OCF Winter Retreat #3 Calls Military Leaders to Fight the Good Fight with Christ

Officers' Christian Fellowship will hold WSS Winter Retreat #3 from Wednesday, December 30, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. through Saturday, January 2, 2027, at 10:00 a.m. The setting is White Sulphur Springs Conference Center, 4500 Milligans Cove Road in Manns Choice, Pennsylvania. The official event page, updated October 7, identifies Dr. Michael Sprague as the speaker and gives the retreat the theme Fight the Good Fight & Live the Good Life. Sprague is the Louisiana State Chaplain with Capitol Commission and president of Grace Adventures; his background includes pastoral service, relational outreach, discipleship, teaching and theological study at Capital Bible Seminary and Dallas Theological Seminary. The event description states the spiritual problem plainly: it is possible to know about God without knowing God. Participants are invited to let God's Spirit and Word restore and refresh their souls as they consider life with Jesus and with others. That purpose aligns with OCF's larger mission of engaging military leaders in biblical fellowship and growth so they are equipped for Christlike service where faith, family and profession meet. Although the retreat occurs at one Pennsylvania venue, OCF serves a nationwide military community, and the event is relevant to active-duty members, veterans, spouses, families and guests who can travel to the conference center. Its placement across New Year's week is also purposeful. The transition between years often encourages hurried resolutions; this retreat instead offers several days for Scripture, prayer, conversation and rest in a Christian community that understands the distinctive demands of military life.

Attendees can make the retreat more fruitful by arriving with an honest inventory of the past year and a concrete desire for biblical renewal. Military service can reward competence, endurance and decisive action, yet those strengths do not eliminate the need for dependence on Christ, confession, fellowship or rest. The retreat theme echoes Paul's language about fighting the good fight and finishing faithfully, but the official description wisely pairs that struggle with the good life believers are meant to live with Jesus and other people. That balance guards against treating Christian discipleship as another performance standard. Before traveling, participants might choose one passage about perseverance, one strained relationship to pray over and one area where professional demands have crowded out worship or family presence. During the retreat, they can listen for how Scripture challenges both self-reliance and discouragement, and they can use unhurried meals and lodge conversations to build relationships that continue after January 2. Never Surrender, the memoir by retired Lieutenant General William G. Boykin with Lynn Vincent, is a relevant companion because it traces a soldier's journey through conflict, leadership and a faith that was challenged and restored. The book is not a substitute for the event's teaching or the Bible, but its account can help military readers examine how courage and surrender to God belong together. The practical reason to attend is therefore specific: begin 2027 refreshed by God's Word, encouraged by peers who understand military responsibility and better prepared for Christlike service at home and at work. Current registration and any lodging or program changes should be confirmed through the official OCF event page before travel.