Sacred Exchange
Intentions & Offerings
A balanced life is built on mutual care. As you offer your hands to the land, the community offers its heart to you.
Honoring the Rhythm
The Daily Gift: Offering 4 hours of focused service (Mon–Thu) to sustain the land and sanctuary.
Mindful Stewardship: Tending to tools and shared spaces with the care of a peacemaker.
Monastic Presence: Honoring the beauty of sung prayer, silence, and our collective heartbeat.
Creative Abundance: Sharing our unique skills and ideas to cultivate a clean, joyful home for all—as Jesus served
The Community’s Care
Holy Rest: A peaceful room or cabin in the Sophia House designed for deep contemplation.
Nourishment: Shared communal dinners and wholesome treats from our table to yours.
The Sanctuary: Unlimited access to 250 acres of meadows, forest trails, and sacred space.
Modern Grace: Restoring your spirit with high-speed wifi, pure filtered water, and full indoor facilities.
🌲 Land & Structure
Life & Flock: Tending to our chickens three times daily and maintaining the barn—honoring the creatures that sustain us.
Seasonal Rhythms: Honoring the changing year through shoveling snow, raking leaves, and clearing trails to keep the paths open for seekers.
The Builder’s Heart: Crafting the sanctuary’s bones through cabins, decks, and fences, or shaping seating from the forest's own timber.
Sanctuary Beautification: Planting seasonal life, tending the garden, and sharing creative ideas to cultivate abundance across the land.
Skillful Stewardship: Tending to community machinery and organizing the outdoor tool shed with the focus and care of a craftsman.
🍞 Kitchen & Provision
The Sacred Table: Preparing and cooking shared meals for our residents and those in retreat.
Contemplative Care: Providing specialized nourishment and quiet support for guests in deep silence.
Culinary Rhythms: Honoring the heart of the home by tending to the stove and sinks, cleansing countertops, and the diligent cycle of washing and storing dishes.
The Welcome Bar: Restocking refreshments and maintaining the coffee and tea station to ensure a warm, ready welcome for all.
Pantry Stewardship: The essential work of grocery shopping, restocking nourishment, and caring for our pantry systems with mindful organization.
🏠 Hospitality & Home
Sanctuary Care: Tending the Sophia House through mindful mopping, sweeping, vacuuming, and dusting our common sacred spaces.
The Inner Sanctuary: Ensuring our indoor facilities, restrooms, and bathing spaces are kept pristine, stocked, and refreshing for all.
Retreat Hospitality: Preparing the way for new seekers through room turnovers, laundry service, and deep cleaning of our guest havens.
The Outer Reach: Tending to our decks and patios, supporting our digital presence, and sharing in the joy of walking the community puppy.
Humble Service: Managing our waste and recycling with a servant’s heart to maintain a “Radical Welcome” for ourselves and our visitors.
The Service Journey
(The Practicalities)
The Work Week: Our primary service hours are Monday through Thursday. Starting Friday, the weekend is yours for rest and reflection, unless you feel called to assist with a special community project.
Skill Matching & Humble Service: While we love to utilize your specific talents—be it plumbing, electrical, woodworking, or tech—we all share in the "foundational" tasks like sweeping or dishes when the house requires it. In this house, no task is too small.
Safety & Machinery: Use of outdoor power tools and saws is welcomed for those with experience. We provide a safety orientation and tool-check to ensure the well-being of every resident and guest.
Mutual Discernment: The first seven days are a time of discernment. At the end of this week, we will meet to ensure that the rhythm of the house and the service provided are a good fit for both you and the community.
Extended Stays & Planning: We ask that all guests have their next accommodation or travel plans secured before arrival. Any commitment beyond the initial week is based on a mutual agreement between you, Br. Stefan, and the community residents.
