The Standing Stone Ministry Retreat Shepherd Manual for new Retreat Shepherds. It is our goal and desire to share with you what God started in 2001 at Standing Stone Ranch in Colorado. Our passion is to help give hope and encouragement to Ministry Couples so they can continue following Jesus. It is alarming to know: - 81% of pastors do not have a close friend with whom they can openly share their struggles. - The number One cause for pastors to leave the ministry is burnout. - Number Two is marital issues that can lead to moral failure. The purpose of this manual is to help you become better Shepherds to the Shepherds. Our philosophy is simple. We make available a safe place where Ministry Couples can enjoy God's beauty while being hosted with excellence and mentored in love. The visiting Ministry Couple is provided the space, time and encouragement to: - Strengthen their relationship with God. - Strengthen their relationship with each other. - Develop a continuing relationship with their caring mentors. Everyone craves a trusted, honest relationship where they feel safe and unconditionally loved. This is especially difficult for Ministry Couples. They live their life in a fish bowl under constant scrutiny. Somehow they are expected to solve everyone else's problems. But where do they go when they are having challenges of their own? It is difficult for Ministry Leaders to find a place where they can be completely honest and feel totally safe. Standing Stone Ministry is a place where this type of relationship can be forged. This will help to build strong Ministry Leaders. Strong Ministry Leaders create strong followers of Jesus and strong followers of Jesus advance the Kingdom of God. As these leaders are revitalized they, in turn, revitalize their followers. They affect multitudes of people and those multitudes of people affect multitudes and the ripple just keeps going. The ultimate return is enormous. Healthy Shepherds have healthy flocks.