Blog - Page 36 of 66 - Retreat-in-a-Bag 36

Let’s Talk $$

Posted by Debby on November 7, 2012

For the next month, our weekly posts will concern money matters. And money does matter, especially if you are the women’s ministry in a smaller church with a tight budget. Often, there is no extra money in the budget for women’s ministry, so all of our activities need to be self-supporting–meaning that we need to bring in enough from the event to fully pay for the expenses of the event. And that can be tricky at times.

As we plan a retreat, a luncheon or other event, we need to estimate, as accurately as possible, the number of women who will attend the event. This will enable us to create a budget that will balance in the end. IT IS ALWAYS SAFER TO UNDER-ESTIMATE! It will mean smaller budget numbers, but hopefully keep you from ending up in the red.

Even when we underestimate, leaders can find themselves anxious that even that number of women won’t attend because ladies are waiting until the final minutes to sign up. Consider this option for encouraging early sign up!

Posted in: Money-Saving Tips, Registration, Retreat and Event Planning, Starting Points in Retreat Planning

Leave a Comment (0) →

It’s Almost December!

Posted by Debby on November 6, 2012

We’re already in December, that time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. You may be very busy with some kind of Christmas outreach for your women. We have found early December to be a perfect time for a women’s event to “prepare our hearts for Christmas” and as an outreach to women outside the church. Somehow Christmas events seem less imposing for a visitor, and we see family members who won’t come to a church service or a women’s retreat will come to a Christmas event. Our Christmas women’s events have varied over the years. We try to keep the price down as much as possible. Here are some of our ideas:

A Christmas dinner, catered at a restaurant or venue and a program
A Christmas dinner, hosted in our own fellowship hall where we have women who decorate their own table using their own tablecloths, china, silverware and glassware–and a program
A Christmas dessert (which can include a program or a Christmas devotion)
A Christmas cookie or candy (with recipes) exchange–and a Christmas devotion
A gift exchange (under $5) or a “white elephant” gift exchange–and a Christmas devotion

It may not be too late to plan one of the above!

Posted in: Retreat and Event Planning

Leave a Comment (0) →

How Do You Satisfy Your Spiritual Appetite?

Posted by Debby on October 30, 2012

“Desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby…” The Bible says that to grow spiritually, we must be nourished by God’s Word. What are your “eating habits” when it comes to God’s Word?

Are you a snacker–just devouring tasty morsels now and then?
Are you a binge eater–eating so much at one time that you don’t really taste it?
Do you fast several days a week–too busy to spend time in the Word at all on some days?
Are you a low carb, high fiber eater? In other words, do you spend a lot of time in one area of God’s Word and avoid other areas?
Does your diet consist mainly of desserts–mainly spending your time in those areas of scripture which are sweet to the taste?
Are you an entertainer–spending time in God’s Word only when preparing for other activitiess?
Are you a balanced and healthy eater–regularly spending time in God’s word, and dividing your time between Old and New Testament?

Posted in: Inspirations, Realities of Ministry

Leave a Comment (0) →

Binding your Retreat Booklet DIY

Posted by Debby on October 23, 2012

We like to hand out a retreat booklet to each woman who attends the retreat. If you are forced to “do it yourself” due to budgetary constraints, the following images show several less expensive ways to “bind” your retreat booklet.

A regular-sized 8-1/2 x 11″ paper can be folded in half and stapled in the middle;

If your church has a binding punch, the plastic binders are relatively inexpensive if you do it yourself;

This is not technically a “binding,” but we have bought inexpensive folders for the contents of our “booklet”and then printed a sticker for the front of the folder;

For another binding idea (normally done at the printer) click here.

Posted in: Lessons Learned, Money-Saving Tips, Retreat and Event Planning, Retreat Booklets

Leave a Comment (0) →

Retreat Booklet

Posted by Debby on October 16, 2012

At every retreat, each person in attendance gets a retreat booklet. Some kind of binding is nice, so that we keep everything together in one place. Our retreat booklets usually contain:

“What Do I Want from the Lord during this Retreat?
Retreat Schedule
Map of the venue, if applicable
Blank, lined pages for notes
Handouts/otes from speaker (if applicable)
Quiet time Bible study (related to the retreat theme)
Page for retreat reflections
Page for list of books being reviewed/recommended (if applicable) (Check out books we recommend here)
Page for new friend contact information
Order form for CDs of the retreat sessions

Posted in: Little Things Make a Big Difference!, Retreat and Event Planning, Retreat Booklets, Starting Points in Retreat Planning

Leave a Comment (0) →

Page 36 of 66 «...10 20 30 34 353637 38...»