retreat | the iGnite blog

Why Retreat?

By Crystal Tidmore

There are a million reasons not to go on retreat (too much to do, kids’ activities, don’t need to spend the money…the list goes on). Oh…but when you do give yourself permission to go on retreat, you benefit not just yourself, but your loves ones as well. Retreat allows us to pause, reflect, and re-commit ourselves to becoming the very best that we can be. When we retreat, we commit ourselves to a journey of returning to the source of all things to refill our well and remind us who we truly are.

“Rise and Shine” was the theme of this year’s first annual iGnite Re-New Year Retreat. We set out to create a unique space, apart from our daily routine, where everyone could find renewal, inspiration and hope. Whether walking the beach, chatting around the fire-pit, practicing yoga by the pool, creating art, learning new forms of dance and movement, or exploring our core values, passions and purpose—we were treating our bodies, minds and spirits to the many gifts of retreat.

Our guest speaker, Stefanie, from Generate Hope, said:
“Life isn’t about finding ourselves. Life is about creating ourselves.”

We create and re-create ourselves each and every day by the choices we make. And we can choose to honor our gifts or dismiss them as unimportant or insignificant. Our job is to uncover our gifts and passions, and it’s God’s job to take those passions and gifts and point them to a higher purpose. How often do we try to do God’s job for Him? We RISE, so that God can SHINE through us.

Rising is about claiming God’s purpose for our lives. Rising is acknowledging the unique gifts that God has given us and iGniting the passion within us to use those gifts in a way that only we can. And when we RISE, we SHINE the light within us that encourages and empowers others to shine their unique light within them.

Much like a campfire, the light within us needs to be rekindled from time to time so that it doesn’t burn out or fade away. We must tend that fire with love and attention—and with retreat.

So, why do we re-treat? We retreat…
…to re-fill our well
…to re-create ourselves
…to re-gain strength
…to re-ceive the spirit within us
…to re-claim our gifts
…to re-iGnite our passions
…to re-fresh our creativity
…to re-juvenate our bodies
…to re-generate ideas
…to re-new our mind, body, and spirit

We re-treat to re-turn to our true selves, our very best selves.

This year’s Re-New Year Retreat was filled with so much fun and laughter and new experiences for all of us. Since the retreat, I have made a promise to take the concept of retreat into my daily life. I came away from San Diego with new tools for the tool belt and new companions for the journey. This Friday our San Diego retreaters will gather together in Austin for a Retreat Reunion luncheon to share more stories, watch our slideshow, and begin planning our next retreat! Hope you will give yourself permission to retreat throughout the year. And hope you join us for the next iGnite Retreat!

The “Rise and Shine” Re-New Year Retreat was held Jan 26-29, 2017 in LaJolla, California. See the full photo album from retreat here.

“This life is for loving, sharing, learning, smiling, caring, forgiving, laughing, hugging, helping, dancing, wondering, healing, and even more loving.” -Steve Maraboli

Point To Ponder:
Do you view your obstacles, successes, struggles and experiences as an opportunity to share and be a gift to others?

Action Item:
Continually share your life and gifts with others and view them as an act of service.

by Neissa Springmann

This weekend I had the fortunate opportunity to speak at a Christian women’s retreat called Soli Deo Gloria. It was a created and facilitated by a young woman named Jen Ferguson. Jen contacted me in February and shared her vision of the weekend, which was to highlight that life is an adventure and that sometimes God asks us to step out of our comfort zone and take risks so that we might grow and be challenged. She said plenty of other wonderful things about her plan, but outside of her first description I was not interested in additional information as her theme was right up my alley!

So, on Saturday, from 11:15 a.m to 12:15 p.m I spoke on the importance of honoring our temples. From regular exercise, eating a nutritious diet, the people we surround ourselves with and the information we read and listen to, all of these things pertain to honoring and keeping our temples healthy so we can live our best lives and ultimately be a gift to others. I also explained our iGnite philosophy and the blessings that occur from predominantly exercising outdoors and with positive, encouraging and fun women.

I thoroughly enjoyed sharing my opinions, however my favorite and most memorable moment was when questions began coming in, as having women share and open up about their experiences and struggles is like icing on the cake! Witnessing the bold and courageous act of standing up in front of others to comment, ask questions and express fears is very inspiring.

During this time, one of the women posed the following question, “What if I wasn’t feeling confident enough to exercise with a group and chose to exercise at home, alone?” I explained that exercise is very personal, and done in any fashion or environment is great; however, the bigger question is her lack of confidence and if not dealt with it will continue to show it’s ugly face and inhibit her from being her best and living her best life. Then, in the midst of our dialogue the topic of isolation arose and Jen eloquently interjected some of the most Biblical profound wisdom I’ve ever heard. She said, “Iron sharpens iron and we can sharpen one another, however when we’re in isolation we cannot be refined or strengthened. Therefore, when we share ourselves, our stories and our lives, not only do we have opportunity to sharpen someone else but we too will be sharpened in the process.”

I knew I would enjoy my speaking experience, however; I must admit that I was sharpened much more than I sharpened the women attending the retreat. Therefore, I encourage you to be iron for those around you, and guaranteed you will be sharpened in return.

Watch this week’s video and be sharpened!