Duty to Heal- finding peace for a soldier’s heart, is a retreat developed for military veterans and first responders recovering from emotional wounds related to their service, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This retreat is relevant for first responders and health care workers during these challenging times where they have been put in harm’s way and often have to make critical life and death decisions while trying to protect their own health and safety.
New Heart of Texas holds our Duty to Heal Retreats at our 10-acre retreat center nestled in a beautiful relaxed and confidential country setting. This is a sacred safe place where participants will share their similar challenging experiences and draw strength from each other. Evenings around the fire pit will cap emotional days and strengthen the bonds of camaraderie. Duty to Heal is an expedition to end the anguish and isolation from the past. After the retreat participants will continue their journey and receive support from their healing community.
Duty to Heal is a 4-day retreat led by a professionally trained team including veterans, therapists and pastors who guide men and women through their healing journey. This retreat is designed to help military veterans, and those whose professional careers have carried them to the front lines of violent and life-threatening events.
Participants will remember the traumatic times as they shift those events and emotions into a healing context. They will share with each other past experiences and be given new perspectives, courage, faith, and resilience especially as it relates to healing the scars of battle. Participants will integrate the past’s unspeakable moments within a spiritual process, recognizing their moral anguish, as they grapple with how traumatic events affected them and learn how to reconcile their feelings.
This retreat will attempt to probe the moral and spiritual injuries that arise from war and other traumatic events through Living Scripture exercises that explore the dark night of the soul while promising victory. The Duty to Heal retreat is a mission to move beyond despair and bitterness, beyond memories of combat war and atrocities, to discover and claim your authentic character and spirit.
Have you ever experienced a traumatic or stressful event in your past that caused you to believe your life or the lives of those around you were in danger?
Do you ever feel guilty because your comrades were severely wounded or killed in the line of duty and you were not?
If you are interested in attending a Duty to Heal Retreat or have any questions regarding the program or sponsoring a participant, send us an email at [email protected] or call us at 866-763-6557. We will be happy to assist you and answer any questions you may have.
We invite you to learn how you can participate with us on this life-changing journey!
New Heart of Texas Ministries is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Our mission is to provide hope and healing to those whose hearts have been broken through traumatic events such as sexual, physical, emotional or spiritual abuse, and/or abortion. Our newest restorative program is Duty to Heal which was written and developed by Dr. Theresa Burke with The Living Scripture Institute. New Heart of Texas has been designated as the training site for Duty to Heal and will be training other teams to launch this program in other states.
…includes nightmares, vivid flashbacks of past events, anxiety, jitteriness, easily startled, a sense of panic that something bad is going to happen, feeling numb or detached from others, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, fits of rage, paranoia, substance abuse, withdrawal, social isolation, guilt, depression.
Pray is an integral part of our ministry. We need prayer warriors to commit to pray throughout each retreat. Pray for all the veterans and first responders who have experienced PTSD. Pray for our program, our team, and the participants. Sign up on our website under Prayer Vigil to commit to pray during the retreat.
Here are some quotes from participants who have experienced the healing power of this life-changing retreat.
“I had an experience unlike any other experience at my Duty to Heal retreat. My eyes were open to the attacks of the enemy. I was enlightened to the battles I faced physically and the battles within spiritually. The fellowship with other participants has shown me how connected we really are and how much we really need each other. My personal healing was huge and greatly increases the strength of the body of Christ. I recommend the Duty to Heal retreat for anyone who has endured both physical and spiritual battles that through the retreat, they may learn what it truly means to be victorious.”
“I was a first responder serving as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) for 30 years. During that time, I experienced a lot of traumatic events including my last day of service where I was on the scene of a mass shooting. As first responders, our training teaches us to debrief and move on to the next call without really processing what just happened. I decided to attend Duty to Heal even though I didn’t think I had PTSD. During the retreat, I realized I was in denial, and memories of my trauma began to surface. At the retreat, I was provided a beautiful, comfortable, but most importantly, a place of safety. This allowed me the chance to acknowledge the adverse experiences of my past. Duty to Heal gave me the ability to successfully live in the present without being overwhelmed by thoughts and feelings from the past. My prior experiences no longer control my life.”
“I highly recommend Duty to Heal for veterans or first responders that have faced trauma. It was great to be surrounded by people that understood where I’d come from. The exercises created a place for us to share and be vulnerable, which created even more meaningful relationships. The discussion time allowed us to open up and face some of the things that had been buried for a long time.”
“I am astonished at the amount of progress that can be made in a few short days. The time spent during this retreat showed me a true vision of God’s grace and love. I valued how safe the environment felt; no pressure to share or feelings of being judged. This retreat helped give me insight I didn’t expect. The retreat was much more experiential than I anticipated. It felt gratifying to deeply connect with other people who “get it”. Being with others with similar experiences was very therapeutic. It was beneficial to hear their stories and in sharing mine, bond with the group, laugh, cry, and relax. It was non-threatening, healing, and overall, an amazing weekend. I am so grateful to New Heart of Texas for this program, and I know it will help heal many people.”
