The first time: I was scared. My first silent retreat was an accident. Don’t misunderstand; I knew I was going on a retreat. Afterall, I’d done the Google search, registered, and driven an hour to get there. But somehow, in all of that, I missed one important detail: The retreat was silent! Discovering this overlooked fact at dinner the first night was surprising, but I wasn’t alarmed. I often felt my quiet prayer time ended too quickly, and I’d begun to crave the pockets of silence I carved out in my day. But the next morning a new emotion filled me: I was scared. No, I wasn't scared of the silence or of my thoughts. I was scared I would somehow do it wrong. Scared I would miss whatever big thing I was supposed to experience. Scared the retreat would end and I would look back, only to realize I’d wasted the precious time I’d been given. Of course, that’s not what happened.  Jesus met me where I was–right in the middle of my fear. That retreat led to a life-changing encounter...