.” Psalm 68:5
Nada Haddad (pictured to the right), women’s ministry leader with NEO Leaders, and a ministry partner of Women in the Window for seven years, brought us a fresh understanding of hospitality in the Middle East, and led us through the Essentials interpretation step, distilling each fact observed in Priscilla’s story into a timeless truth to cling to in times of uncertainty and cultural confusion.
We grappled and, at some moments, struggled to understand how these timeless truths are pertinent to our lives today as we applied them to real-life examples, asking and answering the question, “What would you do?”
By the end of the day, we were reminded that Priscilla shines brightly in this world of uncertainty, and her life story is an example of the myriad examples of “one another;” loving, caring for, persevering on behalf of, and being kind to one another.
Without exception, the highlight of this retreat remains the luxurious hour of silence and solitude. As women of various cultures and generations, spend time alone with God, we are all reminded that He alone is the Answer our heart longs to experience. And His generous love and care is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is our “home” and in Him alone we find rest:
“God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out the prisoners into prosperity, only the rebellious dwell in a parched land.” Psalm 68:6
