Self-directed Retreat

Individuals who come to Centering Space on retreat are welcome to craft their own retreat experience. The quiet spaces in the house, the gardens, the grotto, the chapel, the lake and the library provide a variety of resources to enhance your personal experience.

A self-directed retreat can be as simple or as complex as you wish. Sometimes, it can be as effortless as withdrawing to a place of privacy where you can rest your soul or spend some quiet time in nature.

The first thing is to make a commitment to make the retreat, decide on a few simple objectives, set the date, and choose a setting that will provide you with the quiet environment in which you can pursue your spiritual processes.

The second thing is to prepare what you will need to assist you in the process. Make a list of the things that will help you on that day, but pare it down to what is absolutely essential so that you are not distracted. A meditation mat, a journal, a favorite tea or coffee cup, a book that might be helpful in a discernment process all provide possibilities for putting you in a good space for prayer and meditation.

The last thing is to put yourself in the “frame of mind” for the retreat. Allow plenty of time to pack and to travel to the retreat so that you arrive relaxed and ready to enter into the quiet of the retreat experience.

While on a self-directed retreat, you can just go with the flow, with no schedule or structure to follow, or you can prepare a schedule for yourself for prayer times, meditation times, or reading times. You may want to schedule some outdoor time, or light exercise time to clear the body as well as the mind. Our media and book libraries are also aides for creating your own retreat.

Above all, remember, this is your time with God. Listen to what your heart and the Spirit are telling you as you journey on the retreat.

Call us for additional information or to register: 216-228-7451