PASSING THE BATON
For any of you who have participated in relay races, one of the most critical elements for a successful race is managing to pass the baton to the next racer. We are nearing that point with our Emmaus community where we will be passing the baton for next year. At North Mississippi Emmaus, we have a long history and we are having many of our early “pioneers” reaching out to pass their batons to our next set of racers. By year end we will have had 332 races that have all declared our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, as the winner each and every time. As 2019 approaches, are we willing to reach for the baton as we are asked to serve this ministry that has brought the Light of Christ in so many lives? Are we willing to ask others to join the race through sponsorship? God’s grace will always help us to say “yes”.
Our final two Walks for 2018 are coming up in October. Walk # 331, led by Jason McBride, and Walk # 332, led by Jeny Odom will begin on October 4th, and October 11th, respectively. Please pray earnestly for these teams and the pilgrims that God will be sending our way. Also, we will be announcing our next set of officers and our new Community Spiritual Director at the Gathering on October 18th, which will coincide with our Annual Meeting. Your Board has many exciting and important issues that they are working on for 2019, and they certainly covet your prayers and support.
We will be having our Lay Director training, Board training, and Clergy training on October 26th and 27th. It will be a busy and informative time for next year’s leadership. Part of our goal during the 2019 year is to bring our communication efforts to the community in multiple ways, and we hope as many as possible can be kept up to date with all the activities that occur during the year. The sponsorship emphasis that we began during the year is apparently helping us to fill the Walks, and hopefully we can continue that trend. The camp is in wonderful condition thanks to the tireless efforts of Rick and Bev Shepherd and we are grateful to the Christian Camp Board for their oversight in keeping our facilities in a safe and clean manner.
As a departing note, it has been a true blessing and privilege to work along with a Board who has a servant’s heart. They have been faithful in spending many hours helping us to make our Emmaus community keep the focus on Jesus, while providing wonderful weekend experiences for many of our Pilgrims during the year. Please help us thank Amanda Clark, Ann Hudson, Vickie Jennings, and Charlie Simmons as they step aside from their three years of service as your Board members. We also have had great Community Spiritual Director leadership from Billy Ray Stonestreet who has served for the past two years. They have all made it much easier for us to grab the baton!
Blessing to all! DeColores!
Bill West
Board Chairman
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