How to avoid retreat high
Congrats to those of you who made it back from Catalina Island from Spring Retreat 2014!!!! A moment of silence for that lost boat of students who disappeared while returning from Spring Retreat 1987.
So while Spring Retreat was amazing and all, we're here to help you avoid retreat high! What's retreat high you ask? Well, Webster's Dictionary defines it as "the emotions that stir up in someone when they've spent a week having their minds blown by the Bible and learning in community with others"
Okay, you're right. It doesn't. But most of you know what I'm talking about. It's really easy to say that you're going to spend a week fasting right after you've heard a rousing sermon on it, and all of your friends have decided that they're going to do it as well. The hard part is following through. You made commitments on the island. You chose to follow Jesus either for the first time or made a decision to amp up your faith. But now you're back with the rest of society and it can be easy to get caught up with the worries of the world. (Shout out to Mark 1!) How do you keep that momentum going?
1) Stay accountable!
Talk to a trusted friend/Bible study leader about the choices that you made at Spring Retreat. Ask them to pray with you and to help you stay accountable to that decision. When you have someone that's asking you daily/weekly how you're doing, it'll be a lot easier to make sure that commitment extends longer.
2) Join a community group!
If you don't already have one. Or if you have one and don't go consistently, try to! The Christian journey was never meant to be walked alone. Remember that Jesus sent out the disciples two by two. When you grow with others in community, you develop friendships that will continually challenge you to grow in your faith.
3) Pray!!!
As those in Mark 2 found out, the disciples fell asleep on Jesus during one of his most emotional moments. Similarly, if we don't pray daily, we miss out on growing our relationship with Jesus. By spending that time with God daily, He gives us the strength to honor our commitments in times when we think we can't.
Those are three ways to make sure that your retreat commitment doesn't die out. If you have any others, feel free to share!