ALL CHURCH RETREAT

Nurturing the Mustard Seed:
Faith Stories in Everyday Relationships

July 2, 2013 All Church Retreat Update!

The deadline for housing guaranteed by Central has passed. However, if you would like Central group housing, we will put you on a waiting list. Once we have a large enough number of people to rent a lodge, we will attempt to rent an appropriate lodge for the group. There is a chance that it will be difficult to find an open lodge for the weekend, and the available lodge may require driving or walking 15 minutes to retreat events. As of July 1, there are dozens of open lodges available through local realtors. Assembly Inn is also an option, which you can arrange on your own through Montreat Conference Center.

We often hear the call to see the image of God in all people, especially those who seem unfamiliar
or unexpected. But what about the people we see every day? How do our complex and interconnected relationships reflect our faith? How do our Christian values of justice and mercy apply to our daily
interactions with family, friends, and intimate partners?

Dr. Kate Ott will lead us as we explore the ways in which our faith is embodied in our relationships. Recognizing that the stories of our relationships are our collective faith story, we will focus on the
following intentions:

• Understanding the web of relationships in which we live
• Appreciating the differing needs, experiences and gifts found in our different relationships
• Seeing the image of God in ourselves and each other

Through each of these areas of focus, we will consider how relationships can be sources of comfort and pain, trust and vulnerability, continuity and change, and the ways that the humanness of Jesus Christ can serve as a model for our own relationships. In addition to sessions facilitated by Kate Ott, we will be
invited to participate in conversations with both age-specific and intergenerational small groups.