ANOTHER RETREAT - MARCH 2011

This is the view from our lodging for the 2011 Beach Retreat. These huge rocks are just off-shore at Oceanside, near Netarts, Oregon.

Thursday through Sunday ten of our Wednesday Evening Bible Study Group spent this year's retreat in a nice vacation rental high up over the beach at Oceanside, OR. About half of us made the entire four days, while the rest came a little later. We enjoy the relaxing, the reading time, light conversations, heavy discussions, the games, the gourmet meals, the outings to town and to local beaches, the birds, the sunsets, swapping stories, the special shopping excursions for various treasures, the laughter, the devotions and prayers, and one another's company. This year's rookie was Kelli and our special guest was Ron. They each brought a wonderful dimension to the gathering; on the other hand, we really missed Nancy and Sid - next year for sure, guys, OK?

As close as we have become over the years, these precious outings always add a new level of fellowship and appreciation to our collective chemistry. I think that if we were individually polled, we would all recommend that other LIFE groups also participate in an annual get-away together for at least a full weekend. It is a valuable bonding experience which reaches well beyond the couple of hours most groups spend together in a week. Some of the benefits are realized throughout the year in the levels of trust and understanding which we have developed. The deeper relationships make for better group prayer and mutual Bible study and make our sharing more open and meaningful from week to week.

This group, like others, has evolved in its membership over the years as folk have moved or died and new individuals have been added. The continuity of the retreat has become a major event that has drawn us together and has kept us strong and more committed to one another. More than fifteen straight years has proven the value of our favorite tradition.