Outer Banks, North Carolina

Please take a moment and engage with the photo above. Look at it closely and with your every breath, imagine what it would be like to be there. Take some time to smell the salty air, feel the sandy boards of the walkway under your feet, see the tall grasses swaying with the breeze and hear the sound of the softly crashing waves. Let your heartbeat and breathing slow to match the rhythm of those waves. Close your eyes. Where are you in this photo now? Where is Jesus? What invitation is he speaking to your heart?

I've been thinking for a long time about the concept of us being overfed and undernourished. Our meals get supersized, our plates are full of activities and we even binge-watch our favorite shows. In so many ways, we are stuffed and yet, unsatisfied. In the Bible, Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." He also says that if we are tired and worn out that we can come to him and he'll show us how to live freely and lightly. 

This June, we'll be taking a few days to ponder this exquisite balance between abundant and free living. Through gentle yoga, fresh, whole foods, spiritual practices, essential oil experiences and teachings on rhythm of life, we'll invite the Holy Spirit to make it personal for each of us. For a backdrop, we have reserved a beautiful new Outer Banks beach house with a private backyard just steps from the shore.

How would it feel to bring peace and rest to the outer limits of your body, mind and spirit? What if you could lay down your burdens for a few days and take the time to breathe, stretch, eat delicious, nourishing meals, take a nap and learn how to take care of yourself while you feel the sun on your face and the sand in your toes? What would it be like to relax and reset, starting your summer with new healthy habits to refresh your life and heal your very soul?

It's time to Taste and Sea for yourself.

Hebrew stories suggest that the Sapphire was highly regarded by kings and nobility including King Solomon and Abraham and the Law given to Moses on the Mount was said to be engraved on tablets of Sapphire. Today, the Sapphire is called a Stone of Wisdom, a royal stone of learning, mental acuity and activation, a seeker after spiritual truth. Its pure Blue Ray are credited with bringing order to the mind, lending strength and focus and an ability to see beneath surface appearances to underlying truths and to utilize that knowledge. We pray that as we retreat in a house named for such a stone we experience gifts of holy order, strength and focus as we learn and grow together in wisdom and grace.

Eugene Peterson's book, Run with the Horses, The Quest for Life at Its Best, is based on the book of Jeremiah and explores what it means to be fully and genuinely human, while living life to the full. In it he says, "[In the Bible] we see what is possible: anyone and everyone is able to live a zestful life that spills out of the stereotyped containers that a sin-inhibited society provides. Such lives fuse spontaneity and purpose and green the desiccated landscape with meaning. And we see how it is possible: by plunging into a life of faith, participating in what God initiates in each life, exploring what God is doing in each event." We think a most fitting way to celebrate all that we will learn and experience on this retreat is to end the week by watching the Corolla wild horses run on the beach courtesy of a private tour. Your ticket is included in your retreat pricing.

8:30am - gentle yoga practice

9:30am - breakfast

10:30am - morning session

Noon - lunch

1-5pm - contemplative free time

5:30pm - dinner

6:30pm - evening session

8:30pm - tea, dessert and guided meditation

Location: The Sapphire by the Sea, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina

Dates: June 4-7, 2019

Arrival: 4pm Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Departure: 1pm Friday, June 7, 2019

Accommodations and Pricing: The pricing covers everything from the moment you arrive until the moment you leave: accommodations for three nights including linens, breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, all yoga practices, all morning and evening sessions, and your ticket for the wild horse tour. Shared bedroom and bathroom with one other person is $1,995. A $400 deposit reserves your spot. The remaining balance is due 30 days prior to the start of the retreat. (Bedrooms feature one King bed or two Twin beds.)

Christy and Greg bring their years of experience in wellness, hospitality and ministry together to serve you on this retreat. You can read Christy's story here. From a young age, Greg has loved others with a servant's heart. As a Boy Scout, he easily made friends with elderly neighbors and helped them in myriad ways. As a handyman and home remodeler, he learned to fix almost anything and fell in love with the process of transforming brokenness and expiration into wholeness and restoration. From waiting tables to managing hospitality staffs to serving up his own culinary creations, he knows his way around the kitchen and the way to your healthy heart. Greg is also a certified yoga and Holy Yoga instructor. In short, he's the kind of guy you like to have around. Together, Christy and Greg are Wellness Advocates with doTERRA, natural health educators through Cynthia Sumner's Whole Healing program, spiritual formation leaders at their church and frequent short-term missionaries to Haiti and Zambia. They love spending time together, traveling and teaching others all they learn about body-mind-spirit wellness and living life to the full.

Are you wondering what it's like to go on a retreat with Christy and Greg? ​Read testimonials here.​​​  

Ready to go? Submit your retreat interest form here!