The Lure of Laity Lodge

Disclaimer

In recounting our retreat experience I will at times default to shameless plagiarizing (word for word!) from the welcome package/promo material we found in our room.  A room of more elegant-rustic charm than we could have ever imagined

and to which these few photos might testify. 

Plagiarism will be henceforth identified in blue text to 

ease my conscience.  

Call me weak but to my way of thinking, 

it is senseless self-injury to try the telling of a thing already available in prose that cannot be improved.

Our sweet suite was one of six in the Black Bluffs, a structure built right into the cliff side 

and over-hanging the Frio River. 

Anne of Green Gables might have her Lake of Shining Waters,

but does it compare to this Emerald Sea? 

I thought not.

 The walk from the parking lot to the Black Bluffs

 Down one flight of spiral steps to our room

 Literally built into the rock face

If you know me, then you already know how hopelessly smitten I am with the music of Sara Groves and the writings of Sally Lloyd-Jones.  These women have been nurturing my soul for a few years now with their particular artistry and spiritual giftedness.  Sara's blog led us to The High Calling (and the daily bible studies with Mark Roberts) which in turn led us to the awareness of Laity Lodge and the concept of spiritual retreat.

In a random sweep of the retreat schedule for 2012, 

my attention was drawn to November's Food Retreat.  

Yes.  You read that right.  A Food Retreat.  And yes, the better half of me needed some time to consider the merits of such a theme on our spiritual health.  

As a firmly established foodie however, I needed no such convincing 

and knowing that one of the featured speakers 

was none other than the illustrious Sally Lloyd-Jones 

clinched the plan for me us in no *uncertain terms!

(*aka unnecessary negotiation)

Dr. Wirzba has published The Paradise of God: Renewing Religion in an Ecological Age and Living the Sabbath: Discovering the Rhythms of Rest and Delight. His most recent book is Food and Faith: A Theology of Eating. He also has edited The Essential Agrarian Reader: The Future of Culture, Community, and the Land and The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays of Wendell Berry.

“I grew up farming and still grow a garden. I also love to cook and eat. I want to help Christians think about and practice better eating. Doing the right thing tastes really good! I love sharing the table with others.”

Sally Lloyd-Jones
Sally Lloyd-Jones wrote the Bible. Well, not exactly. But she did write The Jesus Storybook Bible, along with other highly regarded (and highly recommended) children’s books. Sally also likes food. She joins us for The Food Retreat to lend a second voice to the weekend. Expect foodie-centric readings from the Storybook Bible (there are quite a few) and beyond.
 Though this marks only her second trip to Laity Lodge, 
we already count Sally as an old friend and look forward to introducing her to you.


Musician
Nathan Tasker
Artist
Gabe Scott (Pie Making)
Special Guests
Ben Edgerton and Andrew Wiseheart of Contigo Austin. 
They’ll be cooking up something. More details soon.

I needed nothing more to start the registration process.

Here is a write up of the same retreat by Sally herself.  

God’s Love Made Visible:
The Laity Lodge Food Retreat, by Sally Lloyd-Jones 

Friend and best-selling children’s author, Sally Lloyd-Jones, recently spent some time writing at Laity Lodge. The tail end of her stay coincided with The Food Retreat, so we asked her to take part, take some notes, and write about it after she returned home. We’re happy to share Sally’s account of the retreat, and look forward to having her back in the Canyon soon. (We’re big fans of her books too…they make great Christmas gifts!)

The remainder of this post is still under construction but I will publish it anyway.  

I am going out right now with all my boys to see The Hobbit - 

(my first real outing in three weeks as I struggle to recover from pneumonia).  

Like Bilbo Baggins, I'm going on an adventure and know not when I'll return!

*** 48 hour Time Lapse ***

Stepping out of the car in the parking lot, we caught the delightful aroma of Texas BBQ in the making.

We cast each other a thumbs up.  This Food Retreat was off to a mighty grand start.  WE passed this incredible conglomeration of outdoor cooking space en route to the Registrar's Office.

Everything and I mean Everything on the property has purpose and detail and is done with an excellence that surpasses even the most discerning taste.
When things are done for His Glory - the difference becomes very obvious.
THAT was an enormous take away for us as we ruminate the experience of Laity Lodge here at home.

The Bookstore welcomed you to either carefully borrow or buy 

from her shelves.  

 Sally's books!  (I noticed they couldn't keep up with the re-stocking)

 

A Hammered Dulcimer brings Rich Mullins lovingly to mind

Turns out Gabe Scott (resident Pie making expert as well) and Nathan Tasker are well connected to many of our favourite musician artists:  

The Getty's, Sara Groves, Michael Card, Rich Mullins, Andrew Peterson....

*sigh*  Music Heaven 

I wish I had gotten the story behind these sculptures but alas, 

now you are left with my uneducated guess.   

Feed my lambs?

We fellowshipped with approximately forty others at this Food Retreat.  

You are about to meet some of them, at the table and elsewhere.

You know what they say....

EXHIBIT A

En route to Laity Lodge, on a truly deserted endless stretch of highway, we saw this For Sale sign.

I begged my driver :) to stop
so I could provide digital evidence of Texan bigness.

Two thousand four hundred and eight acres.  Give or take a few.  LOL.  

With more wells than the patriarchs could ever dream of and not quite a mile to land your private plane.

In Utopia of all places!
And I always thought that place was just a myth!

Drive to Laity Lodge

We first heard about Laity Lodge through The High Calling, a daily bible reflection we follow online.
It is a well-written short bible study by Mark D. Roberts that has become a staple in our morning routine along with HavenToday.org - we are equal parts challenged and comforted with this daily intake of spiritual food.
...Creates an online community by actively listening and educating people about work, life, and God. Our motto is “Every day conversations about work, life, and God.”

Again, to say we have been blessed by having this drop into the inbox everyday is an understatement.  We cannot recommend it highly enough.

So here we are, having made a dutiful sweep of the touristy downtown we tossed a coin and chose the less direct, two hour "scenic route" o'er hill and dale to the place of great escape.

Just as many Americans south of Buffalo think every Canadian lives in an igloo, we looked expectantly for the Dually pickup trucks with the stereotypical rack of long horns sprouting out of the front grill and of course, gun racks atop the cab driven by cowboys dwarfed by their own ten gallon hat.

 *sigh*  This was about as red-neck as it got.

Found a Starbucks here & descended upon it like a pair of desperado's --- snobs that we are.

But the vast Texas Hill Country it was for the next long while.

Long and Lonely stretches of highway between San Antonio and our destination

And then we passed it just like that, so obscure it was - the Howard Butt Foundation sign marking the gravel road down into the Canyon to the Frio River.  Turning around in a rest area, we climbed out of the car and edged our way over to the concrete lookout post for a breath-taking peek at the sight below.

In 1954, the H.E.Butt Foundation acquired 1900 acres north of Leakey, Texas, to fulfill a long-cherished dream of Howard E. Butt Sr., to provide a place where boys & girls, men & women could further their knowledge of God and his creation while enjoying the freedom of camp life that had so appealed to him during his youth.  With his wife Mary and subsequent generations of the Butt family, that vision is now manifest in five self-contained, state-of-the-art facilities that have welcomed more than 750,000 campers in an atmosphere conducive to healthy Christian character development. 

This is offered FREE for qualified church and community groups; with programs especially targeting children and youth groups who would not otherwise be able to afford such an experience.

This is the Frio River carving its way around the Canyon.

Isn't it amazing?  It really did take my breath away.

The Frio River is a Texas treasure.  Frio is the Spanish word for cold and cold it is. 

See that little red canoe/kayak below?  Much saner way to enjoy the river in November if you ask me.

The Foundation owns and maintains five separate Camps and retreat areas, 

Laity Lodge being one of them.

Our anticipation mounted even as the road took us on a slow but steady descent into the canyon and the place of our great escape.

And suddenly we were driving in the river feeling ever so much like naughty children on adventure.

In a word?  Exhilarating!  Our own bonafide 'red-neck' experience.

Ah yes, there's a sign at long last...we're not lost after all.

Laity Lodge.  The place of our great escape.  

"The spiritual life has long been compared to a journey.  As such, Laity Lodge is best understood in terms of the hospitality it offers to travelers who are engaged in a journey of following Christ.  More than a destination, the Lodge is like a 'hospitality house' along a pilgrim's route with the purpose of creating opportunities for refreshment, renewal and  discovering courage while on the way". 

I like this description found in the welcome package: 

Laity Lodge is a place for retreat, but always for the sake of advance.

Now that you've arrived here with us, you might be wondering what sort of retreat this is.
Come back tomorrow.  We will make discovery together...