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Dear Dr. Savant,

I was recently invited to attend a large men's retreat this summer.  It looked like a little more fun than most gathering's of this type since it was being held at the grounds of a summer camp, but I still didn't see much in their published schedule that would get us outside and enjoying God's creation.  It looked like is was mostly seminars and workshops on prayer, journal writing and meditation.  That kind of got me thinking.  Is there ever a time when we should not be outward focused?

--Jerry Stackhouse Huckleberry, Wheaton, Illinois

Dear Jerry,

I have always been suspicious of that term:  R-E-T-R-E-A-T.

My reading of the Bible finds Jesus more often than not, talking about ADVANCING THE KINGDOM.

Now that doesn't mean there is no room for prayer and worship.  You can only give from the abundance you receive from the Father.  That means for you to be able to give away kindness, you have to spend some time soaking in God's grace so that His kindness begins to resonate in you and then flow through you to others.  

As an old friend once said, "We are God's meat grinders.  We want to give people ground sirloin. . .not sausage that is mostly filler and by-product.  It doesn't matter what name you give it, bologna is bologna"

My problem with most men's retreats is they are highly contrived.  I am all for seeking God and letting Him indwell you, but that does not, for me anyway, involve me sitting on a folding chair and yacking about my feelings with some other guys that I don't really like anyway.  Life is too short for that nonsense.

I do advocate getting your batteries recharged.  I find that there is no substitute for God's creation to do that.  Strap on a pack and go get lost in the wilderness for a few hours, or days if needed, and really get quiet before God and listen--not talk.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said it best:

"To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me. But if a man would be alone, let him look at God's creation.  In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, -- no disgrace, no calamity, (leaving me my eyes,) which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground, -- my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space, -- all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God"

--Ralph Waldo Emerson, NATURE

There is always a time and a place for some meetings, but my first litmus test is to ask:  "How does this advance the kingdom?"

For instance, in Cincinnati, Ohio June 2009, there will be a youth conference being held for the 17th year in a row.  Each year it has gotten bigger and better.  While the speakers and artists are fantastic, it is more about the central core event:  SERVING OTHERS.  This year over 900 kids will spend 96 hours serving people and spreading God's kindness!  for more info check out SUMMER OF SERVICE 2009.

Jerry, and anyone else out there, if you need help making your next men's retreat something more than a bunch of dudes in a church basement doing a bunch of navel gazing, we would be glad to send you either Bluto or Billy Bob to teach your men how to kill stuff, blow stuff up, make fire, cook meat, belch the alphabet after enjoying a cold beer, but still love God passionately and quest to humble themselves by noticing God, noticing people, and then helping those people notice God, please drop us a line. They are both pretty cheap workshop facilltaors--pizza with the above mentioned beer and a Motel Six usually gets the job done.  If, however, you want a sane handler to come with them to prevent them from offending some of the less lighthearted members of your church. . .well. . .that costs extra.

--Dr. Savant

Have a question for Dr. Savant? Send him an email and he might choose your letter to respond to in the next issue of Serve!