Alongsiders

“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” 
Romans 12:4-5

Who We Are

The Lydia Group is a coalition of individuals and organizations who seek to nurture growth and strengthen souls (beginning with ourselves) toward wholeness. We exist to help people connect with God and allow God to reshape them.

  • OUR VISION
    Our ministry exists to accompany, equip and support people and organizations toward vibrant spirituality and responsive discernment. This is in service of dismantling our false-self narrative and awakening our True Self so that we are “able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 NIV

  • OUR MISSION
    In the spirit of Lydia (Acts 16), our aim is to be a catalyst for helping folks stretch their mind, free their spirit and grow ever closer to their true purpose and potential.

  • WHAT WE DO
    Our aim is to nurture transformation in Christ through the spiritual practices of Jesus and the ancient church. The practices of Jesus have long been honored and recognized as the “square one” activities of the spiritual life.

  • WHO WE ATTRACT
    The Lydia offerings are open to all people. Those most drawn to the Lydia offerings are clergy, spiritual directors, faith leaders and lay folk who want a deeper connection with God and have a strong desire to enter into time tested ways of developing that relationship. If you want to experience God more deeply and respond to Him more significantly, we invite you to notice what offerings draw you. Come. Experience. Grow. Join us in pursuit wholeness.

Our Team

  • Ann Starrette

    From July 2004 to December 2021, Ann had the privilege of directing the Spiritual Formation ministry at Davidson United Methodist Church for seventeen years. She now oversees the Office of Spiritual Formation & Soul Care, anchored at The Lydia Group, LLC retreat ministry she founded in 1998. Ann is the founding director of School of the Spirit and co-program director of The Sacred Invitation. She earned her business degree from UNC-Charlotte and graduated from Renovaré Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation (a two-year curriculum). Her post-graduate studies include Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation and Richmont Graduate University's Master of Arts in Spiritual Formation and Direction. As a practicing spiritual director, teacher, and retreat leader, Ann views her role as quietly planting inner seeds of freedom, growth, and change toward wholeness. Ann (and husband Tom, 1938-2019) are founding stewards of Starrette Farm Retreat in Statesville. Contact Ann at Starrette@mindspring.com.

  • Roxanne Morgan

    Roxanne Morgan is a founding member and elder at Warehouse 242 (a Presbyterian congregation), where she leads contemplative spiritual formation classes. She has a God-given artistic bent that delights in fostering creativity and helping others discover and live out sacred rhythms in their lives. A practicing spiritual director, Roxanne has served as a facilitator for the Trust Circle for Discernment ministry at Davidson UMC, is a graduate of School of the Spirit, and now serves with The Lydia Group, LLC, for School of the Spirit and The Sacred Invitation retreats. She has also served as a professor with the Lórien Academy of the Arts, which provides art education and experiences for West Charlotte youth, and as a tutor with Augustine Literacy Project. Contact Roxanne at WayfaringAnamcara@gmail.com

  • Rev. Dr. Craig Sefa

    Craig Sefa serves as an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church and a Board Member of the Wesleyan Contemplative Order (WCO).  He regularly assists with spiritual formation retreats, contemplative chapel services, and School of the Spirit. Craig earned his Doctor of Ministry (D.Min) from Duke Divinity School and holds a Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Asbury Theological Seminary.  He is the author of I Arise Today: A 40-Day Journey through St. Patrick’s Breastplate Prayer.  His wife, McKenzie, also serves as a United Methodist Elder appointed as faculty and project manager with Creating a Culture of Renewal (CCR).  They have one daughter, Ariana, born in 2014.  Craig is a husband, father, pastor, teacher, writer, musician, and amateur photographer/graphic designer with a passion for Spiritual Formation and discipleship. He seeks to use his gifts to echo the still small voice of the Holy Spirit in our noisy world. Contact Craig through his website, “Echo,” at https://craigsefa.org or by email at sefacj@gmail.com.

  • Lisa Marion

    Lisa is a School of the Spirit aumni, a Wesleyan Contemplative Order (WCO) founding member, and a member of the Emmaus Community. She is also a Quiet Space Friday host. “I have been coming to The Farm for 14 years, and like so any others who experience this sacred place, it is always a blessing when I am here. I find it is truly an honor to serve as an Alongsider.”

  • Mimi Sherman

    Mimi Sherman is an ordained interfaith/interspiritual minister and a graduate of The Sacred Invitation.  Mimi enjoys providing people with an opportunity to reduce the body’s rpms, slow the mind’s incessant thoughts and refreshing the spirit in order to enrich one’s relationship with the Divine.   

George Stewart & Nancy Bellamy

Husband & wife team / Stewards of Starrette Farm Retreat

Nancy has served as steward of Starrette Farm Retreat since 2020. She is an active spiritual director and spiritual formation coach. She is a School of the Spirit Alumni and is blessed with the God-given gifts of extravagant hospitality and generosity.  Starrette Farm Retreat is a sanctuary of refreshment and renewal for her soul, a safe place to explore the longings of her heart, and a welcoming environment to gather with fellow pilgrims to share, learn and grow. Her passion is creating space for grace, providing resources for spiritual growth, prayer, and sharing how God is in everything, goodness everywhere, and grace is always happening. She delights in being available on site to share this space with others. Contact Nancy at nancy@StarretteFarmRetreat.com.

Nancy Bellamy | Chaplain


George is a graduate of The Sacred Invitation and School of the Spirit spiritual formation programs. In 2018, while participating in The Sacred Invitation, he fell in love with God's mission of Starrette Farm Retreat. Since 2020, he has walked alongside Nancy in maintaining the property. George's vision is to see the Farm continue to be a place where people meet Christ in an ever-expanding way. His call is leading/facilitating retreats and supporting others as they lead. George attends Clemmons UMC and serves as a Lay Leader and a Stephen Minister.  George also currently is enrolled at Shalem Institute with a focus of retreat leadership. Contact George at geohenstew@yahoo.com.

George Stewart

OUR NAME

The Lydia Group ministry was founded in 1998 by Methodist lay woman, Ann Starrette, after being inspired by the story of Lydia in Acts 16 (some scholars say this was written around 70 AD). Sacred history tells us that Lydia was the first person converted to Christianity on European soil, the first person to have house church to share the Gospel, and the first business woman, a seller of purple, ever recorded.

Little is known as fact about her but we do know she was “a seller of purple.” What does it mean to “sell purple?” In those days dyes were natural, not synthetic, and the dye for purple was made from a juice found in minute quantities in shellfish. It took thousands of crustaceans to make a yard or two of purple cloth. Being very expensive, it was a statement of status and wealth. And that’s what Lydia is selling. She’s selling purple; purple cloth, purple tapestry, purple robes. She’s selling the power of purple. It was a product that required tenacity, a strong work ethic, excellent craftsmanship, attention to detail, working with vendors, employees, customers.

So here’s  Lydia listening intently to Paul in Acts 16. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. Her household was baptized. She invited Paul and his companions into her home... and then others. Imagine her connections. You could say she was Paul’s “social media” of 70 A.D. for spreading the Gospel.

Devotion to St. Lydia is greater in the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches than the Catholic Church and evident in the myriad of icons depicting this woman. The Orthodox Church has given her the title of “Equal to the Apostles,” which signifies her importance and level of holiness. There is a church located in Philippi, which many consider to be built in St. Lydia's honor. A modern baptistery is located on the traditional site where Lydia was baptized by St. Paul near Philippi as well.

Lydia, no doubt, was a person of hospitality, generosity and influence; a person of contemplative prayer, action and excellence – a fitting model for our contemporary times of someone who earnestly and seamlessly blended their life, work and faith in service to others and glory to God.

OUR LOGO

The grape is said to represent Christ. Grapes and leaves symbolize the Christian faith and our connection to God (John 15:5) and each other. It also symbolizes growth. As a plant that grows in abundance, it was one of the earliest cultivated crops known to mobilized society. The grape and leaves also symbolize spiritual growth and transformation. From the planting of the seed, to the support of the trellis, the tending, pruning, and breaking away as needed until harvest, we witness the transformative steps from the fruit of the vine to a jar of jam to the Cup of Salvation. Through God’s grace, and our cooperation, we pursue wholeness.