“In quiet and silence, the faithful soul makes progress, the hidden meanings of the Scriptures become clear, and the eyes weep with devotion every night. Even as one learns to grow still, one draws closer to the Creator and farther from the hurly-burly of the World.” -Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ

Retreat vs. Vacation - How to prepare to spend time with God

 Although retreat and vacation both involve leaving the everyday demands and responsibilities of life behind, there is a difference in what you are moving towards. Retreat intentionally seeks an uncluttered space to be alone and in the presence of God, while vacation primarily involves the pursuit of personal pleasure. Both are needed for healthy rhythms of life, but are not to be confused. Both require some forethought and planning before arriving at your destination if you want to achieve your goal. The Springs offers you a place for retreat to encourage you to discover and develop a lifestyle following the example of Jesus, getting away to be with the Father to be refreshed so that you might return to be better able to serve others.

Below are a few simple suggestions on how you might prepare yourself for a retreat experience.

• Travel Light! Bring your Bible and a journal, and if necessary, devotional reading.

• Disconnect! Leave technology at home. We do not provide WiFi. 

• Eat healthy meals – or consider a full or partial fast. 

• Expect to Rest! Your body will inform you of what it needs! 

• Exercise! Body, mind, and spirit join you on retreat. 

• Explore! Spiritual Practices serve as pathways to encountering God – consider times of Silence, Solitude, Fasting, Prayer of Examen, or Lectio Divina.

Retreat includes the journey to and from, offering important space for transition. Pay attention to your thoughts and your feelings as you leave home, travel here, and settle in – changing gears, slowing down, turning off the freeway onto the country lanes informs you and affirms your longing for a place of peace and rest!

Notice your response to the unhurried rhythms of life while on retreat and discover what is needful and helpful for you. The journey home gives time to shift back into the life God has called you to re-enter. Be mindful of the transformational work of God in you from time spent in His presence.  This is retreat! 

Suggestions for Retreat:

 1. God Led

• Don’t overplan or overschedule your time.  Explore and see what unfolds.

• Choose a verse or a theme for your retreat.

• Learn and practice breath and body prayers that slow you and bring you present to the moment right where you are.

• Campfires offer a unique space for community, telling our personal God stories, as well as offering an invitation to worship – bring your guitars!

• Bring simple art supplies to encourage expressing what is seen or experienced.

• Journaling can become a lovely reminder of God encounters while on retreat.

2. Creation Sensitive

• Walk the trails – engage your senses with physical movement, observing, and listening.

• Ask questions that encourage conversations with your Creator about His creation.

• Take a prayer walk - bring your Bible - and the prayer guide which can be found in your cabin.

• Explore the Narnia Trail!  Be sure to read or review The Chronicles of Narnia before entering Narnia. A summary of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe can be found in the resource book in your cabin if needed, and laminated cards are available on the trail in a box to help you find the objects that prompt conversation.  

• Walking the Labyrinth is a sacred journey with God.  It is a good place to practice silence and listening prayer.

• Picture taking focuses in on details as well as the big picture and becomes a visual journal.  

• Bring a magnifying lens or binoculars for closer examination of the details often overlooked.  

• Explore, enjoy, or work in the community garden and taste and see that the Lord is good!

3. Guest Centered

• Remember that there may be other guests on retreat practicing silence and solitude.

• When using common areas consider how it might be affecting other guests.

• The hot tub offers a place of rest and healing to weary bodies – consider making it a place of prayer and reflection in the early morning or before bedtime. (Remember - It is not a bathtub or swimming pool – please shower before entering to keep it clean for the other guests.)

• Our grounds and facilities are maintained for our guests by the generosity of many others who have invested time and resources to create an inviting space to encounter God.

Bring any food you would like for meals, beverages, or snacks. We have most of the basics in the cabins for cooking, as well as bedding and towels. If you’d like to use the hot tub, pack your swimsuit.  Or if you’d like to go fishing, you might bring your fishing gear.  

The Springs is only for adults who are 18 and over. To encourage your time of quiet and rest, there is no wifi or TV in the cabins. Phone service is limited. We ask guests not to bring their pets. Smoking is not permitted on the property.

Yes, we would love to show you around before you bring your group. Please contact springsreservations@gmail.com to set up a time.

"We can only survive solitude if we cling to Christ there. And yet what we find of him in that solitude enables us to return to society as free persons." -Dallas Willard

Recommended Online Reading 

• Solitude and Silence - Soul Shepherding - Bill Gaultiere

• Solitude and Wide, Open Spaces - Richard Foster

• How Do We Make Space for Retreat? - Emilie Griffin

• Of Mice and Men and Solitude - Dallas Willard

​Recommended Reading

• Wilderness Time: A Guide for Spiritual Retreat - Emilie Griffin 

• Sacred Rhythms - Ruth Haley Barton

• Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices That Transform Us - Adele Ahlberg Calhoun 

• Life of the Beloved - Henri Nouwen

Believing that retreat is an invitation to slow and rest, and in reviewing the comments of our guests, we have instituted a policy of a minimum stay of two nights. 

We believe this will better serve our guests who regularly ask for an early arrival time or late checkout, which is a challenge for our staff to have time to prepare the space. We also feel this will allow us to better fulfill our call as a retreat ministry by assuring adequate time is available to our guests. 

If you desire a one-day retreat, consider reserving The Hermitage for this purpose.

In our desire to honor the Sabbath for our staff, we do not accept Sunday check-ins.

WE ARE CLOSED FOR THE FOLLOWING 2025 HOLIDAYS

• Easter: Good Friday, April 18 - Easter Sunday, April 20

• Memorial Day: Monday, May 26

• Fourth of July: Friday, July 4

• Labor Day: Monday, September 1

• ​Thanksgiving:  Wednesday, November 26 - Sunday, November 30

• Christmas Holiday: Tuesday, December 23 - Thursday,  January 1, 2026

Please give whatever you are able or feel led to donate. You will get a receipt for your tax-deductible donation above $125/night/cabin.

You may come twice a year as an individual reservation. We encourage you to explore other retreat options in the area for additional retreats.  

Spiritual Direction holds the conviction that all human experience is of interest to God and that God is somehow present in all our experiences. A spiritual director will listen to a person with empathy and support, inviting people to bring their experiences to God to become more aware of Christ’s presence within them. It is “journey” focused.

Counseling or therapy is problem-focused and solution-driven. The counselor/therapist is there to offer options or therapies for the individual to help relieve the problem the individual is experiencing in their exterior relationships, and their interior/emotional world.

Mentoring is learning focused. There is a teacher and a student, and the student desires to learn something from the teacher. The teaching can be formal or informal, but the goal is to gain new skills or understanding through learning. “Discipleship” is a kind of mentoring, but it is spiritually based, training others in the basics of the Christian life.

We have three spiritual directors on-site. We would be glad to develop an ongoing spiritual direction relationship. We also know many other directors who can meet in person, on the phone, or via Zoom.

If you or your group would like to donate your time as a volunteer, we would love to have you join us. Volunteers help with upkeep of the grounds, cabin cleaning, gardening, building and equipment maintenance, trail maintenance, and special one-time projects. Contact Leif Anderson at leifanderson82@gmail.com for more information.

Life with God is often depicted as a journey toward spiritual maturity and eternal life. Our Logo reflects this movement and how it is experienced on retreat. You are invited to leave behind the busyness that occupies your daily life, to seek time with the One who waits for you to come away and find rest in Him. On retreat, you will find prepared spaces to intentionally be with God alone in the beauty of creation, experiencing His healing, restorative love. Returning home, there is a gentle flow back into the life He has called you to, refreshed, transformed, and enabled to be your most authentic self for the glory of God and the good of others.

The Labyrinth offers a prepared path to prayerfully walk unhindered in the company of our Triune God. With intention, you leave the preoccupations of everyday life behind while moving forward into the center of the Labyrinth. Through movement, you actively engage with and come present to God and aware of any thoughts, feelings or emotions that might arise. The outward journey corresponds to the interior journey of the heart, mind, and soul, leading to a deeper awareness of your longings and desires, where you can know yourself in the presence of our all-knowing God. Arriving at and resting into the spacious center of the Labyrinth is a place of knowing God and knowing self in the transforming center of His Love. The journey out of the Labyrinth is a time of savoring the grace of God in preparation to return to the life and work of love that He has called you to.

Check out the Programs page of the website to learn more about current opportunities. Let us know if we might suggest options for your group to experience while at The Springs.

If we are unable to accommodate you here at The Springs, we can highly recommend the following retreat ministries:

• Cloudland, Kathy and Wally Bolduc, 6381 Todd Road, Oxford, OH 45056.

• The Seasons, Ron and Jeanne Sears, 954 W. Center St., Eureka, IL  61530. 541-921-2217.​

• Valor Haven, the Yeazel Family, Lewisburg, OH​ 45338.