THE HERMITAGE SPIRITUAL RETREAT CENTER

"And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure, so much as to eat.” (Mark 6:31)

I’ve written about spending a month (April 13 through May 10) in southwest Missouri. My wife Mary Ann was with me for the first week, and during part of that time, we spent a couple of nights in Branson. I spent most of my time in Missouri at my daughter Amy’s in Springfield, but I did spend the better part of one week at the Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center in rural Pittsburg, Missouri on Lake Pomme-de-Terre (also known as Pomme-de-Terre Lake) which is fed by the Pomme-de-Terre River.

I found out about the Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center on-line. You can check it out at:

www.hermitageretreats.org

I did tell “Father Paul” who essentially runs the Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center that I would write a favorable review about it on my blog, so here it is! My wife had some reservations about me going there because from the description of the place on-line, the philosophy of those who run the it seemed to be a mixture of Roman Catholic, liberal Protestant, and New Age. In fact, that’s true. And, YES, I have some problems and disagreements with all of those theologies and philosophies, ESPECIALLY New Age. That said, the Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center is mainly a place for PERSONAL, INDIVIDUAL retreats. As a pretty theologically conservative evangelical and Pentecostal guy, I had no problem “getting in touch with God” there. It WAS, in fact, a wonderful place to just “get away from it all”, rest, and hear from God.

I stayed in a house (what they call a “hermitage”) just a short distance up hill from the lake which featured a beautiful view of the lake. Another “retreatant” was on the 2nd floor of the house, and I was on the 1st floor. The other “retreatants” are pretty much supposed to leave you to yourself, and honestly, this guy DIDN’T do that. However, I still had several hours a day totally by myself, and that was good enough.

Father Paul, a Roman Catholic priest and former United Methodist minister, has built a trail through the woods there with the Stations of the Cross. Since the Assemblies of God is very “non-liturgical” we’re really not “into” the Stations of the Cross, but I still thought it would be nice to walk the trail and think quietly. It was a nice experience, although in some places the trail was so badly flooded and blocked with brush, that I ended up turning back!

I was blessed to find a WONDERFUL Christian book (published by Word Books) about discipleship in a bookcase at the house, and I devoured it. The book was very practical and had much helpful information and suggestions that I really needed. The days I spent at Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center were very important for me, and in many respects, were a highlight of my sabbatical month. Incidentally, the place is FREE although they gladly accept donations!