This weekend retreat plan organizes The Pursuit of God around three movements: hunger, surrender, and whole-life worship. It can serve a church group, ministry team, discipleship circle, or several friends. The schedule is deliberately spacious.
Friday evening: Arrive and become attentive
Open with a shared meal and a brief explanation of the weekend’s purpose. Read Psalm 42:1–5 and selected portions of Chapter 1. Ask participants to write what they hope God will address and what distractions they are bringing.
Hold a forty-five-minute session on spiritual hunger. Follow it with silence, private prayer, and an optional conversation in pairs. Do not require disclosure. Close with worship and explain the next morning’s quiet period.
Saturday morning: Surrender
Begin with Genesis 22:1–18 and Chapter 2. Teach the distinction between responsible stewardship and inward possession. Participants identify one gift, plan, role, or fear that has become difficult to entrust to God.
After a break, use Chapter 3 to examine pride, self-protection, and control. Provide time for confession to God. Make pastoral leaders available, but do not turn the session into public pressure.
Saturday afternoon: Presence and faith
After lunch and rest, use Chapters 5 and 7. Invite participants to walk, sit quietly, or pray with a partner. Discuss the difference between God’s presence and emotional awareness. Practice returning attention through a short verse and prayer.
Saturday evening: Community and testimony
Use a moderated discussion rather than a long teaching. Ask what truth became clearer and what misuse should be avoided. Include recreation and unhurried fellowship so the retreat does not equate spirituality with exhaustion.
Sunday morning: Whole-life worship
Read Romans 12:1–2 and portions of Chapter 10. Each participant writes how the retreat should affect one ordinary responsibility: marriage, parenting, friendship, work, church, finances, rest, or disciple-making.
Sunday closing: Continue for thirty days
Participants choose one daily practice, one weekly practice, and one person for accountability. Schedule a thirty-day reunion or check-in. The retreat should end by sending people back into ordinary life, not by teaching them to depend upon retreat conditions.
Biblical anchors
Psalm 42:1-2 grounds the article’s central question. Read the surrounding paragraph or chapter and note what it reveals about God and the response expected from the believer.
Romans 12:1-2 adds an important biblical balance. Read the surrounding paragraph or chapter and note what it reveals about God and the response expected from the believer.
John 15:4-5 shows how the truth becomes lived obedience. Read the surrounding paragraph or chapter and note what it reveals about God and the response expected from the believer.
Questions for further study
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Which statement in this article most needs to affect your understanding or conduct?
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How does Psalm 42:1-2 confirm, correct, or deepen the article’s answer?
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What fear, attachment, distraction, or habit makes a faithful response difficult?
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How will you use and review this resource rather than merely save it?
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How could you explain or model this truth to another believer?
Use this resource
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Schedule it: Choose a date and setting for using the resource described in “A Weekend Retreat Plan Based on The Pursuit of God.”
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Complete it actively: Write answers, pray, and record one application rather than reading passively.
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Review it: Share the result with another believer and decide what should continue.
Common mistakes to avoid
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A resource should lead back to the book and the Bible, not replace them.
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Do not turn memory, questions, or activities into competition.
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Review applications so completion does not substitute for transformation.
From personal growth to making disciples
Use the resource with one other person and let each participant explain a truth, choose an action, and review it later. Make the next step simple enough to practice and clear enough to pass on.
Choose the setting
A resource creates value only when it is used. Select a date, identify the people involved, and decide how the result will be reviewed. Connect the activity with Psalm 42:1-2, write one response, and share the outcome with another believer.
Prepare the participants
A resource creates value only when it is used. Select a date, identify the people involved, and decide how the result will be reviewed. Connect the activity with Romans 12:1-2, write one response, and share the outcome with another believer.
Complete the activity
A resource creates value only when it is used. Select a date, identify the people involved, and decide how the result will be reviewed. Connect the activity with John 15:4-5, write one response, and share the outcome with another believer.
Review the response
A resource creates value only when it is used. Select a date, identify the people involved, and decide how the result will be reviewed. Connect the activity with Psalm 42:1-2, write one response, and share the outcome with another believer.
Continue with the annotated study guide
The annotated edition gathers chapter summaries, questions, prayer prompts, applications, and Biblical Truth Discovery activities into one guided resource. This article answers one focused question; the complete edition brings all ten chapters into one connected study experience.
The Pursuit of God (Annotated): A Modern Study Guide to A. W. Tozer’s Classic on Abiding in Christ and Making Disciples