by Claire Benington 

“Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.” Isaiah 65:24  

In the dark days of marriage, abuse, divorce, and motherhood through it all, I can now see that even when I felt completely alone, God was moving — putting people, resources, and invitations in my path. This is an excerpt from my life’s story, one in which Serenity Retreat has provided hope and a safe place to heal for me and for my most cherished gift — my daughter.

A Dear Friend, Stephen Ministry, and Serenity Retreat

In the last months of 2024, God sent me a new friend, Ava Foster, a lifelong Episcopalian, who became a lifeline. She listened, believed me and in me, and served as my Stephen Minister — a trained lay caregiver who walked beside me through my pain and acrimonious divorce. She sat with me, prayed with me, and gently reminded me that God’s heart was for my freedom, not my bondage. Through Ava, God gently and persistently called me to come into the light. It was she who opened the door to Serenity Retreat and to Transformation Prayer Ministry (TPM). 

“For at one time you were in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.” Ephesians 5:8

Serenity Retreat Bellville is a place set apart — quiet, beautiful, and saturated with prayer and the grace and glory of God and His son, Jesus Christ.  It is a place where God speaks and transforms through TPM.  TPM is Serenity’s gentle, Spirit-led process that helps uncover the lies we come to believe and hold about ourselves, others, and God, and invites Jesus to speak His truth into those very places. 

As I began TPM, God’s light started to shine into places I had kept in shadow for years. Bit by bit, the fog lifted, truth was revealed, and clarity grew. What I had been living through was not “normal conflict”; it was calculated and deeply harmful—and God’s heart was not in it. 

Even after my first experience with TPM, which was at The Preserve, Serenity’s Houston location, I knew something profound had shifted.  I heard God’s truth and felt the power of His love and light in a way I had not in years, so I went back a second time. 

I shared with Barbara Rolen, Program Director of Serenity Retreat, how I felt transformed by hearing God’s truth and feeling His love.  I thirsted to learn more.  She told stories of people of all ages—including teens—who had experienced the healing work of TPM. In that moment, I then knew Serenity Retreat was not just for me. It was also for my daughter, Wren.   

A Mother–Daughter Retreat 

“Mothers pass down faith, strength, and love.” (2 Timothy 1:5) 

As a deeply spiritual mother, one of my deepest wounds was seeing someone diminish God and His glory in my child’s eyes.  

I wanted her to experience something completely different: a place where God’s presence felt gentle and safe, where questions were welcome, where tears were honored, and where truth and faith did not come with fear of punishment or manipulation. 

So I invited Wren to come with me to Serenity Retreat Bellville. Like many teenage girls, she gave me a bit of an eye roll and wasn’t thrilled about being away from friends and missing dance, but after thinking it over, she agreed. 

At Serenity Retreat, I stepped back, focused on my own healing and relationship with God, and gave her space to have her personal experience. Just being there — in the natural beauty of the property, the thoughtful spaces, and the presence of warm, Godly people, there seemed to be an instant sense of peace about her.  A peace and perhaps serenity, that I had not seen in years.  

In the stillness of that private place, during TPM, she had space to be her authentic, vulnerable, whole self.  She could bring her fears, hurt, confusion, and questions — everything she carried on her heart — to the Lord.  She didn’t have to perform or be “the kid in the middle.” She was allowed, and in fact encouraged, to be simply Wren, deeply loved by God through and through. 

True to her nature, afterwards, she didn’t share in detail with me, but I could easily see that God was whispering His truth into her heart. I imagined His words: 

You are not the problem… 

You are not too much…

You are enough and perfect as you are… 

I, your Father, am not like the version of Me you’ve been shown — I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul. (Matthew 11:29)

As a Christian mother, there is nothing more sacred than watching your child encounter the true Jesus — the One who protects, heals, and restores — who never condemns and controls.   

This is where — in this still, divine, appropriately-named place — God whispered His truth into both of our souls. As His daughter, and especially as a mother, I am deeply grateful for the sanctuary we have found in Serenity Retreat.

“Be still, and know that I am God.”  (Psalm 46:10) 

To every woman and mother who needs encouraged today — He is faithful. If you need space and a place to connect with Him — consider Serenity. May God bless you and your precious children.   

Happy Mother’s Day! 

A Mother’s Day Blessing

• To every woman who has ever mothered a child, a friend, a dream, or a hurting heart, including her own,
• To the mothers who are joyful and the mothers who are exhausted,
• To grandmothers, spiritual mothers, stepmothers, foster and adoptive mothers,
• To the women who long to be mothers, and the women who have lost children,
• To the women quietly holding families together in the shadows of confusion, conflict, or hidden abuse.

May you hear this:  God see you.  God hears you.  God values and loves you. 

*all names have been changed for privacy