A Note from the Community Lay Director. God s Kingdom

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1 The Emmaus News Columbus Indiana Area Emmaus Community, Inc. December 2017 volume 25 issue 12 A Note from the Community Lay Director God s Kingdom This year (2017) has brought about many wondrous things to be thankful for. I want to share some exciting items I saw personally: -The four Walks and four Flights took place as planned and God was in charge all along the way. -Chrysalis registrations seem to be not so last minute than years past. A little marketing discount seems to go a long way. Emmaus will need to ponder further adjustments with more prayer by all still needed. -The monthly Gatherings along with the Walks/Flights touched over 500 God-focused individuals. There is room for many more. -Many knew again or anew: Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us! Luke 24:32 -Over 50 churches were represented in these activities from this community. The pastors shared much precious time tending not only their congregations but all Christ s believers. -Agape continues to show up at Walks and Flights from so many groups and sponsors. It is a big task to get it all out to the dining room, meeting tables and beds. -Who are those clown people anyway? It does not matter because all were touched. -The snacks provided were overwhelming and somehow mostly consumed. -Special closings that asked the questions What did these three days mean to you and what are you going to do about it? are not to be missed if possible. -The Emmaus and Chrysalis boards and their support teams that work so well at being His hands and feet. -The year goes by way too fast to accomplish what one had planned. But isn t it good to know God is in charge of the plan anyway. Like David who brought all the tribes together to follow God, we in the Emmaus and Chrysalis Communities help bring God s kingdom together in praise, worship and Christian friendship. That also brings about growth and sharing of His word to the pilgrims and teams. So the plan for 2018 is? I do not know! He will tell us when it is time to know and let the blessings and surprises begin. This Emmaus Community will experience its 25 th year of existence and I hope you and I will choose to be a part of all of it. DeColores and Fly with Christ, Dan Kirkling Community Emmaus Lay Director

2 Dates for Upcoming Walks & Flights... Take note of our new chart to monitor Pilgrim Status for the Emmaus Walks on the website Men's Walk #107 April 5 8, 2018 Lay Director Kevin Camp Lakeview Pilgrim Deadline is March 6th!! Currently taking applications!!! Women's Walk #108 April 12-15, 2018 Lay Director Kim Camp Lakeview Pilgrim Deadline is March 13th!! Currently taking applications!!! Chrysalis #67 and #68 April 28th-30th, 2018 Lay Directors Kenny Harrison & Jeanna Camp Hilltop Currently taking applications!!! Hear ye.hear ye. Be a Blessing and serve on these teams Please fill out the team application and send it in!! The Lay Directors are looking for team members for Conference Room, Agape, and Kitchen. Look for the application on the website! An updated version of the Pilgrim Application has been posted on the website. You may download it at Columbus Area Walk to Emmaus Pilgrim Application

3 A Note from our Fall Lay Directors from Walks #105 & #106 WALK #105 Dear Columbus Emmaus Community, I would like to thank the board, the team, the community, the sponsors, and the new community members for the opportunity to be Lay Director for Walk #105. It was a blessing. Being Lay Director was a journey of faith and seeing that God is completely in control. For example, I must have called every guitar player in the community, but no one could work. I didn't realize that God already had a guitar player on the team. I just didn't find out until team training. The team members were conduits of God's love, and the new members were open to the experience. If you feel that your 4th Day walk meets invigoration, I recommend that you turn in an application to work or make the trip to attend a closing. It was so inspiring to see how God worked in all of the new community members hearts and minds as they shared their testimonies. I never get tired of seeing God at work. De Colores, Karl Evans LD Walk #105 WALK #106 Dear Emmaus Community, For the team of Walk 106, the following words will sound familiar, as it was with this scripture that we wrapped up our team training and kicked off the walk on Thursday night. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. I Peter 4:8 11 These words really struck a chord with me, as I felt they encompassed the ministry of Emmaus and ultimately our call to love each other, even more deeply as situations would require it. Our team answered the call to be true administrators of God s love & grace serving in the strength that God provided. Many have asked me about my favorite memory of the weekend. As you all know, there are way too many to pick just one. Seeing the weekend unfold through the eyes of the Pilgrims and being able to anticipate the out pouring of God s grace that was yet to come was amazing. Experiencing God challenge and stretch the team as they served in new areas & seeing the unexplainable connections at the tables was affirmation to me that God placed each individual right where He desired them. The depth and intensity of the posters, skits and summaries were evidence of minds & hearts being opened to receive. It has now been over a month since Walk 106. And though the walk is now over I still reflect on our time together, the ways we were challenged and how/if we are responding to God s call. During commissioning my challenge to the pilgrims and team present was to be obedient in the next thing that God is calling them to. Just the very next thing. That challenge is relevant to all of us. Remember, Christ is counting on you! To the Emmaus community - your kindness, encouragement & prayers were so appreciated. Thank you for entrusting me with this awesome and humbling experience. It was an honor and privilege to serve as Lay Director of Walk 106. De Colores, Brenda Stoner, LD Walk #106

4 A note from our Clergy... No doubt you ve started your Christmas shopping by now. A few of you might already be finished! But if you re like me, there are still a few gifts needing to be purchased, all the while trying to stay within our budget. But have you thought of giving the best gift ever? I m talking about giving someone the opportunity to spend 3 days growing closer to Jesus! Although such a gift won t be fully received until April, this priceless invitation can be given this month. All that such a gift requires of us at this time is to simply take a look around our church family. Let God direct your gaze, and speak to your soul, about that adult or youth that God wants you to invite to the Spring Walks or Flight. Or if your pastor has not yet been asked to attend a Walk, perhaps you are the one to offer them that gift. Among all the tokens of your love that you ll give this Christmas, an invitation to become a pilgrim or butterfly may become the best gift you can offer anyone. It has the amazing potential to transform not just those who ll attend, but also their families, their church, & their community! BEST gift ever!! Pastor Mike (Community Spiritual Director)

5 Congratulations to our Sponsors and New Community Members This will be my last newsletter item for 2017, I have been reflecting on how God has blessed our community in 2017 with four successful Walks. I wanted to send out a BIG THANK YOU to all the Columbus Emmaus Community members who sponsored Pilgrims for Walks 103 & 104 in the spring and Walks 105 and 106 this fall. Because of your efforts and God s blessings, we have 99 new community members in 2017! But, our work is not done; we cannot rest on our success of bringing new members into the community and then not getting them involved. As sponsors, we must continue to support our new community members by checking in on them and seeing how their 4 Th Day is going. Just a phone call or text message will mean a lot as they have now gone back into the darkness of our society today. They may have questions still causing them some concerns from their walk experience or struggling with their spiritual growth. The development of Christ-like character cannot be rushed. Spiritual growth, like physical growth, takes time and God has placed them into your life for a purpose, not just a sponsor. To keep the spirit of the Walk burning in their hearts, please bring them to our first Gathering of the New Year which will be held at Garden City Church of Christ. The date is January 19 th and we will start at 7:00 p.m. with refreshments and fellowship, followed by worship at 7:30 p.m. This will be a great way of getting everyone back into the Emmaus Spirit after just celebrating Christmas with family and friends. And don t forget, please bring a friend or a family member who you would like to sponsor for the Spring Walks. So many think you cannot do this, but let me assure you that you can! Remember, there are no secrets in Emmaus. Please be Praying about who God is laying on your heart to sponsor. This is especially true for our most recent new members. Get your Sponsor Forms in early so we don t have the last-minute rush at the cut off date. Better yet, let s make this a New Years resolution we will have our applications in a week before the cut off date. Cindy would love it and so would the Board! Best Wishes to you all for a Blessed and Merry Christmas! See you in January at the Gathering. Phil Newton Sponsorship and Reunion Group Board Representative

6 A note from our Chrysalis Lay Director As you spend time with teenagers and first year college students during this upcoming holiday season (my two college students will be home nearly a month!), consider giving them the gift of Chrysalis by sponsoring them on the spring 2018 Chrysalis flights. The flights will be here sooner than we think April 28-30, 2018 back at beautiful Camp Hilltop in Brown County. Chrysalis flights are wonderful opportunities for high school freshmen through college freshmen to slow down and focus on their walks with Christ. Thanks to all for their kindness to me as I've served as the Chrysalis Community Lay Director the last two years, and I know you'll offer the same support to our new Lay Director Leah Griffin in It's a joy to serve with such a wonderful board and community. Let's all try to focus on the true meaning of this wonderful holiday season, and I pray you're able to spend time with family and friends. -Dale Guse (Columbus IN Area Chrysalis Community Lay Director) A very special Teen Someone who loves them and wants to see them grow in their faith

7 Check this out!!! New Community Website is HERE! Changes in internet browser coding and the proliferation of mobile devices has made it necessary to update the community website. I have switched to a different editing software which has enabled me to make the site better than ever. It is now mobile device friendly. It works well and looks good on any device, phone, tablet, laptop or desktop. All the same information is available to community members and it is laid out in a more user friendly format. Check it out at De Colores! Mike Riley Community Website Coordinator

8 Community Gatherings December No Gathering January 19th Garden City Church of Christ 3245 Jonesville Rd. Columbus 7:00 A-M bring drinks and snacks FUTURE GATHERINGS February 16th Central Christian Church Seymour March 16th Sandy Hook United Methodist Church Columbus (Commissioning of Teams for Spring Walks & Flights) Board Meetings Chrysalis Tuesday, December 5, 7:30 Mark Pi s for end of year celebration Emmaus Saturday, December 2nd, 8:30 am Breakfast Celebration Columbus Indiana Area Emmaus Community, Inc. Emmaus Information Page (for community members) Username: columbus password: 4thday!