Tidewater Area March 2009 Volume 21, Issue 3

Transcription

1 Tidewater Area March 2009 Volume 21, Issue 3 March is a strange long month. It is neither spring nor winter but gives us just enough of a taste of both to tease us with what is coming and to remind us of what is still here. There is no real holiday in March (unless of course you are Irish) that has the potential for a day off, and it is right in the middle of Christmas and the end of school which always seems to be the longest part of the year. However, this is not an all bad month for one thing March does have going for it is MARCH MADNESS, that time of year when college hoops reaches a smashing crescendo! Whether you are a die-hard fan who knows the name of each player and coach or just someone who likes to join in the purely social side of March Madness you can t help but be impressed and awed by the amount of dedication displayed by these young athletes. Whether they play the full game, a part of the game, or sit on the bench each one has spent a tremendous amount of time practicing for this moment. That commitment is not just limited to the hours of practice on the court. They have also spent time studying their Play Book memorizing plays and strategies so that they will be secondnature and instantly recalled when needed in the heat of the moment. Much time is spent in preparation for those minutes on the court. Although I am not a die-hard fan myself, but as someone who enjoys watching a good basketball game, I love to see the carefully choreographed ballet that takes place on the court as each player knows what next step to take to make their collective movements look like a well-oiled machine. As I watch I often think how nice it would be to have a Play Book such as the one their coach has developed for them. Just think a book you could pull out and study for those difficult times in life only our Play Book would not have diagrams and circles and arrows like the ones they use in a game. Our Play Book would have rules for living and guidelines for how we are to treat each other and how to keep ourselves out of the heat of the moment. It would be a book where someone else has already done the thinking for us and we would only need to follow the play for each situation we encountered. As I continued on in my thoughts I wondered how in the world you could ever create such a Play Book that would include EVERY situation people might face. This thinking soon became overwhelming because surely there would always be some new thing popping up that wasn t included in this incredible Play Book of life!! But as I thought of different situations I laughed as I soon realized my blunder and found that I was trying to recreate the wheel as the saying goes. There already is a Play Book for us. Our Heavenly Father gave it to us and it DOES include every situation we could ever possibly face or find ourselves involved, it is the Bible. God has provided us with the most thorough Play Book for living, all we have to do is study it, learn the plays, and follow them. When we study His Word and spend time with our Father learning what He wants from us we need no other Play Book except the Bible. When we walk with Jesus we need nothing else because not only do we have a Play Book for living we also have a loving coach who will help us through any situation and who is willing to always take us back and help us relearn those plays we missed along the way. DeColores--Lynn

2 Here are just a few of the walks happening around the country. Please be in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Christ. March 12-15, 2009 Men's Walk Alaska Emmaus, 37 Alaska Women's Walk Cedar Rapids Emmaus, 139 Iowa Women's Walk Son Valley Emmaus of South Africa, #104 International March 19-22, 2009 Women's Walk Dakotas' Emmaus, 36 South Dakota Men's Walk Missouri East Emmaus, 121 Missouri Men's Walk North Central New York Emmaus, 89 New York Men's Walk Oceanside Emmaus, 53 Florida March 26-29, 2009 Women's Walk Lagniappe Country Emmaus, #52 Louisiana Men's Walk Chesapeake Walk to Emmaus, 32 Delaware Women's Walk North Mississippi Emmaus, #226 Mississippi Please Be in Prayer for the Teamers of TW-86 & TW-87 Don Argus Stan Best Brian Bielitz Robert Coxwell Doug DeLong Alan Foster Don Gaines Bill Gray Jim Henderson Robert Hughes Keith Jordan Mike Klaers Ben Lane John Lape TW-86 Tommy Markham Leo Matuszak Mark Pascucci Allan Richardson Rob Robertson Mickey Rosenfeld Bob Robinson Eric Shertzer Robert Smith Kenny Underwood Will Weber Trent Widener Larry Wood Frank Holley Stacy Albert Lynn Argus Nancy Clark Fran Cooper Amy Coxwell Vicki Curtis Abby Dalton Debbie Dern- Parker Pam Egan Jennifer Foster Andrea Gaines Marybeth Grambo Sonya Hall TW-87 Sue Halstead Amy Johnson Katie Knapp Tess LaPrade Jean Lederle Robin Lee Edy Matuszak LeeAnne Nelson Lisa Nordan Bob Pihlcrantz Becky Smith Joyce Thompson Jill Wynne Rency Yeattes

3 On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, The emblem of suffering and shame; And I love that old cross where the dearest and best For a world of lost sinners was slain. It is a sad but joyous occasion our community will celebrate in the month of May. The May Gathering, which will be held at Haygood UMC, has a rather unusual Fourth Day Speaker. That speaker is the cross that has been used for Dying Moments on each weekend since the start of our community. This cross is the one on which you nailed your burdens and sins and asked God to take them away during Dying Moments and then, in a FLASH, He did, they were gone! So I ll cherish the old rugged cross, Till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown. This cross has carried so many of our burdens that it is unable to be used any longer. Its arms are coming off and the wood has splintered so badly that it is not safe. Beginning with the spring walks a new cross will be used. O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world, Has a wondrous attraction for me; For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above To bear it to dark Calvary. Because of the importance of this cross to our community the Board wanted people to have one more opportunity to lay their burdens on it. There will not be a Fourth Day speaker, only the old rugged cross. Unfortunately, we will not be able to nail our burdens on it any longer but we can come lay our hands on it and leave those things, which are heavy on our heart, on this cross one last time. So I ll cherish the old rugged cross Till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown. DeColores--Lynn The Old Rugged Cross Words and Music by George Bennard

4 More Sponsorship News We do need those Pilgrim and Sponsorship applications submitted as soon as possible. As of Press Time, we already have five Pilgrim applicants for the Men s Walk and eight Pilgrim applicants for the Women s Walk. Based on initial feedback, we should have over 20 Pilgrim applicants for each Walk. Contacting others about participating as Pilgrims in the Walk to Emmaus weekend can be a difficult activity for some of us. For those who attended the January Gathering, I shared with you what works for me in contacting others. When talking about Emmaus and sharing my Emmaus Walk experience, I usually ask the person if I may provide them with some written general information on What Emmaus is all about. Then, I hand them a hardcopy or I forward them an copy explaining all about the Walk to Emmaus. After they read the information, we get back together to talk about the information; and, I share what impact my walk had on my spiritual growth. I then encourage then to pray about whether they may want to participate in the Walk to Emmaus weekend. If the answer is yes, then I let them know what an honor and privilege it would be for me to be able to sponsor them. A MSWORD Copy of my handout is available by request at benlane1@cox.net The Facts: Both the Pilgrim and the Sponsor must complete applications. The sponsor should send both applications along with the $50 registration fee (Check or Money Order usually paid by the Pilgrim) to Tidewater Emmaus, P.O Box 61485, Virginia Beach, VA, Pilgrim Application: Can download from Website or get a hardcopy from any Board Member. The Pilgrim registration fee is $50. Sponsor Application: Can download from Website or get a hardcopy from any Board Member. The Sponsorship fee is $180, which pays for the Pilgrim s room and meals during the Walk weekend. Deadline for Men s Pilgrim Applications: 09 April 2009 Deadline for Women s Pilgrim Applications: 16 April 2009 Cowabungaluia, Ben Lane, Your Sponsorship Board Representative

5 Gatherings Goings On Talk about a joyous noise. The February Gathering raised the roof at Christ UMC in Norfolk as the Chrysalis crew lead us in praise, worship, and a Fourth Day journey (thank you Josh Coxwell). Thanks so much to the hosts at Christ UMC for opening their home to the Chrysalis/Emmaus community. We had quite a few folks come early to work on agape too. Our pilgrims and teamers will feel the love this spring. We had many butterflies from TWC 43 and TWC 44 come out and participate in their first Gathering. Hey you guys please continue to join us the third Saturday of each month. Your joyful presence is a blessing to our Lord and us geezers. We re gearing up for another knock-your-socks-off celebration of Jesus on Saturday March 21 at Ivy Memorial Baptist Church in Hampton. Our brothers and sisters from the Peninsula Rainbow Emmaus community have been invited to join us. Our Gathering falls one week after their men s walk and they will be revved up and ready to praise Jesus with us. Please come out and join us in welcoming their recent pilgrims to the love and support that is Emmaus. We look forward to seeing everyone -- TWE, TWC and PRE -- at the Gathering on March 21 at 6:30. Come early with your agape supplies and/or helpful heart and enjoy fellowship while you work on little trinkets of love for upcoming walks. Please bring food agape for the fellowship break during the Gathering. We need Fourth Day speakers and Host Churches! Please contact LeaAnne Nelson at lanelson@cox.net, or Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them. Lea Anne Nelson (TW75) TWE Gatherings

6 Every year I say the same thing. wasn t it 2008 two weeks ago? Time really has a tendency of passing us by and as I was reminded just recently, we are only on earth a short time so we better be in a rush to spread the gospel. One of the things I have learned over the years is everyone in an elevator has to listen to you. I also use what I call a Fresh Air ministry. It works something like this. You pull up to a stoplight, roll your window down, look at the driver next to you and mouth the words Do you Know and Love Jesus. Lip-syncing without music will cause other people to roll their windows down, then you shout it out. Some of the reactions would even cause Lea Anne s camera to have a double exposure. Not everyone is comfortable with my approaches and that is wonderful. Use what you know best. But how do we get from where we are now to there? The answer is simple! Read the Bible and research other sources so you can find out more about Him. While I was preparing the Growth Through Study talk for TW-84, I found some wonderful references that work for anyone even if you don t like to read or have difficulty understanding the Bible version you have. I wish to share some of them with you along with a few of my favorite Emmaus paraphernalia sites. If you know me or have just seen me at an Emmaus function, you are aware that Vanilla isn t my favorite flavor. These lists are not all inclusive but they are a start and as I receive additional feedback in this area, I ll share. Book List 1. Bible 2. Devotional Bible 3. Bible Study Made Simple by Mark Water 4. Upper Room Daily Devotional Guide 5. The Shack by William Young 6. Lost in Church by Jonathan Cash Websites contains a comprehensive concordance or you can search 29 different Bible versions including 10 contemporary editions (Bible Study Made Simple) Believe it or not. Publishers Clearinghouse has an excellent New Testament collection on 14 CDs narrated by Alexander Scorby A great site for Emmaus stuff Another great place for Emmaus gifts Local Christian Book Stores 1. AGAPE Christian Bookstore, 5628 Portsmouth Blvd, Portsmouth (757) Christian Bookstore, 802 N. Main St., Suffolk (757) Cokesbury Bookstore, 805 N. Battlefield Blvd, Chesapeake (757) DeColores/Top Associates Inc., Busy St, Richmond (800) Discover Life Bookstore & Café, Military Circle Mall, Norfolk (757) Family Christian Stores, Chesapeake Square Mall, Chesapeake (757) Virginia Beach Blvd, Virginia Beach (757) Good News Christian Storehouse, 138 Rich Blvd, Elizabeth City, N.C. (252) Harvest Co Christian Bookstore, 19 Volvo Pkwy, Chesapeake (757) Heaven & Earth, Janaf Shopping Center, Norfolk (757) Kemps River Crossing, Virginia Beach (757) Lynnhaven North, Virginia Beach (757) Greenbriar Mall, Chesapeake (757) LifeWay Christian Stores, 1600C Crossways Blvd, Chesapeake (757) Longs Religious Supply, 2810 Monticello Ave, Norfolk (757) Regent Book Store, Regent University Library, Centerville Tpke, V.B. (757) Rock Christian Bookstore, 640 Kempsville Rd, Virginia Beach (757)

7 Spring Walks Men s Walk is April 23 rd 27 th Pilgrim Application Deadline is April 9 th Women s Walk is April 30 th May 3 rd Pilgrim Application Deadline is April 16 th Next Chrysalis Flights: Boys - August 7-9, Lay Director: Skip Manaugh Girls - August 14-16, Lay Director: Karen Millman Please prayerfully consider teaming on these flights. Also, please pray that we will have full flights! Be thinking about caterpillars that you can sponsor. Caterpillars must be at least 15 and have completed the 9th grade. Thanks so much to the community for your support! Fly With Christ! Gathering Saturday, March 21 6:30 Ivy Memorial Baptist Church 2200 Coliseum Drive Hampton, VA Please bring food agape! Please use for directions from your home.

8 Tidewater Emmaus Logo Ideas: Thanks to those folks who used their creative gifts to come up with some ideas for a Tidewater Emmaus logo that we can use on our web site, applications, correspondence, newsletter, and announcements. Here are the five submissions we received. The community will vote at the March 21 Gathering to select the logo for Tidewater Emmaus. Logo Option 1 Logo Option 2

9 Logo Option 3 Logo Option 4 Tidewater Emmaus Developing Christian Leaders since 1988 Christ is Counting on You Logo Option 5 Tidewater Emmaus Thru the power of the H oly Spirit A nd Communion with God Salvation is ours ongoing

10

11