{"id":676,"date":"2024-07-19T05:39:34","date_gmt":"2024-07-19T09:39:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/?page_id=676"},"modified":"2025-02-26T16:10:03","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T21:10:03","slug":"cincinnati-retreat","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/cincinnati-retreat\/","title":{"rendered":"Finally fall in love with God&#8217;s story"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is the Cincinnati Retreat?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embedwrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SFL Weekend Retreat\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/sIEUAn1j9fs?start=31&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n<p><a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/9awedqv9hwh.typeform.com\/to\/nEL8zP2m\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SIGN UP NOW<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;I was feeling stagnant in my walk with Jesus. During SFL, I realized this was because I was trying to make the story of the Bible about me. This shift to seeing God&#8217;s story for what it is, where I am just a supporting actor, is already making me excited to wrestle with scripture as He trains me to more deeply believe and obey Him.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether you\u2019ve been a Christian your whole life or only a few months, you\u2019ve likely bumped into this discrepancy between what you hear your faith experience should be like vs. what it\u2019s actually like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You want to feel closer to God, yet you&#8217;re spiritually stuck. You believe your walk with the Lord could be the rich, vibrant experience you often hear about, but instead it feels dull. How do you move from merely desiring spiritual growth to having it actively guide your family with the wisdom gained from your own deepening relationship with God?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>That\u2019s where Story-Formed Life comes in<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;I&#8217;ve read through the entire Bible many times, and I always thought I knew the story of the Scriptures quite well. Going through this study, which was unlike most studies I&#8217;ve ever been a part of, was a unique experience where I was confronted with some truths that I had only mentally assented to, but I had not grappled with with my heart. I realized that I was not fully trusting God in everything. I wanted to. But there was something holding me back.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, it\u2019s common for Christians often live their entire spiritual lives feeling discontent. They want more, but don\u2019t know where to find it. Phrases like, \u201cIf you don\u2019t feel close to God, He hasn\u2019t moved,\u201d or, \u201cGod feels far away, but he\u2019s never more than one step back.\u201d You\u2019re thinking, \u201cWell, that\u2019s great, but what\u2019s that one step back? I\u2019ve tried a few different steps yet nothing seems to change.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s nothing magical about Story-Formed Life. There\u2019s no secret information, no new tricks to try, nor even more willpower to muster. In fact, it\u2019s the opposite. There\u2019s barely even a curriculum. It\u2019s just a few select scripture passages that walk us through a Story you may already know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Falling in love with this Story fundamentally transforms us. <\/strong>Reading the Bible shifts from a chore to a craving. Your life naturally aligns with its narrative, altering not just your story, but also influencing your marriage, your children, and your family\u2019s spiritual legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We cannot wait to see how God\u2019s Story impacts your story over this weekend together!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Here is how we do it&#8230;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The weekend starts on Friday at noon through about 6pm. That evening you will have dinner with a family in Cincinnati. Saturday we start at 8:30 and run until about 6pm. At 7pm we all gather with the larger Cincinnati community for an evening of fellowship. Sunday we start back at 8:30 and end around noon. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You can travel to Cincinnati Friday morning and home Sunday afternoon. We will arrange lodging with a host family in Cincinnati. Of course you are free to stay at a hotel at your cost. We do encourage you to use this time to immerse yourself in our community in Cincinnati.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The cost is $75 per person plus travel to Cincinnati. If you fly, we do recommend you rent a car.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Start here&#8230;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Complete this interest form<\/a> and we will contact you within a few days to discuss.<\/p>\n\n\n<p><a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/9awedqv9hwh.typeform.com\/to\/nEL8zP2m\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SIGN UP NOW<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>Reading and responding to Scripture together, the community&#8211;depth of vulnerability and joy in laughter, and having some time to relax at the end of the intense schedule&#8230;those were the highlights of my experience!<\/em><br><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;A lot of things that haven&#8217;t quite made sense in the past make much more sense now, particularly around The Fall after Creation&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;Mind blown, eye opening. I had always read the bible up close. To step back and see the big themes that are going on throughout the story was transformative to how I understand God, the Bible, and my family&#8217;s place in the story. I frequently speak about our SFL experience and use the language of SFL often.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;I thought SFL was the best foundation laying course I have ever been a part of. It deepened my trust in Jesus, gave me a greater appreciation for what God has done, is doing and will do in the future, challenged me to take the claims and words of Jesus with greater weight and all with helping to better understand the entire story and scope of the Bible.<\/em>&#8220;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;I have been a believer my entire life, but during my first SFL I felt like I was truly meeting Jesus for the first time. I never felt confident to read and study scripture on my own before SFL and now I am hungry for it daily. Being shown the \u201cwhole story\u201d and seeing how the Old Testament all points to Jesus opened my eyes and heart in new ways I didn\u2019t know were possible.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;My relationship with God is much more intentional. I spend time in the word almost every day and am hungry for more \u2026&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>&#8220;SFL has been a great tool for us because it quickly and effectively immerses those we serve into God\u2019s story. It lays a foundation, or improves an existing one, and has accelerated the deepening of one\u2019s faith and the motivation to make disciples themselves!&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n<p><a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/9awedqv9hwh.typeform.com\/to\/nEL8zP2m\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SIGN UP NOW<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is the Cincinnati Retreat? SIGN UP NOW &#8220;I was feeling stagnant in my walk with Jesus. During SFL, I realized this was because I was trying to make the story of the Bible about me. This shift to seeing God&#8217;s story for what it is, where I am just a supporting actor, is already [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":484,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-676","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676"}],"version-history":[{"count":70,"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/676\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":793,"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/676\/revisions\/793"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/484"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.storyformedlife.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}