Are You Heading Toward Meltdown?
By Patti Cappa, Executive Director
Marble Retreat, Marble, CO
Yes even Christian leaders have meltdowns! They lose their firm grasp on why they are doing what they are doing, why they are where they are! This is often the case for those who come to Marble Retreat. Christian men and women forget they are human. They expect too much from themselves, their spouses, and their families. Many succumb to the subtle trap of perfectionism. They preach a gospel of grace and live a life of works.
Don`t we all love the idea of a perfect minister and minister`s wife; a perfect family, an ideal lay leader—in short, the perfect Christian? This is such a set up! We find there is no one to whom we can admit our doubts, failures, our sense of weariness, and the emptiness inside. We become actors playing a part that becomes too heavy to bear. We ignore the truth that life, with all its imperfections, happens to Christians just like it happens to anyone else.
At Marble Retreat we encourage people to allow themselves to be human, to lament over sins, to cry out with joy over accomplishments, to express sorrow in suffering—to be authentic human beings. Amid the majesty of the Elk Mountains, the swoosh of the Crystal River a mile below, and the sound of the breeze that we hear coming minutes before we feel it, we ask our guests to go through the pages of their own books. A maximum of eight guests for each two-week period find here a safe place to be who they really are. Hurting individuals—from pulpit to pew—come "in the eye of a storm" or to prevent a brewing crisis. We offer compassionate, confidential Christ-centered counseling to those who experience burnout, depression, relational conflict, midlife crisis, an emotional or physical affair; and/or struggle with sexual addiction or pornography.
One participant expressed his gratitude in the following way: "As you know, we scarred people still have a lot of ministry ahead of us. You have kept us in the race, helping us to finish our courses well and serve Him as faithfully as we can. How many hundreds of thousands of people your work touches as, week by week, we go down from this mountain into the trenches! You will go with us there. Picture God`s work through your lives as spreading waves of grace and truth, reaching across the states and into the lives of still more hurting people, most of whom you will never meet this side of heaven."
Founded by Dr. Louis and Melissa McBurney in 1974 for clergy-care, Marble Retreat is now under the direction of Dr. Steve Cappa, Clinical Director, and Patti Cappa, Executive Director. Marble Retreat has recently enlarged its ministry to include all those in Christian service and fellowship. For more information call (888) 216-2725 or visit www. marbleretreat. org.
