How to Plan a Four-Hour Personal, Spiritual Retreat

In my last post, I described the benefits of carving out 3-4 hours for spending time with the Lord and caring for your soul. You might feel apprehensive as you consider such a “long time” alone. You might think, “I have trouble staying awake for my 20 minute quiet time each morning.” I want to help with that concern by providing a sample schedule and some practical advice. But first, I need to describe the various elements you should consider including in your plan.

Elements of a Personal Retreat

Worship in Song – Jonathan Edwards used to ride his horse the woods surrounding his town, dismount, and walk through the woods singing out to God. Maybe you will sit in your closet or your car or walk around a greenway. And perhaps you’ll use your phone to play some praise music (so it isn’t just you trying to carry a tune). I encourage you to use Together for the Gospel’s live albums for this purpose.

Bible Reading – If you are going to fellowship with the Lord, you need to hear from his Word. Maybe you should pick one epistle to read through like Titus or Colossians. After all, the New Testament letters were meant to be read in one sitting.

Meditation – Take a smaller section of Scripture and spending time thinking about its meaning and then making an application to your life. You might pick a verse that relates to a current need in your life, or you might pick a theme from your Bible reading.

   

Praying – Not only do we need to hear from God, but we also need to speak to him.  It is natural for a child to talk to his loving father. Maybe you get distracted while you pray. Consider praying through a Psalm. For example, read one verse of Psalm 23 and pray what comes to mind. When you run out of things to pray, move to the next verse. You might also consider walking while you pray.

Devotional reading – Pick a good Christian book and try to get a good start on it during this time. You might not be able to finish the whole thing, but you can get a running start that will help you finish it out later.

Journaling – Journaling is helpful because it aids the process of thinking, evaluating, and remembering.  What sort of things should you journal about?

• A list of things you thank God for.
• Evaluating your life in light of what you read in your Bible. List how you are doing and what you need to work on improving.
• Write out a prayer
• Write as you meditate on a verse (kind of like your own commentary and application).

As you can see, journaling brings together the other elements I’ve already mentioned.

Sample Schedule

Below is a sample schedule that reflects 4 hours. However, you could adjust it down to 2-3 hours if needed. The point of a schedule is to help you avoid wasting time (wondering what to do next). However, don’t feel like you have to stick to your plan blindly. If you find your time of prayer or reading is having a powerful effect on your soul, then keep at it. If you find you are growing weary, then move to the next thing.

:15       Worshiping the Lord in song (perhaps while playing an instrument or listening to music)

:30       Bible reading

:30       Praying the Bible, perhaps while walking.

:30       Journaling

:30       Devotional reading (an edifying Christian book you’ve wanted to read)

:20       Praying the Bible, perhaps while walking.

:30       Meditation on Scripture

:15       Journaling

:20       Praying the Bible, perhaps while walking.

:20       Worshiping the Lord in song (as above) and/or devotional reading (as above)

(This is taken from Dr. Don Whitney’s syllabus for Spiritual Disciplines in the Minister’s Life, Winter 2020).

Practical Advice

On mistake people often make, according to Dr. Whitney, is that they remain in one position (seated) for too long. Too much consecutive time in the chair can have a dulling effect. So, get up and walk while you meditate or pray. Stand to sing. Kneel to pray.  

A second piece of advice, put a retreat on the calendar. It’s like anything else in life – if you don’t schedule and plan for it, it will probably not happen (despite your best intentions). I am not sure if the Corona Virus has given you more discretionary time or not. If it has, now is a great time to do a personal retreat. Maybe you are just as busy as ever. Either way, get it on the calendar.

One more piece of advice. If you are married with young kids, plan to give your spouse time for this too. Maybe one Saturday morning you watch the kids, and a couple of weeks later, he or she watches them. It will take coordination, but it is worth it.

If you want to learn more about this topic, read chapter ten on silence and solitude in Don Whitney’s book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life.