Start the weekend right away with friends and fellowship! Meet some new folks and connect with great people. Refresh & revitalize your spirit - and soul - with friends, family & faith. Swim in the lake or lounge in the cozy cabins, read your favorite book under a canopy of cool shade. Grab a group for a pick-up game, frisbee, or beach volleyball. Tell stories in the Great Hall by the fire. Paddle a canoe! Scrabble, hike the Appalachian Trail, fish, chat, or snooze in the sun. Refresh!
Are you interested in leading an activity? Reffing a game? Arts & Crafts? Are you a lifeguard?
Email us right away with your ideas!
the Retreat officially opens from 12-2pm with Orientation/Check In.
There will be prizes, so make sure you Check In as soon as you arrive! In the afternoon, get to know our new digs with a special "Carnival" on the grounds or try your luck at a super 65-foot Mega Obstacle Challenge! Before supper, hear new music from the group working to make a multi-disciplinary "illuminated" Bible - Spark and Echo Arts. Then come together for our big Welcome Dinner in the Great Hall.
After supper, the premier "church band" Koiné will give a concert on Saturday evening. Koiné travels all over the United States and Canada sharing the treasures of the Lutheran hymnal with common people young and old. We're so excited that they're joining us at this year's Retreat! Here's how they describe their music:
"Imagine a 1200 year old text and a 600 year old melody married with a Les Paul, Steinway piano, drums and electric bass. Much of our music already has a welcome home in traditional worship, but with a contemporary sound that anyone can identify with."Koiné is currently working on their fifth studio album, set to be released in August 2011. Maybe we'll be the first to hear a live preview at the Retreat! For more information, become a friend of Koiné on facebook.
After Koiné's concert, gather together at a roaring campfire with s'mores on the beach at the lake. Enjoy the warm atmosphere with friends...
And then, there will be FIREWORKS OVER THE LAKE!
On Sunday, enjoy a leisurely breakfast and get ready for an exciting day. Sign up for the one-of-a-kind worship experience on our first "Mountain Matins" hike up Monument Mountain. Get a little "closer to heaven" at the 1,642-foot summit. Enjoying breathtaking views as far north as Mount Greylock near the Vermont border, and the Catskills of New York. We'll take the opportunity to sing with the Psalmist (90:2) "Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." Whew!
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| Monument Mountain, Great Barrington, MA (image courtesy of "digitally" on Panoramio.) |
Come together for dinner at 6pm, and then we'll hear a special Worship Concert, with joyful music by Koiné and congregation. What does this mean? We'll thank the good Lord, hear about His amazing Son Jesus Christ's life to redeem you, his sacrificial death to purchase and win you from all your sins; and his awe-some resurrection to free you from the power of the devil. We'll celebrate that God did all this so that you should be his own and live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness! After the worship service, we'll head out for another adventure - a Flashlight Hike on the Appalachian Trail. Now you can say you've done it... but the weekend isn't done yet!
