Kairos 21 Weekend: May 28-31, 2004
"And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever" Ps 23:6
On-Line Team Application!
Church Bulletin Insert (Word, 26K) 
Kairos 21 Weekend: May 28-31, 2004 "And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever" Ps 23:6 |
On-Line Team Application! |
The Rector for our next weekend will be . Please keep him, and our Lompoc Kairos Council, in your prayers.
Starting times changed to 8:00 AM
, Rector, Kairos #21 (805-650-9878)
, Chair, Lompoc Kairos Council (805-964-8265)
Memorial Day Weekend 2004, May 28-31, will be the next Kairos Prison Ministry weekend. After the commissioning service at 4 p.m., we will enter the United States Penitentiary in Lompoc . For the ensuing 4 evenings and 3 days the team will facilitate encountering Self, encountering God, and encountering Others.
We are looking for a few good men to be members of the team. If you have “made” a Cursillo, Walk to Emmaus or comparable Spiritual Renewal Weekend, you are eligible to be a team member. Sleeping facilities and meals are provided to team members. I guarantee (money back) you will have a memorable weekend.
The first team meeting is April 3, 2004 , at Christ the King Episcopal Church, 5073 Hollister, Santa Barbara , Room 41. The meeting tries to start around 8:30 … but usually the donuts and coffee time extends to 9:00 +/-. (Especially if Gert brings the donuts and Scott brings the coffee.) This initial meeting is a very special time for new members and those who have “re-up'd.” Gert Walter will be the Advising Rector, Eric Ortega the Rector and Dick Tiff the Observing Rector.
Guests, particularly spouses, are invited to the Closura on Monday evening May 31 and need to be at the facility by 5 p.m. (Attendance is by application only fill out an NCIC form and send it to contact , 683-6380.)
If team membership is not an option, we need prayer warriors to cover the weekend in prayer from 4 pm Friday May 28 to 10 pm Monday May 31. We also need letters written to the candidates, as well as the coloring of theme posters (shields) and chocolate chip cookies. In sum, there are several ways in which you can support this ministry:
My dear brothers,
May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. The new year has arrived and we have another opportunity to serve our Lord Jesus in the most incredible way. In Matthew, 25:35-36, it is written how to love one another no matter the circumstances set before us. I find myself dealing with most of this chapter every day at home. "Daddy, I'm hungry; Daddy, I'm thirsty; Daddy, I'm scared, I don't know anybody there; Daddy, I'm cold, can you get me my jacket?; Daddy, I don't feel good, can you hold me?" God our Father, loves us. He created us. He is asking us to love all of his children, no matter the path they have taken. The children He is calling us to visit are in prison. Matthew 25:36 says, "I was in prison and you visited me." We have all felt imprisoned in one way or another, and we can remember how we felt. We can all understand that it hurts to be separated from the ones we love. It hurts to be separated from God's love as we try to control our own lives instead of depending on Him. Fortunately, God's grace has freed us from this prison. As a result of His grace, we are called to love and visit our brothers in prison. Matthew 25:40 says, "The King will answer them: 'I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me.'"
We are all called to serve in our own special way. God has a plan for us with blessings that will change our lives and strengthen our relationship with Him. For those of us who have had the opportunity to serve on a Kairos weekend we often have difficulty explaining to someone in words how awesome the weekends are. The miracles we see, the healing, forgiveness and the harmony we have in the presence of God. The power of the Holy Spirit has shown us more about ourselves than we could ever imagine. Our God is calling us as we are, with the pain and struggles of our past, our daily challenges and failures, our accomplishments, our joy and blessings. All this will be used to the glory of God.
God is so loving and He has revealed to me that He has been in control of this Kairos 21 weekend since December 2002. As I started to pray and think about the weekend, the scripture that was on my heart started to show up all around me. I was concerned that this was my thinking, and not what God wanted. Early, one morning, I found myself awake and praying for God's guidance. I didn't want to get in His way, but wanted to be sure the weekend was all about Him. In quiet deep meditation I heard a gentle loving voice say, "...and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." As Christians, God's children, this is our greatest reward. At that moment I knew the scripture on my heart was from God. My prayers were answered.
I encourage you to spend some time in prayer, asking God for His guidance God is in control all the time. Where is He calling you to serve? What miracles does He want you to see? What blessings does He have in store for you?
, Rector, Kairos #21 (805-650-9878)
My dear Brothers,
As we prepare for our first team meeting, please take some time this week to
pray for the team and look at the following scripture. How will Jesus talk
to us.
John 4:7-12
God's Love and Ours
Beloved, let us love one another because love is of God;
everyone who loves is begotten of God and has knowledge of God.
The man without love has known nothing of God, for God is love.
God's love was revealed in our midst in this way: he sent his only Son
to the world that we might have life through him. Love, then, consists in this:
not that we have loved God but that he has loved us and has sent his
Son as an offering for our sins. Beloved, if God has loved us so, we must
have the same love for one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet if we
love one another God dwells in us, and his love is brought to perfection
in us.
And
Matthew 10:28-32
Do not fear those who deprive the body of life but cannot destroy the
soul.
Rather, fear him who can destroy both body and soul in Gehenna. Are not
two sparrows sold for next to nothing? Yet not a single sparrow falls to
the ground without your Father's consent. As for you, every hair of your
head has been counted; so do not be afraid of anything. You are worth more
than an entire flock of sparrows. Whoever acknowledges me before men I
will acknowledge before my Father in heaven.
I have been praying for everyone of you at mass every morning. God will show
us
beautiful, wonderful things.
God's love to you.
Eric
Brothers,
As we spiritually prepare for our second team meeting, please read and meditate
on this scripture.
Hebrews 10: 24-25
We must consider how to rouse each other to love and good deeds.
We should not absent ourselves from the assembly, as some do, but encourage
one another; and this all the more because you see that the Day draws near.
God's love to you,
Eric
May the peace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
As we prepare for our 3rd team meeting, please take some time in prayer and
meditation this week.
The topic for this scripture is Humility. In all that we do on the weekend we need to remember this. Does it glorify God? Does it bring the resident closer to Christ? Or is it negative. Does it glorify the team? Remember the candidates for the weekend come first. Lets be the face of Jesus. We need to leave our egos at home.
Luke 14:10
What you should do when you have been invited is go and
sit in the lowest place, so that when your host approaches you he will say, "My friend, come
up higher." This will win you the esteem of your fellow guests.
Second Scripture:
Romans 7:24
What a wretched man I am! Who can free me from this body under the power of
death? All praise to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! So with my mind
I serve the law of God but with my flesh the law of sin.
Our 3rd team meeting will be at Christ the King in Santa Barbara. We will be starting at 8:00 am. Please have your talks ready for critiquing.
Have a great week and continue to pray for all the candidates, team and their families.
God's love to you,
Eric
Loving Brothers,
Our fourth and final team meeting is almost here. Take some time this week
reading
Colossians 3: 12-15
You are the people of God; he loved you and chose you for his own. So then,
you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness,
and patience. Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever
any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another
just as the Lord has forgiven you. And to all these qualities add love, which
binds all things together in perfect unity. The peace that Christ gives is
to guide you in the decisions you make; for it is to this peace that God
has called you together in the one body and be thankful.
Revised 5/8/04