Beauty is a characteristic of an animal, idea, object, person or place that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction.  An “ideal beauty” is an entity which is admired or possesses features widely attributed to beauty in a particular culture, for perfection.  (Webster)

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  This is certainly true of these two photos.  The beach at sunset,  the vast fields of grass with a lone tree. Both beautiful but one can appeal more to us than the other.  Beauty in Nature is a given.  God not only created beauty that engages our senses and can inspire but we also see beauty on a spiritual scale in people and ideas, in Scripture and song, in poetry and music.

For many people, being in a place of beauty can add to and enhance thoughts and inspiration.  For the retreat setting it is best when the participant surrounded in the beauty in nature, literature, and even the well planned ambiance of a rustically elegant room.   Not an opulent room but one that is comfortable and homey so that their minds of the pastor and spouse can be free to attend to the course of study or prayer they have planned for the day.

For the Christian, beauty in nature points directly to the Creator of beauty.  Each beautiful flower, tree, ripples in a lake or stream has within it’s structure, order.  Our eyes are made to behold that order and that gives us peace.  Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote:

“Earth’s crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God;

but only he who sees, take off his shoes, the rest sit ’round it and pluck blackberries.”

 

 

What can pastors expect during a retreat?  REST – REFLECTION & BEAUTY  We talked about REST in both waking hours and sleeping hours.  What about REFLECTION?

When a person is reading a book or the Bible, they often stop and reflect.  What does it mean to reflect on an idea?  They think about what was just read, consider it, contemplate the concept, deliberate the thoughts and ponder how this applies to themselves or even if it does apply. This process takes time and engages so many brain cells!  Then when the reader asks his or her spouse what the reading means to them, a concept or idea can become a long conversation.  Having the time to reflect is a gift.  It is creative.  It may make for a slow reading but the contents will remain longer in the memory than just a cursory scan.

There is another advantage to having a time of reflection and that is a view of one’s own self.   The one who is reflecting may ask, ‘How do I reflect Jesus?’ Or, ‘Since I am made in the image (or reflection) of God, do other people see that reflection or do they just see me?’    These can be heavy questions that take serious honest thought.  Having time to think and read and ponder brings a self analysis that is prudent and proper for a pastor or spouse to consider.  It is the self examined life.

There are six couples at each Broom Tree retreat group with a host couple.  Some retreats have more than one group but then there will also be other host couples to facilitate the dinner table discussions.  Each meal time has a topic of conversation so each person has a chance to talk and everyone else listens.  It is the old art of dining where food is enjoyed but the conversation is the focus.  In this gracious setting ideas and reflection are shared and easy questions become a way of expanding the world you once thought you knew.  Laughter becomes effortless and relaxed, burdens are carefully released and friendships are often made that last beyond the retreat experience.  This is conversation at it’s best and reflection that is honest.

In a recently published book on the nature of sleep I read so many ideas on the mechanics of sleep, how to get better sleep.  There are many reasons why a person cannot get a good night’s sleep.  The big reason is: “The ill effects of any technology on good sleep patterns”.  The book had  21 strategies to sleep our way into better, health, body and success.  They began with, ‘How to get into bed at the right time’.   [ That author never witnessed the actual life of the average American, much less the American pastor.]  The right mattress, eat the right things before bed and absolutely no technology in the 2-3 hours before bed.  He may be right that all these things work but the reality of living that way, other than being a hermit with unlimited funds, is just not going to happen.

On the other hand, Dallas Willard talked about sleep in his book, “Renovation of the Heart”.  He was talking about Solitude and silence being an important part of the Christian rhythm  of life.  “So if we really intend to submit our bodies as living sacrifices to God,”  he said, “Our first step well might be to start getting enough sleep.  Sleep is a good first use of solitude and silence.  It is also a good indicator of how thoroughly we trust in God.”

That statement stopped me cold.  There are many symptoms of lack of sleep that are rooted in physical problems but those are not what he is talking about here.  Many of us have a lack of sleep because of mental anxiety.  The conversations that we had, conflicts, things that we feel are out of our control.  Those ‘things’ that keep us from sleep are those things we do not trust to God.

That is way too convicting.

But, when I look back at those causes of angst from a position that has some time separating me from them, that is really eye opening.  I did not trust the arguments, the people, my verbal enemies, the conflict ( and on and on) to God!  Psalm 4:8 – “In peace I will both lie down and sleep for thou alone, O LORD, doest make me to dwell in safety.”  And that verse was penned by a fugitive, running for his life.  David knew conflict and yet slept with his God at watch.

Willard added these thoughts, “If we are not rested . . . . the body [The visceral body and it’s wants, desires and cravings] moves to the center of our focus and makes its presence more strongly felt, and the tendency of its parts call out more strongly for gratification.”  The lack of rest diminishes my resistance to wrongdoing and evil.   If I am dieting, then when I am exhausted, I run to chocolate.  Simple fix.

In conclusion, there are some life changes we can make to put ourselves into a better position to get proper sleep such as less technology, however, one of the biggest factors is giving all of the fears, woes, arguments and stresses of our lives to God.  Trust God for an outcome that will will show the watching world that He does take care of those who trust Him.

From the book, “Renovation of the Heart” by Dallas Willard – The Cries of the Soul Page 209

“Once we clearly acknowledge the soul, we can learn to hear its cries.  Jesus heard its cries from the wearied humanity he saw around him.  He saw the souls desperate need in those who struggled with the overwhelming tasks of their life. Such weariness and endless labor was, to him, a sure sign of a soul not properly rooted in God – a soul, in effect, on its own.  He saw the multitudes around him and it tore his heart, for they were, “distressed and downcast” like “sheep without a shepherd”.  (Matthew 9:36).  And he invited such people to come and become his students (Learn of me) by yoking themselves to him – that is, letting him show them how he would pull their load.  He is not ‘above’ this, as earthly ‘great ones’ are, for he is meek and lowly of heart.  (Matthew 11:28-30). .  .  .  .  Being in his yoke is not a matter of taking on additional labor to crush us all the more, but a matter of learning how to use his strength and ours together to bear our load and his.  We find his yoke an easy one and his burden a light one because, in learning from him, we have found rest to our soul.What we have learned is, primarily, to rest our soul in God.  Rest to our soul is rest in God.”

 

Rest, [the noun] is the refreshing quiet or ease or change of activity that brings relief.  It can also mean ease of activity, relief or freedom from anything that wearies or disturbs.  It is mental or spiritual calm, tranquillity.  What pictures come to your mind with that description?

Jesus had some direct observations about rest and said this; “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”  Matthew 11:28-29.

These statements are revolutionary in our time demanding, technology laden, high production oriented, pressure cooker American lifestyle. Science now is finding that times of proper rest brings a higher degree of production in an individual than one who just keeps working more hours under pressure.

The dramatic change of ‘stepping off the treadmill of life to rest in Jesus’ is difficult to do in a day.  It can often take two to three days to allow the body to center down and really rest.  You cannot hurry up this relaxation process.  However, we find that those people who know how to live in a daily rhythm of specified times of intentional rest in the middle of intense work find it easier to completely rest when given a longer period of time.  In the same way those pastor couples who are coming for a second time actually tell us that the feeling of rest begins in their car on the way to the retreat.  They know what to expect, they anticipate the rest that is coming ahead so the relaxation process can begin before they even arrive.  Amazing!