Life moves quickly. Whole months can pass before we stop long enough to notice what God has been doing in us. A monthly retreat is a simple way to change that: a few set-apart hours each month to step back, pay attention and listen.
It doesn't need to be a weekend away or a trip to a monastery. An hour or an afternoon, with a little structure, is enough to begin.
Jesus made a habit of stepping away. In the middle of crowds, needs and ministry that never stopped, he kept going off to be alone with the Father.
“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:16 (NIV)
Many of us have a weekly rhythm of some kind, like a Sabbath day or a Friday pause. Some of us take a longer retreat once a year. A monthly retreat sits in between. It comes often enough to keep you close to God and attentive to your own soul, and rarely enough that it fits into a full life.
It also catches things early. A month is long enough for worry, resentment or weariness to settle in without being noticed. A monthly retreat gives you a regular place to name what you're carrying before it piles up.
Mindy Caliguire calls retreat one of four simple rhythms that keep a soul healthy, alongside reflection, relationship and a plan. We wrote more about that in Why Rhythms Matter for Your Soul.
A good monthly retreat usually moves through a few simple movements:
You don't have to fill every minute. Some of the most meaningful moments on retreat come in the quiet stretches when nothing seems to be happening.
Here's how to get started, even if you've never done a personal retreat before.
A retreat that isn't scheduled rarely happens. Pick a recurring time, like the first Friday morning of each month, and protect it the way you would an important meeting.
Find somewhere quiet where you won't be interrupted. A park, a trail, a borrowed room at church or a corner of your home all work. Getting outside often helps.
Silence your notifications or leave your phone in another room. Even a couple of hours offline can feel like a deep breath.
A simple guide gives your time a gentle shape, so you spend it listening instead of wondering what to do next.
Write down what you notice. Over a few months, those pages become a record of how God has been at work in you.
To make this easier, we create a new retreat guide every month around a fresh theme. You can use it in an hour or an afternoon, on your own or with a group. Each guide includes:
When you sign up, you'll get the current month's guide right away. Then on the 25th of each month, the next guide arrives in your inbox before the new month begins.
Solitude can be hard to protect on your own. That's why members of Soul Care Rhythms gather for a Semi-Silent Retreat at the start of each month. We open together on Zoom, receive the month's guide, step away for about two hours offline, and then come back to share what God showed us.
“These retreats have reset my soul... Although I'm not always able to attend the live sessions, I print out the guides and take time to do the silent retreats.” Jaimie Bowman, Soul Care Rhythms member
Rhythms also includes a weekly Friday Check-in, quarterly time with a Soul Care Guide and an annual Day of Retreat, so your monthly retreat becomes part of a steady, year-round rhythm.
You don't need a perfect month to take a retreat. You only need to show up and give God some unhurried space. Start with this month's guide, and see what he has for you.
Author: Josh Caliguire