2026 Leadership Retreat
Partnering with God
God is inviting you to partner with him . . . How will you respond? It will change your life for eternity!
Consider the invitation God is extending to you, yes you! To join him, the King of Kings in building his eternal Kingdom. A Kingdom ruled by a just and wise trio who are the most loving beings in the universe. A place where each one of us gets all the time we need with Abba, experiencing his relational heart. Where everyone is seen, heard, and loved. Where everyone—that’s you—gets to be who they were made to be. Where we learn to do what we were made to do from the Master himself!
Overview
Healing Center International’s annual Leadership Retreat is a unique experience with a life giving rhythm of inspiring teaching, focused time with God and opportunities to be known and loved by other Christ followers—followed by afternoons of fun, creativity and connection.
This year’s theme is Partnering with God. Partnering with God to build his kingdom goes to the heart of what it means to live as a Christian in our world. It is not some distant, ethereal idea. It's concrete. It's now. And yes, what we do and how we live matters profoundly.
Our end goal is to be transformed into the image of Christ as we work with God to build the kingdom of God, an eternal kingdom. This is our purpose. What we do will last forever and ever!
Each of us is already a partnering with God. You may not feel it. You might not see it that way. But the moment we signed on to follow Christ, we stepped into cooperative work with the Holy Spirit in the world. The question isn't whether we're partnering with God. The question is whether we're conscious of it and living into it intentionally.
Gather with us as we go deep with this crucial eternal topic.
Speakers
SUNGSHIM LOPPNOW is the author and creator of Immanuel Journaling—a process many use for intentionally engaging with God in the moments and emotions where we most need to experience his presence and love. She was born and raised in Korea and moved to the US in the 90’s to study Marriage and Family Therapy. Since then, she has continued her work as a psychotherapist to study systems theory, attachment, trauma resolution and brain-based relationship skills.
ELIZABETH STALCUP, Ph.D. is the founder and executive director of Healing Center International, a non-profit that seeks to foster healing, maturing community. Her dream is to see centers of healthy, healing community spring up around the world, where people can grow to love and trust Jesus with their whole heart. She is currently mentoring a pastor and wife team in Africa, running Immanuel practice groups, pioneering a new Spiritual Formation Coaching certification program, and writing training manuals that are allowing others to lead the leadership development program she developed. Betsy earned a B.S. and M.S. from UC Santa Cruz and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. She was married to Sam Stalcup for 38 years until his passing in May 2024. They have six adult children, including two sons-in-law and a new daughter-in-law, as well as two granddaughters—and a dog named Olivia.
PASTOR ANTONY NJOROGE is the visionary of The Bridge Pastors Network—a movement that seeks to raise and equip leaders that are hungry for a deeper relationship with God. He’s passionate about equipping and commissioning other pastors to impact the world with God’s love, and to see generations of leaders who will be grounded and satisfied in godly identity, burning with passion and visions that knows no limits. He is married to Miriam Gathoni and they are both currently ministering to pastors in six nations in Africa, as well as Sri Lanka. They are blessed with three children.
GRACE CECILIA works for Iris Global, a missionary organization with over 70 bases in 36 countries that focuses on serving the poorest of the poor by feeding the hungry, caring for orphans, and believing for miracles daily. Her life is dedicated to finding Jesus every morning, staying humble and hungry at his feet, and investing her heart in seeing others become the fullness of who God called them to be as they work through brokenness and flourish in him, believing the greatest gift God has given us is worshipping Jesus in the midst of uncertainty and pain, and finding joy in him no matter the circumstance. Grace and her husband, Jeff, have lived in the DC metro area for the past 13 years, where God has led them through the hardships and joys of adopting their three girls.
THE REV. BRIAN SMITH is Associate Director of Healing Center International. He is a Certified HeartSync Minister and has led various church ministries since becoming a Christian in 1997. He became an ordained minister in 2006 and desires to be a part of anything that helps unite the whole body of Christ. He loves helping people come to know Jesus and heal so that they can follow Jesus more wholeheartedly. He’s married to Bethany, and they have three children.
FRANK WILLIAMS was saved by Jesus from a life of desperation and addiction at the age of 20. Frank married Janice in 1986; they raised two children in Barboursville, VA and have two grandsons. Frank pastored a church for 22 years and was deeply involved in youth ministry. In 2010 Frank and Janice connected with Dr. Karl Lehman, and their healing journey took a huge leap forward. God planted a deep passion in Frank’s heart to bring this ministry to others. Frank and Janice have completed all three tracks of Thrive Training and have been trained in Transformation Prayer Ministry and the Immanuel Approach. They have taught several Life Model Conexus and HCI classes and facilitate Immanuel healing sessions regularly. Frank is HCI’s Central Virginia Area Director.
Schedule
Thursday
08:30 am Welcome, Morning Prayer & Worship
09:00 am Session 1: The Road to Destiny, by Betsy Stalcup
10:30 am Break
11:00 am Session 2: Buy Oil, by Grace Cecilia
12:30 pm Lunch
01:30 pm One-Hour Afternoon Activity: TBD
Friday
08:30 am Morning Prayer, Worship & Scripture
09:00 am Session 3: Deep Growth Narrative Interview, by Betsy Stalcup
10:30 am Break
11:00 am Session 4: Immanuel Journeling, by Sungshim Loppnow
12:30 pm Lunch
01:30 pm One-Hour Afternoon Activity: TBD
Saturday
08:30 am Morning Prayer, Worship & Scripture
09:00 am Session 5: A Life Transformed, by Pastor Antony Njoroge and The Rev. Brian Smith
10:30 am Break
11:00 am Session 6: Sacred Echoes, by Frank Williams
12:30 pm Closing Prayer and Dismissal
Ways to Attend
We have three different options of ways you can experience our Leadership Retreat. Our deepest desire is for each of us to experience the retreat in community—gathered with others, in person, wherever possible. We encourage you to consider hosting a group in your home.
Host Home Option
Hosting in your home allows you to spend more than half of the retreat connecting face-to-face—with God and with one another. As a host, you can either invite guests to contribute toward the cost of hosting, or cover the host home fee yourself. This registration option covers up to three people for a discounted rate. Learn more about this option by clicking “Register as a Group Host” below.
Individual Option
If you don’t have a group to attend with, we have you covered! When you register as an individual, you’ll be placed in a small breakout group where you can connect, share, and grow alongside others throughout the retreat.
Join Others in a Home
You’re also welcome to register as an individual and coordinate with others who registered as individuals to gather in someone’s home. If you plan to do this, please email us at HCI@GodHealsToday.org with the Zoom account name and email address you plan to use.
We can’t wait to gather with you!
Registration Links
Pricing
Each registration includes a PDF of our workbook with all the session exercises, which will be emailed to you before the retreat. If you prefer a printed version, you can purchase one for $35 during the registration process.
Individual Registration Pricing
Early Bird Registration (March 20-March 31): $189
Regular Registration (April 1-June 7): $259
Late Registration (June 8-15): $449
Group Host Registration Pricing
Early Bird Registration (March 20-April 12): $399 (up to three people) + $50/per additional
Registration (April 13-June 8): $550 (up to three people) + $50/per additional
* Verified HCI Network Members will receive a $20 discount.
Cancelation Policy:
Prior to May 15, 2026, if your plans change and you need to cancel, we will promptly issue you a refund. After May 15, 2026, all tickets are non-refundable.