Stepping Away to Come Back Together
A reflection on marriage, faith, family, and the gift of stepping away from everyday life.
Warm Beach in Stanwood, Washington, has become more than just a place we visit. For my husband and me, it has become a place where we can step away from everyday life, reconnect with each other, and reconnect with the Lord. Every time we are there, it feels like we are given room to breathe again, slow down, and remember what matters most. Warm Beach is a Christian camp and retreat center that gives families, adults, churches, and groups a place to rest, be encouraged, and spend meaningful time together. Getting there is an adventure on its own. It’s almost like
Shaping our faith
For my husband and I it has been a place where our lives have been shaped. Yes, both of us came here as children without even knowing that we both grew up coming to Warm beach until the first time I went with his family. I have come to Warm Beach with my Choir that I was a part of, as well as my church that I grew up going to in the first part of my childhood. “Warm Beach holds a special place in both of our hearts, each of us carrying our own memories that eventually became part of our story together.”
After COVID shutting everything down, it has been encouraging to see Warm Beach growing again. Families are coming back, and many of the same familiar faces are returning year after year, continuing the traditions that make this place feel so meaningful. There is something special about seeing generations of people gather again in a place built around faith, fellowship, and family.
The best part is seeing some of these families in places like the Farmers Market and realizing that they live the same lives as us. Being able to see some of the couples living out their lives outside of camp in the way they describe their lives is also reassuring of their faith and what they share in camp. It gives their words more meaning.
Our marriage can go through seasons where everything feels routine. Life gets full. We get into the routine of life and eventually realize that we are waking in the morning to get to work and coming home to dinner or supper, getting kids ready for bed and passing out from all the exhaustion of the day.
Getting away to come together
At Warm Beach, we were given the chance to step away from all of that. We were not surrounded by the usual distractions. We were not rushing from one obligation to the next. We were simply together. We were able to swim, go rock climbing, laugh, and enjoy time as a family in ways that everyday life does not always allow. I even tried my luck playing volleyball during night swim, only to realize pretty quickly that I am not quite the same volleyball player I was decades ago. For our son, one of the best parts of Warm Beach was the pool, and seeing his joy reminded us how important these simple family moments really are. That time away helped us reconnect not only as husband and wife, but also as a family. It reminded us that our marriage needs intentional care, prayer, patience, and time. Love does not always fade because something dramatic happens; sometimes it becomes buried under the weight of ordinary life.
As Christians, we know marriage is more than a partnership. Scripture shows us that marriage is meant to reflect the relationship between Jesus and the Church. And with Satan always trying to defy God’s rules, it can be hard at times to stay connected as a couple and keep Christ at the center. Being at Warm Beach helped me see that sometimes we need to physically remove ourselves from the same everyday scene in order to see clearly again. When we are caught in the same routines, it is easy to focus on what is wrong. But when we slow down, pray, talk, laugh, and spend uninterrupted time together, God can soften the places in our hearts that have become tense or tired. Warm Beach has become one of those places where my husband and I are reminded to turn back toward each other and back toward the Lord.
This trip reminded me of our vows. It reminded me that love is not only a feeling, but also a commitment we return to again and again. Reconnecting did not mean everything in life disappeared or became perfect. It meant we chose to pause long enough to see each other again. We chose to remember that we are on the same team. We chose to invite Jesus back into the center of our marriage, not just in words, but in the way we listened, forgave, and made space for one another.
“Every day, we had Bible study by the Fire Pit. As I sat there with my husband this year, I found myself reflecting on what I had been allowing to take up the most space in my heart and mind. Being a mom, a wife, and a business owner keeps me constantly moving, and I realized how easy it is for me to let the daily responsibilities crowd out my relationship with Jesus. Listening to the leader talk about what is means to be a parent from someone who was much older made me think about my own parenting. What stuck to me the most I think was just coming home, I knew I didn’t just want to return to normal—I wanted to return with a softer heart and a renewed focus.”
But why am I writing about some random camp that we go to every year!?
Making Time for God’s Word Together
One thing this trip made me think about is how important it is for us, as a couple, to make time for God’s Word together. It is easy to say that Jesus is the center of our marriage, but daily life can make it hard to actually live that out. Between work, parenting, business, responsibilities, and exhaustion, time in the Word can slowly become something we do sparringly. Every couple, in my opinion should find a place or time that they use to spend time in the word together. It is a place where we see what God has done in our lives and it allows us to get closer with our maker.
But Scripture reminds us that a marriage is stronger when God is woven into the middle of it. Ecclesiastes 4:12 says, “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” That verse makes me think of a husband, a wife, and God holding the marriage together. When we are each trying to carry life on our own, we can become tired and disconnected. But when we come together before God, even in small moments, He strengthens what we cannot strengthen by ourselves.
Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” I love the reminder that we do not have to make Bible study as a couple complicated or perfect. It can be as simple as reading a few verses together, praying before bed, talking about what stood out, or asking each other how we can apply God’s Word in our home. What matters is that we are making room for Jesus in the middle of our conversations, decisions, and struggles.
Colossians 3:14 says, “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Spending time in Scripture together helps remind us what love is supposed to look like—not just when things are easy, but when we are tired, stretched thin, or frustrated. God’s Word teaches us patience, forgiveness, humility, and grace. Those are the things a marriage needs again and again.
Golfing is a highlight of
Warm Beach camp especially
after the kids got old enough
to go on their own.
Warm Beach gave our family the gift of togetherness. It gave us room to rest, reflect, swim, climb, laugh, and reconnect in a peaceful Christian setting. More than anything, it reminded me that marriage needs moments like this—moments where we step away from the noise and come back to what matters most: God, our vows, our family, and the love we are still building together.
Leaving Warm Beach, I found myself challenged not only to reconnect with my husband during the retreat but also to continue cultivating that closeness once we returned home—holding fast to the spiritual habits and new relationships formed there, keeping up daily time in the Word, prioritizing intentional conversation and shared prayer, and using the tools and routines we developed to stay connected so these gains don’t fade after we leave.
Proverbs 31:25: "She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come,"
