Deepening Our Faith – Through Retreats

I attended my first MCCW retreat in 2016 a week after my husband returned from a deployment. The few days spent away from the home, and even my young kiddo, was an opportunity to recharge my emotional and mental batteries and to help me continue focusing on my relationship with the Lord. That experience, and my subsequent continued involvement with Catholic Women of the Chapel (CWOC) groups, has led me to attend several retreats since then. Each time I return from a retreat, I take some time to reflect on the heartfelt and God-felt messages placed on my heart. A couple takeaways are shared below.

CONNECT

The secular world has developed acronyms of YOLO (You Only Live Once) and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). When thinking of spiritual retreats, these acronyms are quite appropriate. Women have a tendency to take on the weight of the world around them, and retreats offer an opportunity to step out of the daily grind, take a breath, slow our pulse, and enter into a pace of life which allows us to really connect with our personal relationship with our Creator. 

I last attended a retreat in the Southeastern region. During that retreat, I found myself awake in the wee hours of the morning, and I was able to sit in silence in front of the Blessed Sacrament with my writing pad in hand, listening to the whispers left on my heart. All of the MCCW retreats I have attended offered just that – the opportunity to sit in silence in front of the Blessed Sacrament and to grow in faith by just sitting with the whispers of the Lord.

UNITE

MCCW retreats always offer ways for our members to unite in prayer, fellowship, and camaraderie. Each day offers Mass, a way to come together, to give thanks, and to enter into the Lord’s Passion in a way unique to Catholics. 

One of the difficult parts of Covid and the pandemic was a restriction on group gatherings. Many of us, perhaps at various times, felt isolated and disconnected from others. These group retreats offered by MCCW offer the perfect antidote – they offer us the ability and opportunity to unite in-person, with a mission to not just “connect, unite, and inspire,” but to also seek the support, encouragement, and growth that is required by being missionary disciples within our Catholic communities.

INSPIRE

The MCCW retreats also give attendees the chance to grow in faith through the experience of faith-filled speakers whose goals are to share words of encouragement and wisdom on traveling a faith-filled journey in life. Whether the speaker is from a religious order, or is a fellow military-connected woman, each lecture offered gives attendees an opportunity to reflect on her own journey, and to be inspired to continue engaging in faith-filled activities both at the retreat and at home.

Attending retreats isn’t something that I have the opportunity to do frequently. However, it is certainly an experience that I wouldn’t change for the world. I have attended Forum with an infant-in-arms, and this year, will be assisting at my regional retreat with a three month old. I am looking forward to making connections with so many other Catholic women from around my region, especially knowing that I have no idea where God will place my family in another 18 months when we next PCS. This year’s retreats will afford me the opportunity to unite with other military-affiliated Catholic women who understand the role that faith plays into the dedication of a military family. Retreat season for 2023 gives me the chance to reflect on how Christ not only dwells in me, but also challenges me to then discern, develop, and grow as a disciple of His.

Will you take the chance and join our Worldwide Board members, your regional team members, and other Catholic women from across your region, as we come together in a way that connects, unites, and inspires?

On behalf of our MCCW-Worldwide board, I hope we will see you at our regional retreats this 2023!

In Christ,

Anni

Director of Communications