BE STILL, MY SOUL

With Dr. Carol Bechtel at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu, NM

Sabbath's Invitation to Rest, Renewal, and Wonder

Come away for a while and treat yourself to a week-long Sabbath in the spectacular setting of Ghost Ranch. Join other Sabbath-seekers for a gentle week of rest, reflection, and worship filled with ideas for how you can incorporate rhythms of Sabbath rest into your everyday life. 

Why Sabbath, Why Now?  

“Humans have created such a loud, fast tempo of perfection and production that we often forget--if we ever knew it at all--the rhythms designed for our well-being.”  - April Fiet, The Sacred Pulse

Sabbath is a gift designed by God to give us rest and renewal in the midst of a frantic world. God knows we need it! Yet Christians have largely lost touch with this important part of our spiritual heritage. We can discover again its potential for re-forming our walk with God, with others, and with all creation.

Questions we will explore include:

• Is Sabbath more than self-care? If so, how/why? 

• Is Sabbath selfish, or does it renew us to live and serve? 

• How can busy people realistically celebrate Sabbath?...  Practical suggestions?

• Why is Sabbath about more like a party with people we love than a list of obligations?

• What are the real-life consequences of rejecting the gift of Sabbath? For us? For others? For the world?

A Gentle Retreat

During our time together we’ll explore what it means to celebrate Sabbath. Through music, meditation, Bible study, and song we will “seek Sabbath” together, leaving ample time for rest and recreation. We will also have time for Baking challah (Sabbath bread); Sabbath-related crafts; Hiking; Swimming; Horse-back riding; Evening prayer; and Sunsets.

View this on our YouTube playlist.

Pause and reflect with us this Advent season. We are excited to invite you to our online event where Dr. David Scafide will guide us through a thought-provoking study using Love Came Down at Christmas by Sinclair Ferguson. Together, we will explore 1 Corinthians 13 as it looks at Jesus’ great love for us demonstrated at Christmas during these 5 minute video devotions.

Each weekday during Advent, a video devotion will be uploaded to our YouTube channel at 6:00am ET which you will be able to view at any point thereafter. Then take part in our new optional gathering on Sunday nights at 7:00pm ET over Zoom where we can discuss and share our thoughts on the previous week’s devotions. Together, we will reflect on the love, anticipation and hope that Advent brings, as we prepare our hearts for the joyous celebration of Christmas.

Sabbath as Life Abundant:  A Spiritual Retreat with  Author Anita Amstutz  at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico

Suffering is real and perennial, but so is soul and body nourishing love and connection!

In this retreat, experience how Sabbath can come alive as we share together, re-filling the wells of our souls with Living Water—alongside the “slow heartbeat” of nature. 

Our community time together will include shared Sabbath meals, guided group discussions, artistic endeavors, and worship. There will be rich time for personal contemplative practices, such as walking, journaling, art and solitude—all set in the soaring beauty and intimate canyons of Ghost Ranch—the former home of artist Georgia O’Keefe. 

We will explore themes of meaning and purpose, suffering and grief, joy, healing, stillness, prayer, and “What Makes Your Heart Sing”? A special and unique meditation process with art by Maureen O’Neill will be woven into our Sabbath time— geared towards Sabbath mindfulness and entering the ’thin place’ that the Celtic Christians knew. 

There will also be a day at Christ in the Desert Monastery, to visit with the resident hermit, Brother John, who will engage us in the “Biblical notion of the heart as the deepest center and the place of encounter and dialogue (prayer)”. 

Sabbath is the least kept ten commandment, yet also the jewel that can bring us into this “palace in time” that Rabbi Joshua Abraham Heschel writes about in his classic,  Sabbath.

So, slow down, come and tend your soul for awhile, listen for The Lord of the Sabbath” who invites us to come and drink our fill of the Living Water, experience healing and know shalom.

Sabbath Abundance  is based upon the book, Soul Tending: Journey into the Heart of Sabbath, by Rev. Anita Amstutz. She is a high desert dweller, herbal and pollinator enthusiast, contemplative, ordained minister, writer and spiritual companion ( https://afamstutz.com/sabbath-circles/wisdom-ways-of-being/).

A four-week book discussion held on Wednesday afternoons in February and March. Meeting together over Zoom, we read and discussed J. Dana Trent's "For Sabbath's Sake."

An easy and relatable read, "For Sabbath's Sake" will give you the push you need to set boundaries in your personal sabbath keeping. From the back cover: "With humor and honesty, Trent admits her own struggles with setting apart a day for God, rest, and community. She helps us overcome barriers to sabbath and suggests practical ways to make sabbath a regular part of our lives."

View these videos on our YouTube playlist.

Are you ready to dive into the spirit of Advent? We are excited to invite you to this online event where Dr. David Scafide will guide us through a thought-provoking study using Walter Brueggemann's book, Names for the Messiah: An Advent Study. Together, we will explore the four names for the Messiah in Isaiah 9:6: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

Each weekday during Advent, a video devotion will be uploaded to our YouTube channel at 6:00am ET which you will be able to view at any point thereafter. Your personal insights and commentary are welcome to be added to the comments section for each video. Together, we will reflect on the anticipation and hope that Advent brings, as we prepare our hearts for the joyous celebration of Christmas.

Dr. David Scafide is Vice President of Rising Day Ministries, professor at Metro Baltimore Seminary and pastor at a rural church in Maryland and has a passion for helping people deepen their faith. Through his engaging weekday video devotions, he will lead us on a journey to discover the beauty and wonder of our Messiah during this Advent.

Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity to learn, grow, and be inspired. We can't wait to embark on this meaningful journey with you!

Take your lunch break with us on Wednesdays in March for our newest online "Sabbath Circle". This is a book discussion of "Soul Tending" by Rev. Anita Amstutz--a book that inspires, challenges, and guides us into Sabbath practices for our personal, family, and congregational lives. It will be led by Rising Day Board Members: Tim Bird, David Scafide, Lenore Tucker, and Lauri Przybysz. Leaders will present a couple of chapters each week and participants will discuss their understandings of the readings for their own lives and their worship communities. Excellent study for Lent which can transform how we take delight in Sabbath rest from a restless world.