Retreats

Our counseling staff has developed a specialized retreat for ministry personnel which we call a Renewal and Growth Retreat.  These 3-week retreats begin with an atmosphere of Christian community and fellowship and combine that atmosphere with private counseling sessions with our licensed counselors, all of which takes place within the framework of God’s Word and His heart for His servants. This creates a well-rounded package that addresses the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of our guests, helping them to gain greater insights, more effective coping skills, and new tools for greater ministry effectiveness.

Who else would be at an Alongside retreat with me?

At an Alongside retreat you can expect a combination of pastors and missionaries, with a maximum of 12 adults in attendance to allow for a good balance of personal attention and community.  If a guest is married, we strongly encourage spousal participation.  Our program is usually a catalyst for much growth, and if you do not grow together, you are more vulnerable to "growing apart!"

Why are your retreats 3 weeks in length?

The length of our retreats is significantly longer than many other pastoral care ministries.  Experience has shown that program participants realize more than double the growth in a 3-week program as they do in 2 weeks, and it generally takes 3 weeks to deal adequately with the concerns that brought them to Alongside.  With our 3-week retreat, each guest will participate in no fewer than 14 individual and 14 group sessions, leading one former guest to describe his stay at Alongside as “thorough and comprehensive; no stone was left unturned!”

What does an Alongside retreat look like?

Our retreats begin with a time of orientation on the first afternoon, generally followed by a fellowship dinner, with the formal program beginning the following morning.  We conclude the program each week on Friday afternoons, with the weekends free for personal time and recreation.  We strongly recommend that our guests not use the weekends for any sort of ‘ministry’; rather, they should allow the weeks at Alongside to be a time when they are ministered to.  Each day will involve a combination of personal counseling, group interaction, and life-skill seminars.  Our life-skill seminars focus on practical topics such as our identity in Christ, stress, anger, forgiveness, conflict management, burnout and depression, and loss and grief.

How will this retreat be tailored to my situation?

Our counseling staff uses standard psychological assessment tools to provide a professional analysis of our guests’ spiritual and emotional needs so that each guest’s counseling is focused on his or her individual needs.  Initial counseling hours are also spent in discussing each person's history and needs, with subsequent counseling sessions tailored to deal with those concerns.  All of our guests are afforded full professional confidentiality, and every program participant is provided a copy of our confidentiality policy.