My Precious Brothers and Sisters:
I was able to do something in the last week that I have never
gotten
to do before after a Walk. I have had time to write down some
reflections on
what our Lord has accomplished through the Prayer Partner's labors,
your
efforts and mine. I have written a series of letters to the Partners
to let
them know what went on as a result of their prayers. I share these
with you
as a thank you for all that you did, and as an encouragement of the
special
presence of God during Walk 111. You all have been more of a
blessing than I
will ever be able to tell you, so accept my thanks for making this
one of the
most special times of my life.
I
believe that the power of the many, if not all, things that happened
this
weekend were entirely due to the prayers of His saints. I can't
thank you
enough for standing with me for so long to accomplish what turned out
to be
such a great work of our Lord.
Last Monday, R.D. was able to be at Reunion Group after
his fall
on the construction site. We were able to anoint him with anointing
oil and
pray for healing. At the time, he thought he was just bruised, but
he found
out after another visit to the Doctor that he had 3 cracked ribs. I
had
major concerns for him being in such pain and trying to keep up the
intense
schedule that we all know is required, but he insisted that he was
still
going to make every effort to be there Thursday afternoon. When he
showed up
at the Mountain Top, I shouldn't have been, but I was startled by the
change
that had happened in the three days in between. At the Team Meeting
Thursday
night, we had another anointing and prayer for R.D. and were able to
continue
watching God heal and make him a powerful Godly force at his
Table as
well as the Changing Our World talk. I don't recall ever hearing
such power
and authority from him before. It was readily apparent to everyone
around
that he was exactly where God had for him to be.
At the same Reunion Group meeting the guys
anointed
the both of us and prayed prayers of commissioning for what God had
for us to
do in His service. From my side, this focused me on the coming days
like
nothing else and I am grateful for the guys wanting to stand with us
in this
manner.
When I arrived at the Hinton Center and saw the preparations
almost
finished, I had time to back away and regroup and refocus. I needed
to do
this, as the previous two days had been very busy with work
appointments. I
had two business customers call me on my cell phone on the way out to the
Center
wanting to order things and I ultimately asked them to please allow
me to
call them on Monday when I could concentrate on what they wanted to
do.
After the second call I turned off the phone because I felt like I
was going
to continue to be distracted by it if I left it on.
A relatively new addition to the Walk weekends is a time of
prayer and
commissioning of the Team in the Chapel at the Center before Send Off
occurs.
We were a little late getting back after a quick dinner, and I was
the next
to last person to get in there because I was making sure that my
manuals were
in place for the Thursday night readings. I realized that I had
better get
in there quickly. I walked in the door and there was an empty chair
right
there and I just slipped into the chair thinking that I had pulled it
off,
when applause and calls of "we're so glad you could join
us" and other things
with much laughter and knew from that moment that I was in major
trouble for
the next three days.
One glitch was that K.P., one of the Chas, had not
shone up.
We knew that he had car problems earlier in the day, but when we
tried to
contact by cell phone, we couldn't get anyone. We were concerned but
didn't
know where to stop looking. He arrived later and one of his purposes
for
being there became very evident later. I thank God for His
protection of
K.P. and his ultimate arrival. We decided to start Send Off once
the last
Pilgrim arrived. We ended up with a total of 34.
The new best friends part seemed to go well with good laughter
and
some cleverness that I could see were going to create some great
table
discussions. After my group introduced ourselves, I will confess to
a real
nervous tightening in my chest as I prepared to walk up to the podium
to
start the Lay Directors long reading. I tried to not be a monotone
drone and
I will leave it to others to determine if I was successful in this.
I can
honestly admit that once the reading started, my butterflies (which
were not
Chrysalis Butterflies) went away.
I am blessed every time I get to see "In
Remembrance," the video movie
that all see on Thursday night. I appreciate the way that it depicts
the
humanness of the Disciples, without making them look foolish. I am
grateful
that the weekend starts with something like this.
At the first Team Meeting on Thursday night there was good
cooperation as we made the normal last minute arrangemants. Just before we started, E.C. (ALD) asked for the floor. He
presented
me with a rainbow tambourine that is real funny looking. He then
gave be a
miniature anointing oil holder that I have place on my key ring. He
had me
read the card to everyone and it was very moving time for me. We
closed with
a very powerful prayer time that set the stage for the coming days.
The assigning of the Tables went smoothly with no missed Table
names
and only one minor flub of a Pilgrim's name. M.S. gave a
wonderful
Priorities talk that was Spirit-filled to the surprise of no one.
His
Talk laid a wonderful foundation for the Talks to come.
It was after this that I seemed to get several reminders that
my
duties were over and I needed to sit back, let go, and enjoy the
fruits of
preparation. I don't know how well that I succeeded in accomplishing
this,
but I did try. I do believe that I was able to do this, but I will
leave it
to others to judge.
We had other Talks from there with seemingly vibrant
discussions that
was good to see. I must tell you that I wish I could fill you in on
what was
going on, but I tell you all that the truth of the matter is that I
have no
clue what was going on. I am thrilled to tell you that the Holy
Spirit was
keeping the Prayer Chapel completely up to speed on what to pray for.
It
never ceases to amaze me the way that those in the Prayer Chapel can
tell us
what is happening as well, if not better than we can see it
ourselves. There
were several times on Friday when I found myself asking the PC the
status of
the room that I was in because they were telling me of the spiritual
battles
better than I was hearing from the Tables.
It was in the afternoon that the first challenge to the
weekend
arrived. I was in the Conference Room when I was told that a Pilgrim
was in
the kitchen on the phone. In the spirit of not micromanaging, I sent
one of
the ALDs to take care of it. Confident that it was being handled, I
excused
myself to lay down for a little while as there was a break
approaching
anyway. A little later I checked in and found out the Pilgrim in
questioned
had walked off the mountain. I was debating my part in what to do
when I
found out that two of the men, one clergy and one laymen, were
dealing with
the young man and once I found out which two I marveled at how God
works
because the two men that I felt were the most qualified to deal with
a
situation like this were the two that were taking action. Without
going into
the details, this young man was convicted about needing to resolve a
situation in his life to the point that he believed that immediately
was not
soon enough. The two Team members ended up taking the young man to
where he
needed to go with the invitation to rejoin the Walk the next morning.
I
applaud the way that they handled this and feel like it is the
correct
thing to do. After they returned and told us what had happened, the
Spiritual Director met with the Pilgrim's Table and brought them up
to speed
so that there would be no questions or rumors that would bloom into a
wall
that cause stumbling. We reported to the Team what had happened at
the Team
Meeting that night. To finish the story in regard to the Pilgrim, he
didn't
return the next day.
One last detail that made me immensely proud of
the
Team as well as the Prayer Chapel people that I talked to. I have
played the
game "Gossip" from time to time as I'm sure you have. A
couple of hours
after this incident when I was still getting word from every corner I
took
note that every time I heard from someone different, the story was
exactly
the same with NO embellishments. This made me proud that great care
was
being taken not to share more than was told.
I felt lead to go with one of the Spiritual Directors that I
didn't
know before the Walk to make sure that the Chapel was ready for the
final
meditation of the day. We got to talking and were able to connect on
a
deeper level than I expected. We ended up praying together and God
drew us
much closer together. We spent longer than I expected and missed
most of the
poster presentations, but I was blessed to know my brother better and
I will
always be grateful for that time alone with him.
We had the bonfire after the Chapel time at the end of the
day. This
has not been a significant part of the Walk for me, but I know others
who
have been deeply affected. There was a beautiful fire and I know
that were
those that were moved by it and I am grateful to B.A. and
M.J. for coordinating it with storms in the area.
We concluded the day with a brief Team Meeting. As I was
waiting for
all to assemble, I was overcome with a brief sadness that this would
be the
last time this incredible group of men would be meeting together as a
Team.
There was a time of reflection over the 3 meetings, meditating on how
much I
had been blessed through this gathering of men to do a unique, and
hopefully
powerful work of God. I realized that I was blessed more than I
could
describe by these men who are some of the most giving men that I have
ever
gotten to be associated with. I wanted to continue to be upbeat
because
there was no reason to be sad, especially when I looked at how well
things
were going, but sadness was my emotion of the moment. I was glad
that I had
a chance to thank them for all they had done, but I felt like
expressing
thanks was akin to describing the ocean as a good size pond. We had
a
wonderful time of prayer and then said "Good night."
Because of the very
abbreviated night's rest the night before, I wanted to get to bed
quickly and
was actually able to pull it off.
I woke up early Saturday morning and had the belief that this was going to be a
day
that I would want to remember. My mind was very active thinking of
what I
needed to do. My Talk was no where near ready and even though I
wasn't going
to give it until Sunday morning, I still had no idea what I was going
to say.
After a few minutes, I realized that I was being distracted by the
future at
the expense of the present. I got up and got dressed, then headed to
the
Conference Room and then the Chapel. Once the meditation started,
the sense
of expectation was still there, but there was a sense of peace that
told me
that the Lord was present and to sit back and hang on.
Every Talk giver to this point had surpassed any Talk that I
had
either heard them give or knew what they were capable of. N.
seemed to be
nervous about his Talk, but he had humor in his Talk that disarmed
everyone
and then stabbed to the heart of the matter. His Talk made the point
the
best I've heard that we need to grow no matter where we are. He had
examples, not only for the new believer, but for the mature Christian
as
well. This served as my first lesson of the day that I am not
studying like
I should. N. crossed the line into meddling several times.
I started to get a handle on the freedom that a Lay Director
has to
spend time in the Prayer Chapel. I wanted to be with my Head
Spiritual
Director before his Means of Grace Talk and I appreciated the time to
get to
do that. It was a powerful time in the PC as they were gearing up
for the
spiritual battles that were about to take place. I never thought
that I
would say this about one of S.P.'s Means Talks, but it was the
shortest one
I think I've heard him give. In between I was able to wait with him
in his
room as he changed for the Chapel part. This was a close time of
fellowship
with him as he tried to gauge what was going on. All I wanted to do
was to
keep him company in the interim. I have felt very close to S.P.
ever since
we were roommates on Walk 56 and I was glad I could support him even
in this
small way. One of the ALDs came to get us and we returned to the
Conference
Room for him to finish before going into the Chapel.
S.P. and I have talked several times about Dying Moments and
the way
we wanted it to go forward. E. learned a song that was written by
a Blue
Ridge Music Cha, Michael Gaffney, specifically for this special point
of a
Walk. This is a powerful song that describes vividly the laying down
of sin
and not wanting it any more. I am pleased that he sang it because
it so
beautifully set the stage for the business to be done. We had also
decided
that the Team was going to go to the altar first, not only to
demonstrate
what to do, but to set the tone that we had things in our lives that
needed
getting rid of. S.P. was in the process of describing what we would
do,
when a Pilgrim hopped up and said that he wanted to go first. Before
those
of us in the back could line up, Pilgrims were lining up to do
business. I
have seen Pilgrims step up before, but never so demonstratively, and
leap up
to deal with God.
We were in there for a long time and were quite late in going
to
lunch. I firmly believe that serious business was done and many
burdens were
left at the foot of the cross. I felt a release and there was
definitely a
celebratory air present, like you feel when you know that God has had
His
way. When we entered the Dining Room after we concluded Dying
Moments, E.
led us in "Blessed Assurance". It was a wonderful, worshipful
benediction to a
powerful time together in God's presence.
We walked into lunch and I noticed something that L. and I
had
talked about the night before. On Friday evening I noted that there
was a
crowd in the Dining Room. It seemed like a low end Saturday night
crowd. I
was blessed because this was the largest crowd I had ever seen on
Friday
night and I thought, "if there are this many people here now,
what is
tomorrow going to be like?" When we walked in for Saturday
lunch, there was
a large Saturday evening crowd present. There were so many wonderful
servants present that I found it very difficult to eat my soup
because
everyone was continually receiving back rubs.
After the elation of a divine encounter, I must admit to
feeling quite
weary. I had not finished a few things (letters) and so I apologized
to the
next speaker and decided to finish up what I needed to and lay down
for a few
minutes. I arrived in the Prayer Chapel in time for S.H.'s
Obstacle's Talk.
Just outside of the Prayer Chapel, the Chrysalis young people were
practicing
their presentation for dinner and it brought great joy to my heart to
see
them there. Most of them had been up to Mountain Top the month
before, but
due to a Christian music festival going on, I was concerned that
there
wouldn't be enough to do the songs for dinner. Some of them I was
prepared
to see, but there were one or two that were and Agape surprise. I
continued
to feel a release from Dying Moments and felt a real freedom during
the
Obstacles Talk. When we left the Conference Room to go pray S.H.
down from
the Talk, we walked into the Prayer Chapel with a celebration going
on. They
had sensed through the Holy Spirit the freedom and celebration as
well and
the celebration with Robin Mark's "Days of Elijah" playing.
I don't ever
recall being a part of such joy in the real presence of our Lord
before. The
closest thing I can compare it to is the scripture in the Old
Testament that
describes David's joyful dancing before the Lord and I know that this
will
stay with me for a very long time, if not forever.
Saturday night is my favorite time of a Walk and it was time
to start
it with the wonderful dinner and the cherries jubilee. It didn't
seem
possible, but there were even more servants there to serve! There is
a
spirit of gladness at that meal that is the greatest and the hubbub
of
brothers and sisters fellowshipping with one another was
considerable.
Before dinner, E.C. asked me if I would like to do the
introductions
since, of the four of us, I had the most experience with the
Chrysalis
Community. I jumped at the chance and took great joy in being able
to
introduce this wonderful worship experience to the men. I will say
that at
this point I had not been really looking very close around the room.
Even
with the introduction, I was looking at the Pilgrims and the Team.
In
retrospect, I felt like Pavlov's dog because at the very first note,
I lost
it. "Everything" is one of my very favorite songs that
they do, but I don't
recall EVER hearing and seeing them do it with such power. I cried
all the
way through it, but it was a joyful, worshipful cry. I was very
focused on
the group up front, with only a minor awareness that I was not the
only one
overcome.
After the first song was over, B.B. leaned over to me
and
suggested that I look to the back of the room. I have never seen so
many
people in that room in all the years that I have been serving at
Mountain
Top. They seemed to be lined up 2, 3, and 4 deep around the wall in
the back
of the Dining Room. They were also bunched up in the doorway to the
Commons
Room as far as I could see. I estimated that there had to have been
a
hundred people in addition to the ones on the Walk. Since then I was
told
that the estimate was more like 140. I don't believe that there was
a dry
eye in the house, as well as some of the young people up front.
The
second
song that they presented for our worship to God was a song called
"God Ran."
It is a song that depicts God coming to us at the time when we need
Him most.
This drama facilitates worship like few songs that I have ever seen
and
heard and the Holy Spirit continued to have free reign with the
presence of
God being very real in the room. Being one of the recipients of such
servanthood is overwhelming. Just before the first song, I asked
B.J. and
E. to change the order at the end of the meal. Instead of the
"Blessing
After Meals," I felt led to ask that we sing, with the Chrysalis
and Mountain
Top Communities, "Shout To The Lord." I don't recall ever
hearing this song
done with more freedom than it was done that night. As I sit here
writing
this and remember back almost a week, I still get chills at the
memory of
such worship by the Body of Christ. I knew that we needed to get out
of
there so the Community could eat and get to Candlelight, but the idea
of
leaving with the power of God flowing so freely was not one of the
smartest
things that I could think of to do at that moment.
The last Talk of the day was Discipleship and it turned out to
be the
basis for my Talk on Sunday. It compared a life in Christ to a
military life
and it was most effective. After the Talk, I had someone who wished
to talk
to S.P. and I and so we excused ourselves. There was a
time of
seeking the Lord's Will on someone else's behalf.
We returned to the Conference Room just before the Tables
voted to
give the Table of Barnabas (the LD/ALD/SD table) the rooster. I was quite surprised by
this and I
will confess that I still don't know the story behind it, but it was
a
blessing nonetheless. S.P. stood up and read the Scripture about
heaven to
set the stage for Candlelight and then the Pilgrims were sent after
their
jackets while being thoroughly confused as to what was going on.
Upon arriving at the church, I was blessed to see Jim Wiles
standing
there. He thought all of the Tables were there, so he had quit
playing by
the time we got there and we could hear the Community singing, so he
didn't
want to start again. I had just gotten to greet Jim, whom I haven't
seen in
several years when I was whisked away for a part of the process that
I didn't
know about.
When the doors to the sanctuary are opened, the Lay
Director is
there to greet each individual in line as they come in the door.
This is the
other greatest place to be in the Sanctuary because you get to hug
every one
as they come by (some of you know that I have my spot up front at the
front
step that I get to hug almost everyone so they won't trip over the
step).
After the last person in front of me started down the row, I got to
hug those
around me as I started down a line of people that were there to greet
us,
like I believe Jesus will do when we get to our permanent home. I
had only
greeted 4 or 5 people and I looked up the row and saw that I was all
alone,
the last person in front of me was just stepping up on the stage
area. I
thought I had better get in gear because at the present rate I would
arrive
with the rest of them approximately on Tuesday at 11 o'clock in the
morning.
I don't recall exactly the trip down, but I felt like I was
absolutely
floating toward where I needed to be, buoyed by the well wishes and
love that
was preeminent in that room at that time. Between this and the
dinner crowd
I felt that I had seen for the first time the "great cloud of
witnesses" that
are talked about in Hebrews 12. I found myself marveling that there
was a
single window left in the church. It did not seem that the wondrous
presence
of our Lord could be contained in that building. We started to sing
"Jesus,
Jesus" back to the Community but were stopped by S.P. because
one of the
Pilgrims wanted to sing a Cherokee chant to praise God. This was a
very
special moment that showed us that the love of God in Christ knows no
nationality and He truly seeks those from every corner of the earth.
After we started to sing again and the Community left, I found
myself
looking forward to the last worship experience from the Community
that day.
A young man from the Journeys Community (Emmaus for College age) did
a sign
language interpretation to the song "Only Imagine." He did
a wonderful job
with a quiet joy that blessed us all and set the stage for the prayer
time
that followed.
In the prayer time that followed, something rather unexpected
happened. Walk 111 began for me at Candlelight of Walk 103. B.B., the
L.D. of 103, prayed a prayer of commissioning over me. This was so
meaningful to me that I wanted to do the same for M.S. and E.C.,
the next two Lay Directors of men's Walks. I couldn't see in the
Sanctuary
to find M.S., but I found E.C. and asked if I could pray for him. He
looked at
me and asked for a favor. He observed that there were four present
and
former Lay Directors in the building. He asked if we could get
together and
pray a prayer of commissioning for he and M.S. I love it when God
does
that! We finally found M.S. on his knees at the altar and the four
of us
gathered with the two of them, we anointed them and had an incredible
time of
prayer with and for them as they go forward toward their respective
Walks.
The other 3 Lay Directors are all men that I treasure and look to as
mentors,
so this was a tremendously meaningful time for me as well. I saw
this as a
passage for myself as well although I don't know to what and where.
We returned to Hinton after a brief time of sharing and
singing. The
party was beautifully served up and I am grateful for the efforts of
the
"Silent Angels". It truly was a banquet and there was a huge sense of
peace
that was the overriding the room to complete this day. The final
time for me
was a good time of fellowship with my Board Rep, L.R. I was
doing
most of the talking (I know you are shocked), but I appreciate his
gentle
wisdom that is always an encouragement to me and this was a nice way
to end
the day.
If nothing else, I thank you for letting me ramble and get my
thoughts
in order from one of the greatest weekends of my life. These letters
are
bragging on God and the way that He worked in my life and the little
bit that
I was part of. They are also a thank you for your labors before our
Lord so
that He was glorified through the efforts of His Holy Spirit, as well
as His
children.
Sunday morning started around 5 o'clock with the revelation of
how I
wanted to start my Talk. To digress, those of you who have served
with me
previously know that I have always had my Talk done months in
advance. My
Talk this time, however, seemed to be the hardest to put on paper of
any way,
shape, or form. I gave a talk at the first Team Meeting, but it was
not even
close to being ready as I told the Team. The only visual I knew that
I
wanted to use was wearing all my previous badges as an example of
perseverance. I am grateful that there were servants available to
convert
all of my lanyards to pins, so that they wouldn't get tangled as they
had
during the practice talk. During the down time on Saturday I had
pinned all
of them to my sport coat like hash marks down the sleeve of a
uniform. I
just had no idea how I was going use it.
I started the day being concerned for R.D. I've
already shared
about his being there with 3 cracked ribs, and having been running
wide open
at his Table, I was worried for his health. After a great time in
the Prayer
Chapel, R.D. gave a Talk that was full of His power and authority. I
was
blessed to see the men seemingly ready to do whatever they had to do
to
Change Their World.
I wanted time away to prepare for my Talk and so I excused
myself
after the first one. I went and did my personal business in the room
to try
to get a handle on what I was going to say. After getting dressed,
the walls
started to close in and I realized that though I was still trying to
prepare,
I did not want to be alone. I went to the Commons Room where I knew
that
other believers would be. I didn't go into the Prayer Chapel because
I
didn't want to be a distraction for those who were going before. I
was able
to have a nice time of fellowship with one of you while I was
waiting, but I
still didn't have a clue about what I was going to say. The one
thing that
did become crystal clear to me is that I was going to do the Talk
barefoot.
I was convinced more than ever that I would be standing on Holy
Ground.
Upon entering the Prayer Chapel, I once again had the
wonderful
sensation that the presence of our Lord was there. I was thrilled
that L.R.
was there to anoint me to this special task. He asked me if I knew
yet, I
smiled at him and said, "Of course not!" While in prayer,
I felt someone
anoint my bare feet also, and I was touched by this. As I left to go
to the
Conference Room, I can honestly say that I knew that God was in
control and
my job for the rest of the time in there was to stand aside and watch
Him
work through me. The overriding theme of the Talk turned out to be
to "move
on." As I would describe what God did with me on each of the
Walks/Flights
at the end I would "move on" whether I wanted to or not.
As I would say
this, I would remove that badge. At the end of the Talk I did my
introduction by introducing myself, not by Walk number, but as a
member of
the Body of Christ.
I have a personal problem with applause after
the Talks
because I believe that these Talks are gifts from the givers, and you
don't
applaud a gift. I know that it is important for the Pilgrims to be
able to
express gratitude to the Speaker, so I've not ever made and issue of
this.
This is not a debate for this letter, but it is important for you to
understand my feelings to explain the last event of my Talk. I
wanted to
slip out of the Conference Room without the applause, so I asked E.
to play
"Blessed Assurance," and while the singing was going on, I
slipped out. I
was told of what happened after I left. The Conference Room ALD was
blessed
and asked that the song be sung again and the worship continue. I
can think
of no greater personal ending. There was celebrating in the Prayer
Chapel
again to Michael W. Smith's Worship CD.
I went back and changed, got my badges from the Conference
Room and
then reported back to the Prayer Chapel to pray up the last speaker.
We got
to see a special visual that should forever discourage hiding our
lights
under a basket. With the info packets coming out, I felt like I
needed to
stay. The next significant thing to watch was the giving out of the
letters.
There were two very powerful examples of the love of God that took
place
during this time. There was one Pilgrim that is unable to read or
write due
to dyslexia. One of the Team members could be seen sitting with this
Pilgrim
reading his letters to him since he could not himself. Not only was
I
grateful for this selfless act on the part of the Team member, but I
was
touched by the trust placed in the Team member to be confidential in
this
most private part of the Walk.
The other story I share with you, having been given permission
to do
so by the Pilgrim involved. He had been trying to attend the Walk
for at
least a year and had been unable to do so before then. He received a
love
note from his brother. The reason that this was so significant is
that his
brother died suddenly from a heart attack in December without the
Pilgrim
getting to say good-bye.
The Cross Service was another wonderful time to be able to say
"I love
you" and "Thank you." At the conclusion, we had a
last wonderful time of
worship as the small community before joining the larger one. We
lined up
and went into Closing.
Closing was indeed a celebration of Christ's working as only
He can.
The stories of His working were powerful and encouraging and I
believe that
everyone shared something. I was able to thank the Board for their
support
as well as the Team. I was able to complete a dream of more than ten
years
by representing the Walk Cross to S.P. I can truthfully
say that
this is what I wanted to do to thank and honor him for his ministry
to me as
well as his friendship ever since we were roommates on Walk 56.
The
final
chapter of this hit me between the eyes. After we were finished and
in the
interlude before the Communion portion, a former Lay Director, not on
the
Team, came up to me and told me that they wanted to give me one of
their
crosses since they had been a Lay Director more than once. This
touched me,
not because I wanted a cross to keep, but because God seemed to move
in my
heart to prove that I could not outgive Him. I am blessed for this
for the
friendship of the other person that is blessing enough even without
this
gesture.
I once again thank you for the complete support for me and
Walk 111.
I continue to be struck by the fact that most of you covenanted to
pray for a
Walk that we didn't even know when it would be. I have been
encouraged by
you all and I hope that this glimpse of what went on is a blessing to
you and
lets you see the fruits of your labors.
The Follow Ups were wonderful. This is a report on both of them, the final event of Walk 111. I was privileged to be able to attend both gatherings. Friday night's gathering was a wonderful time of worship that was the best attended of any that I have been to. There were around 60 people that collected at Rockwood to share and celebrate.
Most of the men had good weeks that continued on. There were some that had rough weeks also. I was especially touched with a Team member who shared about how God cleared the way for him to be able to serve in missions. Everyone there seemed to be thrilled to be together again and I was equally pleased to be with them. One thing that was notable to me, was that I had not said anything about the individual giving me a cross to replace the cross that I gave to S.P. I was approached by a second former Lay Director with a second cross to give me which I declined with thanks, by explaining that it had already been done. I marveled at this realizing that you cannot outgive God. We concluded with a wonderful Communion service that we finished with a prayer and singing the "Doxology."
I was thrilled when my Board Rep, L.R., asked if I wanted to get together with him to ride out to Andrews on Saturday. Not only did I relish the company, knowing that it was going to be a late night, but the one on one time with my brother was quite precious. It was great time to talk about what was ahead for us in relation to Emmaus, and it continued to remind me that it is over, only if I allow it to be.
We got to Andrews UMC and the time together with the Community was sweet. I had a chance to talk to one of you about the Walk and the wonder of the commitment that most of you made to Walk came rushing back. The service was very touching and I was quite blessed with the depth of sharing that took place. I will tell you that one of the high points was when one of the new Community members shared that after the Walk was completed, maybe Monday or Tuesday, he was convicted about his need to surrender to the Call to the Youth Ministry. One other new member shared that he went back to the few friends that he had before the Walk, he found less in common with them, and so he realized that his new friends were the kinds of friends that he needed to have.
One last story that I wish to share with you. God keeps showing me that I can't outgive Him. When I got to Reunion Group this morning, one of my brothers that has been a multiple Lay Director, started to present me with one of his crosses. I marveled at the great love that exists in this body and told the group about the cross that I had already received as well as the one offered. I thank our Lord for the great examples of giving that continue to characterize this example of the Body of Christ.
The last thing I wish to share with you is my everlasting thanks for standing with me for so long. I can honestly say that I don't think I ever thought of this as my Walk, only our Walk. I have been honored to be associated with a band of prayer warriors that are the most powerful Christians I know. It is hard to believe that after more than a year and a half, this task is done. The many victories that were won were every bit as much "jewels in your crowns" as anyone in the Conference Room. I can only conclude with what our Lord will one day say to us all, "Well done, good and faithful Servants. Enter into the joy of your Lord."
In His love,
Butch
LAUS DEO
