B L U E R I D G E E M M A U S Jan Mar 2014 Another Way And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way. (Matthew 2: 12, NAMV) As I write in real time it is the first day of the new year. Like many of my Emmaus friends, I take this time to reflect and resolve on what my journey will look like in the coming days and months. Beyond the predictable resolves to eat less and exercise more, I hope to allow more of God s spirit to infuse my life and enjoy my relationship with Him, with great joy (v.10). The magi remind us that when we encounter the living Christ, are lives are forever altered and we set out on another path. As you look to the coming year in relation to your encounter with Christ, does it call you to consider the path or journey you are currently on? For many your personal Walk to Emmaus was a profound encounter with the living Christ that made you realize some of the natural obstacles to grace. Forgetting priorities has diminished your practice of piety, study and action; thus, a loss of joy. When we capture the spirit of the ancient magi, we see joy came after much perseverance. They had to rearrange their travel plans and schedules in order to encounter Christ. It takes no less perseverance for you and me in order to experience the marvelous joy found in a relationship with God in Christ. Let s resolve together to do a few things that will enhance this special relationship. Let s resolve again to make prayer a priority. Some might contend I m too busy to pray. It is painfully true: When we are too busy to pray; well, we re too busy! Let s resolve together to gather more with our Emmaus friends. Join or form a reunion group. What a special friendship we share! Let s serve more diligently in our churches and give evidence of our priority of service. Moreover, let s sponsor someone. After all: Many of us are in debt to those special friends who sponsored us. The magi went home to another way because they were willing to allow God to speak to them and alter their course. That takes an authentic sense of humility to change course, doesn t it. The Walk to Emmaus has been a means of dealing with our sense of human pride and at least alerting us to the importance of walking in newness of life. It s a wonderful and unique gift to us. Let s resolve to continue to pray for Emmaus s continued usefulness and our faithful participation. Happy New Year! Buddy Corbin, BRE #11 HAPPY NEW YEAR
Page 2 From the Emmaus Dining Room Happy New Year and welcome to a view from the Bonclarken dining room. As we prepare for the "best walk ever" (#71), in our new Hendersonville home, we want to invite all of you to serve with us in February. We are hosts to three meals a day, with lots of prayer and fellowship In between. Pouring coffee, cleaning plates, decorating, and filling tummies is our awesome task. We get to experience seeing a transformation in the pilgrims firsthand, from breakfast on Friday until lunch on Sunday. What a blessing!!!! Sign up, call us, email, or just show up! We would love to serve with you! No reservations required!!! Looking forward to seeing you there- DeColores!!! Carl and Sue Marvin Kitchen / Dining Room Servant Schedule* To Cook To Serve Friday Arrive at: Arrive At: Mealtime Breakfast 6:30 am 7:30 am 8:00 am Lunch 9:00 am 11:30 am 12:00 noon Dinner 2:00 pm 5:00 pm 5:30 pm Saturday Breakfast 6:30 am 7:30 am 8:00 am Lunch 9:00 am 11:30 am 12:00 noon Dinner 2:00 pm 5:00 pm 5:30 pm Sunday Breakfast 6:30 am 7:30 am 8:00 am Lunch 9:00 am 11:30 am 12:00 noon All times are estimates and subject to the leading of the Holy Spirit without advance notice... Note: We d love for you to stay and eat with us and even help clean up afterwards. With rising food costs, we ask those sharing the meal with us to contribute Kitchen Agape of $5.00 per meal. Thanks for your understanding...
Page 3 C h r y s a l I s o r n e r Hello, My name is Craig Loveland and my wife Diana and I are the Big House parents for Mountain Ridge Chrysalis. We had the opportunity to perform the entertainment for the pilgrims on the last Walk to Emmaus and were overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from the Emmaus community. It is always a blessing to be able to show our parent community how awesome God is and how much the young people in this community love him. Mtn Ridge Chrysalis serves young people from 15 years old to 25 years old. We have two opportunities for young people to attend. Flight s are for high school age young men and women from 15yrs old to 18yrs old. Journeys are for the college age folks from 19 yrs old to 25 years old. Each of these weekends share the same love and honor for Christ as the Walk to Emmaus does but geared toward young people. We have many opportunities to serve in our community. The kitchen and dining room are always a great place to serve however logistics is looking for committed adults to come in and help with the weekends behind the scenes. Finally, the young people that you saw providing entertainment for candlelight dinner on the last walk came from our Big House. The Big House is an opportunity for the young people that have been on the flights or journeys to come back and serve. The Big House provides services from making agape to providing entertainment, cooking, cleaning, serving meals and a lot of fun. Please consider any young person that loves the Lord and is looking to deepen their relationship with him and sign them up for the next weekend. Also, come out to Camp Tekoa for the next weekend and see just how much these young people love the Lord. January 18 20 Girls Journey March 28 30 Guys Flight/Journey A little humor for the kitchen crew!
Page 4 Mark your calendars for the upcoming weekends Men s Walk #71 @ Bonclarken. Feb 20-23, 2014, Lay Director: Gene Schimpf Women s Walk #72 @ Bonclarken. May 15-18. 2014, Lay Director: Eva Farren Walk #73 @ Bonclarken. Nov 13-16. 2014, Lay Director: TBA Chrysalis Flights Women s Journey #29 @ Camp Tekoa. Jan 18-20, Lay Director: Barbara Keith Boys Flight #65 / Journey #30 @ Camp Tekoa, Mar 28-30, LD: Tom Jeffery Kairos Weekends Kairos MCI #12 May 15-18, Lay Director: Mike Leamon Moved Recently? New Address, Phone Number, Email address change??? Let us know Contact Mack Salley @ msfire21@gmail.com Love to do clerical or financial type work? Love to lift up others in prayer and praise? Love to coordinate those who volunteer? Love to do stuff on a computer? We have places where you can serve Your Emmaus board needs you! What better way to show agape to the pilgrims that will be added our Blue Ridge Emmaus community in the next few years. For more info, email Carl Marvin at cmarvin@sdcwnc.com
Page 5 Hello Community! It seems like a good time to give witness to the sheer joy which comes while serving on a Walk to Emmaus weekend. Since my Pilgrim Walk in March of 2001, it has been my joy to serve in a variety of capacities. Allow me to share a bit with you. It could well be that our Father is calling YOU to a Walk weekend of service!!!! The first time I served was as a silent servant adjacent to the Conference Room. It was my joy to prepare snacks for the brothers in the Conference Room. It was another pure joy to witness their pleasure as they shared God's abundance together. They began to become true Brothers in our lord in the process. The next joy was to serve as an assistant table leader. It was awesome to witness first hand how God grew men's souls over that 72 hours together. Joy and love aplenty through Christ broke over the table as the Walk progressed. Serving as a table leader was another time of joy. To simply help guide table discussions and experience the men's leadership skills come forth was a thing of beauty. When God called me to serve as an assistant lay director He gave an additional full dose of joy. To have the Wow and Wonder in that capacity was inspiring. It was an overview offered only in that role. The Speaker's Prayer Chapel is an island of love and joy. Supporting the weekend's speakers through concentrated back channel prayer provides an opportunity to share in their joy as they serve as God's messengers. Prayers, scripture readings and glorious music make it a special place to serve. It is so wonderful to witness the speaker's feelings before and after giving the talk which God gave them to deliver. Send-Off, Sponsor's Hour, Set-up and Tear-down, Agape Room service have their own unique kind of joy. You should give them ALL a try!!! Can you tell that these weekends are special to me??? You really should join us in His service!!! It can be an opportunity for joy and growth for you, too. Answer His call to serve and find out first-hand! In Him, Tim Towery Blue Ridge Emmaus Walk #29, table of Matthew Bonclarken Conference Center 500 Pine Drive, Flat Rock, NC ** **GPS Users: Enter 5 Pine Drive, Flat Rock, NC-This will bring you to the main entrance. Many GPS systems do not recognize 500 Pine Drive. For a Google Map see our website: www.blueridgeemmaus.org under Directions Walk 71 Send off: Thursday, February 20th at 7pm Please arrive a little early, bring a snack to share, enjoy catching up with old friends, tune up your singing voices and prepare for a wonderful, Spirit-filled weekend!
L I G H T F O R T H E J O U R N E Y Page 6 The Last Word As this will be my last formal communication as the Community Lay Director, I wanted to express my thanks and appreciation to the board members and to the community for the privilege and blessing to be a part of this community and this very excellent board. You should know that our community is strong. We are on a very sound financial basis thanks in large part to your annual contributions to the community over the last few years. This year s total has surpassed $8500 and seems to be still growing. Your board is committed to being good stewards of these monies and to use them to help grow God s Kingdom and our community. As evidenced by the volunteers at our last walk and the members of the community who have stepped forward to fill board positions, our community is also strong in commitment and dedication to the Walk to Emmaus movement. We have found what we believe is a good venue for our walks and based on our experience with the women s walk and our projections for future costs, we believe the venue is sustainable for the long term. The people of Bonclarken have been very welcoming and accommodating to our community needs. Your new Community Lay Director, Carl Marvin, is very experienced with Emmaus and along with Sherri Noble, the Community Vice Chairperson, will provide the kind of dynamic leadership our Community requires. Please continue to support them in their efforts to lead our Blue Ridge Emmaus Community. And finally, I wanted to remind all of you that Emmaus is a strictly volunteer organization. Without your continued presence and dedicated, selfless service to God and this movement, we would not accomplish all that we have or all that we hope to do. Without God s magnificent love and grace and your continued support of our Community, we would not be the strong, vital community that we have become. My prayer is for God s blessing on this Community and its leadership in the coming year. God Bless You All Lynn Long The following board positions are open and need to be filled for 2014. Secretary records the minutes of the meetings, keeps documents and Community correspondence. Asst. Treasurer assists Treasurer with all financial aspects of the Community and trains to assume the Treasurer position at the end of the Treasurer s term. Volunteer Coordinator tracks, records and maintains records for all volunteer efforts in the community, especially those efforts at the walks. Helps coordinate when and where volunteers are needed and utilized. Our board meets generally once a month usually for no more than two hours. Service is expected to be a three year term, but job responsibilities may be changed as needs arise and the Board Chairperson sees the need. Board officers (Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Treasurer and Secretary) are elected by the board on an annual basis.
Page 7 Walk #71 FAQ Walk #71 is fast approaching. Here are some things you need to do: Before the Walk: PRAY...for the pilgrims, the conference room team, and all those who will serve. Note: deadline for pilgrim applications for Walk #71 is January 20, 2014. If you are sponsoring a pilgrim: become familiar with the Sponsor Checklist on page 9 of this newsletter. Have your pilgrim to Bonclarken around 6:30pm to allow time for registration check-in and to get luggage to the rooms. Sign up for the 24 hr Prayer Vigil: Log in to www.blueridgeemmaus.org and click on the Prayer Vigil button.then select Walk #71 to choose a time to pray. For questions about the Prayer Vigil / Prayer Banner call Jennifer Barbash at 669-5540 or email her at beutaful@att.net. During the Walk: bring a snack to Send-Off (Thursday 7pm) Get there early to catch up with your Emmaus friends and welcome the pilgrims. Attend Sponsor s Hour after Send-Off. Attend Candlelight (Saturday 7:30pm). Attend Closing (Sunday 4pm). Serve in the dining room or kitchen, pray in the prayer chapel, help with agape.we have a place for you. After the Walk: bring a snack to Follow-Up (Friday, Feb 28 @ Covenant Community Church from 7-9pm). Looking for a few good Churches! If your church would like to host a Gathering or Follow-Up in 2014 please contact Martha Johnson @ 298-0759. Emmaus questions??? Sponsorship Forms??? Walk Dates/?? Check out the Blue Ridge Emmaus website at www.blueridgeemmaus.org
Page 8 Walk #71 Pilgrims Louis Atchison Bryan Bagley Brandon Bailey Rick Barnett Tommy Brandon Andrew Brown Duane Corle Amos Gilliam Steven Grindstaff Jim Keeble Heesoo Kim Gary Lambert Ralph Lentz Jamie Marler Aaron Murdock Jermaine Parker Jesse Quigley Michael Reeves Jim Reinhard Robby Russell Chris Sherill Gerry Stanley Mike Suggs Beau Waddell David Wansley Darrell Williams Charlie Willis Walk #71 Conference Room Servants Lay Director Gene Schimpf (Perseverance) Asst Lay Director Phillip Crouch (Fourth Day) Asst Lay Director Bob Riddle (Priority) Asst Lay Director Bruce Gatta (Changing Our World) Table Leader Rick Farren (Discipleship) Table Leader John Klees (Body of Christ) Table Leader Harry Frick (Growth Through Study) Table Leader Earl Fowler (Life of Piety) Table Leader Dave Korb (Priesthood of All Believers) Table Leader Brad Noble (Christian Action) Asst Table Leader Tom Simpson Asst Table Leader Larry Bopp Asst Table Leader Phil Hunsucker Asst Table Leader Brad Pippinger Asst Table Leader Craig Loveland Asst Table Leader Morgan Reynolds Music Leader Lee Wilkinson Asst Music Leader Alan Sizemore Asst Music Leader Tom Temofonte Board Rep Lynn Long Spiritual Director Dennis Lundblad (Means of Grace) Asst Spiritual Director Phil Rastle (Justifying Grace) Asst Spiritual Director Rob Blackburn (Prevenient Grace) Asst Spiritual Director Tommy Bratton (Obstacles to Grace) Asst Spiritual Director Roberta Martin (Sanctifying Grace)
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..Send off for Men s Walk #71 at Bonclarken on Thursday Feb 20th. @ 7 pm. Don t make me come looking for you! 2 0 1 4 E M M A U S B O A R D M E M B E R S Pray about whom God wants you to sponsor for Women s Walk #72, May 15-18 Position Name Phone Email Community Chair Carl Marvin (15) 707-2452 cmarvin@sdcwnc.com Community Vice Chair Sherri Noble (16) 645-1190 bsnoble@live.com Past Community Chair Lynn Long (14) 526-0634 lynnlong@hcgexpress.net Community Spiritual Director Wes Austin (15) 254-2612 pkwes@yahoo.com Treasurer Jeff Moss (15) 713-1260 jeffandmark@att.net Secretary OPEN Team Selection Bill Church (15) 645-2448 bill@churchinsurancegroup.net Registration Irv Hendricks (14) 692-8645 gamecocknc@aol.com Follow-Ups/Gatherings Martha Johnson (16) 298-0759 Agape Malinda Holley (16) 421-0225 mbholley@frontier.com Prayer Vigil Jennifer Barbash (16) 669-5540 beutaful@att.net Prayer Chapel Tim & Betty Towery (16) 254-4162 ttowery4162@charter.net Candlelight Don & Jo Davidson (14) 298-9279 uncbbfan@bellsouth.net Purchasing Dottie Sanders (14) 693-9887 dotsan@morrisbb.net Kitchen Donna Sheline (16) 890-8291 dshel50789@morrisbb.net Dining Room Carl & Sue Marvin (14) 989-0836 marvins168@yahoo.com Closing Lee Wilkinson 277-3823 leewilkinson09@gmail.com Web Servant / Newsletter Don Davidson (15) 298-9279 uncbbfan@bellsouth.net Information Services Mack Salley 258-2975 msfire21@gmail.com Chrysalis Liaison Karen Sellers 230-6699 karenwsellers@yahoo.com Send Off / Sponsor s Hour Robin Corbin (14) 698-9849 rrcorbin@morrisbb.net Send Off / Sponsor s Hour Robin Royal (14) 698-6360 quiltchick78@gmail.com Set-Up / Tear-Down Chris Donaldson (15) 712-1241 skiingcrpntr@yahoo.com