Our staff spent the last 3 days retreating at The Cove, the Billy Graham Training Center in Asheville, NC. Outside of the fact that it is an amazing facility with some of the best food you will ever eat, I’ve been thinking a lot about staff retreats. Why should your staff take a retreat?
- Because ministry has high emotional & spiritual demands. The nature of ministry requires a deep emotional & spiritual commitment. We juggle our own life issues as well as a lot of issues that others carry. Even though we all quote “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7),” we struggle to actually do that at times. Retreats allow time for staff members to rest, rejuvenate and grow.
- Because staff members neglect their own spiritual growth. Although I hate this, many times church staff members neglect their own growth for the growth of others. They need a time to get away and be challenged in their own spiritual growth in a more concentrated format. On Tuesday of our retreat, God’s spirit moved through our Pastor and people were truly revived. It was awesome!
- Because we need to focus on development. Even though we have staff meetings regularly, it helps to get away from email, phone calls and the pressures of a growing church to focus on our development. We spent a whole day talking about the leadership differences between men and women – it was very cool!
If your team does not retreat together, consider doing it soon. Retreats are a significant investment into your team!
Josh,
Great retreat. Thanks for making an eternal investment in Jennifer and I, the Graystone Staff Team, and Graystone Church. Our team hopes to one day provide a similar opportunity to another church. Please tell Pastor Chris and all your staff how grateful we are for their influence in our lives. Next time, we are bringing the bocce ball set.
I love you bro,
Jonathan