A Small Group Retreat for Growing Christians
the “The Experience” small group retreat for growing
Christians is held.
Many Christians today want a deeper, closer, more spiritual walk with God than the one they presently have. They want the peace, hope, and patience that a closer walk will give them. But they don’t know where to go, or who to see, to help them start a new spiritual journey in the quickest, easiest, and most comfortable way.
That’s why we developed “The Experience” deeper walk retreat. This new retreat is a back-to-the-basics retreat based on First Century Christian behavior, habits, and practices. The key to a closer and deeper Christian walk is a principle that Jesus taught in the Book of John. In John 7:38, Jesus said “Rivers of Living Water” will flow out of every Christian who is growing spiritually. “Living Water” is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and so Jesus was teaching that streams of spiritual love, peace, patience, strength, and hope from the Holy Spirit will flow out of every Christian who begins a deeper and closer journey toward God.
This retreat is for every Christian of every background and denomination who wants more of this patience, strength, and hope that Jesus promised. And this retreat is a logical way for Christians to grow by focusing on learning spiritual growth in one place, at one time, in fellowship with a small group of other like-minded Christians who are also seeking it.
“The Experience” is a two-and-a-half day “Day Retreat” held in The Inn at Elon, a small hotel on the beautiful campus of Elon University in Elon, NC. Elon is one of America’s top-rated universities, and is the only university ranked #1 in the nation for “Excellence in Teaching.” The retreat is held there from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm on a Friday and a Saturday; and from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm on the following Sunday.
The retreat’s materials include an autographed textbook; a unique and professional deeper walk handbook; eighteen deeper walk exercises; visual aids showing in detail how spiritual growth works; and roundtable discussions of spiritual growth, all guided by two of the most qualified facilitators on the deeper walk available anywhere.
This retreat is based on the book Saving Christianity by Owen Allen. He is a former management consultant, former college professor, and former dean. He holds a doctorate in Organizational Behavior with post-doctoral work at Oxford University, and is a Certified Management Consultant and Certified Speaking Professional. General Electric, General Motors, Hilton Hotels, and many other corporations, non-profits, and government agencies were his former clients. Today, Owen is a specialist in Early Christian behavior who has walked the ground in Israel, Italy, Greece, and Turkey where many Early Christian events took place. He has studied and prayed on Mars Hill where the apostle Paul gave his “Unknown God” teaching; and in the cave where the apostle John received the Revelation vision; and on the cobblestone streets of Ephesus where the apostle Timothy walked; and at the graves of Peter and Paul in Rome. These experiences, together with his own decades as a deeper walk Christian, make him uniquely qualified to be a facilitator in this retreat.
Owen’s co-facilitator and master of ceremonies for the retreat is John Shields, a senior pastor, missionary to India, and lifelong Bible teacher, whose program The Motivational Minute is heard on local radio. John has over thirty years of experience as a pastor in both large and small congregations. He holds a master’s of divinity degree, and is committed to evangelism and outreach worldwide. He and his wife, Kit, are co-founders of Global Connection Pointe, Inc., and they have done missionary work in Guatemala, Jamaica, Israel, Ecuador, and the Selah Center and Vocational School in Hanumangarh, Rajasthan, India, where John trains local pastors. John is committed to the deeper, closer Christian walk, and teaches it weekly in person and on the radio. He is known for being an unusually good listener and counselor, and for his humorous examples while teaching. Together, John and Owen make a uniquely qualified team of facilitators for this new and dramatic retreat.
Spiritual growth is not something that can just be casually talked about. It must be experienced with a like-minded small group of other Christians who are seriously seeking it too. That’s why we call this retreat “The Experience.” And that’s why our motto is “Take the Journey!” Email us today for full details on upcoming dates and how to enroll in the retreat with a tax-deductible donation.