12/24/08

WELCOME BABIES

TWO NEW BABIES, in one stormy week!



We celebrate with Mike and Teresa, the arrival of Marcus Bradley Elenbaas, born December 16.


We celebrate with Ben and Laura, the birth of Amelia Josephine Lappenga, born December 22!  




All are doing well, and we look forward to meeting these new little ones very soon!  Thanks be to God for these new members of our spiritual family.




Posted by Emmaus Road at 12:47 PM
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The Emmaus Road Story


In the winter of 1997, we began as a small team of about 10 people, committed to gathering and growing a church that would connect with others like ourselves; people interested in connecting with God, in the person and work of Jesus Christ, but disconnected from the activity of many mainstream congregations. With the financial support of a larger church organization, our pastor was able to work full time with the team in planning, leadership development, and meeting people in the community.

Our first meetings were open discussion forums. We talked about prayer, scripture, spiritual discipline and the issues with which we all struggle. As friends talked to friends, the first group expanded and we multiplied into two.

Inspired by the journey process as a metaphor for spiritual growth, we searched for a name which would reflect that idea. In the resurrection narrative of Luke 24, we found our name "on the road to Emmaus."

After our first worship event on Good Friday of 1997, both groups began to gather together for worship once a month. In various coffee shops and rental spaces, we gradually increased our worship times to twice a month, and in September of 1998 we decided to gather every Sunday. Since the beginning, numerical growth has been gradual but steady, most often through the personal contact of friends talking to friends.

Today, several small groups continue to meet for open discussions on prayer, scripture, and the process of encountering God in daily life, and we all gather for worship each week.

Our leadership and ministry structure are driven by four core values:

• Cultivating habits which leave us open to encounter God
• Gathering together
• Helping others discover Jesus Christ
• Serving others with our time and resources

As a community, our mission is to change: from secular people into sacred, from pagans into followers of Christ, from selfish people into caring individuals, reaching out to others with the grace of God.

Our vision for the future is of growth, both spiritual and physical: growth in love and committment as followers of Christ, as friends and servants in our community growth in the number and diversity of people blessed through Emmaus Road.

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