New Life News – September 2009

(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 Lynda Martinez and is titled “Embracing Imperfection” 

 

 "When I was a little girl, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his toast, smile at my mom, and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that toast and eat every bite!

 

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the toast. And I'll never forget what he said: 'Baby, I love burned toast.'

 

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if He really liked his toast burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, 'Debbie, your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides-a little burnt toast never hurt anyone!' You know, life is full of imperfect things.....and imperfect people. I'm not the best housekeeper or cook.

 

What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults - and choosing to celebrate each other's differences - is the one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

 

And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of GOD. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where burnt toast isn't a deal-breaker! We could extend this to any relationship in fact - as understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!! "

 

"Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket but into your own."

 

 

NEXT GATHERING : The September gathering will take place this coming Tuesday at 7:00 pm, September 15th at New Hope UMC.  Directions: Take 1604 and exit in Universal City at Kitty Hawk.  Proceed west on Kitty Hawk and turn left at Kitty Hawk Middle School.  The church will be about one mile down on the right.  Join us as we consecrate the team for Men’s Walk 1524.

 

 

2009 GATHERING SCHEDULE :

 

September 15              New Hope UMC, 10155 Old Cimarron Tr, Converse, TX 78109 210-658-1220

October 20                  Bethany UMC, 4102 Eisenhauer, SA, TX 78218 210-655-5473

November 17              St Andrew's UMC, 7222 Robinhood, S.A., TX 78209 210-824-2465

December                    (no gathering scheduled) 

January 19, 2010         Rolling Oaks Christian DOC, 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 2009 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, 6:45 pm. 
St Andrew's UMC: Sunday Sept. 27 immediately after the 10:50 service.

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

 

2009 WALK SCHEDULE :

 

Walk#              Dates                           Lay Director                Site 

 

1524                October 8 – 11                        Joe Amend                  Mt Wesley

 

WALK 1524 UPDATE :

 

Preparations for Walk #1524 are in full swing:  two Team Meetings have been held; the final two will be held in September.  The Team is diligently preparing for ‘the best Walk ever’.  A special thanks to the local Emmaus Communities who have graciously provided (and still will provide) the lunches for the Team Meetings.  Currently, we have 12 Pilgrims signed up – we need everyone’s help to identify and sign up more Pilgrims – we need 20 confirmed Pilgrims by the ‘go-no go’ date for the Walk - September 24th.  The Walk Agape list will be available at the September 15th Gathering.  Signing up will greatly help out with the Agape (and materials) needed for the Walk.  Please sign up as you can – and are lead.  We are still collecting empty paper towel rolls; we need at least 70 to use as placemat storage holders.  The Team Consecration will also be held at the September Gathering.  As a reminder, Walk #1524 will be held at Mount Wesley October 8-11.  Hope to see you at Candlelight and Closing.  Remember, we still need Pilgrims ...  De Colores!

 

Joe Amend <><

Lay Director, Walk #1524

 

 

FROM THE LAY DIRECTOR :

 

The team for Walk 1524 has met and a lot of preparations have been made for the pilgrims of Walk 1524.  The team for Walk 1524 will be consecrated at the September New Life Gathering at New Hope UMC in Converse at 7:00 PM.  Please try to attend this gathering to show support for the Team and we also need your help starting right now with sponsoring Pilgrims.  As of September 7, there are 12 confirmed Pilgrims and that is not enough.  

 

Sometimes a part of having a servant's heart involves an active search for people that have not been on a walk. Many times people are shy or don't know how to get started in the registration process.  That is where we, as faithful servants, can make all the difference in the world.  Don't be afraid to ask someone, even it you don't know them or don't know them well.  If you see someone at church that you think has the potential to be a leader in the church or various activities at church please do them a favor and let them know about EMMAUS, volunteer to find them a sponsor, or better yet volunteer to be their sponsor and get them registered now for men's Walk 1524.  


This walk will be held at Mt Wesley, October 8-11.  There is no better time to spend some personal time with our Lord and Savior at a beautiful location and the weather should be great.

Jim Talbott
New Life Lay Director

 

 

FROM THE SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR :

 

Notes from an Emmaus Journey

 

Hello, Love!

 

  "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'

 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.

   For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?  - Jesus, in Matthew 5:43-47 (New Revised Standard Version)

 

   “You’re familiar with the old written Law, ‘Love your friend’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy’.  I’m challenging that.  I’m telling you to love your enemies.  Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst.  When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. 

   This is what God does.  He gives his best - the sun to warm and the rain to nourish - to everyone, regardless:  the good and the bad, the nice and the nasty.  If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus?  Anybody can do that.  If you simply say ‘hello’ to those who greet you, do you expect a medal?  Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.”

                                                            - Jesus, in Matthew 5: 43-47 (The Message Version)

 

******************************************

 

I was buying potatoes, minding my own business.  “Hello, love!” came the cheerful voice next to me.  Knowing the young man couldn’t possibly be talking to me, I continued with the potatoes.  I’d say I studied those spuds more intently than I’d have thought possible.  I wondered: did this store have security?  “Hello, love!”  I moved over to study the onions.  “Hello, love!” 

 

I began to step over to the mushrooms and finally looked up into the kind eyes of an older gentleman, who shrugged as he said, “I’m sorry.  This is my son, Benny.  He doesn’t mean anything.  He’s autistic.”  It was only then that I looked at Benny, only then I saw the disarming friendliness in this young man’s eyes.  As Benny chose vegetables for his dad, I learned his story.

 

Benny’s dad told me that he’d been diagnosed when he was three, and never spoke until he met a parrot one day in a pet store.  The parrot greeted Benny with - you guessed it - “Hello, love!”  That became Benny’s only spoken words, and he used them often.  His dad explained that many autistic people ‘fixate’ on certain words or actions and use them often to help them feel comfortable or to express themselves.

 

Benny’s dad went on to describe the incredible persecution Benny faced in junior high school and the incredible joy when he discovered writing through the computer and educational therapy.  The pride he had in his son simply shone in his eyes as he told me about the time they’d discovered that Benny had almost genius-level intelligence.  He thanked me for not saying anything hurtful, for not running away from his son.  Little did he know how close I came to doing just that.

 

A year or so later, I ran into Benny’s dad in the store again and asked how he was doing.  “Didn’t you hear?” he asked me.  I hadn’t.  He told me.  It happened when Benny was walking home from the bus stop through a park near his home, just one week before he would have graduated from high school - with honors.  Benny met a group of teens, and greeted them with his usual “Hello, love!”  They berated him. He replied, “Hello, love!”  The meaner they got, and the more scared Benny became, the more he repeated the only thing he could verbalize.  As they beat him unconscious because they thought he was gay (or something), “Hello, love!” was all he could say.

 

Taken to the hospital trauma unit, then to intensive care with very little hope of recovery, his family gathered around his bed.  Days went by, and he went further downhill, closer and closer to death.  His dad told me it was the most amazing thing he’d ever seen.  Benny just opened his eyes, sat up, looked at a point in the room, and said - clear as day - “Hello, love!”  Then he lay down, and in less than five minutes he died.  His dad said that he knew for a fact that Benny wasn’t talking to any person in that room.  Benny’s face glowed with happiness like he’d never seen before.  He was convinced that Benny was talking to God.

 

************************************************

 

“Hello, love!”

That’s how God greets each of us every morning.

“Hello, love!”

Good or bad, nice or nasty.

‘Hello, love!”

 

God never gives up hope for our relationships - with God, and with each other.

Jesus is pointing out the fact that we’re made in God’s own image, and He’s challenging us to act like it!

It wasn’t easy for Benny.  It’s not easy for us either.

 

Is Jesus saying we should let people abuse us?  I don’t think so.  Here’s what I think He IS saying:

   1. Respond with the energy of prayer.

   2. Let them bring out the best in you (not the worst).

   3. Work out of your image-of-God self - your true self.

 

**************************************************

 

I got to know Jim (Benny’s dad) well enough that he asked me to go with him the day the first of the teens was to be sentenced.  The judge asked for a victim impact statement from Jim.  He rose to his feet.  The courtroom was so silent we could hear each other breathing.  Jim said that since Benny couldn’t speak for himself any more, he would speak for him.  Then he closed his eyes, brought his hands together in prayer, and said, “Hello, love!”  Jim opened his eyes, looked the defendant straight in the eye, and declared, “Hello, love!”  With that, he left the courtroom, tears streaming down his face.

 

**************************************************

 

Did Jim want vengeance?  He’d probably be the first to tell you ‘yes’.  Would Benny?  Again, he’d probably be the first to tell you…’no’.

 

As hard as it is for most of us to fathom (or perhaps even stomach), God greets each and every one of us daily with eternal hope.

 

God reaches to our depths (no matter how deep they are) with rock-solid, universe-wide redeeming power.  We choose how we will respond.  That freedom is a gift from God.

 

So close your eyes.  Right here.  Right now.  Can’t you just hear God greeting you?

 

“Hello, love!”

How will you respond?

 

De Colores!

 

Rev. Al Adams

New Life Co-Spiritual Director

 

 

NEW LIFE WEB MASTER NEEDED:

 

We are still in need of a computer savvy person to assume responsibilities as New Life WEB Master.  Our current Webmaster Richard Weers has decided to relinquish his Webmaster credentials after several years on the job.  Thanks Richard for your faithful service.  If you have experience handling website management or would like to learn please respond to this email and we’ll fill you in on what the job entails.

 

 

PUN OF THE MONTHJJJ :   Courtesy of Neil Bys 


Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet.  He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath.  This made him ..(Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good).....  A super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.

 

 

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 pray for the family of Hazel Scott.  Hazel went home to be with her Lord this past Sunday.  A memorial service will take place this coming Monday at 10:00pm at Universal City UMC,

 

 

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 :  Sent in by Neil Bys

 

The Bible and the Diamond ring

 

A married lady was expecting a birthday gift from her husband.  For many months she had admired a beautiful diamond ring in a showroom, and knowing her husband could afford it, she told him that was all she wanted.  As her birthday approached, this lady awaited signs that her husband had purchased the diamond ring.

 

Finally, on the morning of her birthday, her husband called her into his study.   Her husband told her how proud he was to have such a good wife, and told her how much he loved her.  He handed her a beautiful wrapped gift box.

 

Curious, the wife opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the wife's name embossed in gold.  Angrily, she raised her voice to her husband and said, 'With all your money you give me a Bible?' And stormed out of the house, leaving her husband.

 

Many years passed and the lady was very successful in business. She managed to settle for a more beautiful house and a wonderful family, but realized her ex-husband was very old, and thought perhaps she should go to visit him. She had not seen him for many years.  But before she could make arrangements, she received a telegram telling her that her ex-husband had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to her. She needed to come back immediately and take care of things.

 

When she arrived at her ex-husband's house, sudden sadness and regret filled her heart. She began to search through her ex-husband's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as she had left it years before.

 

With tears, she opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. Her ex-husband had carefully underlined a verse,

 

Matt 7:11, “And if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father, who is in heaven, give what is good to those who ask Him?'

 

As she read those words, a tiny package dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a diamond ring, with her name engraved on it -- the same diamond ring that she saw at the showroom.  On the tag was the date of her birth, and the words 'LUV U ALWAYS'.

 

How many times do we miss God's blessings, because they are not packaged as we expected? I trust you enjoyed this. Pass it on to others.

 

Do not spoil what you have, by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.

 

IF YOUR GIFT IS NOT PACKAGED THE WAY YOU WANT IT, IT'S BECAUSE IT IS BETTER PACKAGED THE WAY IT IS. ALWAYS APPRECIATE LITTLE THINGS; THEY USUALLY LEAD YOU TO BIGGER & BETTER THINGS.

 

'The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.