How hard is it for God to get your attention?  Do you regularly practice turning aside in your day?  That is, taking a moment to listen to God- because God, through the Holy Spirit, really is speaking, because we know, every place is filled with the presence of God.  There is not an inch of space, not a moment of time, that God does not inhabit. John Ortberg Eric Elder’s “The Ranch” shared this quote today in my email. It goes right along with my verse for today: “…we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Cor. 10:5a)

I’m experimenting with speech recognition on my new laptop. I’m frankly a better speaker than a writer so I do better when I write by talking it out first to myself. Psychotic? You decide.  🙂 While training the computer I came up with this snippet that I rather liked: It’s snowing here in the mountains.  I took my dog for short walk earlier.  I wasn’t going to, but he gets kind of impossible without it and heaven knows I need it too.  I thought the snow was over, and was delighted to feel a few flakes. Then I thought it was really over, and was surprised to look back out…

This guide is for Christians who would like to take a personal retreat with God. This is specific to Christians and not retreats in general because Christian retreats are different. Other faiths seek to contact something that is not Jesus Christ. Secular retreats are concerned with psychological self-help. The Christian retreat is based first on hearing God’s word in the Bible and through His Holy Spirit, and secondarily with good physical and psychological practices. (Mind you these are good things; they are just not the most important things.) It can be hard to get that kind of time. But you need to ask yourself – What does God want me…