Our last adult retreat was February 14-16, 2020. This was the last event we were able to have before the pandemic hit. There was such a sense of excitement after the retreat, and we planned to really build off that moment moving into the spring. We had a Holy Spirit Encounter planned, we had another Praise and Worship night scheduled, in addition to our monthly Heart of Jesus Holy Hours. It was really exciting because it finally felt like adult ministry was taking off. A lot of our events are encounter base, meaning we provide opportunities for our parishioners to not only learn about who God is, but to experience him! So to say it was a disappointment to have to cancel these events due to the pandemic would be an understatement.
For me personally, I really enjoy serving others. To have that aspect of ministry get taken away was difficult. I was stripped of all my “normal” modes of doing ministry. Making the transition to an online platform was exhausting and a brand new experience for me. It was really hard trying to find ways to still help parishioners in their faith journey. A major component of our events is to build community. This is really difficult to do when you are supposed to stay home or social distance from others. Live streaming Adoration and doing the Staff Sharings (short testimonies) on Facebook were a few ways we were able to reach people during this time, but it still didn’t have that same retreat feel.
As September grew closer, so did the date for the next Adult Retreat. The idea of planning a weekend retreat, when things are changing on a daily basis seemed like such a daunting task. Once I got over the idea that I wouldn’t be able to do the retreat like we normally would, we started getting creative and thinking what can we do. It was really exciting planning an event again! Here’s what we came up with.
On Saturday, September 26, we will be hosting a day retreat. This event will take place outside, behind the youth center. Registration will start at 12:30, with the first session starting at 1:00pm. There will be 4:30 Mass in the Church, followed by dinner, and ending with an outdoor Adoration.
Being able to bring the community together again to focus on the Lord and his goodness will be so refreshing. There’s a sense of excitement in providing an opportunity to experience Christ and allow his spirit to move freely and bring healing, hope, and peace for people. This pandemic has been difficult and challenging for so many people. People are experiencing hopelessness, fear, frustration, isolation, and loneliness. Our goal is to bring God into those areas and restore hope, faith in God, peace, and a sense of belonging. In prayer we have a sense that God wants to shatter walls people are putting up and restore hope.
Registration for this event can be found on our website.
For me personally, I really enjoy serving others. To have that aspect of ministry get taken away was difficult. I was stripped of all my “normal” modes of doing ministry. Making the transition to an online platform was exhausting and a brand new experience for me. It was really hard trying to find ways to still help parishioners in their faith journey. A major component of our events is to build community. This is really difficult to do when you are supposed to stay home or social distance from others. Live streaming Adoration and doing the Staff Sharings (short testimonies) on Facebook were a few ways we were able to reach people during this time, but it still didn’t have that same retreat feel.
As September grew closer, so did the date for the next Adult Retreat. The idea of planning a weekend retreat, when things are changing on a daily basis seemed like such a daunting task. Once I got over the idea that I wouldn’t be able to do the retreat like we normally would, we started getting creative and thinking what can we do. It was really exciting planning an event again! Here’s what we came up with.
On Saturday, September 26, we will be hosting a day retreat. This event will take place outside, behind the youth center. Registration will start at 12:30, with the first session starting at 1:00pm. There will be 4:30 Mass in the Church, followed by dinner, and ending with an outdoor Adoration.
Being able to bring the community together again to focus on the Lord and his goodness will be so refreshing. There’s a sense of excitement in providing an opportunity to experience Christ and allow his spirit to move freely and bring healing, hope, and peace for people. This pandemic has been difficult and challenging for so many people. People are experiencing hopelessness, fear, frustration, isolation, and loneliness. Our goal is to bring God into those areas and restore hope, faith in God, peace, and a sense of belonging. In prayer we have a sense that God wants to shatter walls people are putting up and restore hope.
Registration for this event can be found on our website.
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