pilgrimswayblog

Testimonials

a TEAM Missionary on Home Assignment:       “Mike has the gift of helping facilitate a context of attentiveness to the Holy Spirit – the whole setting . . . rustic cabin in the woods, ample time for solitude and reflection, three 90-minute periods of him offering spiritual direction, enjoying laughter and casual conversation, walks through the woods alone, walks through the woods together (it was just the two of us),  . . . lent itself to my being able to slow down, unplug and LISTEN. “

a Missionary in the Czech Republic:  Mike has helped me to discern much more clearly what the Lord is doing within my heart than I could have done on my own. 

a missionary from a retreat in Italy:   Mike created a fabulous atmosphere so we could fellowship with the Lord through prayer, reflection and community. Such a gathering helped me to refocus on the Lord as One who invites me to fellowship with Him as opposed to thinking primarily of ministry concerns.

a missionary from a Retreat in Sweden:    “I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when I knew that I was going on a spiritual retreat with Mike. As it turned out, the retreat was really about fellowship, sharing, meditating on Scripture and seeking God.   I came to a realization of just how awesome, majestic and holy God is, and yet how mindful He can be of me. 

a Church Planting team leader in Prague:     Mike’s facilitating accomplished so much by leading us to reflect on the Word of God, to slow down and take it to heart, and listen to the Holy Spirit apply it to our life.   It was remarkable to see the fruit of these group and individual times together.  It felt like a year’s worth of  team building was accomplished in a single morning.

It was amazing to me that God orchestrated through Mike’s simple facilitation, a collusion of threads to merge in my own heart and head to give me the right emotional mindset that I needed to proceed with-in our mission.  

a Missionary in the Czech Republic:   Mike simply listens as I verbally process. This time forces me to pick my head up out of the whirl wind of life and ministry and consider- where   am I with God?  Mike listens and occasionally asks questions to clarify what I’m saying to him. The goal is clearly not to give me answers or to teach me, but to allow me to process and in turn listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying. This has been absolutely invaluable to me as I have struggled at times through my first year on the mission field.

another Missionary in the Czech Republic:  We have been involved in a process which put simply,  is practicing being still so that I can better know God and myself… what I’m experiencing is a transformation of character resulting in more consistent victory over sins of the heart and mind as well as more visible manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit. 

a young man seeking the Lord’s direction in his life:   “Meeting with Mike Bowden has fostered deep spiritual growth and increased maturity in my relationship with the Lord. 

a Pastor in Michigan:     I have a problem – I tend to live in the future more than in the present.  I’m so focused on the tasks in front of me that I often don’t enjoy whatever is going on right now.  I really haven’t enjoyed living in God’s grace.

But that weekend retreat, directed by Mike, took me away from my world of work and to a place where I could be alone with God and simply enjoy His presence.  More than ever, I felt close to my Heavenly Father.

 a Pastor in Michigan:      “The retreat weekend  was unlike anything I’ve experienced in the last 10 years, truly nourishing to my soul.” 

another Pastor in Michigan:     “The retreat that Mike Bowden organized for us was incredibly important and refreshing for me.  The Lord really used this time to draw me closer to Him and give me some understanding of what has been going on deep within my soul.”  

a church elder:    “ I have often been prone to guilt and condemnation when I have ceased from my doing and as I was able to rest and enjoy time with the Lord, I got a better glimpse of what it would be like to sit in the Lord’s presence.”

another Pastor in Michigan:    “The Retreat was a perfect setting for getting away and connecting with the other guys and with the Lord.  The Lord was able to work in my heart, and I know, in many of the other guy’s hearts as well.”