About

About Us & This Movement

  • Word Retreats are simple, yet surprisingly effective at communicating the reality of Christ in the lives of men and women.
  • Word Retreat is very effective at helping those who are seeking answers and meaning in life.
  • The primary purpose of Word Retreat is to bring together men and women throughout an entire community, encouraging all to accept the call of Jesus to be disciples and become His disciple makers. 

History of Word Retreats

  • Word Retreat was developed by a group of brothers in Juneau, Alaska who had a vision to serve the local churches by encouraging men and women to become true disciples of Jesus.
  • The first Men’s Word Retreat was held in 2005 in Juneau, Alaska under the leadership of Ray Vidic and his team of men.
  • From this beginning, the ministry has spread from Alaska to the states of Washington, Oregon, Montana and has even been in China and Russia.

Team Leadership & Host Church Responsibilities

  • Those in leadership take personal responsibility to stage the retreat and become examples of Jesus’ servant heart to those who attend.
  • Those on the leadership team are responsible to invite people and to follow-up on attendees.
  • This ministry is done in relationship with the host church.
  • The host church assists those in leadership by taking on financial responsibility and providing needed resources, a meeting place for team meetings, meals as needed and prayer support.
  • Retreats begin on Thursday evening and end on Sunday morning, when all attendees return to the host church for a Celebration Service.
  • The Celebration Service provides opportunity for the whole community of Christ to celebrate what God did and will continue to do in the hearts and lives of those who attended.

Finances

  • This ministry is designed to be self-supporting. The host church will have some expenses at the beginning, but once it gets going, it has proven to be completely self-supporting.

Ownership

  • We are a shared ministry
  • Anyone who has attended a Word Retreat may become a part of leadership team for the next retreat.
  • Though we are from many different churches, we see ourselves as brothers and sisters called by Jesus to be His disciples who are becoming disciple makers.
  • We seek to strengthen our local churches and build the kingdom of God.
  • Anyone who has experienced this ministry and believes God is leading them to start a Word Retreat Ministry may contact us for further information.
  • Everyone who is part of this ministry is willing to serve you in any way needed.
  • The manual, written eleven years ago by the men in Alaska, lays out the whole retreat and provides the schedule, job responsibilities of each team member, scripts, food costs, and items needed to stage a successful retreat.
  • The manual will help you understand how it works, but the ministry must be supported by prayer.
  • We are willing to help anyone get started.

We do ask one important thing: Try it as it has been designed before you consider making any changes.

Contact us! We are eager to tell the stories about how God’s Spirit has moved in our own lives and in so many others. We would love to share this ministry with you.

To listen to a few personal testimonies of men who have attended a Word Retreat click here.