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The Walk to Emmaus

"Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus.  While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them...their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.  They said to each other, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?' "

The Gospel of Luke 24:13, 15, 31-32

DeColores HNEC Community.  My name is Doug Spitz and I attended HNEC Walk #12 at Kickapoo and sat at the Table of the Followers.  I will humbly be serving as the Community Chairperson for 2021.  First, I would like to say, 2020 has come and gone and while we were unable to hold walks in 2020, it has been a year of prayers, planning, pivoting, punting; however, you describe it, it has been a year.  Secondly, as we open 2021, for sure the first 2 items, praying and planning, are high on the agenda for our Community and the newly assembled HNEC Board.  At this time, I wish to recognize those newly elected Board Members and those Board Members who are rolling off this year:

New to the Board:  Laura McMeans, Susan Barcus, Mickey Schindewolf, Chris Schreiber, J.D. Wallace, and Wayne Roche.  Thank you for agreeing to serve and I am confident the skills, dedication, personality, servants’ heart, and ideas you bring will be of great value to the Board and the entire Community.

Rolling Off the Board:  Salana Yarger, Tammie Walterbach, Terri Amos, Tom Wannamaker, LeRoy Fronk, and Wayne Parcel.  Thank you so much for the time, energy, passions, labors, and friendship which helped the Board and our Community with some tough decisions but at the same time brought growth in Spirit, outreach to new pilgrims and sponsors and churches, and helped secure the Emmaus tradition as true service to our Lord and a call of being His hands and feet.

I would also like to encourage all 4^th Day to continue to pray and to talk about Emmaus and the power it can have to renew spirits, build church leaders, demonstrate God’s grace and mercy, share Agape love, etc.  The Board is committed to getting back to having walks in 2021, just as soon as they can be done safely and, in a way so as not to lessen the experience for the Pilgrims, Team, and all involved.  So, reach out and ask friends and family about attending an Emmaus Walk, we could possibly have waiting lists to help ensure full Walks for the year.

As for upcoming 2021 Walks, we have published the Walk Dates on our web site.  Over the last few months, the Board has been diligently working on Covid related procedures and protocols which may need to be implemented.  Discussions are also ongoing about the effect on “the Emmaus experience” should we need to implement these P & P’s.  Please continue to check here for the most up to date status of the walks.  Happily, Walk leadership remains the same going into 2021 so please add these folks to your prayer list in support of their ongoing efforts in Walk development.  In addition, many who agreed to serve on the 2020 Walks will remain with the same leadership team in 2021.  But there are opportunities to stand in the gap and fill a few remaining positions in the upcoming year Walk teams.  If you are contacted to serve on a walk, please pray about, and give serious consideration to serving.  As most folks will tell you, serving deepens the Emmaus blessing and joy of serving.

Lastly, if you are interested in helping the Board by serving on a committee that oversees certain Walk activities, the board welcomes volunteers.  Take a moment to go to the list of the current Board of Directors, look up the area that you feel passionate about, and reach out to the person leading that area on the Board.  The HNEC Community continues to be a great place to serve and further expand your spiritual growth.  Start planning for 2021 so we can utilize the talents the Lord has blessed us all with.

DeColores!
Doug Spitz, HNEC Community Chairperson