Category Archives: church

January 4, 2010 · 10:25 pm

Farewell

We learned the news tonight that a good friend died suddenly on Sunday night. Keith Fullerton was a spiritual father to Leo and I.  He was our pastor in Saskatoon when we were students learning about life and faith and he was the pastor that sent us off to the Congo.  You can read more about him here.

It has been good to keep in touch over the years, visiting when the occasion permitted.  I guess it is a few years past now since we spent some time together in their home in Surrey.  They gave my car with the broken window a safe place to sleep while we waited for the glass people to open on a Monday morning.

Keith was retired but not really. He was always busy serving in some capacity. I last saw him at Alive this fall.  He continued to be down to earth, loving life and people and keeping up with current issues in theology.  The term pastor suited him well.

Funerals never fall at convenient times and this next week is full of travel and study for me and travel and work for Leo so I doubt we will  be able to go and celebrate his life with friends.  My thoughts and prayers are with his family.  We will all miss him but we will meet again.

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October 4, 2009 · 6:33 pm

It’s hard to describe

…what made this weekend so special.  Maybe I am simply different.

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Maybe it was the beauty and quiet and the presence of God’s Spirit with us as we met and talked and shared stories of our journey along the paths of faith we are walking.

I think I am a bit different from having been there. 

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October 2, 2009 · 4:14 pm

Up into the mountains again

In about an hour I leave for Calgary.  Then I will head up north west to a beautiful retreat centre – Kingsfold.

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The Covenant is having a leadership retreat there and I have been invited along to do some spiritual direction. 

I have enjoyed doing this the last few years.  I’ve only been at Kingsfold once but it is beautiful and the sort of place where God can be sensed in both the beauty of the location and in the hospitality of those who run the centre.

It will be good.  I am not sure if I am attending out of a sense of fulfillment I get from sitting and talking about growing relationships with God or if I need this kind of quiet place for some healing of my own soul.

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August 11, 2009 · 9:15 pm

Stepping into shoes that maybe are still too big for me.

This is already a bit old being Tuesday already.  But there was no internet service out in the bush where I was for the past couple of days.

So, I’ve had time to reflect on what happened Sunday.  The experience was a bit unique.    It is a good thing that we come together to worship, not to have slick entertainment.  And we did worship.  In spite of the fact that our speaker did not come and we had to improvise at the very last moment.  And that the improvisation was me.

So, I led my first congregational communion service.  Without benefit of a Covenant Book of Worship.  Thank God that Paul wrote the basics in 1Corinthians!  Thank God that we have an abbreviated liturgy, or at least a responsive reading in the back of the hymnal.  And thank God that he showed up, we were fed and nourished by his Spirit and by his presence in our midst.  We gathered as a body united in Christ, we remembered his death and resurrection and we were fed.

I was glad when they said to  me, let us go into the house of the Lord.(Ps 122)  I really was.  But… I told everyone that they shouldn’t expect to see me in church again till we have a real pastor.  (After all, I will be away for the next month and the real McCoy’s should be here by then.)

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May 11, 2009 · 8:40 am

I Think

That this was one of the best Mother’s Days ever for me.  I think I may have said that before.  Maybe it just keeps getting better each year. 

I was preaching in the morning service at church and so of course what other topic was there that made more sense to speak on than women and how we are created in the image of God.  God has used brave and intelligent women in his story throughout history and he wants us to experience the fullness of who he created us to be.

And I got to preach to my children.  What mother can pass that up?  🙂

Then home to a good family barbeque.

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Eric was in command on the barbeque cooking up his bacon wrapped venison filet mignon, corn on the cob and a lake trout that Sara caught last summer.  Delicious! I even splurged in celebration of the day and had some of the dessert provided by Grace.  Plus ice cream. 

The kids got me some lovely gifts too.  A garden rake – and then Patrick raked the back yard.  A hanging basket of flowers that it is still too cold to put outside.  And a gift certificate so I can buy some more books.

The afternoon was beautiful and we spent a lot of time out on the back deck in the sun.  Kimia was toddling around and got her exercise going up and down the stairs – both inside and out.  Then she ran into a wall and got a big goose egg!  But that was after these cute pictures.

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Perhaps what made the day so great was just having my family around.  And that includes the two Conngolese guys that we welcome as part of us. And the kids farther away called and it was so good to chat with them.

I am so blessed.

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Filed under church, Family, grandchildren, Photos

May 9, 2009 · 6:08 pm

Friends are so great

Today I was planning so many things to do.  Our turn for serving soup was here and I wanted to help.  However, I have a sermon to preach tomorrow and a LOT of studying to do to finish up my Greek course.  (It seems as if the closer I get to the final, the more stuff is filling up my evenings and keeping me from studying.)

Anyway, last night I went out.  My friend, A, was involved in a show with some of her art and I really wanted to go both to support her and to see her latest works.  So I did.  The glass of wine was a nice way to relax as I walked around with other friends and we took in the show.  I was so tired last night having spent a good part of the day in the OR.  And other friends were there and told me that I would only be needed for a part of the day to help in the soup kitchen.  That bit of news was such a relief. 

Then this morning I got a call and was told that so many other folks from church had come to help that they would not need me at all. 

There was another load lifted away!  I love to help and so I miss being there but this time studying and sermon prep did need to take priority.  I see this as one of the little ways that God watches out for me.  It might just look like luck to you but whatever, I see God in this.

So, I have been studying  pretty much all day, except for a trip up to Canadian Tire to pick up a few necessities. 

Now, since it is finally warm again, I might just take the bike out for a few minutes.

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Filed under church, Day to Day, Studying

April 27, 2009 · 10:18 pm

And Back Again

And very tired.

Conference was very good in so many ways – in connections with people; in inspirational speaking; in challenging stories; in new ideas for old programs.  Oh, yeah, and the food was terrific.

My sister was there and I love being with her.  She amazes me with her energy and passion for the Sudanese families she has befriended, for the children she teaches and with her interest in helping other cultures.  I think I absorb energy just by being around her and come away inspired myself.  She gave me a new book called Sex and Money produced by The Voice for The Voiceless.  It is gut wrenching to read and look at.  It is pretty hard to stay untouched by the women’s stories and the photography.

It was also good to do some spiritual direction.  Listening and attending to the movement of God in people’s stories also nourishes my soul as does the privilege of praying with and for others.  God is good.

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April 21, 2009 · 2:24 pm

Off to Conference

So, in a day, I should be in Surrey for our church annual meeting and conference.  I haven’t gone as a delegate for – longer than I can remember. 

I am looking forward to this one.  There are people I want to see again, especially Randall and Lauralea and another of my former pastors, Keith Fullerton and his wife.  And I suspect there will be many others that I have come to know over the years.  That is the main attraction of these events for me – reconnecting with people, seeing where our separate paths have taken us. 

I sure do wish, though, that I had not come down with this stupid cold. 

Anyway, I’ll be taking off tomorrow at about noon and won’t be back till late Sunday night.  I’m hauling along my books so that hopefully I will get some studying done, maybe write one of the last two quizzes when I get back.  It will be nice to finish up the Greek course and get on with the reading for my summer course. 

And I want to be able to simply take a week or so to enjoy the spring and early summer that will happen so suddenly in the next three weeks.  I have a night at the lake courtesy of my staff that I need and want so badly to take advantage of.

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April 12, 2009 · 9:48 pm

Easter

Christ passed through death and came out the victor.  That is one of the realities of my faith that I have been thinking about today.  He did this to redeem all the broken parts of our lives and of the whole creation.  We have reason to celebrate. 

The day has been full of such a variety of human experience – from worship of the risen Christ and the provision of hospitality to friends and family to egg hunts and too much food and chocolate eaten to quarrels and the sadness of hurt relationships.  I guess we had the whole gamut of highs and lows around here.  But mostly it was a good day. 

I love the early sunrise service on the river bank.  It seems appropriate,as the sun rises, to remember the new life we have available because of the resurrection.  Marc did a great job of leading us. We even tried to light the Paschal candle but the wind put a stop to that!

The rest of the day has been so full.  Being the matriarch means being hostess and seeing that there was food on the table from sunlight to sundown today.  The last of my children left a short while ago with a good portion of the leftovers.  All those foods forbidden on my diet and eaten today anyway have to leave this house.  Unfortunately, they left the pies and too much bread around and took the ham and turkey.  But I will have to get back on my diet in a serious way starting tomorrow.

And now I need to sleep. 

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Filed under church, Day to Day, Family

April 6, 2009 · 3:26 pm

For Spring

Just a bit of a new look.

The geese are back.   The river ice is beginning to look mushy.

Sunrise service is planned on the riverbank by our house.  It is suposed to be +8 tomorrow and if it actually is, we will be able to have it without shoveling snow.

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