Retreat? whats that?

Deep Breath, and one big siggggghhhh. When was the last time you retreated? When was the last time I retreated? I heard someone say one time "refresh daily, retreat weekly, do something else monthly (forgot what it was), and go away yearly." Maybe yoiu're wondering, what does that even mean? To me it means retreating from the rest of the world. Turning off all of my cares and worries and responsibilities, to just be with my Jesus. At the pace we live at, we probably should do this twice a day! too bad i hardly do it twice a week!

God did rest on the 7th day--trying to set an example that we should to? yup. I'm the first to be guilty of relenquising my sabbath to my never ending list of things I want to get done. Bad habit i am still trying to break. It's a hard one to break for those of us who are list crosser offers.

Last night though, I felt it. I felt that thing inside of me that knew "I need to go be alone with Jesus and do nothing." There is nothing like being refreshed in His presence. It's like taking a spiritual shower. All the dirt and grime of life that sticks to us throughout our weeks just gets washed off and we're able to start the next week/day without all that baggage.

Shawn McDonald's music just soothes my soul in these times. During my first year of Anthem I used to lay in bed and fall asleep to his music almost every night. Back then I used to "retreat" just about everyday. My life was changing drastically, in a good way, and I was desperate for Jesus. I was desperate to know Him, to know his Word, to remind myself over and over of His promises--because I was nothing without it. He was all I had to hold on to and my only comfort and peace.

I'm not in Anthem anymore....I dont have worhsip and word to go to every morning for an hour. I work from 6am-3pm Mon-Fri 30 miles away from our house. And after this schedule for about 1 year and 3 months, I'm still trying to make retreating to be with Jesus a habit, a discipline, a priority. I've realize that when I don't, I'm just a crazy mess that doesn't know what is going on! good motivation to spend more time with Jesus, haha.

But one thing I HAVE learned is that Jesus rewards those who diligently seek him and this season of my life will be filled with priceless lessons and memories just like the last season was.