For me, Laity Lodge is like an airlock between different environments and periods of time.

My first trip to the Lodge (you can see a picture of it from across the Frio River in the photostream to the right) back in 2018 was amazing beyond imagining.  The two speakers (Jamie Smith and Alan Jacobs) were teachers who had seriously informed my thoughts on teaching Christianly.  The place had some mystique because I had only heard and read about it.  And it was everything I could have hoped for a more.

When I returned in the summer of 2022, I was exhausted and ready to put a particularly demanding time of work and church behind me.  A couple of good things came from the retreat: I read Adam Neder’s Theology as a Way of Life and also found myself listening more to the music of Jill Phillips, who I’d been listening two for almost two decades but whose most recent album I hadn’t spent much time with.  Some good rest and healing came from that trip to the Lodge.

This summer I returned on more time because Adam Neder (see the previous paragraph) was going to be one of the speakers and the topic was friendship, something I care a lot about.  Alas, Neder couldn’t make the retreat because of health issues, but that was okay because the Lodge itself is a blessing (as are the staff and the attendees).  Like the second trip, the third visit was a time to put a window of time to rest, to make an intentional release of things I had been trying to understand and make peace with.  (You can read more about that here.)

Laity has been like an airlock between two vastly different spaceships for me.  Twice not is has been a place for reflection and rest that can be difficult to find in any other (often busy) Christian setting.  It’s nice to catch a breath, and to be at a place designed to help with just that.  The staff at the Lodge have perfected hospitality and the joy of presence, which is a rare gift.

The weekend’s worship was led by Taylor Leonhardt, who often sings with Mission House.  On the last evening, everyone walked down to the Cody Center for a concert, which was great because Taylor is a great storyteller and a great songwriter.  Here’s a clip of one of the songs she sang that night  (though the video clip is from a concert at The Local Show).

I’m not sure when I’ll get back to the Lodge, though I go there often in my thoughts.  I’m grateful for the time I’ve gotten to spend there, to walk and pray and sing and talk to others.  Not a perfect place mind you.  But definitely a great place for a stop along the journey, a great airlock between different worlds.