Walking to Emmaus

This fall I will be honored to serve one of the Emmaus communities here in Colorado as the Lay Director of the Walk to Emmaus. This Columbine Emmaus Community women’s walk will take place on October 8-11, 2009 at Camp Id-Ra-Ha-Je near Bailey, Colorado. (The men’s walk is October 1-4 at the same camp.)

I am humbled at the thought of being chosen for this opportunity to serve God and my brothers and sisters in Christ through leadership. Praise God, I don’t have to do it alone; there will be around 40 other Emmaus alumni from the community who will serve alongside me on this spiritual journey. A few familiar names to some of you are Pastor Thomas Cross, Pastor Patti Thomas, Colleen Peketz, Sara Cline Holley, Karin Schmidt, Priya Nye and several others will be on the team as well.

The Walk to Emmaus is a lay led, three-day event unlike any other retreat you have attended. The Walk to Emmaus gets its name from the story in Luke 24:13-35, which provides the central image for the three-day experience and follow-up. Luke tells the story of that first Easter afternoon when the risen Christ appeared to the two disciples who were walking together along the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They did not recognize who he was until he later revealed himself to them and then ascended into Heaven.

The Walk to Emmaus offers today's disciples a parallel opportunity to rediscover Christ's presence in their lives, to gain fresh understanding of God's transforming grace, and to form friendships that foster faith and support spiritual maturity. While Emmaus provides a pathway to the mountaintop of God's love, it also supports your return to the world in the power of the Spirit to share the love they have received.

This Christian event is very special to me and sharing three days with other women in the presence of the Holy Spirit is an amazing experience. If you have an interest in attending a spiritual walk on one of these weekends let me know, or visit either http://www.columbineemmauscommunity.org/ or http://www.northcoloemmaus.org/ for more information.

My life changed in so many ways since my walk in 1998; not only did I become active in a small group that my husband and I continue to participate in but I also began working here at Broomfield United Methodist church where I celebrated my 10th anniversary earlier this year!! I have served the Emmaus community in numerous ways and am so blessed by God each time I serve as the hands and feet of Christ! I would love to use this forum to hear from other Emmaus alumni about your experience and your story since your “walk.”

-Linda Schmidt