Welcome to the Bon Secours Retreat & Conference Center’s blog! This blog will extend our retreat ministry by bringing prayers and reflections into your home ‘retreat’. Many of our presenters and staff share their homilies, favorite prayers and reflections through this medium. We encourage you to comment, pass it along to friends or simply take a moment to pray with us. We hope that this will serve as a moment during your day when you can ‘retreat with us’.
Today's blog is written by retreat presenter Andrea Springer. She offers a great reminder to help us deal with things that get under our skin. What techniques do you use to cope with life's irritations? Andrea will be with us for a day retreat this August and it will be added to our website soon. Stay tuned to learn more about this inspiring day, which will be themed around 'courage'. Now, let's take a few quiet moments to read Andrea's…
One winter morning I awoke to see magnificent lines of frost stretching across my window panes. They seemed to rise with the sunshine and the bitter cold outside. They looked like little miracles that had been formed in the dark of night. I watched them in sheer amazement and marveled that such beautiful forms could be born during such a winter-cold night. Yet, as I pondered them I thought of how life is so like that. We live our long,…
In the Midst of Winter Lord, In the midst of Winter, when the days are cold and wind can pierce remind us of the warmth of your love. In the midst of Winter, when days are short, dawn comes late, and dusk arrives early remind us that in the darkness your light still shines. In the midst of Winter, when the flowers of spring still lie hidden in the earth, when leaves are off the trees, and the world can…
Keeping with the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr., we are sharing a week of prayers for peace today. Will you commit just a few minutes to sit in silence and pray for peace each day this week? Sunday Lead me from death to life, from falsehood to truth. Lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust. Lead me from hate to love, from war to peace. Let peace fill my heart, my world, my universe. Amen. ~Universal…
It's easy to focus on the cold and barren setting of winter, but there is so much beauty in the season too. Let's take a few moments to meditate on some of the wonders of this quiet season and connect with our Creator. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0l-k-LyQB8
These words from Fr. Michael Schleupner resonate for many, especially as we focus on goals for the new year. Let's read more about the importance of being present in the moment. It is now the moment. ~Romans 13:11 On New Year’s Day, these words of Saint Paul reminded us to focus on the present. Sometimes we can get stuck in the past. We may find ourselves longing for the good old days when everything seemed just right. Or we may…
Several retreat guests will arrive today to begin their 3-night or 6-night Directed Retreat. These retreats are offered periodically throughout the year and offer a time of silence for guests. They meet with a spiritual director for one hour per day and attend Mass, if they'd like, but otherwise spend time reflecting, praying, reading and writing on their own within an environment of silence. Many seek this retreat annually to reconnect with the still, small voice within and they leave…
Most of us probably have a close friend or family member who works in healthcare and has been significantly disrupted in their daily work by the pandemic. The latest spike in our hospitals is taxing the health, energy and mental stamina of so many. They need our prayers! Let's take a few quiet moments in prayer, lifting their name to the One who can get them through this difficult time. A Prayer for Health Care Workers May the One who…
Today's post comes from favorite retreat presenter, Fr. Michael Schleupner. He shared the following as we reflect on the Epiphany this week. Fr. Michael, and three other spiritual directors, will be leading retreat guests on a silent directed retreat at our Center, beginning this Friday. Please keep them in prayer as you contemplate the "ripples" of prayer too. A Stone and Ripples Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. ~Is.…
Tomorrow we celebrate Epiphany, the day we commemorate the Magi visiting the infant Jesus. If you are seeking a way to celebrate this special day, why not register for our online Epiphany retreat? This retreat will be guided by Gordon Creamer, tomorrow evening from 6-8pm. Click here to learn more. For now, let's take a few quiet moments to contemplate the meaning of this encounter so long ago. Today the Magi gaze in deep wonder at what they see: heaven…
