Florida Crown Emmaus Newsletter
A Gateway to Christ

March 2018

  

Prevenient Grace. There is something that I find comforting about knowing that God is always reaching out to me. I am in awe of a God that wants a relationship with someone like me who feels unworthy. As I look at my notes, I'm reminded that Prevenient Grace is the grace where God takes initiative in having a relationship with us and continues to pursue us throughout our lives. I often have heard clergy talking about God wooing us as part of this talk. We are also reminded that this grace is free for us to accept, but we are also free to refuse this invitation to relationship. We experience this grace through family, friends, events or gatherings, church etc. We can find God's prevenient grace in many places.
 
As I write this article, my niece is visiting for spring break. She is a student at Central Michigan University. Her spring break was delayed by several hours because of the student who shot and killed his parents. It is also several weeks after the shooting at the school in Parkland Florida. I wonder if the two people knew and understood that God was reaching out to them. Did they understand that God loves them and wants to have a personal relationship with them? If they didn't know about God, then who should have talked to them about God. It also makes me wonder, who in my life do I need to talk to about God. Is there someone who needs to understand this loving relationship with God?
 
I now turn this question to you. Is there someone in your life that you need to talk to about God? Do you know someone who doesn't have a church home who needs to be around other Christians so they can experience God calling out to them? The Holy Spirit works through us to reach other people. If you feel an urge to invite someone to church, then I encourage you to listen to the Holy Spirit and invite them to church. Even if they say no, you have still planted a seed and the Holy Spirit will use others to take care of and water that seed. We'll talk more about that next month when we review the Priesthood of All Believers.
 
DeColores and Fly With Christ
Pastor Steve



Sponsorship: The Most Important Job of All

At the last Gathering it was announced that the dates for the next Weekends are October 4-7 for the men and October 11-14 for the women. It was also announced that the Lay Directors will be Bill Crissman and Liz Starkey. These two servants have an important job ahead of them and will be working hard to make the weekends a success. Although October seems a long time away they are already making plans. While the Lay Directors and other team members' jobs are crucial, the most important job of all is being a sponsor. Without sponsors there are no pilgrims and without pilgrims there is no reason to even have a weekend. The role of the sponsor cannot be exaggerated, it more than just getting people to fill out an application for the weekend. It is the beginning of a relationship will last throughout the pilgrim's "Fourth Day."

Quoting from the Upper Room Handbook on Emmaus:

"The fact that the Emmaus experience passes from person to person reflects the relational nature of God and the manner in which God reaches out to people through people. Sponsorship is integral to some of the unique features and strengths of the Emmaus experience - a discerning approach to recruitment, personal agape and prayer for the pilgrims, sponsors' presence at Candlelight, Closing, and follow-up." Good sponsorship is the first act of agape before a Walk ever begins; the experience of the Walk for a pilgrim really begins with how we handle sponsorship.

The aim of a sponsor should not be to sign up all of their friends in order to fill up the weekend. Rather the aim of the sponsor is to bring spiritual revitalization to Christians who, in turn, will bring new life and vision to the work of the church. In other words, the aim of sponsorship is to build up the body of Christ. Wise sponsorship is purposeful and prayerful; unwise sponsorship is haphazard and undiscerning.

The book Day Four: The Pilgrim's Continued Journey contains a chapter which gives ten steps in sponsoring a prospective pilgrim:
  1. Pray for the person's openness to God's call to discipleship, not how to get him or her to go on a Walk.
  2. Make an appointment with the person or couple to discuss participation in Emmaus.
  3. Extend an invitation. Share your faith, explain the basic elements of the Walk, its purpose, and follow up dimensions that help us live in grace for the rest of our lives. Answer all questions truthfully and never conceal anything from the pilgrim. Take the attitude that you are giving the person a wonderful gift rather than that he or she needs to go.
  4. Ask the person to make a commitment by filling out the registration form.
  5. Continue to pray, prepare Agape letters, and enlist the support of their pastor.
  6. Support the Walk through your prayers during the 72-Hour Prayer Vigil and your presence at Send-Off, Sponsor's Hour, Candlelight, and Closing. Support the pilgrim's family while they are away if needed.
  7. Encourage the pilgrim in their Fourth Day involvement. Help them find a group or be prepared to start a group with them.
  8. Help the pilgrim reenter his or her church and consider ways to act out new commitment and enthusiasm.
  9. Inform the pilgrim of ways to serve the Emmaus community and future Walks.1
  10. Help the pilgrim sponsor others.

Sponsorship is an act of love for God, for the pilgrims, for the Emmaus community, and for the church. It demonstrates agape love, making us instruments of prevenient grace. Sponsorship is certainly the most important job of all.
 
DeColores!
Bill Adams
Assistant Community Lay Director

Reunion Group Coordinator

As I continue on the theme from the Book of Numbers...* Numbers 11
At some point, the Israelite's became tired of eating the manna provided by God. They cried out to Moses, and Moses cried out to God. The people said (again), they were better off when they were in Egypt. This was offensive to God who had freed them from slavery, protected them from Pharaoh, and provided food and water for them as they traveled through the desert. But, God still gave them what they asked and provided meat by sending quails, however there were consequences (see Numbers 11:31-35).

Moses became weary of dealing with the hundreds and thousands of complaining Israelites and cried out to God to relieve him from this burden, to the extent of asking God to put him to death if necessary. But instead of God killing Moses, God provided a method for Moses to have a team. 70 elders that were known to be leaders among the people were called to help support Moses. God allowed the spirit that was on Moses to settle on these other leaders so they could also speak to God and interface with the people.

The plan of the Reunion Group committee is to have a fairly large team to support the communication and care for the various reunion groups throughout Florida Crown Emmaus and other similar 4th Day communities. The team will consist of 7 Regional Coordinators, with 5 Area Coordinators per Region. The Area Coordinators will work with 5 churches each, and will support established reunion groups and groups in the process of being created, within the respective churches. For those that are Numbers challenged (pun intended), that equates to 35 coordinators supporting up to 175 churches and up to as many as 300 to 500 reunion groups.

We have many former Lay Directors, ALD's, team members, and Board Members, who feel there is nothing further they can do to support the Emmaus movement and have gone to the sidelines or moved on to other ministries. I am calling on those of you that are looking for a way to 'make a difference' to volunteer to become 'leaders' again by becoming an advocate for Reunion Groups in your church, your Area, or your Region. We need your help, just as Moses needed the help of other leaders to manage the large mission that was on his horizon.

Like the people who were getting ready to begin the next phase of their journey into the Promised Land, Emmaus is not a one-time thing and is designed to prosper us through our relationships with God and our fellow Christians throughout our lives (our 4th days). We are asking that all of you reading this message; prayerfully consider enhancing your 4thDay Emmaus journey through joining and participating in a Reunion Group.

If you are unsure about how to start, go to http://www.floridacrownemmaus.com  and click the 'Links' tab and then 'Reunion Groups' to find a reunion group in your area. Also, you can go directly to https://sites.google.com/view/fce-reuniongroups/home

Anyone interested in becoming a Regional /Area Leader or the Reunion Group Coordinator for their church, should feel free to contact me at  paul.frendahl@gmail.com  or by phone at (904)509-6650.


In Loving Memory
of Charles Woodbury (FCE Walk #7)
and Steadfast Support
of Katie Woodbury (FCE Walk #7)
A donation for a scholarship for a future pilgrim has been made.
Hugs from your Reunion Group Sisters,
"The Fruits and Veggie"

In This Issue

Ministry Links 

 

Emmaus Newsletter

 

Check with all of your Emmaus friends to ensure that they're getting the newsletter. If they aren't, encourage them to go to the website to sign up, text EMMAUS to 22828 for a signup prompt, or send a note to fcecomm@gmail.comto get their email address added. There are several ways and we want our Community to stay informed!

 

Board of Directors List 

Community Lay Director - Kathy Scott (904) 612-4361
 
Asst. Community Lay Director - Bill Adams (904) 771-4268

Community Spiritual Director -
Rev Steve Painter (904) 553-3250
 
Community Spiritual Director -
Rev. Dave Preston 904-616-6817

Treasurer - Celeste Willis 208-0965

Men's Team Selection -Steve Babine 687-3544

Women's Team Selection -
Barbara Rowe (904) 642-5995

Secretary - Hugh Fletcher (904) 223-4744

Registrar - Verna Fields 771-7450
 
Agape, Prayer Vigil - Tracy Crissman (904) 534-3356

Gatherings - 
Kelli Langley-   904-203-8475


Kitchen Coordinator- Aileen Wood (904) 491-4900

Physical Arrangements - Mike Oakes
(904) 434-7444

Music - Joe Alexander (904) 221-5791

Communications Director - Richard Jacobs (904) 742-5151

Reunion Groups - Paul Frendahl (904) 509-6650


CHRYSALIS 
 
Psalm 46:1 "God is an our refuge and strength, a help always near in times of great trouble." There is always eager anticipation and a little fear as a Chrysalis weekend approaches. In January, girl's Chrysalis flight was even more anticipated than usual as it had been delayed for four months because of Hurricane Irma. But along with the anticipation, there was more than normal anxiety. The team had major changes as the shift in dates caused conflicts with work and school schedules. We were in a new facility and were trying to figure out where to store all the supplies for the weekend and how to move from place to place. And, right as the flight was about to begin, several team members became ill and couldn't make the weekend. In the secular world, this would be a cause for panic.
 
But we don't live in the secular world! The Holy Spirit immediately began to work through the community. Volunteers filled some of the vacant spots and the outside team, although less than the normal size, managed to do all the extra work involved in being in a new place along with the regular duties with smiles on their faces (most of the time - after the panicked looks).
 
We serve an awesome, unlimited God and the Holy Spirit had more than enough left to fill the conference room, dining hall and worship with God's presence. The caterpillars never knew the turmoil around them. The table leaders and assistant table leaders quickly drew in the caterpillars and established that safe place for God to work. Even when some of the caterpillars became ill, the Spirit was there in the hands of the team who tended to the girls.
 
I went on the weekend with the idea of being a blessing to the young ladies. I was blessed much more by all those on the weekend: team and caterpillars. To see the team calmly deal with each bump in the road was a living testimony to faith. The caterpillars were open and responsive to the moving of the Spirit and the team was so sensitive to their needs that I was strongly aware of God's presence.

Fly with Christ
Susie Goodhart

ABOUT THE WALK TO EMMAUS

 

                The Mission:

Empowering Leaders to be the hands and feet of Christ

  

                The Vision:

Fourth Day Leaders Embodying Jesus Christ

 

"I continue to dream and pray about a revival of holiness in our day that moves forth in mission and creates authentic community in which each person can be unleashed through the empowerment of the Spirit to fulfill God's creational intentions." -- Unknown

Florida Crown Emmaus

PO Box 351588

Jacksonville, FL 32235

flcrownemmaus.com

 


March 17 -Ft Caroline UMC
April 21 -
May 19 -
June 16 -
August 18 - Middleburg UMC 
September 15 -
October 20 - FOURTH DAY -
November 18 -



Florida Crown Emmaus
www.floridacrownemmaus.com
Jacksonville, Florida 32235

Communications
904-382-7323

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