Last month, Jen and I attended a “Weekend to Remember” Getaway Conference sponsored by FamilyLife, which is a ministry of Cru.
We’ve found this weekend conference to be a great way to reflect on and invest in our marriage. It really is one of the best resources our ministry offers.
We’ve attended this conference a few times over our 30 years of marriage but it actually had been over 15 years since our last conference, so it seemed like a good time for a refresher. And being in LaJolla was not a bad selling point!
But we had a secondary reason for attending this particular conference.
Of all the Weekend to Remember Conferences FamilyLife puts on each year, a select few are labeled as “Military Friendly”. What that means is that military couples who attend are given additional opportunities to connect and are provided with additional resources to help navigate the unique challenges that military families experience.
Families are extremely important to God. In the Old Testament, God is portrayed as a Father and the Nation of Israel are His people.
The New Testament continues the theme by showing that when people of any race or ethnicity put their faith in Jesus and His death, they are adopted into God’s family as His sons and daughters.
The family unit is an important building block culture. Study after study demonstrates that many of the problems we are experiencing in our culture – the rise in crime, exponential drug use, failing education system, etc. – find their roots in the breakdown of the traditional family. There is no doubt that healthy families result in healthier communities.
Keeping families together is hard enough these days. But military families experience additional challenges that civilian families don’t. From frequent moves to long-term deployments, military families have an added layer of complexity that must be navigated and considered.
Our goal at this conference was simply to be available to military couples and provide resources that might help them in their current situation.
Over 25 military couples attended the conference. We were able to greet couples when they checked in and then alert them to a special lounge we had prepared for their own use during the conference.
In addition, we had a special breakout session for military couples where we were able to highlight resources and opportunities Cru Military provides for Military families beyond the weekend getaway.
It was nice for us to experience a short getaway given all that we’ve experienced this Fall in our own family. It was also nice to be able to meet some military couples who were in attendance, hear their stories and provide encouragement and resources to help them lead their families well while serving our country.
If you’ve never attended a Weekend to Remember Getaway, we highly recommend it. Even if you have done one before, it’s never a bad idea to invest in your marriage.
Reach out to us if you’re interested and we would be glad to give you more information!
The Lowedown 