Pastors Update

February 3, 2012

Greetings! 

 

A defining moment in my spiritual life was a 72-hour weekend known as The Walk to Emmaus. The Walk is not a retreat, rather it is a spiritual renewal program intended to strengthen the local church through the development of Christian disciples and leaders. The Walk models and encourages Christ's disciples to live out the example Jesus gave us of being a "servant to all."
 

I like to call The Walk a crash course in Christianity. There are 15 talks given over the course of 72-hours. Some given by lay and some by clergy. Yes, I know what you are thinking, "How boring!!" Trust me the experience will change your life. Besides these 15 talks, The Walk is wrapped in prayer and meditation, special times of worship and a daily celebration of the Eucharist. 

 

The Walk to Emmaus program finds its roots in the Gospel of Luke. The story tells us of two unnamed disciples on the road to the village of Emmaus. They were discussing the recent turn of events, when a stranger joined them on their walk. The stranger began to explain that as bad as things might appear to be, the events had to happen just the way they did. When the disciples reached their destination, they invited the stranger to dinner. As He broke the bread, "their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight."

 

How strange, these were people who KNEW Jesus; they walked with Him and knew the Scriptures.  And they didn't believe it?  They didn't see Him? But are we really any different? We experience times when we get so wrapped up in the busyness of life, that we fail to recognize Jesus. There are times when we are so consumed by the stress, frustrations and worries that surround us, we miss seeing Jesus. We read the Bible but we don't always remember the love story that God is weaving throughout the pages. 

 

The Walk to Emmaus helps to slow us down long enough so that we can see Jesus; so that we can recognize the Christ among us. It is 72 hours that can change your life. If you are interested in attending The Walk to Emmaus, send me an email. In the next few weeks, we will have a gathering so that you can hear from people at Parkway who have been on The Walk. 

 
 

See you Sunday!!

 

Take care and God bless....

 
 

Breath peace,