One Woman’s Retreat Experience

By Mark Dubler
Executive Director, Otyokwah Camp & Retreat Center

I know a woman who went on a retreat designed for a woman’s heart. It was one of the highlights of her life. Now, as a Christian woman, she had been on many a retreat. But this particular retreat far surpassed them all. Every aspect of the retreat was geared toward a woman’s heart. The setting was sublime, the food surprisingly wonderful. And the speakers reached into places she said she had long forgotten. There was healing. There was restoration. There was freedom. She felt more alive than she had ever felt.

It took place in a valley surrounded by the great Rockies. The lodging was comfortably rustic yet welcoming, as were the staff members. About 400 ladies had come to this place with anticipation and the retreat center did not disappoint them. Hot tubs, ball courts, and hiking trails were available to everyone, but that is not what made this woman’s retreat experience different from the others.

Nor was the difference found in the dining hall with all its bounty. She shared that they were waited on by smiling servers who lavished them with savory bacon and eggs in the mornings and fresh bread and fine entrees in the evening. They indulged in a full salad bar at lunchtime. The desserts, especially the warm chocolate chip cookie smothered in hot fudge and ice cream, were to die for. But again. this was not the reason that this woman’s retreat was exceptional.

What made this woman’s retreat so unique was the amazing message that the speakers shared. With much candor and passion, the five speakers shared about the core desires of every woman’s heart. A retreat like that is a rare thing in this world of pretense and women’s rights. Women could relate so closely to what they had to say. The speakers shared honestly and openly about the painful things in their lives. They also spoke about the healing that was available through faith. But most importantly, they ushered women into a place of spiritual freedom. That is what made this woman’s retreat an experience she will never forget as long as she lives.

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Mark Dubler is the Executive Director of Otyokwah Camp & Retreat Center and a Woman's Retreat expert. Check out our great discounts for first-time groups at Otyokwah Camp & Retreat Center.