Adult retreat focuses on balance need to Catch the Breath of God

By RENEE WEBB, Globe editor
February 9, 2006

EARLY - Adults in the Diocese of Sioux City were invited to Catch the Breath of God at a retreat offered Jan. 29 at Sacred Heart Parish Center.

Sponsored by the Office of Adult and Family Ministries, the retreat was attended by about 45 people from various parts of the diocese such as Carroll, Denison, Early, Fort Dodge, Manning, Storm Lake, Sioux City and other communities.

"The retreat was based on balancing your time in spending time with God and working - whatever that is whether it is family, a career or doing something for others," explained Vera Ludwig, coordinator of family programs for the diocese.

The retreat was written and facilitated by Cary Brown, pastoral minister and DRE at St. Mary Church in Storm Lake. She has been a member of the planning team for the adult retreat for a number of years.

"The main message was, how do you balance the time alone in quiet with God with the busyness of our world," said Brown, who presented this retreat at the Methodist Church in Early.

As a visual image for the retreat, Brown selected a pinwheel.

"A pinwheel will only work - catch your breath - when part of it bends inward," she explained. Along with a portion of the device turning inward, part of the arm reaches outward.

Like the pinwheel, Brown stressed, people must do the same - turn inward to God and reach out to others.

Again, it's about balance.

"If all you do is reach out to other people and don't feed that inward part, a labor of love can turn into a love of labor," she said. "If all we do is give, give, give - it can become empty."

Brown said she titled the retreat - Catching the Breath of God - because when people take time out for quiet and reflection, then they can catch the breath of God and in turn, give it to other people.

The retreat facilitator said the enthusiasm in the response to the retreat was overwhelming.

"It was a wonderful day for the individuals who attended the retreat to be in community but also spend time with God and have a wonderful facilitator who really enjoyed what she was doing," said Ludwig.

She pointed out that the sharing was wonderful throughout the retreat.

Carol Joselyn, a member of Corpus Christi in Fort Dodge, said, "I liked that it flowed between silence and group sharing. The silent times were for our own personal reflection and then coming together as a group to meet people and reflect as a group."

Joselyn, who is the director of the Bethany House in Fort Dodge, said the retreat was well run. She was one of three parishioners from Fort Dodge to attend the retreat.

"It is as important to feed the soul as much as it is to physically exercise or take care of our bodily needs," she said.

The women's guild from Sacred Heart Parish made a light lunch consisting of soup and bread for those attending the retreat.

Upon reflecting on the day, Brown said what struck her most was the hunger that people have for quiet time for God and their resolve to make time to do that.

"Retreats such as this can give us the shot in the arm that we need - the impetus to go a little deeper, do a little more or to get back on track," she said.

Like the Lenten adult retreats sponsored by the diocese in past years, this one too was offered as a model retreat. Even if a parish did not have a parishioner attend, interested parishes or parishioners can request a package of information that contains the details of the retreat.

The packets are available for $2. Contact Ludwig at (712) 233-7531 to request the information.