During the weekend of October 12th, six women gathered at the Abbey of the Genesee for an opportunity of spiritual growth and fellowship. Karen Ross led us in a discussion on prayer. We had the opportunity to talk about our feelings and thoughts about prayer - both in our lives and in general. To simply say that Karen did a phenomenal job would be an understatement!!! We enjoyed good food and good fellowship. Another opportunity for the women of Immanuel Lutheran church to participate in such a wonderful gathering will be in the winter of 2008. More information will be made available in the coming months. Please take time to prayerfully consider participating in this wonderful retreat.

There are very few places in our area that are as incredibly peaceful as the Abbey of the Genesee in Piffard - the site of our second event. The theme of this year's retreat was the "Power of Prayer" and we spent a good amount of time talking informally about how we pray, when we pray, what we pray and what we read as devotionals. What did we discover? Every single one of us is different and we even pray differently, yet we each had something to share and new things to think about. There was good food, quiet music and extraordinary views from every window. There was a feeling of renewal and rest. I know that "retreat" may sound rigorous but we have set "renewal" as our priority and, as we carefully crafted bracelets to remind us of our personal prayers, " renewal" was what we felt. We hope you consider joining us at our next trip to the Abbey. Who doesn't need a bit of "renewal"?