The Rhythm

of Hope

~ 27th January 2024 ~

The Rhythm of Hope is an annual Christian retreat/conference aimed at couples who are facing primary or secondary infertility for a physical or medical reason; rather than those who have chosen to foster, adopt, or remain childless.

Dear Guests,

We are really honoured to have the privilege of inviting you to the 8th Rhythm of Hope Conference on Saturday January 27th 2024. This day is being planned, prepared, and put in place specifically with you in mind.

It never ceases to amaze us just what can happen during these days together. We don’t for one moment underestimate the courage it takes to come to an event such as this, and let’s be honest, you’d much rather not have the need to come! We get that.

We are delighted to again be able to welcome delegates to the most beautiful venue in the Oxfordshire countryside, with plenty of outdoor walks and space to enjoy, as well as lovely local places to stay should you choose to make a weekend of it.

Whether this is your first, or even seventh time coming, we can’t wait to welcome you, look after you a little, encourage, and equip you. Do read more about our story and vision here on the website, and check out the FAQ page or email us directly if we can help answer any questions or respond to any concerns you may have.

If you are reading this as a friend, family member, or pastor with a couple in mind, please do look at our shop for ways you can either gift (couple specific) or sponsor (anonymously allocated) a couple.

know we are biased, but we have the most phenomenal team who are all well known, personal friends of ours, and who have been carefully hand-picked with a wealth of knowledge, experience, expertise, compassion, empathy, and first hand knowledge of what it is like to wrestle with infertility and unwanted childlessness. The stories and experiences represented are vast. Please be assured, we do our utmost to make the day relaxed, not awkward (or weird!) and most certainly not exposing in any way.

We are excited to be able to welcome some new faces to the stage in January -

Firstly, we are absolutely delighted to announce the wonderful Amy Orr-Ewing as one of our Guest Keynote Speakers. Amy has been a close friend of ours for almost 25 years, and if you already know of her you will agree she is a fantastic and gripping communicator. Amy has wanted to come for many years, and so it’s really exciting that she can bring us her wisdom and teaching at last!

We are equally excited to announce (and welcome back) our dear friend Anya Sizer, who has been part of the RoH team since we began. In recent years Anya has been pursuing some exciting new opportunities in her own life which made her unable to come and be with us, but we were ecstatic when she said she could return to the stage for 2024 as one of our Guest Keynote Speakers. Anya’s work with Fertility Network UK means she brings a wealth of experience and wisdom to the table.

Our good friend and regular guest speaker Sheridan Voysey is regrettably unable to be with us in person this year as he has some exciting opportunities for work and travel in the new year. We are holding him to his promise to be back in 2025 (!) but don’t worry, because the message he brings is so vital and integral to the day that Sheridan will be recording his keynote and we will ensure all delegates are able to access this. However this has meant that we are able to extend a warm and long awaited invitation to Simon Martin who we are absolutely delighted will also be one of our Guest Keynote speakers. Simon has been a dear friend of ours since our teenage years, and on The RoH team since the very beginning. Along with his wife Hannah, Simon has been a very popular and much loved voice during our Sofa Couples Session. I know many delegates have asked to connect with Simon during the year and the queues of people waiting to speak with him and Hannah at the event are testimony to the relatability, kindness and wisdom he brings. It will be a huge treat to give him the platform and spend more time learning from him as he speaks.

Similarly as we move with what God is doing amongst our team, our faithful friend and worship leader Lou Fellingham is also pursuing new opportunities in January - we will miss her leading very much, and yet we are so excited to be able to welcome Lauren Harris and Philly Lopez to lead us. Both these women are wonderful and have been our dear friends and worship leaders for 20 years or more! If you don’t already know them you are in for a treat. Their leading is stunning, and we know they will be a powerful gift to us all.

We have many of our regular and much loved Team coming back to serve and lead you in January. Our phenomenal Sofa Couples will be back with inspiring stories to share, and each one of our Team brings something so unique, wise and wonderful to the day. The guys from Saltwater and Honey are going to be with us for the day, and we are also delighted to welcome some more guests who are new friends we’ve made over the past year and are doing GREAT things in this area of faith/infertility where they live - watch this space for more info.

We urge couples to come along together where possible, but if you find that you are coming alone, or even with a family member or friend rather than a spouse, you are so welcome, and there is a seat with your name on it ready for you.

As we continue to prepare this very unique and special day, we hope that as you walk through our doors you’ll immediately feel at ease and find all you need for this most difficult and challenging season.

Most of all, come just as you are and let us take care of the rest.

Booking will be open from the end of September. You may also find our Instagram feed helpful for updates, interviews, and promotional information.

With all our love

Andy & Sarah xx

The vision for the day is that you come and be encouraged to journey well, regardless of the outcome. Our hope and prayer is that you will feel able to come as you are, in whatever state that is, and to hear from God as a couple.  Our greatest desire is that this day, at the start of a new year, will give you opportunity to retreat and get away as a couple, to be looked after a little, loved, prayed-for, understood, informed and refreshed.

“I just wanted to let you know how much we enjoyed the day. I never thought I would actually enjoy it, but we came away uplifted... even if our dream doesn't come true, we feel better prepared to face the future, we feel stronger together, we feel less alone”

Delegate Testimonial

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“The Rhythm of Hope retreat day for us was so uplifting. To be honest, before booking up I had been worried I would come away feeling worse after being there! However the presence of God was so strong with us all in the midst of our pain, it was a very precious day for us. Big thanks also to Andy, Sarah and team for truly thinking of every tiny detail to make us feel so safe and loved."

Delegate Testimonial

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“We left buzzing!”

“Every aspect of the day was brilliant. Each session and speaker absolutely smashed it and we appreciated hearing the different stories from the sofa couples. We left feeling overwhelmed by Gods love and goodness, we haven't felt that at peace nor have our hearts been that full for a long time. We left buzzing!”

Delegate Testimonial