3/14 Nashville Emmaus Newsletter

Bi-Monthly Newsletter of the Nashville Emmaus Community

March 2014

The Importance of Small Group Accountability A couple of weeks ago we, your Emmaus and Chrysalis Boards, attended a training event. There was a discussion about small groups/reunion groups/accountability groups. After the discussion was over, it lingered in my head and got me to remembering. Do you "rehash" discussions like that? I do it all the time. So I began thinking.....

When I was small, I had a group of friends in my neighborhood that I played with all summer long and went to school with. We shared "kid" secrets, played games and chattered together.

Then came high school, we had moved to a different city and a new group of friends formed. We talked, shared teenage secrets, and our conversation took on more serious topics.

Into college still another group of friends was formed. We did fun things and of course our discussion would solve the problems of the world because we were in college and knew everything there was to know. But there was also talk about things we didn't understand like faith, and God and who we were.

Then through marriage and children and moving into

retirement, several groups have been there for me. These groups were more accountability faith based groups - reunion groups.

In looking back, I have had many "small" groups in my life. Each one helped me to grow in an important way.

Do you have a small group - a reunion group - a group of friends who help to hold you accountable in your walk of faith and with Christ? If you do - will you let us know? If you don't and want to connect with a reunion group and aren't sure where to look or how to go about it - will you let us know.

On your Emmaus Board is a someone who would like to know of your group or your desire to be part of a group. She is Nancy LaSuer. She would like to hear from you about your group, what you would like to know about a group or even if you would like to help her start a database of groups. Give her a call at 615-883-1963 or send her an email - nmlasuer@cimplify.net Looking forward to hearing about your group(s)!

Blessings and peace, Edna Vaughan, Community Lay Director

Emmaus Walks Spring Men’s April 24-27 Women’s May 1-4 Fall Men’s Oct 2-5 Womens Oct 16-19

Face To Face

Chrysalis Flights

Four Consecutive Fridays April 25, May 2, 9, &16

Girl’s May 31 - June 2 Boy’s June 28-30

In This Issue

While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and began walking with them...

Luke 24:15

The Mentoring Sponsor............................................................2 Prayer Opportunities Abound................................................3 Chrysalis Community...On the “Grow”..............................4 Nashville Face to Face #4 is NOW! ...................................4 Kairos Korner...................................................................................5 Sponsorship Training ..................................................................5 Service Opportunities.................................................................5 Setzer Memorial Scholarship Fund......................................5 What’s Happening in YOUR Fourth Day? .......................5

The Mentoring Sponsor They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32 NRSV)

weekend without fear or anxiety. Sponsorship also means that we walk with them through the experience. . . from the gathering of agape letters, to send off, to candle light, to closing and Fourth Day. 3. Good sponsorship is the foundation for a healthy, effective Emmaus Community that is fulfilling its true purpose . . . the development of Christian leaders and the renewal of the church in ministry.

The church has a rich heritage of spiritual mentorship that goes all the way back to Jesus’ ministry. For years Jesus mentored His twelve disciples, spending special time and attention with Peter, James, and John. After his conversion, Paul was mentored by Ananias. Later Paul would mentor Timothy and Titus in the faith. The Christian faith was spread to others by mentoring!

When we look at Jesus’ encounter with the two disciples walking to Emmaus we see a model for a mentor relationship.

As a good mentor, Jesus walked beside the two on their journey to Emmaus, being present in their confusion. As a good mentor Jesus helped the two disciples process what they were experiencing. And as a good mentor Jesus helped the two disciples experience God’s agape love.

1. Good sponsorship is your first act of agape before the Walk ever begins and the experience of the Walk for a pilgrim really starts with how we handle sponsorship.

As we look at how Jesus modeled being a mentor on the road to Emmaus, we see a model for being effective sponsors for pilgrims on the Walk to Emmaus. When we sponsor a pilgrim we are called to do a lot more than just signing someone up for the weekend. We are called to be an expression of God’s unconditional love before, during, and after the Walk to Emmaus.

2. Good sponsorship undergirds the whole weekend with sacrificial love on behalf of each pilgrim.

Mentoring someone through sponsorship means that we take time to explain or interpret the weekend so that pilgrims are fully prepared to enter into the

Mentoring someone through sponsorship means that we help our pilgrims get connected to a small group and continue to encourage their spiritual growth. Our focus is not only on the weekend but on the Fourth Day experience of our pilgrims as they return to their churches and their communities energized by the grace of God. We mentor pilgrims to find a support group that will nurture the new life and call to servant ministry that was experienced in the Walk to Emmaus.

Personally, I was blessed to have such a sponsor who mentored me to and through the Walk to Emmaus and into a grace filled Fourth Day experience. It is my prayer that our acts of sponsorship will mentor others to similar fulfilling Fourth Days.

De Colores!

John W. Arnold, Community Spiritual Director

2014 Nashville Emmaus Board of Directors Executive Leadership Edna Vaughan - Community Lay Director Mary Main - Assistant Community Lay Director Charlene Eubank - Secretary Jon Bell - Treasurer Lay Board Members Greg Engroff - Immediate Past Community Lay Director Jeannie Bell • Sandie Glover • Steve Grayson • Carla Hunt Nancy LeSuer • Hugh Mason • Jane Melrose Pat Mishler • John Nance • Sam Trott Clergy John Arnold - Community Spiritual Director Jon Bell - Assistant Community Spiritual Director Loyd Mabry Allen Weller Ex-Officio Patrice Rullo - Chrysalis For More Info on Board Members and their areas of service, or to email a Board Member NashvilleEmmaus.org/About_Us

Prayer Opportunities Abound Do you remember seeing the Prayer Chart on your walk? We were told throughout that 72 hours that we were being prayed for by people near and far, we prayed for each other, we prayed together, our sponsors prayed for us…I could write until next Tuesday and never cover all the prayer that surrounds each Emmaus Walk. But to see those names of people who made a commitment to pray at specific times to keep the Walk surrounded in prayer was really tangible and powerful!

Now, it’s our turn and it’s really easy to become a smile on someone’s face, to be a part of the Body of the Christ of Emmaus. Sign up to participate in the Prayer Vigil. Put your name and your love in a 30 minute slot in one of the links below. 30 minutes isn’t really a long time to be intentional about praying for the Pilgrims on these walks. It’s not as long as most lunch times (60 minutes), definitely not as long as a movie (90 to 120 minutes) or even as long as many people’s phone calls or social media time (undefinable).

30 minutes to be in the presence of the Holy Spirit, to hold these Pilgrims in love, sounds priceless to me.

This is also a wonderful way to get back in touch with your Nashville Emmaus Community. Praying for the same people as are others in the community, sharing the love that you received during your Walk. So what, if you’ve not been involved in a year, five years, or even more, the Community has not stopped loving you. You are needed! Your prayers are needed! You are LOVED! We are praying you will prayerfully consider signing up for one of the Vigils below and we are praying for you. If you do not have e-mail or prefer, you can call either of us and we will sign you up.

De Colores, Sandie Glover & Jeanne Bell 615-289-2701 931-267-6291

Prayer Charts Men’s & Women’s Walks and Face to Face www.nashvilleemmausprayercharts.wikispaces.com Choose the Walk or Encounter on the Left Then follow the instructions at the top of the page to add your name for a specific time

Prayer Charts for Girl’s and Boy’s Chrysalis www.prayercharts.wikispaces.com/Girl%27s+Flight+105+Prayer+Chart www.prayercharts.wikispaces.com/Boy%27s+Flight+106+Prayer+Chart

Chrysalis Community . . . On the “Grow” Growing up a Cleveland Browns fan, I often heard the term “rebuilding year.” As we move to the future of the Nashville Chrysalis Community, we are in the midst of greatness and are looking for help in making this a “rebuilding year” for the Board.

We have several vacant positions on our Board and would love to have you come and see how you can help lead kids to Christ at our Board Meeting on Saturday, April 5 at 10:00 a.m. We will meet at Fellowship in Murfreesboro and refreshments will be served. Please be in prayer about where you can serve within our Chrysalis Community.

We have flights scheduled for May 31-June 2 for girls and June 28-June 30 for boys. Please be in prayer for the flight teams as well as the caterpillars of these flights. There are still plenty of places for you to serve on those weekends. If you are interested in helping, please email me at proverbspatrice@gmail.com, or I can be reached anytime via text or call at 931-241-0705.

Applications for the Girls’ Flight will be accepted through May 17 and for the Boys’ Flight through June 14. If you have applications after those dates, please call to see the status of the flight, and opportunity for inclusion.

I truly feel our greatest obligation is to show the love of Christ to the leaders of tomorrow. The Chrysalis experience affords youth the opportunity to see that love and to become leaders within their churches. We all look forward to seeing how God fits you into His plan for our Community.

Fly with Christ!

Patrice Rullo Nashville Chrysalis Community Lay Director Please Visit our Website – www.NashvilleChrysalis.com

Nashville Face To Face #4 is NOW! Preparation is in full swing. The team meetings are underway and Pilgrim registrations are being accepted.

Please put the word out to all your senior (60+) family and friends who have never been on a Walk, both men & women. Here is their chance for a new Encounter with Jesus! An opportunity to have that amazing Walk to Emmaus experience. . .and sleep in their own beds each night!

Face to Face #4 is being held at Fellowship United Methodist Church in Murfreesboro on four consecutive Fridays April 25, May 2, 9 & 16 from 9:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Pilgrims can register on the Nashville Emmaus website www.NashvilleEmmaus.org or you can print a flyer which includes the registration form. For additional information, e-mail Jo Ann Lynch at maddoglynch@comcast.net or even call her at (615) 355-0661. Hurry, cut-off date for registration is April 11th.

Please also support our seniors with FOOD AGAPE. We need the Emmaus and Chrysalis Communities to help us provide a healthy lunch and snacks each Friday. Contact Jo Ann Lynch maddoglynch@comcast.net if you can help.

Here is another form of agape if you are able to attend: Face to Face Candlelight May 9th @ 1:30 p.m.

Face to Face Closing May 16th @ 1:30 p.m.

SUPPORT OUR SENIOR COMMUNITY - send them to Face to Face, sponsors are encouraged, but not required. . .just agape love.

Sponsorship Training Remember To Sponsor a Pilgrim or Caterpillar in 2014, You MUST have attended a Training Session This has truly been a year of blessings for Kairos in the Nashville area.

First, after almost seven years of efforts, Riverbend Maximum Security Institution has agreed to allow a full Kairos program into the prison, with RMSI #1 scheduled for May 8-11. And now, the Kairos community has received word that the Tennessee Prison for Women is, not only open to Kairos coming, but actually wants a program there. This is an about-face from the last several years. Our Emmaus Community member Lisa Smith is heading up the effort at TPW. The key in both institutions is a new warden. Both have come from prisons which have Kairos in place and have seen firsthand what a difference the program can make in the lives of the individuals who participate, as well as in the environment in institutions where Kairos is active.

If you are interested in helping with the Advisory Council for Riverbend, contact: Dan Preston at dan_preston45@yahoo.com (754-6148) Rev. John Gebhart at johnhgebhart@mac.com (871-8950)

If you have not had Sponsorship Training, you can still Co-Sponsor a Pilgrim!

Watch the Website and Facebook Page for Updated Training Schedule If you would like to hold a training in your Community/Church, please contact Greg Engroff Registrar@NashvilleEmmaus.org

To help with establishing Kairos at TPW, contact Lisa Smith at matatakidogo@icloud.com.

Service Opportunities The Walks are coming up fast . . . There is always room for those who would like to help.

If you feel called to serve, please contact the Board Member listed below to get plugged in.

Kitchen: Carla Hunt Kitchen@NashvilleEmmaus.org Setup and Take Down: Sam Trott Setup@NashvilleEmmaus.org Agape: Jane Melrose Agape@NashvilleEmmaus.org

What’s Happening in Your 4th Day? We all remember our own Emmaus experience and what it meant to us personally.

We all held that cross at Closing and answered the questions about what the Walk meant to us and what were we going to about it. Well, we want to hear about what happened next!

We are looking for “Fourth Day Stories” to share in the Newsletter and on the Website . . . What did you do about it?

If you would like to submit your story for consideration,

please send it to Mary Main at News@NashvilleEmmaus.org.

Setzer Memorial Scholarship Fund As most of you know, the Nashville Emmaus Community lost two of our members to a tragedy in February - Jon and Marian Setzer. They were part of our community for over 30 years and truly lived their fourth days walking with and showing the love of Christ in everything they did and with whom they came into contact. They will be greatly missed.

As a memorial to Jon and Marian, the Nashville Emmaus Board has up the Setzer Memorial Scholarship Fund for the Nashville Emmaus Community. The donations will go to help assist those who would like to attend the Walk to Emmaus, Face To Face, or Chrysalis in the Nashville Community and need financial help.

If you would like to make a contribution in memory of Jon and Marian, please go to our website for more information. You may donate via PayPal or send a check.

nashvilleemmaus.org/Setzer_Memorial_Scholarship_Fund