AS MINISTERIAL FAMILIES, we’re super-busy on Sabbaths and often spend our vacations attending church camps. We rarely have time to immerse ourselves in God’s love and to focus on our families’ faith.
Here are a few ideas for creating your own spiritual retreat to help you breathe slowly, pray together, and grow closer to God. You can explore the ideas on your own, as a couple, and even share them with your children or grandchildren. Choose the ideas that appeal to you and create a tailor-made spiritual retreat to renew your heart and soul—for an hour or a whole day.
THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT
When God inspired His people to share their faith with the next generation, He told them their priority was to love Him first (Deuteronomy 6). John explained that we can only love God and others when we have first experienced God’s love (1 John 4:7–21). Otherwise, we won’t be able to recognize true love. Jesus said that the greatest commandment was to love God with all our heart and soul and mind, and that the second was like it: loving others as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:39, 40).
George Barna, a Christian researcher in the USA, identified the top two levels of Christian maturity as loving God profoundly and loving others profoundly.1 These important scriptures, and Barna’s thorough research, emphasize the importance of experiencing God’s love for us, loving Him with all our hearts, and loving others as Jesus would love them.
When we pause and open our hearts to more of God’s love, then our love for Him and others will grow. This will help us have a stronger relationship with Him, our loved ones, and everyone we meet.
PRAYING THROUGH GOD’S LOVE
Write the letters of the alphabet down the side of a sheet of paper. For each letter, think of at least one aspect of God’s love. See how many you can find. Then focus on one word at a time. Praise God for that dimension of His love and thank Him for loving you in this way. Think of Bible stories and verses that illustrate this aspect of His love and consider your personal experiences too. Gather them in a notebook or create an illustrated scrapbook of God’s love.
REFLECTING ON GOD’S LOVE
Choose one of the following Bible passages: Psalm 23, Psalm 103, Psalm 145, Ephesians 3:14–21, or 1 John 4. Read it very slowly, one verse at a time, and write down what each verse tells you about God’s love. Or discuss the passages together as a couple or family.
HUNTING FOR GOD’S LOVE
As you reflect on God’s love, think about objects around you that illustrate different aspects of His love (safe water, bread, lights, blanket, fruit, soap, pillow, rock, map, etc.). Search for twenty things that remind you of His incredible love for you. Explain why you chose your objects. Draw or display some of them to remind you of His love.
FOCUSING ON GOD’S LOVE
Pause and focus on God’s love for you in this moment. Even if you have experienced trauma and abuse, the Holy Spirit can help you experience God through clear spiritual lenses and a warm, open heart.
How do you like to be loved? God will love you in that beautiful way. Remember that He is present with you every moment of the day. Imagine Him hugging you. What would He say to tell you how much He loves you? What are the special gifts of love He has given you in the last week? How has He helped you to carry your burdens? Thank Him for every loving gift. Keep your eyes and heart open to notice every expression of His extravagant love for you. Write them in a journal.
STORIES OF GOD’S LOVE
Recount the story of your life with God. Look through the lens of being God’s beloved child, even if you haven’t always known Him. Gather the life stories that remind you of God’s love for you through all the joys and challenges of your life. He has been your Psalm 23 Shepherd. He is your provider, protector, restorer, comforter, and guide. He is with you in your dark valleys, and He celebrates your joys. Write, draw, or tell how God has loved and cared for you.
GROWING IN GOD’S LOVE
Read 1 Corinthians 13. Write down all the different aspects of God’s love described in this chapter. His love is patient, kind, forgiving, respectful, hopeful, lovingly honest, persevering, and more. How are you growing in these qualities of God’s love? Reflect on the past year and consider how you have grown more patient, kind, forgiving, and respectful. Describe times when you were especially hopeful, loving, or persevering.
Then look ahead to the coming year. Which of God’s loving qualities would you like to nurture? Ask God’s Spirit for wisdom and power to develop that aspect of love in your life. Encourage one another to grow more like Jesus.
CREATIVELY RESPONDING TO GOD’S LOVE
After reflecting on God’s love for you, consider what you would like to make or do in response to His love. Take a photo, draw a picture, write a prayer or a psalm, or make a collection of hearts that express different aspects of His love. Create a banner, a garland, or something else that summarises and expresses your experience of His love for you and your love for Him.
EXPANDING YOUR PICTURE OF GOD’S LOVE
Pray that God will expand your picture of His character by growing your awareness of His love. Ellen White says that we will spend eternity learning about God’s infinite and indescribable love (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 740). Keep a diary and write down fresh aspects of God’s love as you notice them every day. Set your watch to vibrate every hour as a reminder to tune into God’s constant loving presence.
SHARING GOD’S LOVE
How has this purposeful pause with God’s love inspired you to share His love with others? Ask the Holy Spirit to show you someone who needs a deeper experience of God’s love. In cooperation with God, what will you do to touch their heart with His love? How could you share this retreat experience with others?
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1 “Research on How God Transforms Lives Reveals a 10-Stop Journey,” Barna Group, March 17, 2011. https://www.barna.com/research/research-on-howgod-transforms-lives-reveals-a-10-stop-journey/.
