This year, Edgewood Baptist and Sound City are partnering to host a women's retreat April 26-28, 2019 at Cedar Springs Christian Retreat Center in Sumas, Washington. The theme is Love One Another. Since this is a new event for the women of Sound City, we asked Edgewood’s retreat coordinator Kitty Singh some questions you may have.
Sound City has never done something like this before. What will it be like?
Our goal is to create a warm and inviting atmosphere where women can relax in the beauty of God's creation, grow in community with other believers, and enjoy biblical teaching and worship. Edgewood has been hosting women’s retreats for over 20 years, and this will be the first year my co-organizer Constance and I are coordinating it.
How will the time be spent?
The retreat runs from Friday evening through Sunday morning. Meals are shared together and wonderfully prepared by the retreat center staff. There will be 4 main sessions that include a time of praise and a message, followed by group discussion.
On Saturday after lunch, there will be several organized events including a group hike, card making, and a book discussion. You can also choose to take some quiet time for personal devotion and reflection. Another opportunity we are excited about is a group service project supporting Vision House. Sunday morning, we will end our worship time together with communion.
Can you tell me about the teaching time?
The event speaker is Susan Keene, a member of Edgewood whose passion is teaching women. The retreat theme, Love One Another was inspired by the song “By Our Love” by For King And Country. The song is drawn from John 13:34-35.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
In this day of social media and extreme busyness we may be super connected online and still feel disconnected or isolated in real life. We want to explore what it would look like to live our lives together in Christian community – loving and supporting each other through the supernatural love of Christ.
How "girly" will this event be?
This is a great question. The women who attend the retreat will be coming from all walks of life – single, married, with kids and without. Not all of us are "girly" girls, so there will not be doilies or tea parties or excessive focus on husbands or children. While these topics may come up naturally in conversation, they will not be the focus of the retreat. Our main focus is making connections: first with God, and then with the people in the community that He has gifted to us.
I've had some negative experiences with women's events, how do I know this won't be like that?
We are saddened when women are turned away from community events by negative experiences. We are sensitive to this, and our heart and goal for this retreat is inclusiveness and to love one another as Christ has loved us. We hope that this retreat will provide great bonding experiences with other women in the church and that you will have time for reflection and rest. If there are specific concerns that you'd like to discuss, I’d love to chat with you any time.
What is Cedar Springs like?
Cedar Springs Christian Center is in Sumas, near the Canadian border. As you walk around the property you'll find beautifully landscaped gardens, ponds, fountains, and many areas to sit and enjoy God’s creation. Most of the rooms sleep 2-3, but there is a bunk room that sleeps up to 7 for those who really want to make the most of community time. The meals are served family style and are delicious (dietary accommodations available).
Why should I invest my time and money in this event?
This will be a time where you can purposely step away from the hectic busyness of daily life and reconnect with God and the community of women in Christ. The base cost of the retreat is $195 per person, however if you register and pay before March 17th the cost is only $175.
How can I register?
Since this is our first joint retreat there will initially be 20 spots available for Sound City ladies. As we get further into registration, we may be able to open up more spots and will be sure to announce this to everyone. If you want to check availability before registering, please email me or call 425-418-6707. to check for availability.