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Upcoming Events |
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August 28
Study and Meditation Session 8:00 PM
More Details Link
Women's Walk #220 at Sabine Creek Ranch
October 15-18
Men's Walk #221
at Sabine Creek Ranch
November 12-15
Women's Walk #222 at Mt. Lebanon
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Upcoming Chrysalis Flights |
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Boy's Chrysalis Flight #87
November 27-29, 2009
If you're interested in working on the 4th Day Team, please email Patrick Donohoe.
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Upcoming Event |
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The Annual Dallas Emmaus Community Chili Cookoff Gathering
On November 14, 2009, we will host a more condensed Gathering including potluck supper, fellowship, praise, and a 4th day witness. Worship is not held at this Gathering, since it is usually scheduled on the same day as a Candlelight, where we do have a worship service with Holy Communion. For the past few years we have considered it an annual chili cookoff gathering. Come and bring your best pot of chili and sample others. For more information...
All are welcome! |
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Chrysalis Board Results
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Adults - Keith Loeb, Hope Gordon, and Paul Maletic
Youth - Ashlyn Tucker and Taylor Spinks
Congratulations! |
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Send
Us Your Stories!
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Send us your stories; we'd love to share them with the community. What are we doing? How can we help each other? What are some of the resources being used on Fourth Day? We would like to know what members are finding effective in keeping the Fourth Day strong and vibrant.
Thank you to last month's contributors:
Nancy Boyette and
The Sweeping Sisters Reunion Group
Jim German
Walk #66
Table of Matthew
Kathy Davis
Walk #204
Table of Ruth
Mike Donohoe
Walk #83
Table of John |
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Prayer Vigils for Walk #220
If you haven't had an opportunity to sign the paper Prayer Vigil for Walk #220 remember, you can still sign the online Prayer Vigil.
Visit the Dallas Emmaus Community website. The online Prayer Vigil supplements (but does not replace) the paper Prayer Vigil that is passed around at Candlelights and other DEC events. Both the hand-signed and the printed online Prayer Vigils are posted during Walks for Pilgrims to see who has been praying for them.
These gifts of prayer lead to a spiritual peak for the Pilgrims. |
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...there were Reunion Groups. The purpose of reunion groups is to keep the light of Christ burning brightly in those who have made the Emmaus Walk. This is accomplished through piety, study, and action. This is the common thread linking all reunion groups.
When it comes to reunion groups one size does not fit all. Different groups do different things in their pursuit of piety, study, and action. This uniqueness brings many different talents to the community. The unique qualities of each group are the strength of the Emmaus Community.
Remember, members may be searching for a reunion group to join; members may need ideas to reenergize their group; or reunion groups may be seeking help with a project or activity; etc. List your group on the DEC website so we can find you and all will know who you are and how to contact you and your reunion group.
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Purple Worship Book
"Purple Worship Book" are still available and for sale visit the DEC Website. |
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Contact Information
Dallas Emmaus Community
www.DallasEmmaus.org
info@dallasemmaus.org
214-502-4072
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Attention! Attention!
Women's Walk #220
Walk #220 at Sabine Creek Ranch begins Thursday, September 17, at 6:30 p.m. with Send-off and a potluck dinner. All are welcome.
Candlelight will be held as usual on Saturday night, September 19th, starting at 8:00 p.m. Community members are also invited to attend Closing at approximately 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 20th. Plan to come out to Sabine Creek Ranch. Let your presence be a blessing to the Pilgrims of Walk #220.
There are many ways to support Walk #220. For example, support with your presence at the Walk events, or support with your service on the Fourth Day Team, or support with your prayers for the Pilgrims and Team of Walk #220. All of these are important and enrich each Walk.
Walk #220...may the Light of Christ be with you! |
Message from the Community Lay Director
My first experience with an Emmaus reunion group (or Group Reunion) happened before I had even gone on "my" Walk to Emmaus! I was in an ICU waiting room in Houston with my sister who had just been told that her 24-year-old son (my nephew) had sustained a fatal injury in a one-car accident and was being kept alive by life support. Amidst the horror, disbelief and denial, my sister called her friend and Reunion Sister and said, "I don't know how to do this. Tell me how to do this." You see, her friend had lost a son in a car accident years before, and my sister knew that her friend and Sister in Christ would understand her pain and grief like no one else.
That's what reunion groups are for. We lift each up in times of need, whether death, divorce, sickness, loss of job, issues with children and/or parents. We pray for each other. We encourage each other. We hold each other accountable. We celebrate together. We love each other.
But reunion groups are not "all about us!" The focus of many reunion groups is serving others. Many make agape together for upcoming Walks. Several serve lunches to Walk teams at meetings. Some serve meals on Chrysalis Flights. Some go on mission trips and retreats together. Others participate in activities like Habitats for Humanity together. All pray together for themselves, for those they know, and for people they may never meet.
Unlike other spiritual formation and renewal events, The Walk to Emmaus is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. However, through reunion groups, our Walk experience continues each and every day for the rest of our lives--all of our Fourth Days.
The Group Reunion itself is one of the chief values of the Emmaus Movement-one of the greatest treasurers the Walk to Emmaus contains. It is a way of persevering in the life of grace so that those things that are valuable to you during the weekend will not be lost when you return to your life in the world-the Group Reunion serves the life of the Emmaus Community.
--Day Four: The Pilgrim's Continued Journey
The book, Day Four: The Pilgrim's Continued Journey, provides an excellent explanation and discussion of the reunion group concept, the reunion card format, criteria for forming groups, and characteristics of an effective group (see pages 38-45).
In addition, The Upper Room Handbook on Emmaus includes these reminders for reunion groups:
1. Prepare yourselves ahead of time.
2. Practice your disciplines. Take seriously the promises on the service sheet-piety, study and action.
3. Uphold one another.
4. Pray for one another.
5. Focus on the service card.
6. Retreat with one another.
7. Plan your discipleship.
8. Act as a group.
9. Be spiritual friends.
Here are a couple of other things to remember:
First, participants in a reunion group are not limited to Emmaus pilgrims. "Group Reunions are spiritual support groups for any Christian who is a pilgrim on the journey of faith and who desires to live a life of accountable discipleship" (The Upper Room Handbook on Emmaus, p. 117).
Second, participation in a reunion group is encouraged and even expected of team members and community leaders. "Team Selection Committees should place a premium on participation in a Group Reunion when selecting team members. After all, teams teach most profoundly through the witness of their lives and practices." (The Upper Room Handbook on Emmaus, p. 121)
Much, much more information about reunion groups and accountability groups can be found in the book titled, The Group Reunion, published by The Upper Room and available for purchase at Candlelights, Gatherings and Follow-ups.
Last thing....the saying "If at once you don't succeed, try, try again" really holds true with reunion groups. A fortunate few find a reunion group that works right off the bat and stay in that group. Many, many more have to try out a few groups before they find one that fits. That's OKAY!
Our Reunion Sisters and Brothers remind us that we are not alone on our faith journey. Jesus carries us in the valleys of our lives, while our Reunion Sisters and Brothers hold our hands. The Holy Spirit guides and directs us in our daily decisions and choices, while our Reunion Sisters and Brothers hold us accountable and help us be faithful to what is best within ourselves. Our Heavenly Father hears our prayers of confession and forgives us. He also knows the joys of our hearts and rejoices with us. Likewise our Reunion Sisters and Brothers forgive our failures and celebrate our successes.
Already in a reunion group? Check the list of Reunion Groups on the DEC website to make sure yours is listed and includes current meeting information (day, time and location) and contact information.
Having trouble finding a reunion group? Take a moment to look at the list of Reunion Groups on the Dallas Emmaus website. If you can't find a group on that list that fits your schedule or location, ask your sponsor or Emmaus friends about their reunion groups. Explore bible study groups or covenantal discipleship groups within your local church. Maybe form your own reunion group!
With prayer, a little effort, and possibly some trial and error, you will find the right group for you. I pray that you will.
De Colores!
Nancy Summers
Walk #177
Table of Rebekah | |
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Message from the Community Spiritual Director
A Call to Smallness
"Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Heb. 10:25 KJV
In my last article, "Grace-filled Service and Leadership" I told you The Emmaus Walk was three busy days of singing, learning, laughing, praying, worshiping, and participating in small groups, and a renewal experience designed to train Christian leadership for the service of God's kingdom through the local churches. In this article, I want to make you aware of how these small groups must be a continually part of your Fourth Day walk with Christ. I am convinced that if the local church is to have a vibrant ministry for Jesus Christ, its members must continually be involved in some type of energizing, life-giving small group ministry. In Emmaus we call this ministry Reunion Groups. Those of us who are involved in a reunion group on a regular, preferably weekly basis, have discovered that the support and encouragement we receive from our small group of brothers or sisters in Christ, enhances our personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
The first reunion group I joined after my Emmaus Walk was a group of about 6 women. With the exception of me, they were all members of the same church. I joined the group because my best friend at the time was a member of that church and group and I wanted to spend time with her. May I suggest that this is not a good reason to join a reunion group? I was the only clergy in the group and though most of the group expected me to share helpful spiritual insights, I felt that I had to remain strangely silent because of the things I had already shared with my best friend who saw me in a different light than the others. Through my experience I discovered that I was more focused on my relationship with her than my relationship with God. I got out of that group because it was not helping me grow in the knowledge and grace of God. I have also been a part of two other reunion groups since then and neither were good matches for me. I am telling you this so you will know that every small group may not benefit your needs.
I have since found a reunion group that is reflective of Jesus, and I find that I want to be there all the time! What makes this group reflective of Jesus? Rather than being critical, we are compassionate towards each other. Rather than blaming one another, we try to bless one another. Rather than calling one another out, we take time to care for each other. Rather than alienating or accusing one another, we make an effort to assist each other in finding ways and instructions on how to have a better life. Rather than having a negative attitude toward one another, we find ways to offer each other comfort as we nurture our souls. I like this reunion group because not only are we real with each other, but we also do great things together as we get closer to God together. That's what a reunion group should be! That's the group I want to be a part of!
God has designed all of us with an inborn need for relationships and to live in community with others. If taken seriously, reunion groups can become a place where community is found, lives are shared, and responsibilities are divided up. Hebrews 10:25 challenges us to not minimize the importance of meeting together on a regular basis. When we make ourselves available to be used by God to help meet the needs of others, we strengthen the ministry of the local church.
Some clear benefits to being in a reunion group that meets weekly are: the members help each other handle stress, pressure and gain a new appreciation for prayer. A good reunion group will provide you with a place where self expression is encouraged; a place where you can share something about yourself that you never thought you would ever share; a place where you can belong and be yourself; and a place where you can grow comfortable sharing your faith. If you are not presently a member of an Emmaus reunion group, I challenge you to find a good reunion group, one that is Holy Spirit led and a blessing to be a part of, then join it!
De Colores,
Rev. Ella McDonald
Walk # 54
Table of Esther
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One Reunion Group's Story
Following my walk in August 2001 I joined a reunion group that met for breakfast at a local restaurant and called ourselves the "Monday Morning Roosters". We have evolved in the last eight years, changed from Monday to Tuesday and now we switched back to Monday again for breakfast. The group has also changed with the addition of new members and the loss of some members due to relocation and changed family situations.
There is, and always has been, the core focus of accountability and support for each other as we developed in our religious lives within our reunion group. We have provided "Agape" items for other Walks. We have attended "Candle Light" services. We have worked on Emmaus Walks and Chrysalis weekends. Members of our group have worked Kairos events and gone beyond that to work directly in one-on-one programs with prisoners.
The men that we have had move through our group, as well as our current members, have grown in their respective congregations and used their talents that were honed and polished on their Emmaus Walk to improve the lives of others in their churches. The reunion group has strengthened them and given them a recurring infusion of support for their continuing work.
Personally I have taken on projects both within the church and in the larger community which I would not have pursued if I had not had the Emmaus Walk experience. Certainly I would not be continuing to develop and apply myself to tasks within my church and in the general community if I did not have the weekly meetings with my reunion brothers (and their loving and sometimes pointed words of "encouragement and admonishment").
No man is an island. A single thread is easily broken but a cord of many strands can anchor a ship. Men need other men to uphold them and sharpen them as steel sharpens steel.
Every man needs an Emmaus experience and every man needs a reunion group.
Alan Johnson
Walk #150
Table of Matthew
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Koinonia
