Our Church Expansion Project

Our hard working members, many who are in the trades, are braving the cold temperatures in order to provide our people with some extra needed space for fellowship. The addition is being built at the back of the building. Pictures courtesy of Providence's website. These shots were taken at the tail end of 2010, so these just represent the early stages of the work. More has been done, like the basement walls. I hope to take our camera to the church some time this week and get some more pics as some of the framing is being done. They are calling for a crew of volunteers for this Saturday already. Pretty exciting stuff!!

Sometimes, you just have to say it like it is....

I appreciate this very thought-provoking letter from a pastor to his youth in an RPCNA congregation in Kokomo, Indiana. My colleagues at my former ministerial in Ontario thought it was good too... Something for all of us, especially our youth, to think about. The Word of God challenges us not only to guard ourselves against the world's influence (Ephesians 4:17, James 4:17, I John 2:15-17), but also reminds us to aim for those things which please the Lord (Philippians 4:8).

Under the Sycamore Tree: A Grieving Heart: "To the youth of the Sycamore Reformed Presbyterian Church and their Christian friends: My pastoral heart is grieving over you. Why? Every..."

January Birthdays

First, there's Rich. Our leader, our level-headed one when the rest of us give in to passion, our calming force, our pointer to Christ, our Godly example. We love him dearly and are so thankful for him. He's also fun to laugh with (and at, on the very rare occasion.....like when I buy him a birthday outfit that fits him way too tight :)) and injects his own brand of humour into our home. Sometimes it a caliber of humour that makes the boys laugh while flying directly over my head, but that's okay. (you understand that I mean it's the "humour" flying over my head, not the "boys", right? ;)

[In my defense, my dear wife thought it would be fine to buy me a 'choir boy' outfit or, perhaps to be more accurate, to dress me up like an 80's prep... So I'm not sure who we should be laughing at here. :) Just teasing ya, old bean. :) Love Rich]


And then there's our Yvetta. Or Vetta. Or Vetta Rose. Or Sweetie. Mostly Sweetie. She's a gift to us - a bundle of personality that took us by surprise. She's got more outwardly shown enthusiasm for what crosses her path than any of our other kids. She gasps in delight, she kisses and hugs with abandon, she glowers, she screams, she smiles and laughs, she hides under the table with food. Okay, so Laura did that, too. We love her dearly and pray she'll love the Lord with her whole heart, soul, mind and strength. That she'll run the Race with endurance, striving joyfully for the prize of life eternal in her Saviour, Jesus. And that she'll develop that gentle and quiet spirit that is so precious in the eyes of her heavenly Father.

Happy Birthday, Sweetie :)

CJ Mahaney on the "Ordinary Pastor"

This is a great message - I heard it on my way up here to Wpg. Others have spoken of being blessed by it, as well. Here is C.J. Mahaney’s T4G talk, using II Timothy 4:1-5 to encourage ordinary pastors to fulfill their charge to be:

Faithful to the message
Faithful to your ministry
Faithful to the Savior

T4G 2010 (link)

Mahaney also quotes the preface from D. A. Carson's new biography on his father, which is also very encouraging.

"Some pastors, mightily endowed by God, are remarkable gifts to the church. They love their people, they handle Scripture well, they see many conversions, their ministries span generations, they understand their culture yet refuse to be domesticated by it, they are theologically robust and personally disciplined. I do not need to provide you a list of names: you know some of these people, and you have been encouraged and challenged by them, as I have. Some of them, of course, carry enormous burdens that watching Christians do not readily see. Nevertheless, when we ourselves are not being tempted by the green-eyed monster, we thank God for such Christian leaders from the past and pray for the current ones. Most of us, however, serve in more modest patches. Most pastors will not regularly preach to thousands, let alone tens of thousands. They will not write influenctial books, they will not supervise large staffs, and they will never see more than modest growth. They will plug away at their care for the aged, at their visitation, at their counseling, at their Bible studies and preaching. Some will work with so little support that they will prepare their own bulletins. They cannot possibly discern whether the constraints of their own sphere of service owe more to the specific challenges of the local situation or to their own shortcomings. Once in a while they will cast a wistful eye on 'successful' ministries. Many of them will attend the conferences sponsored by the revered masters and come away with a slightly discordant combination of, on the one hand, gratitude and encouragement and, on the other hand, jealousy, feelings of inadequacy, and guilt."

"Most of us - let us be frank - are ordinary pastors."

[Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor]

Destined for glory

"We’re destined for glory, far brighter than gold
In the race of a lifetime, swift, eager and bold.
Both eyes fixed on Jesus, His joy our desire;
Strong feet run to follow, like chariots of fire.
His pleasure’s worth more than wealth and fame
His truth above all
To hear God’s “Well done,” and praise His name,
Our soul’s highest goal.

We’re destined for glory, far brighter than gold
In the race of a lifetime, swift, eager and bold.
Both eyes fixed on Jesus, His joy our desire;
Strong feet run to follow, like chariots of fire."

Tune of ‘Chariots of Fire’ theme, music by Vangelis
Words written by David Michell, OMF missionary, author of A Boy’s War

Some of the latest scenes around here...

This is "our" bunny. He doesn't have a name yet, but time will fix that. He's not really ours, but we enjoy watching him go about his day in our yard. And we feed him, so I consider that enough to claim some sort of ownership :)

Hi likes to chew on the roots of the plants left here by the last owner. And we sprinkle birdseed around - also courtesy of the last owner. So fun to see this cute little fellow hopping around! Someone just has to say, "I see the bunny!" and the loyal bunny-lovers among us rush to the window....

This morning we had a beautiful spectacle - a moon-set in the back and a sun-rise in the front of the house. This picture doesn't really show it how it was. It was awe ispiring - what a creative Creator! What a humbling priviledge to know such a God as this!

Wow. What else can I say? Does this officially convert us to Manitobans? Are we now stripped of our Ontario identity forever? Sniff, sniff. The guy wouldn't let me keep my old ON license - not even for a suveneir. Not even for posterity. How do I know that? B/c I asked :)

Of chest hairs......and other things.

During the Christmas season we went to a Can. Ref. church to hear the choir and enjoy the music - we were so glad we went! A few of our church members were in the choir and the whole group did a spectacular job! It was uplifting and God glorifying - a wonderful combination.

Now, you're wondering where chest hair fits into the picture, right? Be patient - it's coming......

We ended up coming in a little late. We meant to take the whole family (minus Luke who was at yps) but things fell apart with some tired littles, so we left Laura to babysit and Caleb accompanied Rich and I. Now, I have, since I was a little girl, dealt with a serious malady. I get the giggles at inoportune times. I should be SO over this. I'm a grown woman, a minister's wife, to boot. But I still get the giggles. And Caleb is the wrong person to be beside when I'm overcome. Laura will glare at me with a "grow-up already" glare (unless she sees the funny side of it all and then we're both in trouble). Luke will turn up one side of his mouth and lift one eyebrow, but I can usually control myself beside him. With Caleb, I'm doomed from the get-go. He laughs right along with me, whether he knows what I'm laughing about or not. And he does this little intake of breath - the speed of which lets me know just how hard he's laughing. It was nearer to the end of the evening, but we lost control long enough for me to be very thankful that we were sitting in the back. We bit our lips, tried to think serious thoughts, tried to read the program in hopes of distracting ourselves......to no avail. It brough back vivid memories of Christy shaking with pent-up laughter during a funeral in which the minister kept getting the deceased's name wrong and in which the small group of us had to try to sing along with a CD that kept going off on weird little personal renditions of traditional tunes.

Anyway, after the choir, we went into the front foyer which was set up for coffee and refreshments. There we met with Miriam (who had been in the choir), her husband Mark and their neighbour. Their neighbour is a beautiful lady, hailing from a Spanish speaking country, (the name of which escapes me right now) and she has a lovely accent. She was very kind and came to talk with us for a bit. But, since the littles were home with Laura and Luke was coming home soon, too, we left shortly after - once Caleb and Rich had had their fill of the goodies. And after Miriam had talked with her mouth full and spilled cookie crumbs all down the front of her shirt. Sorry Miriam. I'm a brat ;)

So, a coupla days later we heard about Mark and Miriam's ride home - as they took their neighbour with them. From the back seat she let them know that, "Your minister really reminds me of my brother - his smile and his chest hairs." M & M got whiplash as they stared at each other in shocked amazement. "His.....chest hairs?" "Yah", she answered cheerfully, "you know, the way he moves his hands when he talks."

Gestures.

:)

An Average Day on the Death Star

Two of our kids favourites - especially this one....

Reporter - Snow Plow

Guess what's going on at our house?

James 3: A Story