A Gentle Beginning: Welcoming the New Year with Breath, Prayer, and Possibility

The turning of the year is a threshold.
A liminal space and holy pause between what has been and what is still becoming.
At Wild Sanctuary Retreats, we believe these thresholds matter. They’re invitations to not rush forward with clenched fists and rigid goals, but to soften, listen, and notice what God is already stirring within us.

That’s why we’re so excited to invite you into our New Year’s Mini Retreat: Gentle Yoga + Vision Boards— an afternoon designed to help you begin the year grounded, spacious, and open to holy possibility.

Our recent Christmas Mini Retreat was the perfect way to enjoy a little Christmas cheer while engaging in service— the heart of the season. The morning felt like a welcome step away from the swirl of the season.

Guests arrived at our Wild Sanctuary Retreats home, St. Johns Lutheran Church, and were welcomed into a space prepared just for them. The air held the cozy sweetness of hot cocoa… and, yes, a hint of laundry detergent— a reminder of the service project that we would be engaging in!

A Fun, Festive & Meaningful Christmas Mini Retreat.

The Christmas season is often a swirl of activity—beautiful, yes, but also busy, full, and sometimes overwhelming. At Wild Sanctuary Retreats, we believe in creating spaces that draw us back to what truly matters: connection with self and others, God’s Loving Presence, and also the joy of giving.  When we planned this month’s retreat theme, we knew we wanted to give our participants a way to serve others from the fullness they receive from tending to themselves. Our Christmas Mini Retreat: Chair Yoga & Service is designed as a gentle pause in the midst of the season, a chance to gather with girlfriends, breathe deeply, move with intention and share joy in a way that nourishes both receiver and giver.

This year, we dove below the shimmering surface of peace and explored the depth of this theme of Advent.

As we arrived to put our final touches on the space, the anticipation was as palpable as the scent of mulled cider and essential oils infusing the air. Kimee and I were excited to welcome 21 women into our new “home” space for the season— St. John’s Lutheran Church in Donelson.

As smiling faces arrived, filled with joy at the time set apart for a time of spiritual formation, you just knew something sweet was about to unfold. They walked down the hallway to the sign that held our verse for the day framed by sparkling Christmas trees, and entered into the space set up with so much love and intention the night before. Each woman claimed her spot in the sacred circle, already set up with all the props she would need, then settled in with journals, cups of coffee that helped support a children’s home in Thailand that houses children who have been, or who have been at risk for, human trafficking, and a quietness that signalled the rest each one was craving.

Hope. Peace. Joy. Love.

The four themes of advent are iconic during the holiday season. Everywhere you go you’ll see these words as warm wishes on the front of greeting cards, on mugs for you to see when you sip your coffee with peppermint creamer, as lyrics in songs playing over the speakers at the mall or in stores, at church gatherings and even as sentiments shared between friends. The themes of advent are baked into this time of year and, almost naturally in our lives, we often find ourselves gravitating towards one of the four themes.