March, 2012 Newsletter

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1 1 Contents: 1. Reminders March events 2. Letter from Community Lay Director 3. Spiritual Message Lessons from the Farm 4. Clergy Training --March 17 and April Flight 25 Thanks 6. Calendar of Events March, 2012 Newsletter REMINDERS: There will be an opportunity for sharing for those persons who have just come off their walks at the March 17th gathering at Living Grace Church 7:00pm. We are excited to hear from you! Also you are invited to participate in a time of fellowship with other members of the community following the gathering. So bring a drink or some snack food and come visit with others following the service. FROM THE COMMUNITY LAY DIRECTOR: As I look back over the past year I think of the moment when God asked me Lisa, do you TRUST me? Yes Lord I do, I responded. Then KNOW that I am with you. I thought to myself. I know you are with me Lord, why would you say a thing like that? Then I was asked to be the next Community Lay Director and I thought to myself, But Lord, getting up in front of people is not really my thing, I really get scared being in front of people, I m more of a background person. Then I remembered that conversation God had with me, and I smiled. God you really do have a sense of humor don t you. Sometimes God STRETCHES us and GROWS us in areas that are uncomfortable. We must decide everyday to resist staying where we are in our Christian experience. There is never a stopping place in our spiritual growth; God wants to take us onward. But we have to make the choice to believe and trust God. Sometimes that takes courage, but that s how Christian life functions. We grow by taking steps of faith. God already knows everything about us, and He is willing to work through us anyway. God requires availability not ability. God asks us simply to Trust and Believe. That s all. If God speaks, we need to learn to say, Even though I m afraid, I ll do it. In Acts 9:10-19, Ananias was afraid. Saul was the great persecutor of Christians, but God told him to go because the blinded man was a chosen vessel. Despite his fear and inability to understand why God would choose a great persecutor to be a chosen vessel, Ananias went and prayed for Saul, and the future apostle was healed. He wants us to choose to believe Him even if what He s asking us to do doesn t compute in our thoughts. God gives us directions in His word and he gives us opportunities in our lives to live out His word. Our role is to align ourselves with that plan. We are to keep our eyes on Jesus and His ability, not on ourselves and our inabilities. As soon as we say, BUT or WAIT, we have taken our attention off of God and allowed Satan to distract us with wrong thinking. Our loving Lord pleads with us to turn our minds and hearts fully over to Him.

2 The more fully we do that, the more completely we live by His good and perfect plan, and the more we grow in our trust in Him. 2 DeColores Lisa Benningfield ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lessons From the Farm 2 Chronicles 7:14 King James Version (KJV) 14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Recently this passage of scripture came to my mind as I was helping a friend. I had gone to his house to help move a dryer but, I quickly found out that he had more problems,(about thirty of them). When my son and I walked through the door we discovered his cows were out and roaming on someone else s farm and he needed help. As we went across the field to find the cows he told me if we could find the place where they got out we could bring them back in the same way they got out. After a short period of time we found the fence down at an old gate and he told me that the cows had been run on the neighbor s farm until recently. Then things started to make sense to me. I think we are the same way sometimes we find our selves back in the same places that God has already freed us from but we run through the gap and off to a place we should not be. Because we have been familiar with it, it seems like it is ok and we can handle it. That is far from the truth. God sets up things to help us keep our place but sometime we are head strong and go our own way. God never leaves us. It is just like the cows-- we leave God and we know the way back but sometimes we have to be corralled back up. Several years ago I heard a preacher say as he was preaching that even the cows knew where to be at church time. Then he went on to say that when the doors were open the cows would get as close as they could to the church. There was a herd across the road from the church and at church time they would be as close to the fence as they could get right across from church. Maybe we can learn a few lessons from the cows. We should not try to push God s boundaries. If we go astray we need to get back where we were with God (after all-- God did not move). Last but not least we need to meet with God on a regular basis and get as close to Him as we can get. Decolores, Marvin Janes Community Spiritual Director ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Attention all Clergy! The Campbellsville Emmaus Board is in the process of developing training materials for all team members who serve on a weekend event. We now have material in place for Lay Directors and Clergy team members and at the October 15, 2011 board meeting, the board voted that any Clergy wishing to serve on an Emmaus Team for any weekend event, (Adult Walks, Chrysalis, YAC or REC), must be trained with the material before serving. We have mailed out the training material with the cover letter which must be signed and kept on file. You will only need to complete the training one time unless the Upper Room or the local

3 board has additional material that must be presented. If the information you submitted on a volunteer sheet has changed, please contact a board member or David and Sandy Reynolds, who update the Community s Clergy Volunteer Book, with your current information. If you have not received the training material by February 14 th, please contact us so we can get a copy to you. 3 Training for Clergy will be held before the Saturday, March 17, 2012 Gathering at Living Grace Church, Campbellsville, Kentucky at 6:00pm. Frank Piacenti will be conducting the training and we would love to see you there! Training will also be offered again on Saturday, April 14, 2012, at Campbellsville Baptist Church at 7 pm, prior to the Special Service for Walk #70. Debbie Piacenti will be conducting this training. We would love to get all of our Clergy trained at these two training events. Please contact us at dfpsnt@windstream.net if you have any questions about these two training events. God bless you! THANK YOU -- BOY S FLIGHT 25 Emmaus Community; I just want to say Thank you to our Emmaus Community for their support and obedience during the Boys Chrysalis Flight 25. It was truly a blessing being called to lead that Flight, and I give God the glory for the team He put on my heart. I want to thank all of those who participated in any way, through serving, to attending Special Service, to making Agape, and to donating to help support our youth financially. I would like for our Community to remember the most important thing about that Flight and it is those 40 young men. Continue to pray for them as they are on their Fourth Days. Table Leaders, I pray that you continue to make contact with them, and Sponsors, you still have a responsibility to get them involved in a church. May God be given the glory for the work that took place in the hearts of those 6 salvations and 24 rededications. This is just another example of watching God showing up and showing off and us staying behind the cross. In Him, Jim Ward Chrysalis Flight 25 Table of Contents ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CAMPBELLSVILLE EMMAUS DATES to Remember Clergy Training March 17 6:00pm Living Grace Church Clergy Training April 14 at 7:00 pm Campbellsville Baptist Church

4 April Men's # 70 T.P. Stubbs, LD 4 April Women's #71 Mary Russell, LD August REC #27 Sept 6-9 Men's Walk #72 Sept Women's Walk #73 Sept Women's Walk #74 October REC #28 -- Columbia Unit-- Tommy Corbin Lay Director ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2012 Gathering Locations March 17 Living Grace at 1 Living Grace Drive (Old Hodgenville Rd) in Campbellsville May 19 Springfield Baptist Church 305 Main Cross Street Springfield, KY June 16 Greenhill Baptist Church Marshall Ridge Rd Greensburg, KY July 21 Lebanon Baptist Church 144 East Mulberry Street in Lebanon KY August 18 October 20 South Campbellsville Baptist at 601 S. Central Avenue in Campbellsville Acton Campground (Hwy 70 East) - Picnic - Election Board of Directors November 17 St. Mark United Methodist Church 400 Meader Street in Campbellsville December 8 tba ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Visit the website often!! Please remember to check the website frequently to stay abreast of the happenings and events in our community. It s a great source for news, prayer requests, events, dates to remember, as well as a place to get up-to-date information concerning walks such as pilgrim and team lists. You can now sign up on the prayer charts and speaker charts via the website. So spread the word and tell all your Emmaus friends.

5 You can also download and print out applications to Emmaus and Chrysalis, as well as volunteer sheets etc. 5 Wouldn t it be a great act of agape if you printed out a copy to place on the bulletin board at your church or give a copy of this newsletter to a friend without internet access? If you know of someone who does not get the newsletter via , Please encourage them to go to the website and sign up with their current contact information ( address). Or use the RE-CONNECT button on the home page. We want everyone to stay connected to the Campbellsville Emmaus Community and become involved in its ministry.