New Life News – August 2008

(A monthly publication of the New Life Emmaus Community)

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Please forward items that you feel might be appropriate for this section to Rakbuck@flash.net . This month’s Food for Thought was sent in by Bill Bennett and is entitled “WET PANTS”

WET PANTS

Come with me to a third grade classroom...... There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened.  It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they'll never speak to him again as long as he lives.

The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, 'Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat.'

He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered.

As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy's lap.

The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, 'Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!'

Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else - Susie.

She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You've done enough, you klutz!'

Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, 'You did that on purpose, didn't you?' Susie whispers back, 'I wet my pants once too..'

May God help us see the opportunities that are always around us to do good...

Remember.....Just going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in your garage makes you a car..

NEXT GATHERING: The monthly New Life Gathering will take place at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, August 19th at Schertz United Methodist Church. Directions: Take I-35 north and get off at FM3009. Go right on FM 3009 (south). The church will be about two miles down on your left.

2008 GATHERING SCHEDULE:

August 19  Schertz UMC 3460 Roy Richard Dr (3009), Schertz, TX 78154  

September 16  New Hope UMC, 10155 Old Cimarron Tr, Converse, TX 78109 210-658-1220

October 21 Bethany UMC, 4102 Eisenhauer, SA, TX 78218 210-655-5473

November 18 St Andrew's UMC, 7222 Robinhood, S.A., TX 78209 210-824-2465

December (no gathering scheduled) 

January 20 Rolling Oaks Christian, 7150 Stahl Rd, SA, TX 78247 210-654-1744

If your church/community is interested in joining the New Life Emmaus community for Northeast San Antonio, please contact the Lay Leaders to be added to the 2008 listing.

LOCAL CHURCH GATHERINGS:

We are posting the day & date of local church gatherings in the newsletter to invite others to come. Please update this information by replying to this newsletter if your church changes/cancels your meeting.

Local Gatherings scheduled:

Alamo UMC: 2nd Sunday of every month, 12:15 pm, pot luck.
First UMC New Braunfels: 4th Tuesday of every month, 7 pm.
Northern Hills UMC: Last Monday of every month, 7 pm.
Schertz UMC: 1st Tuesday of every month, 7 pm.
St Andrew's UMC: Fridays, quarterly.

Universal City UMC: 1st Sunday, every even month 7 pm – Next Gathering will be in October.

2008 WALK SCHEDULE:

Walk# Dates Lay Director Site 

1468M Oct 16 – 19 Rick Bernhardt Mt Wesley

WALK 1468:

We have had our first team meeting and it went great.  We are showing 2 pilgrims on the board. I have heard from several people that we have several people signing up, and I want to remind everyone that we need these pilgrims signed up ASAP.   We need 20 pilgrims on board NLT 18 Sep 08. We will have our next team meeting Sept. 6th at NHUMC. Please keep Walk 1468 in your prayers.

Rick Bernhardt, Lay Director

WALK 1445 Reporting:

The New Life Emmaus Community has been a major reason why Walk 1445 was a success. One person from another community commented on their amazement of how much support was received from our community before and during the walk. My heartfelt appreciation goes to the Father in prayer for each one of you who blessed the Emmaus Walk through prayers, presence, gifts and service to God.

Although the pilgrims and team saw these letters of agape in the conference room, it is on my heart to share with you the abundance of love that poured out and covered us during this amazing walk.

Sharing the blessings of greeting and prayers, Emmaus women’s Walk 1445 received AGAPE love from:

KAIROS PRISON MINISTRY: Connally Unit in Kennedy, Bill Clements Unit in Amarillo, Boyd Unit, Jordan Unit in Pampa, Wallace Unit in Colorado City of Texas, Price Daniel Unit of Snyder, Texas, Kairos Outside in Midland, TX, Lynaugh Unit in Ft Stockton, TX, George Beto Unit of Tennessee Colory, TX, Murray Unit in Gatesville, TX, Neal Unit, Kairos Inside of Wichita Falls, TX, Statesville Kairos of Joliet, Illinois, Ventura Country Youth Facility of the California Epiphany Ministry, Coffield Kairos Outside of North Carolina, Kairos of Taylorsville, NC, Kairos of North Carolina, Kairos North Caroline Central Prison in Raleigh, NC, Kairos Buckingham Correctional Center of Dilwyn, Virginia.

FROM 39 COMMUNITIES IN TEXAS: including Emmaus, Koinonia, Tres Dias, and Chrysalis

FROM OTHER STATES: Illinois, Colorado, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, South Carolina, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin,

FROM AROUND THE WORLD: Far North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, Brisbane, Australia, Victoria, Australia, Western Sydney, Australia, Costa Rica, Queensland of Brisbane South, England, Northumberland, England, Hong Kong, Hungary, Norway, Puerto Rico, Kra Zulu-Natal South Africa, Cape of Good Hope, South Africa, Protea of Johannesburg, South Africa, Swiss Emmaus of Switzerland.

These people are letting Jesus live within them, reaching out praying hands to us. Emmaus is alive and well!

God’s presence was felt and heard, and certainly present within the hearts of many who contributed food and agape of many types, the most important was in prayer so that we ALL might come closer to our Father.

With an attitude of gratitude, and true AGAPE love,

Mary Robertson, Walk 1445 Lay Director

FROM THE LAY DIRECTOR: Updates to Team Service Needed

You may or may not have heard that New Life maintains a book of team applications for both Men and Women that the Team Selection Committee refers to when making team selections.  These books augment applications that are given to upcoming Lay Directors.  Our books were very outdated and difficult to use because they were so old.  If you would like to serve on an EMMAUS team, please fill out a new Team Service Form and turn it in to Barbara Becker or Jim Talbott at any of our meetings. Of course applications can still be given to specific Lay Directors as well.

Along these same lines we also maintain a list of potential Lay Directors for upcoming walks.  That book is also very outdated and in need of refreshment.  There is a Lay Director Application available on the conference web site and also the New Life web site for your convenience.  Even if you don't currently meet the requirements to be a lay director it is important to have an application on file with the board rep.  It sometimes takes over two years to become selected as a Lay Director and by submitting your application, the New Life Board knows you are interested, and the New Life Team Selection Committee can help any individual complete the prerequisites to be a Lay Director.  

Remember, EMMAUS is largely dependent on service, and we count on people stepping up to fill these very important and rewarding positions.  Planning for each walk begins more than a year in advance, so please update your Team Service forms and/or submit a Lay Director application if you are so inclined.  We currently have a Lay Director for our New Life June 2009 Women's Walk but we need a Lay Director for the Men's October 2009 Walk.  Discussions are already in progress for walks beyond those two.  Please prayerfully consider what you can do to serve God and our New Life EMMAUS Fourth Day Group.  

If you look at your cross it says "I am counting on Christ" and the reply is "Christ is counting on me".  We must all work together as a part of the body of Christ and to be good disciples for EMMAUS to continue.

DeColores
Jim Talbott
New Life Lay Director      

EVERYDAY-USE TIP OF THE MONTH: Even if you don't have a dog, this is good information to be aware of.

Subject: Warning to all dog owners (This was checked this out on Snopes & it is true. Here is the link to further information: http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/xylitol.asp

Last Friday evening, I arrived home from work, fed Chloe, our 24Lb. dachshund, just as I normally do. Ten minutes later I walked into the den just in time to see her head inside the pocket of Katie's friend's purse. She had a guilty look on her face so I looked closer and saw a small package of sugar-free gum. It contained xylitol.

I remembered that I had recently read that sugar-free gum can be deadly for dogs so I jumped on line and looked to see if xylitol was the ingredient. I found the first web site below and it was the one. Next, I called our vet. She said to bring her in immediately. Unfortunately, it was still rush hour and it took me almost 1/2 hour to get there.

Meanwhile, since this was her first case, our vet found another website to figure out the treatment. She took Chloe and said they would induce her to vomit, give her a charcoal drink to absorb the toxin (even though they don't think it works) then they would start an IV with dextrose. The xylitol causes dogs to secrete insulin so their blood sugar drops very quickly. The second thing that happens is liver failure. If that happens, even with aggressive treatment, it can be difficult to save them. She told us she would call us. Almost two hours later, the vet called and said that contents of her stomach contained 2-3 gum wrappers and that her blood sugar had dropped from 90 to 59 in 30 minutes. She wanted us to take Chloe to another hospital that has a critical care unit operating around the clock. We picked her up and took her there. They had us call the ASPCA poison control for a case number and for a donation; their doctors would direct Chloe's doctor on treatment. They would continue the IV, monitor her blood every other hour and then in 2 days test her liver function. She

ended up with a central line in her jugular vein since the one in her leg collapsed, just as our regular vet had feared.

Chloe spent almost the entire weekend in the critical care hospital. After her blood sugar was stabilized, she came home yesterday. They ran all the tests again before they released her and so far, no sign of liver damage. Had I not seen her head in the purse, she probably would have died and we wouldn't even had known why.

Three vets told me this weekend, that they were amazed that I even knew about it since they are first learning about it too. Please tell everyone you know about xylitol and dogs. It may save another life.

PUN OF THE MONTHJJJ: Courtesy of Neil Bys

A dyslexic man walks into a bra. (Go ahead and laugh, its better than cryingJ)

WORTHY OF YOUR CONSIDERATION:

I want to share with you some information about Men of Light and ask for your support and help in getting the information out and signing up men from your churches to attend their upcoming event on September 19th and 20th 2008.

Purpose: The primary purpose of Men of Light is to enliven men in the Christian faith to walk according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and live into the calling of a Christian man.

Mission Statement: The mission of Men of Light is to empower men to accept their calling to be the leaders God intended them to be in their homes, the community and the world.

Goals:

• Bring men to Christ.
• Bring men into community with each other, living into a full relationship with Jesus Christ, obeying God’s will for their lives.
• Men living into their roles as Godly men.
• Developing leaders for Christ’s Kingdom.
• Establish small men’s groups in local churches through Men of Light’s 4Q4L ministry, providing leader training, web based organization/communication tools and curriculum where needed.

Upcoming Conference Information:

“Taking Hold”
South Texas Men’s Conference
September 19th-20th, 2008
Community Bible Church
2477 N Loop 1604 East
San Antonio, Texas

Friday, Sept 19th – Check –In begins at 5:30.  Conference time is 6:00 P.M.-10:00 P.M.
Saturday, Sept. 20th – Conference time is 8:30 A.M. – Noon.

Topics Include:

The Reality Men Face
Moving Beyond the Past
Taking Hold of Your Purpose
Staking Claim to What’s Right

Speakers Include:

Pastor Steve Coker
Ken Freeman
Pastor Robert Emmitt
Pastor Rander Draper
Coach Jim Rackley
Jon Sheptock

Cost:
Tickets on-line are $30.   Discounts available for groups of 25 or more. $39 at the door.  I have a sign-up sheet.

I appreciate your help and support in getting this information the widest possible dissemination.   Please let me know if you have any questions.  The Men of Light website is at: http://www.menoflight.org/ .   I also have a 5 minute DVD with excerpts from their conference in May.  In addition, Pastor Steve Coker is available to speak with groups concerning Men of Light.


Charlie Farrell
210-215-9378
sweetspot@earthlink.net

PRAYER REQUESTS: In order to provide timely response in this area, we request that you forward any prayer requests that you have by “reply” to this letter. Those requests will be sent out VIA immediate distribution to all members of the New Life e-mail chain. Please be in prayer for Cliff Crowell and his family of UCUMC. Cliff started having seizures last week and was admitted to the hospital. Thus far they have been unable to determine the cause of the seizures. Please be in prayer for Skip Little and family of UCUMC in the passing of his daughter Karen Deflice on Monday the 11^th. Karen passed from this earth with complications from cancer at age 51.

PRAYER VIGILS: If you are a Prayer Vigil coordinator for your local church, don’t hesitate to reply to this email if you are having trouble filling your requests. We’ll put out an e-mail alert and get them filled ASAP. If you have questions contact Joanne Lawrence at Granny9001@hotmail.com .

NEW LIFE WEB SITE: Check it out at http://www.gbgm-umc.org/newlife-sanantonio .

CLOSING THOUGHTS: “THE LAWS OF ULTIMATE REALITY” sent in by Neil Bys.

Law of Mechanical Repair - After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch and you'll have to pee.

Law of Gravity - Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

Law of Probability - The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

Law of Random Numbers - If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.

Law of the Alibi - If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

Variation Law  - If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time).

Law of the Bath - When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Close Encounters - The probability of meeting someone you know increases dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

Law of the Result - When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics - The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

Law of the Theater - At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

The Starbucks Law - As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Murphy's Law of Lockers - If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

Law of Physical Surfaces - The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

Law of Logical Argument - Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

Brown's Law of Physical Appearance - If the shoe fits, it's ugly.

Oliver's Law of Public Speaking - A closed mouth gathers no feet.

Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy - As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it.

Doctors' Law - If you don't feel well, make an appointment to go to the doctor, by the time you get there you'll feel better. Don't make an appointment and you'll stay sick.