Still in One Peace – April 22, 2026
Weekly Conversations with Pastor Jeff
Extraordinary Journey Retreat
This past weekend, we had our Extraordinary Journey retreat. It was an incredible experience as 40 of us gathered to immerse ourselves in Chapel Hill’s mission to welcome all people to experience and share the extraordinary grace and love of Jesus.
Christina Kukuruda and Neal Whitlow did an amazing job of planning and preparing, and invited a lot of volunteers to come alongside and make the weekend a reality. I have learned not to list names because I will invariably miss someone, and that creates deep hurt. So, to those of you who gave of your time and talent, thank you! Thank you for selflessly giving and giving and giving. We are blessed by your ministry of serving.
These are some of the comments we received from the anonymous survey:
“The talks were especially helpful.”
“I enjoyed the pastor’s talks/testimonies.”
“The chapel services & communion – I enjoyed listening to Traci sing. She truly has a gift.”
“Relaxed, tender, abundant spirit of graciousness. Music, communion, and personal participation options.
Food and snacks were varied and plentiful. Table dynamics.”
“Improved my relationship – moved closer to God. Dedicated times with God, worshipping God with music and song.
Liked communion each day! Fellowship of new friends and old friends at CH.”
“Meeting new people and sharing their experiences about God.”
” Spending time together – the explanations that supported the topics and beliefs. The organization!!
That no matter my sins, God still loves me.”
“The combination of pastoral teaching and personal testimonies is powerful.”
“For me, it was meaningful just to be here and part of the church community in an intimate way.”
“Being totally immersed in the love of God with other members. It was like being transplanted to another world.”
So, we give thanks for the vision of Steve Coen, who was strongly led by the Spirit of God to create a retreat where the mission went beyond words, and people could genuinely experience God’s amazing grace and unconditional love. It was incredibly beautiful that Monica, Steve’s wife, and Justin, Steve’s son, could attend the retreat together.