Living Water
Emmaus
Newsletter—
October 21, 2011
De Colores!
www.livingwateremmausfl.org
Newsletter Editor:
Dave Glant dglant@windstream.net
I say there, people. When I talk, y'all
just listen up!
Foghorn Leghorn
In this edition of The Foghorn Gazette,
you will learn:
ŸDetails of the Northern Kingdom's epic
November Gathering in Ft. White.
ŸInformation about Walk #3
Ÿ How to sponsor pilgrims--3 easy steps.
ŸWhere to purchase Foghorn Leghorn's
Greatest Hits: "Something to Crow About."
Ÿ How to get autographed photos of Foghorn.
Ÿ Where to purchase Foghorn T-Shirts, belt
buckles and hat bands.
Ÿ How to become a "Friend of Foghorn" on
Facebook and Twitter.
Ÿ Why Foghorn dislikes Col. Sanders.
ŸNews you just won't find anywhere else.
*****************************************************************
November 11th Gathering @ 6:00 p.m.
Ft. White, Fielding's Farm
708 S.W. Fielding Road
386-497-4735
De Colores Sisters and Brothers! Sharon (left) and Joe (right) invite and
welcome everyone what's got a hankerin' for some great vittles, footstomping Gospel music and all the fixin's--- provided everyone brings a
covered dish to share.
Dress code: barnyard chic. Your ensemble can be stylishly accessorized
at your local Farm & Feed store or tack shop if you wish. So go ahead.
Get all gussied up with your favorite blue jeans and gather up here for great
fun, food and fellowship.
Program: steer 'rasslin' and goat ropin'...or wait....maybe it's
Sponsorship for Walk #3. Well, it's shore 'nuf one of these.
What If I attend another 'cluster' community?: All are welcome! We are
'multi-clusteral.' Emmaus is spoken freely here. This is open to everyone
from any 'cluster' or 'galaxy.' Come by car, truck tractor, Millennium
Falcon..or Ford Falcon.
Directions: Travel to downtown High Springs to the stoplight at the Great
Outdoors Restaurant. (Corner of Main Street and 1st Avenue). From that
traffic light, travel North (technically, NW) on U.S. 27 toward Ft. White.
Approximately 8 or 9 miles north of the downtown High Springs stoplight,
you will see "Fielding Road" on your right, just before the 'Welcome to Ft.
White" city limit sign. Fielding Road is the last road before you enter the
city limits of Ft. White. Joe & Sharon Fielding live in the suburbs of greater
Metropolitan Ft. White.
Turn right on to Fielding Road. Follow it as it bends around to the right.
Drive through the wagon wheel entrance. It will be marked.
Emmaus Walk #3
February 23-26 (men)
March 8-11 (women)
Christian Church Conference Center
Silver Springs
Emmaus Walk #3: will be at the Christian Church Conference Center in
Silver Springs. Please begin praying about whom you may sponsor and
how you can help.
The Board is very excited about this walk and the changes that have been
made in the organization of our Living Water Emmaus Community.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Margaret Myers at
mcmyers@windstream.net.
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COACHING HINTS FOR NEW SPONSORS
If you have never sponsored a pilgrim this is a great time to start.
The first place to start is with prayer. Ask God to lead you to someone who
is ready to step deeper into the Christian life.
Trust me on this: No one is too advanced into sainthood or overfilled
with God to gain from what the Emmaus weekend has to offer. On the
other hand there are people who are not ready for an Emmaus experience.
The weekend is not designed to restore broken relationships, cure
diseases or lead to a conversion experience although occasionally these
things have happened. The Emmaus weekend is designed to lead into a
deeper walk with Christ and to develop servant leaders in the church.
Answer any questions your pilgrim may have. NEVER LIE about
the weekend or tell “silly jokes” like “they never feed you enough”. Don’t be
too concerned about secrets. You don’t have to (and probably can’t!) give
a minute by minute explanation of the 72 hours.
If someone asks about Saturday night, you can honestly say that
there is a special worship service. This is enough! Invite and encourage,
rather than pressure a person whom the Lord has revealed. Those who
are coerced into attending don’t usually take much home.
Remember that if a person is married, generally it is a requirement
that both spouses attend. There are good reasons for this policy however it
is not always possible. It is possible under certain conditions to have this
regulation waived. To do this, write a letter to the Board stating the
situation. It is helpful for the Board to have the advice of the potential
pilgrim’s pastor. The pastor's letter could advise whether the marriage in
question would likely suffer if the applicant should have a significant
spiritual experience (this can become a divisive issue in some marriages).
Financial hardships shouldn’t deter someone from attending. The
Board has a scholarship fund with which to help. It is good for a pilgrim to
cover as much of the cost as possible. It is certainly possible (never
required or expected) for the sponsor to make a contribution also. You
should attach a letter with the pilgrim’s application requesting the Board's
consideration of a scholarship. If you have questions on anything
related to sponsorship please ask me or any other Board member.
Things to do: when you have a pilgrim for the Emmaus Walk:
1. Have the pilgrim fill out an pilgrim's application. You fill out the sponsor’s form. Send
both forms along with the required deposit to the Registrar (current information on the
applications).
2. As you continue to pray for your pilgrim, use the emergency information that the pilgrim
included on the application form to begin collecting agape letters (a secret please!)
3. Try to be involved in preparing table agape (all those clever or useful item that appeared
on your table or pillow). We will be working on these projects at most Gatherings.
4. Begin making arrangements to pick up your pilgrim in time to have dinner and deliver
him/her to the send-off location. Dinner doesn’t need to be an elaborate or expensive
affair. Often sponsors stop at a restaurant near the send off location, but I’ve had lovely
picnics at a park or even at the sponsor’s home. The point is to begin demonstrating
agape love and how unconditional agape love really is.
5. Be sure that you attend candle light, closing and that you are ready to take your pilgrim
home. A part of the trip home is to provide a sounding board for a pilgrim who is likely
still processing the weekend experience especially if you have the first of two spouses to
attend.
6. One of the most important things you will do is to help connect the pilgrim with a
reunion group. If you are grouping and can accommodate another person that might be a
possibility if scheduling and other dynamics are compatible. If you are NOT grouping,
what an excellent opportunity to begin with your new pilgrim!
7. Take your pilgrim to the next Gathering in your area and introduce him/her to the
community. The schedule for these gatherings is published in the NEWSLETTER and
reminders are offered regularly.
In some ways, sponsoring is like being a grandparent. It’s a blast! As
excited as you were over your own experiences, I predict that you will be as
excited for your pilgrim.
Perhaps the only more exhilarating thing is to be on the team watching all
the pilgrims experience agape love as never before. The hard part of all
this is to NOT look like the Cheshire Cat. Have fun but be discreet!
De Colores!
Donna Edmunds
bedmunds@bellsouth.net or 352-373-4705
News items? Send to Dave Glant dglant@windstream.net.
Complaints? Send to Ed Garvin hegarvin@aol.com