We established Intentional Intimacy International (III) in the spring of 2008 as a nonprofit ministry to familes. For fourteen years and with four children, God has blessed us with a delightful marriage and family life. We enjoy each other and desire to glorify God in our interactions. Why did God bless us with the home life that we have? Certainly not because we deserve “wedded bliss” and “great kids” more than any other couple or family, but simply because He chose to lead us as we sought His will in our home. He has taught us principles for relating, for living life with passion, and we want—need—to share this with others. Please don’t misunderstand; we have had hardships and trials. We have had difficult seasons in our marriage. But, God has pulled us through.
Marriages are falling apart, children are alienated from their parents, and no one in these families seems to know what to do. Pastors and mentors are working overtime to bring hope, to infuse optimism, and to convey forgiveness and reconciliation. III wants to partner with your church leadership in the work you are already doing to help equip and empower your members and the community by teaching the fundamental principles that God puts forth in His Word concerning relationships.
Even within the church, so many families are trying to “go it alone” without true accountability and intimacy with each other. By partnering with your church, we can assist in the work that is already being done to reach out to the families of the church as well as help further develop the vision of deeper, more meaningful relationships that we feel every child of God longs for (yet may not know how to achieve). Currently, we offer seminars (with groups of any size) and workshops (for 4-6 families at a time). These encounters can take place at your church, or we can organize getaways in your area.
The III dream is to open Clear View Retreat—a facility that focuses on small groups of families building intimacy and accountability in a fun, God-honoring environment. By bringing families away from familiar, sometimes stressful environments and surrounding them with God’s natural creation, families can begin to escape from the world and focus on what God has for them.
There are so many capable retreat centers out there. So, why have we decided to start a new one? First, we want each group that comes away together to be small. When dozens and dozens of people are away together, there are too many opportunities to disengage and feel isolated within the crowd. With only five or so families coming away together, the family members really get a chance to get to know each other better and to connect more deeply with others in the group. Also, we want to ease the burden on small group/church leaders by giving them the opportunity to grow closer with their group and the Lord—a time of respite for the whole group. We write and execute the curriculum, and we prepare all meals. In short, we do all the work. All the guests have to do is show up and let the Lord work in their hearts.
To date, we have only found one other retreat in the country that is small in nature while providing the entire curriculum and teaching, lodging and three meals a day, and operating solely to deepen relationships. To better reach families and communities, we need more of these small-group retreats around the country. Churches usually have wonderful men’s, women’s, and youth retreats at various locations, but families are not always “on the same page,” even after these great and much-needed events. By bringing the whole family away together in a small, intimate setting, we can expand God’s kingdom and live life on this earth more abundantly, as He plans for us.
Board Members
Mark Heazlit
James Nestle (President)
Kim Nestle (Secretary/Treasurer)
Nathan Primm
Agnes Russell
Information on the Founders
James (Jim) Nestle
Masters of Arts Christian Counseling and Discipleship (MACCD),
BSN, RN
Jim spent four years working at Capital Bible Seminary as the full-time Men’s Mentor and a part-time adjunct professor. A former Naval officer who served as a Division Officer, Jim also held a nurse supervisory position in the Surgery Department of Johns Hopkins Hospital for three years, overseeing the management of 220 beds and the staff that performed direct patient care. During these last years, God has called Jim to challenge the men, women, and children he has mentored/counseled to be intentionally intimate in the relationships they held dear. Through this time, he realized the need for more families to see what God really intends in relationships. Jim volunteered at a small group, family-focused retreat for five weeks during the summer of 2007 to see if God was, indeed, calling his family to this life-changing ministry. These leadership positions and volunteer experience uniquely qualify him to lead staff in day-to-day duties and guests in small group discussions.
Kim Nestle
BS in Secondary Education—Speech Communication and English
Kim received honors in interpersonal communication at Northern Arizona University. Now a homeschooling mother of four boys, Kim has participated in various community and church organizations including MOPS, La Leche League, and H.I.S. (Home Instruction Support), helping with the organizational, financial, administrative, and presentation aspects of these groups. She also volunteered at a small group family-focused retreat in the summer of 2007.
In the spring of 2011 Jim and Kim said goodbye to their infant son, Jedidiah. Through all of life's trials and triumphs, our hearts are about reaching others with the hope of Christ in every moment of life.