The Messenger Vol. 51 No. 7 July 2013

The Messenger Volume 51 No. 7 July 2013

Seeking first the Kingdom Convention 2013 p. 6

ALSO INSIDE:

Addicted? Strengthen the connections page 9 Ridding the room of argument page 12

$2.00

Editorials

La Crete, somewhere indeed!

O

utdoor author John Barsness, who lives in Montana, writes of hunting caribou in the Northwest Territories.

While doing so, he displays respect for the Inuit men who guided him.

At the end of the hunt in the NWT, Barsness says that he and the other American hunters went south to Edmonton and beyond while the guides headed farther north to the Arctic and “civilization.”

When I was a pastor in Creighton, Sask., near Flin Flon, Man., a trip to Swan River meant travelling four hours south.

Is Swan River in northern Manitoba? Not really.

In latitude, Flin Flon is a bit north of Edmonton. Edmonton, in turn, is nearly as far south of La Crete as Winnipeg is from Flin Flon.

To belabour the obvious, what’s north or south depends, in part, on our perspective. And,

as shown by our recent EMC convention, our denomination’s outlook is shifting.

Is La Crete in the middle of nowhere? No, it’s far from nowhere. It is somewhere, indeed.

Much is happening in Region One (northcentral BC and Alta.): people are living, working, worshipping, marrying, raising families, serving, dying, trusting. Does anything more important happen anywhere else—really?

What did EMCers from five provinces find at our national convention as we gathered in Region One? We found a warm welcome, gracious hospitality, fine organization, encouraging inspirational and teaching sessions, useful business meetings, and stronger ties among our churches and regions. Thank you, Region One. Look for convention coverage in the August issue.

Terry M. Smith

Does anything more important happen anywhere else–really?

••

Ride and eat

D

riving into town, you see the sign: The Churches of This Community Welcome You! What a wonderful sight. There is more than one place to fill up.

Yes, the variety of churches is confusing.

Remember, though, that all truly Christian churches have much in common: the wonder of Jesus of Nazareth.

Would someone insist on walking just because there are different brands of cars? Should a person go hungry when so many restaurants serve food?

Don’t be distracted by brands and labels.

Instead, ride and eat.

Are you curious, skeptical, uninvolved, indifferent, hesitant? That’s fine. Choose a place to “fill up.” Ask questions.

Read the Gospel of Luke in a modern version and study Jesus of Nazareth. How does he treat

2 The Messenger • July 2013

people? What does he do and say? What a mysterious, yet wonderful person he is. How can he do what he does? What happened to him?

Keep alert in the Gospel of Luke for a person similar to you. Notice how Jesus never rejects those who ask sincere questions, while he challenges them to think and to act. What does this mean for you?

Three helpful books are N. T. Wright, Simply Christian; C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity; John Stott, Basic Christianity. Bookstores can order them.

Consider joining an Alpha group, a video and discussion study for those with questions; many communities have them.

Contact one of the churches and test out their welcome. If, sadly, one proves to be less than welcoming, persist until you find another that is truly inviting.

Terry M. Smith

Table of Contents Features

Columns

6

Convention 2013: Seeking first the Kingdom

5

Addicted? Strengthen the connections

17 An Education App

– Dr. Timothy Geddert

9

– Russell Doerksen

12 Ridding the room of argument – Corey Herlevsen

14 A veteran of youth events takes on Abundant Springs 2013 – Andrew Walker

Departments 2

Editorials

3

Pontius’ Puddle

4 Letters 19 With Our Missionaries 21 With Our Churches 27 News

Thinking About

The value of getting together – Ward Parkinson Bits about preaching – Terry M. Smith

page

12

18 Writings Shared 26 Further in and Higher Up

Evangelical, Mennonite, Catholic: the EMC as God’s dream church – Layton Friesen

34 Here and Far Away Risky obedience – Jocelyn R. Plett

35 Stewardship Today If I had a million dollars – Mike Strathdee

page

21

36 Kids’ Corner

Rocks talk – Loreena Thiessen

31 In Memory 32 Calendar 33 Shoulder Tapping

page

36

Cover: Young people at convention. Photo: Andrew Walker www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 3

The Messenger

Letters

Volume 51 No. 7 July 2013

A schedule notice

EDITOR TERRY M. SMITH

ASSISTANT EDITOR ANDREW WALKER

Submissions to The Messenger should be sent to messenger@emconf.ca.

The Messenger is the monthly publication of the Evangelical Mennonite Conference. It is available to the general public.

Its purpose is to inform concerning events and activities in the denomination, instruct in godliness and victorious living, inspire to earnestly contend for the faith.

Letters, articles, photos and poems are welcomed.

Unpublished material is not returned except by request.

Views and opinions of writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the position of the Conference or the editors. Advertising and inserts should not be considered to carry editorial endorsement.

The Messenger is published by the EMC Board of Church Ministries, 440 Main St, Steinbach, Man., and is a member of Meetinghouse and Canadian Church Press.

Subscription rates 1 year $24 ($30 U.S., $45 foreign) 2 years $44 ($55 U.S., $85 foreign) 3 years $65 ($82 U.S., $125 foreign) Manitoba residents add 7% PST. Digital only subscriptions: $15 per year.

Single copy price: $2 Subscriptions are voluntary and optional to people within or outside of the EMC. Subscriptions are purchased by the Conference for members and adherents.

Change of address and subscriptions Undelivered copies, change of address and new subscriptions should be addressed to: 440 Main St, Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5 Phone: 204-326-6401 Fax: 204-326-1613 E-mail: messenger@emconf.ca www.emconference.ca/messenger

We regret that, because of production matters, the June, July, and August issues of The Messenger have been or are behind schedule. We apologize for the inconvenience (especially regarding the EMC Missionary Prayer Calendar) and hope the September issue finds us back on schedule. Please find enclosed Prayer Calenders for August and September.

– Editors

Most important: prayer

I read the article on “What the Church needs to say to seniors” [June 2013] with great interest. All of what was said is very relevant and is so good. However, the most important ministry that we as seniors can have is the ministry of prayer.

It is the most effective way to help our families, our church, and the ministries we are a part of.

For myself I can say that it is such an exciting ministry opportunity to pray, do prayer walks for camp, for our public schools, our community, etc. What a thrill to see answers to prayer and see the Lord at work.

I think the prayer ministry should be encouraged a lot more. Thank you.

– Evelyn Rodgers MacGregor, Man.

Guidelines for letters

Letters published are generally to comment on issues raised in The Messenger. The magazine reserves the right to edit letters for length, style, legality, and taste.

Letters by regular mail and by fax must contain a handwritten signature with at least the writer’s first and last names and an address. For letters by e-mail, the writer’s name and e-mail address are deemed to be an electronic signature. The writer’s regular postal address is to be included in e-mail correspondence.

The writer’s name and general address are to be published.

In sensitive matters, names may be withheld.

Letters to the editor should be 250 words or less.

Policy on published items

The Messenger’s policy on originals of published items: letters to the editor are to be retained for a year.

Originals of all other categories are to be retained for four months or can be destroyed sooner at the editor’s discretion. After their respective time periods, the originals of print materials can be destroyed.

– Board of Church Ministries March 14, 2013

Second-class postage paid at Steinbach, Manitoba.

ISSN: 0701-3299 Publications Mail Agreement Number: 40017362 We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage for our publishing activities.

Advertising The Messenger does not sell advertising, but provides free space (classified and display) to enhance our Conference, its churches, boards, and ministries; inter-Mennonite agencies and educational institutions; and the wider church. Ads and inquiries should be sent to messenger@emconf.ca.

THE MESSENGER schedule: No. 9– September 2013 issue (copy due August 16)

4 The Messenger • July 2013

Moratorium on creation letters

After the magazine’s permitting a lengthy period of published discussion, there will now be a moratorium, for a year, on publishing letters on creation. This decision follows the magazine’s policy, which includes consultation with Board of Church

Ministries executive members.

During such a period, writers and readers are free to share their concerns with appropriate EMC boards, committees, and other structures.

– Terry M. Smith Executive Secretary/Editor

Columns • Thinking About

The value of getting together

I

by Ward Parkinson Conference Pastor

PHOTO: ANDREW WALKER

might as well admit it up front: I love our The Board of Leadership and Outreach is conference conventions. planning another such gathering for this fall, We recently returned from La Crete and I encourage all pastors and church leaders where we enjoyed a fabulous weekend gathering to attend. At Wilderness Edge Retreat Centre of the EMC family. The hosting was superb, the in Pinawa, Man., we will gather for a Ministerial teaching was top-notch, the conversations were Retreat, Nov. 30 to Dec. 2. delightful, and even the meetings were fun (I Our resource people for the weekend will be know, I’m weird that way).

Jerry and Renee Ritskes from Kerith Creek. They When you add the are a seasoned ministry mystique of the northcouple familiar with country surroundings its demands, and will (golfing at 11:30 p.m.!), provide guidance and it was a memorable encouragement for time. Kudos to the La your ministry life.

Crete-area brothers and A retreat setting sisters! offers some distinct But for me, gatherfellowship advantages. ings such as convention First, it is dedicated represent far more than time. At a retreat we just a good get-together. are, in a sense, forced The Parkinsons search for a Par. In Christ, we are privito come away from the leged to see things from a deeper perspective. routine, the regular, the constant, and we give The Christian community gathered reprefocused attention to a certain topic and to one sents an important truth about the faith: While another. We intentionally disengage in order to Jesus loves and saves us individually, he places us engage. into a body.

Second, a retreat is together time. For a couThe New Testament writers often used the ple of days, we gather in one spot and are able to word koinonia, usually translated “fellowship.” It connect and interact much more than usual. signifies that which we share commonly in the Whether it is in a formal sharing time, or body of Christ, the church. around a meal table, or an afternoon activity, or There is no division between the spiritual a late evening conversation, we have a chance and the relational in this term. If we belong to to experience and practice those good “one Jesus Christ we belong to each other. This is the another” things we read about in Scripture. Pasconsistent witness of God’s Word. toral couples are often hungry for those times when they can simply “let their hair down” and share deeply with one another.

Thirdly, a retreat is a time for renewal. We often think of renewal in terms of rest or respite, and that certainly has its place. But renewal runs deeper than that.

A retreat can be a milestone event where So gathering together for worship and fellow- the Lord meets you and brings you to a place of ship is both our mandate and our privilege, at reflection, surrender, or resolve. Your walk with the local church level and at larger celebrations God is different, or new, as a result. like convention. I see it as a foretaste of heaven.

November 30. Pinawa. We’d love to see you.

November 30. Pinawa.

We’d love to see you.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 5

Convention 2013: Seeking first the Kingdom Message one of four

PHOTO: ANDREW WALKER

by Dr. Timothy Geddert

6 The Messenger • July 2013

B

“

ut seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt.

6:33). Why would one need to “seek” a kingdom?

Is it hidden? Actually the kingdom Jesus proclaimed is hidden, sort of, partly, for now.

When Jesus announced the kingdom’s arrival, he seemed to say it was “sort of present but still coming.” When he demonstrated its presence, he did in ways that were not quite self-evident.

When he explained the kingdom, he usually used parables and thus both revealed and concealed it.

The secret

“To you is given the secret of the kingdom,” Jesus said to his disciples. What secret? I think the secret is that “the kingdom is coming secretly!”

Nobody expected that. Jesus’ contemporaries disagreed on what to expect when the kingdom would arrive, but they all assumed that when it did, everyone would know. Jesus spoke a different language. You had to have “eyes to see” or you might miss it.

One day Jesus told a parable about a farmer sowing seeds in a field. Some landed along the path, some among rocks, and some among thorns. A great deal of seed went to waste – eaten by birds, germinating only to be scorched by the sun, or growing for a while, but then succumbing to the choking thorns.

But some landed on good soil. It germinated, it grew, it drank in the rain, thrived in the sun, resisted the thorns, and when harvest time came, those seeds produced a bumper crop for the farmer, a crop far exceeding his expectations. So what does the parable mean?

It is a parable about the kingdom, or perhaps more exactly, about sowing the word of the kingdom. Not all people allow the seed to germinate. Not all remain faithful through trials and persecutions. Not all resist those things that choke out the word. But some do and in them the seed turns into a spectacular harvest.

ahead, no matter how much seed seems wasted along the way. Nothing can stop it. Nothing can prevail against it. It is destined to produce a magnificent harvest.

Jesus told other parables about seeds and harvests. Once he said that the kingdom was like a farmer planting into a field seeds that grow secretly, inexorably, unstoppably, though the farmer is powerless to make it happen, or to understand how it all works. It’s a miracle! It’s a mystery! Once he compared the kingdom to a mustard seed, tiny in its beginnings, but just give it time. Who would ever have predicted that something so tiny would grow so large?

When God’s Word is preached, things happen. When God’s life is implanted in us, we thrive. When God’s kingdom is inaugurated, nothing can stop it. It will be victorious despite robbing birds, competing rocks, choking thorns.

It will be victorious though we cannot predict how it will get from here to there, nor how long it will take. It will astonish us one day; astonish us that something so small in its beginnings would grow so great in the end.

When God’s kingdom is inaugurated, nothing can stop it.

A guaranteed harvest

It is Jesus’ way of saying: When I sow the word of the kingdom, there is a guaranteed harvest up

What kind of kingdom?

Now we have all pondered these kingdom parables before. Have you ever pondered this question: What kind of kingdom must it be, if it is best explained by telling stories about farmers throwing vulnerable seeds into a less than ideal patch of ground and holding on to an unshakable hope that the final harvest will be spectacular?

If you were a king, or the messenger of a king, would you use that image to promote your vision of your kingdom? What king, or king’s messenger, would even consider proclaiming a kingdom message by telling parables? A “speech from the throne” or “state of the union address” would seem more appropriate! But God’s kingdom is nothing like the kingdoms of this world.

Jesus gave glimpses of its presence in his deeds (for those with eyes to see) and spoke of its destiny in riddles and parables (for those with ears to hear.) The kind of kingdom Jesus proclaimed does not manifest itself with obvious proofs of its presence and power. ➢

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 7

PHOTO: ANDREW WALKER

Moderator Richard Klassen plays in a majestic styling at the close of the Conference Council meeting.

➢

For that very reason, those committed to God’s kingdom need assurances that the kingdom for which they are investing their lives will one day be fully manifest and will be victorious over all competing kingdoms, however insignificant or incomprehensible it might all seem right now. It is best illustrated with vulnerable seeds and delayed harvests. Those who share his vision are challenged to listen carefully, watch closely, wait patiently, and follow faithfully. Jesus modeled faithful kingdom living by relinquishing personal ambitions, by pursuing servanthood, by siding with those pushed to the margins, by courageously bearing witness to the truth in a hostile environment, by carrying a cross. That is they way we also pursue God’s Reign.

Two errors

Unfortunately, the Church throughout its history has not always shared this biblical perspective. Sometimes God’s kingdom has been mistakenly identified with the (very visible) institutional Church, complete with grandiose temples, elaborate rituals, political influence, sometimes even armies. Or it has been identified with national entities, as though Jesus, who denied he was setting up an earthly kingdom, would have nations to do so on his behalf!

A more subtle error occurs when God’s reign is detached from political structures and then identified with a particular culture or ideology, or a popular movement. Some Christians have distanced themselves from such “worldly” ideas of God’s kingdom, only to fall into error on the other side. They have limited God’s reign to inner spirituality or mystical experiences, or, more frequently a future hope in heaven.

We live in a day when one-sided visions of the kingdom abound. Some Christian cultures

8 The Messenger • July 2013

identify the kingdom and its coming with spiritual warfare, some with church growth, some with mystical experiences, some with political activism, and some with either the life within or the life beyond.

A desperate need

Seldom have followers of Jesus more desperately needed to learn from Jesus’ vision of a secretly coming kingdom, a kingdom that can be seen and heard if we are looking and listening for the right things, a kingdom that will grow in us if we persist in our hearing and our responding, a kingdom that will grow in the world no matter what opposition mounts against it.

There is evidence of the secretly coming kingdom everywhere, says Jesus, if only we know how to interpret the evidence. Calls for repentance are going forth. Lives are being transformed. A diverse community “brothers and sisters” gathers around Jesus to learn God’s will.

People are restored to health and sanity. Social outcasts are invited to dine with Jesus. Cups of cold water are given in Jesus’ name. Children are valued and welcomed into Jesus’ circle.

Disciples are learning that salvation is found in self-denial and self-sacrifice.

These are the signs that God’s kingdom is already planted and growing, that it is truly being established and will one day be consummated.

That kingdom is coming secretly, like a tiny seed, silently growing. Harvest time is coming!

Tim Geddert, BA, MDiv, PhD, is professor of New Testament at Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary, which is in California.

He adapted this article from his message prepared for Friday evening.

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

Addicted? Strengthen the connections

by Russell Doerksen

S

uffering through addiction is a harrowing ordeal. Addiction is a vicious cycle.

After an indulgence an addict becomes filled with self-loathing, often swearing to themselves that never again will they fall victim to themselves. For a period of time this may be true, but eventually the itch begins.

The itch is a trigger, something that makes that addict want to indulge again. It may be withdrawal, or it may be stress, but what it always brings with it is the increasingly louder internal voice that demands fulfilment. The itch begins as nothing more than a whisper that is easily ignored, but in time progresses until it is the only thought dominating the mind.

In time what began with the firm statement that, “I will never do this thing again,” becomes instead, “Once more and that is it,” to which the cycle begins again. In time the lull between indulgences becomes less, self-control decreases, until eventually the addict is little else than a slave to themselves.

when it is assumed that they have the same life circumstances. If it isn’t a problem for the one judging, then why would it be for anyone else?

But addictions are the product of life circumstance, and life is something that is never completely common among people. There is a reason why the alcoholic first turned to and then became addicted to alcohol: stress, community, entertainment or a great deal of other things that are not necessarily bad. To judge a person for their addiction is preposterous because it is not possible to know everything that is affecting them.

Having an addiction does not make someone weak; quite the contrary, struggling against an addiction when all of life’s circumstances work toward its continuation is a fine example of what it means to be strong. It is unfortunate for this reason that it is rarely possible to break free of the vicious cycle alone.

It is easy to look on someone who has a drinking problem and say that they should drink less.

Not weak people

Society too often looks at addicts as if they are weak people. It is easy to say that someone else is weak if they fall victim to something that has never been a personal issue. It is easy to see only obvious solutions, but not the life that surrounds addiction that makes it inevitable.

It is easy to look on someone who has a drinking problem and say that they should drink less. It is easy for someone to judge another

The sin cycle

This pattern of addiction can be seen in everyone’s life for sin conforms to this cycle as well. As Christians we know sin is bad for us, we know that it is wrong, and yet even though we know this, we succumb to the temptation anyway.

Our lives are set up in such a way that we cannot help ourselves from falling. The cycle rolls on, causing us to destroy ourselves, to rip ourselves away from God, and distance ourselves from each other.

This is how we should understand personal ➢

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 9

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

sin: sin is whatever causes us to distance ourselves from God, from the world, and from each other. It is for this reason that when we think about sin, it is far more useful to think not in terms of right and wrong, but of whatever acts to strain these relationships between humanity, creation and God. To think of sin solely in terms of right and wrong makes the sin insurmountable because the entirety of the problem becomes placed upon the visible part of the sin and not the aspects of life that inevitably lead to it. However, if, instead, sin is thought of as a matter of orientation—that sin is anything that points us away from God, the world and from each other—it becomes possible to deal with the root issue.

should turn to them the other cheek as well. This is no little thing that Christ is suggesting we do.

In this passage he is speaking to a world, both that of the first century and the present, where it is normal to answer violence with violence. Our lives are set up in such a way that if we are struck, we strike back. But living in this way only brings more violence, because if we live in this way the vicious cycle can never end.

Living in this sin will only serve to destroy creation, and rip us from God and from each other. The only way to end this cycle is instead of striking back, we must turn the other cheek.

It should be clarified that this passage is not telling people to stay in abusive relationships.

Instead Christ is addressing those struggling with their sin. To deal with their sin they must identify what it is that causes them to be stuck in the vicious cycle, and they need to change in such a way as to minimize or negate its hold.

To think of sin solely in terms of right and wrong makes the sin insurmountable because the entirety of the problem becomes placed upon the visible part of the sin and not the aspects of life that inevitably lead to it.

The method from the Mount

This way of thinking about sin is the one put forth in the Sermon on the Mount. Think about the pattern Christ uses in Matthew 5:38-39.

In this passage Christ first presents how things have traditionally been viewed, “You have heard it said, ‘Eye for an eye, and tooth for a tooth.’” However, the issue with looking at the world in this black-and-white way is that the violence only ever begets more violence.

To end this vicious cycle, what Christ proposes is that we should not resist the violence of evil people, but instead if we are slapped we

10 The Messenger • July 2013

Strengthen the connections

We need to identify whatever aspect of our lives it is that causes us to find fleeting fulfilment in our sins instead of a healthy relationship with creation, God and each other, and we need to change it. In some situations this is simple to do and in others it is the hardest thing in the world.

But the principle is the same in both.

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

If sin is the distancing of ourselves from creation, from God and from each other, we must do all that we can to instead purposely move toward these things. What this means is that if our sins cause us to withdraw, we must make a point not to do so.

Russell Doerksen, BA, MDiv, is a member of Fort Garry EMC and a 2013 graduate of Providence Theological Seminary.

There is nothing about overcoming sin that is easy work; but at the same time, doing so should never be lonely work either.

If our sins cause us to withdraw from creation, we should go out into and work for creation’s betterment. If our sins cause us to separate from our community, we must purposely share ourselves and our struggles with each other.

The reverse of this is true as well. We must be willing to help those who have the strength to share their struggles with us and not simply judge them. Finally, if our sins cause us to withdraw from God, we must purposely spend time in study and prayer with him.

There is nothing about overcoming sin that is easy work; but at the same time, doing so should never be lonely work either.

If we can acknowledge to ourselves that there is some role our sins are fulfilling in our lives and work to change it, and that we are never alone in our struggles as we have both God and each other for help, there is help as we deal with addiction.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 11

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

Ridding the room of argument

by Corey Herlevsen People tend to rid the room of argument until they have no one left except those who will agree with them. It’s understandable, but I like a good argument (Bono).

E

very week I seem to bump into the idea or belief that the presence of argument is clear evidence of the absence of peace.

This belief leads people to pretend that there is nothing wrong, there is no need for argument, and let’s just smile and play nice.

Minimizing is harmful

I have seen people who are so used to this charade that they believe that love simply cannot co-exist with argument. Accordingly, rather than entering into conversation and argument with the people in their lives, they learn to minimize, for example, the effect another person’s thoughtlessness and selfishness had on them.

The mirror image of this, obviously, is that they also minimize the effects of their own choices and actions on others. This kind of minimizing can be quite harmful personally, but it is dangerous relationally.

If we are not speaking about things we are actually seeing and experiencing in relationships, how can we call each other out on our failure to love, our failure to be Christ-like, and our failure to reflect Christ more accurately with our lives?

If we rid the room of argument until there are only people who will always agree with us, that room is going to get smaller and emptier until there is really no one left but us. Even then,

12 The Messenger • July 2013

sometimes, we won’t like the company we are keeping.

Enter it for growth!

As Christians, we are called to something else.

We are called not to avoid or minimize conflict, but to enter into it in a way that makes room for growth, redemption, reconciliation, and Christ-likeness.

I do not wish, however, to be misunderstood.

When I suggest that argument or conflict is necessary, I am talking about an active peacemaking that engages community and contributes to authenticity. I am not talking about the passive and dehumanizing bickering that undermines it.

Argument is not pleasant. We often avoid argument and conflict because of fear: fear of escalation, fear of making ourselves known, fear of isolation, fear of rejection, fear that if we tell the truth of what we are seeing we will lose the relationship all together.

We are told in 1 John 4:18, “Fear has nothing to do with love. Instead, perfect (mature) love tosses fear out” (my translation). Perhaps it’s not too much of a stretch to suggest that the converse might also be true: perfect fear tosses out love.

While the immediate context of 1 John 4:18 has to do, specifically, with fear of the day of judgement, the overall context of the chapter and the letter has to do with love, or failure to love, in community as children of God. If God is our Father, John says, we will live like it. Our choices and behaviour reflect our spiritual lineage.

Truth is tangible living

Truth, for John, is not simply an abstract confession of faith; it is a tangible living out of what we say we believe. Every word, every syllable, in 1 John is about living out love in community.

Love, we learn from John, is about integrity, and a waging of peace when truth is not being told and the community is fractured. We learn that to love tangibly, though imperfectly, is to reflect God. On the other hand, sin has to do with separation (1 John 2:19) and with an unwillingness to live in relationship. Sin is also a failure to both tell and do the truth (1 John 1:6).

Sin is a relational word having to do with covenant and commitment or the lack thereof.

1 John as a whole suggests that a community which carries the name Christian is called to open their hearts to one another in care, to let their love grow up to challenge each other, effect change, and reflect God. This can only be done by removing the defensiveness that comes from fear, then choosing to engage authentically within community. It cannot be done by ridding the room of argument.

John’s words here are not Sunday morning suit-and-tie words. These are not sentimental, pastel, Hallmark words to decorate the spiritual edges of our lives.

They are not words consigned to classroom examinations. These are not nice sentiments to be domesticated and hung on our fridges for us to ponder, memorize, and then immediately forget when faced with the brutal realities any real relationship or connection can throw at us.

These words are an assault on our selfcentred lives. They are the gritty words of a revolution.

They are words through which the winds of holiness howl, words that scour away the scales over our eyes, words to unplug our ears and orient our lives.

The revolutionary thing about these words, in the context of John’s letter, is that they tightly grab onto the word love, which seems to always be in danger of floating away into abstractions and vaguely defined feelings, and plunk it right down into the realities which are before us on any given day.

On any given day, our relationships with each other are tough, sometimes bloody. This is exactly why John is careful to set down the word love alongside two other words which help to ground it and define it: forgiveness and sin. As Eugene Peterson notes, “It is the forgiveness of sin which sets men and women free to love and, in that freedom, commands them to love.”

In the grind comes God’s love

Reading the New Testament’s words is easy, and so is agreeing with them in theory as nice ideals.

Living them out and waging peace among the grind of real people and real relationships is tough and it will leave us bruised.

It will hurt. It truly would be easier to just rid the room of argument; but the more we do that, the lonelier we get and the more cramped, small and fearful our world gets.

By ridding the room of truthtelling, by maintaining a facade and failing to engage the community of faith in ways that will not always feel pleasant, we, ironically, find that we end up further from God and from true peace.

As 1 John 4 goes on to say, “This, this is the commandment we have from God; to love God means to also love the people of God. Period” (my translation).

It’s that simple. But it is also that difficult. It is not for the faint of heart.

When we choose not to rid the room of argument, when we choose instead to engage community in order to both tell and do the truth, we reflect the God in whom we say we believe.

When we do the hard work of turning towards each other instead of away, when we wage reckless peace, God’s love is formed and expressed through us.

Our relationships in community then become a public word of truth. Our commitments to each other become a sermon and the sermon will be contagious because life attracts life. Let’s get to it.

It’s that simple. But it is also that difficult. It is not for the faint of heart.

Corey Herlevsen (Good News Community Church) is a community chaplain in Steinbach, Man., and an adjunct professor at Steinbach Bible College.

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PHOTOS: ANDREW WALKER

A veteran of youth events takes on Abundant Springs 2013 by Andrew Walker

I

The worship band warms up before the first session.

started my journey to Abundant Springs 2013 with many assumptions.

Having been to large youth gatherings, I was sure what to expect: a noisy time where teenagers run amok and must be corralled to hear a speaker drone on about aspects of morality they seem to be ignoring.

While some of this did, indeed, happen during the May long weekend—everyone needs to run amok once in a while—Abundant Springs is far more meaningful than just a weekend with friends.

Travis Unger

Throughout the weekend, I observed the National Youth Committee’s commitment to the event and never once heard them complain. The NYC and other adults are committed to young people and Abundant Springs. Once the event got underway, Gerald Reimer got into his groove and worked hard and faithfully all weekend.

When a sewer backed up in a dorm and scores of young people had to be relocated, Gerald and Briercrest staff handled it well.

It begins

The bus I was on arrived at Caronport at 4:30 p.m. Quickly, my role shifted from taking photographs and reporting to putting up posters and directing traffic. The sun was hot and the mosquitoes were out in force. Some of Saskatchewan’s insects give challenge to Manitoba’s own variety of mosquito, jokingly referred to as the Keystone Gerald Reimer and registration team prepare for the arrivals.

Province’s provincial bird.

The departure Buses arrived and people greeted me with The journey to Briercrest campus at Caronport weary smiles. The longest-traveling group was did not start with teens, music and fun. It began from northern Alberta. After all but one bus had with an early start (7 a.m., for me), a groggyarrived, I went to dinner and got a first glimpse eyed leadership team, and anticipation. of the people I would be spending the next four For veterans, such as conference youth days with. They were a hungry bunch. minister Gerald Reimer, there was a hint of stress because of the lower number of attendees Sessions (about one hundred) and having to plan an event This year’s sessions were based on Col. 2:6-7: “So involving a large team in a foreign location. then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord,

14 The Messenger • July 2013

Press Play performs.

continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

Travis Unger from Many Rooms Church Community in Winnipeg, Man., spoke on the theme of Rooted: rooted in Scripture and service (Psalm 1), in a faith community, in purpose, and in hope.

His speaking approach was different: Unger included home videos and a video interview with Dr. Harvey Plett (on a relationship with Christ and a healthy diet of Scripture).

Travis spoke of people he had interacted with—friends, family, and church members. He mentioned various people who had died and asked how to make sense of this. It had a powerful effect on listeners.

Workshops

The workshops were some of my favourite moments during the weekend. There were ten workshops, two for youth workers. Each was held three times. I got a taste of what each offered and wanted to stay—though I was chased

out of the Girls Only session.

Dallas and Tara Wiebe (serving in Mexico) and Travis and Rosey Zacharias (serving in Paraguay)’ put on a workshop to inform youth about missions, their work, and what it was like to live in a foreign country.

Through a bidding game Dr. Terry Hiebert, from SBC, led a discussion about life values and where we can find our happiness. Jason Hildebrand, a professional actor, asked if we could hear God speak through pop culture. Patrick Friesen, from SBC, addressed the effect of social media on our understanding of God. The three workshops that struck the biggest chord were on human sexuality. Fiona Thiessen and Dallas Kornelsen discussed healthy sexuality in a guys only/girls only format. Keith Hiller, from Prov, addressed What do I do if my friend thinks they’re Gay? These workshops created a buzz throughout the weekend. Rarely did I pass a group that wasn’t talking about an issue from one of these workshops. They definitely had the positive effect by giving a safe place to discuss these topics.

The Exodus

A group flees from the “Egyptians.”

All of the youth groups participated in a game based on the journey made by the Israelites from Egypt to the Promised Land. Several hubs represented different parts of the journey.

Each hub had four or five activities to be ➢

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 15

completed before the youth could move on, and the team with the best time won. Each games required teamwork and the need to step out of one’s comfort zone.

The first stage I got a chance to photograph represented the beginning of the journey. One of the games included attempting to cross the Red Sea. A team was given several boards to progressively walk on as they navigated their path across a grassy field. If any team member’s hand or foot touched the grass, the whole team was set upon by staff with water guns and then required to restart.

Other games included eating different bitter foods, relay races, dueling with foam swords,

there. The talent show (late Sunday night) gave youth a chance to show what they can do.

There I learned that Dutch-German Mennonites can both sing and dance! It was great to be a part of the leaders’ prayer walk through the facility in advance of the buses’ arriving.

Jason Hildebrandt portrays the father of the prodigal son.

➢

Impressions

Youths perform at the talent show.

and finding Bible verses. Throughout these games, pairs of roaming “Egyptians” would attempt to catch groups going to and from activities.

If the groups were caught, they were required to perform certain tasks for the Egyptians, thus slowing the groups down. Once all of the activities had been completed, the groups were required to make a rap song about their journey.

There had been rumours of rain for that day, but the weather was perfect for the event.

I’ve been to bigger youth events where thousands of young people were involved. What did I see at Abundant Springs? There was a lot more community, a better sense of community. There was more freedom to talk about what was said in workshops with your group and others. The leaders made themselves available to people outside of the sessions.

Abundant Springs is definitely worthwhile for the youth, leaders, and EMC churches. It was well organized and I saw a positive spiritual impact on young people. Contrary to my expectations, the speakers were effective; they did not drone on and on. And the noise I heard was a joyful one.

If I ever get to go again, I just hope the mosquitoes are on a diet.

Other key events

Jason Hildebrandt opened each session with an one-person play, acting out parts of the prodigal son’s story. On Sunday morning he had an hourlong session portraying King David’s rise and fall. The two band concerts by Press Play (Friday evening) and The Color (Saturday evening) did amazingly well for a small venue.

The worship band—from Kleefeld—did well.

The prayer team was ever-present, and anytime I passed by the Prayer Room several people were

16 The Messenger • July 2013

Youths rock out to the music of The Color.

Andrew Walker is the assistant editor of The Messenger.

Columns • An Education App

Bits about preaching There once was a Rev. McSneep Who put all in pews to sleep When he began to pray, Closed eyes stayed that way ‘Cause his sermons were too deep. (T. M. Smith)

T

he length. How long should a sermon be?

Decades ago I looked at an older library book that suggested a sermon length of 40 to 45 minutes—and someone had penciled in 30 to 35. By the time I got to the book, sermons often seemed even shorter in length.

Traditions vary on sermon length both within local churches and among denominations.

A recent survey in Mennonite Church Canada showed that sermons averaged 22 minutes (Allan Rudy-Froese), which means some were more or less. When I was a guest preacher in a United Church congregation, about 16 minutes was the guideline.

What is an effective length today? Opinions vary. For instance, my wife Mary Ann, who has listened to many preachers, says that if a preacher cannot say it in 20 minutes, don’t bother trying.

The introduction. “The first five minutes in the pulpit are the most favorable,” Diedrich Bonhoeffer counseled students in his underground seminary in Nazi-stained Germany, “so do not waste them with generalities but confront the congregation straight off with the core of the matter” (Metaxas, Bonhoeffer, 272).

Some preachers spend quite a bit of time in their introduction. They seek to prepare people for the Word, show a topic’s relevance, or examine the Word’s background. These, however, can be woven into the discussion of the Word.

As Bonhoeffer counsels, don’t misuse the time when the congregation is freshest to hear the Word. since 1986.

The diet. Every minister needs to have convictions

or they should not preach, but all preachers need to beware of a hobbyhorse. More than a key conviction or a deeply-held belief, a hobbyhorse is a ”topic to which one constantly recurs” (Concise Oxford) to the point of an imbalance.

Preachers need to present a balanced diet in both topics and tone (Dr. Kent Anderson and David Murray).

The grounding. Despite our official evangelical convictions, it seems common for Scripture to be used sparsely in many services: an opening verse or two, a passage read before the message, and a Scripture-based benediction. This can be a meager, sometimes disconnected approach that does less than it might to educate.

At least three EMC churches use a lectionary. An alternate practice is to consider the lectionary’s discipline: to choose three passages to be publicly read and upon which the sermon is based—one from the Old Testament, one from a Gospel, and one from later in the New Testament. This comes from the historical-theological conviction that the Old Testament leads up to Christ, the Gospels tell of him, and the letters reflect on him.

Concluding and closing. To conclude is a mental process; to close is to end a message.

Successful is the preacher who helps listeners to conclude and act more effectively rather than to simply wish that the preacher would close.

by Terry M. Smith

CHANGE A

LIFE

SENd AN INNER CITY kId To CAmp

! TODAY. 204-582-8779 • www.icya.ca MAKE get YOURinvolved DONATION www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 17

Columns • Writings Shared Intergenerational Christian Formation, Holly Catterton Allen and Christine Lawton Ross (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2012). 300 pp. $22 (paperback). ISBN 9780830839810.

Reviewed by Russell Doerksen (Fort Garry), BA, MDiv. Beginning in the mid-twentieth century American churches have become increasingly segmented, with ministries separating congregations into distinct age groups. While this homogenization has often encouraged growth, it has unconsciously sacrificed the benefits of an intergenerational church.

To address this issue Holly Catterton Allen (professor of Christian ministry at John Brown University) and Christine Lawton Ross (professor of Christian education at Concordia) have written Intergenerational Christian Formation for the benefit of pastors and seminarians.

Formation is divided into four main sections with three additional appendices. The first section describes the trend of generation separation, as well as states the books premise, that intergenerationality nurtures personal and communal growth in Christian communities.

The second and third section as well as the third appendix seek to provide support from

biblical, theological, theoretical, and social scientific perspectives. The fourth section and the first two appendices talk practically, giving recommendations and resources for initiating and nurturing intergenerationality.

Three criticisms: Formation is severe with age-targeted ministry, downplaying its benefits and emphasizing faults. Next, too much space is dedicated to convincing the reader of the benefits of intergenerationality; the book is not for a purely academic audience and occasionally forgets that.

Finally, at times biblical/contemporary culture differences are mistaken for biblical support of intergenerationality. This is not saying that the Bible does not support intergenerationality, but instead that not all references do. However, as many North American churches find themselves in turmoil due to age-divided congregations, I believe Intergenerational Christian Formation is a must read.

Let the Children Come: Preparing Faith Communities to End Child Abuse and Neglect, Jeanette Harder (Herald Press, 2010). 213 pp. $12.99. ISBN 9780836195187. Reviewed by Lisa Schau (thankful to be part of St. Vital family), mother and Sunday School teacher.

Harder—a researcher, home visitor, and foster parent—dispels myths about child abuse and neglect, including that it is the government’s responsibility to respond to child abuse.

The police or CFS alone cannot fully and successfully minister to all the needs of the many families in crisis. But the church, this army of thousands of people filled with Jesus’ compassion, can help by simple acts of friendship and service to one family at a time.

This leads to another revolutionary idea: helping families in crisis is not just standing between the child and the abuser. She outlines the many types and causes of abuse (her chapter on offenders has respectful candour) and recommends many simple acts that can alleviate some stresses that lead to child abuse.

To think that volunteering at a Thrift Store is a means to help a single mom fight poverty 18 The Messenger • July 2013

by providing low cost goods as well as fight loneliness and depression by a warm welcome and friendship. Or that offering a parenting class could help prevent neglect by giving inexperienced parents without family support an understanding of the basics of nutrition, and appropriate expectations for a child at different stages of development.

This review does not cover the many other topics explored by the book, including an important chapter for churches on steps to take to preventing child abuse within it. I recommend this book for an individual or a group study: there are thought-provoking questions at the end of each chapter for group discussion.

May God help us heed His call to do our part to end child abuse and neglect in our communities.

With Our Missionaries

Dresses for Haiti HAITI

PHOTO: PEARL REIMER

In January 2012 I started collecting pillowcases from all over Canada—including members of several EMC churches in two provinces— and by Dec. 19, 2012, I had sewed a thousand dresses.

Those who donated pillowcases for “Dresses for Haiti” might wonder what happened to them.

I went to Haiti from May 6 to 21, 2013, with Claire Roberts, who founded Heart to Heart Haiti children’s home 20 years ago. Claire had sponsored a boy, France, from Haiti through Compassion Canada and in the 1990s she had a chance to visit him.

Claire was invited by a man Luc to meet his wife and two little girls.

He told Claire he had taken in two children whose parents had died of AIDS and asked if she could help him.

She took his request to family and friends to sponsor them. Every time Luc talked to Claire, another child needed sponsoring: some had lost parents, or their parents couldn’t provide for them, or a boys’ home

Steinbach

Tickets: $35

Pearl Reimer stands with girls in new dresses.

had shut down. Claire decided to start an official children’s home.

A social worker brought a girl who lost her whole family in the earthquake, ending up as a slave.

Each child has a story. Luc and Marc, founder of Haiti Arise, were both slave children.

With 104 students from the home, as well as 386 community kids, Heart to Heart’s school is bursting at the seams. The community kids coming to school are served a meal, the only one most get.

We played with the kids, handed out dresses, and Bible College hosted a ladies presents... luncheon. We gave care packages by ladies from Three Hills, Alta.

I went on a walk with people from Haiti ARISE where we chatted with people through an interpreter, gave care packages, Visit www.SBCollege.ca out and visited a Haior call 204.326.6451 tian home.

We went to Bouva, a poor community where Luc grew up. The Haitian government didn’t have money to build a school, but agreed to provide teachers; Luc offered his church to use for their school.

We brought along 2,000 kilos of rice for people. It was deeply moving to hear them sing “How Great Thou Art” as they received their rice. People were warm, welcoming, and happy, filled with great faith and love for God. Luc and Marc will distribute the rest of the dresses in poor communities. It was a blessed experience to see girls smiling, excited with their dresses. Older girls used one as a skirt and another as a top.

I was blessed to meet France, the boy that Claire sponsored. When you sponsor a child in Haiti you give them an education and an opportunity to become self-sufficient.

Did I have a good trip? I am glad I went. I saw what I’d heard about: the devastation, the tent cities, no sanitation, no place to put garbage, all because of the earthquake. It is difficult to process.

These dresses were handouts of God’s love through people who generously gave pillowcases. Another needed project is a well and a reservoir in Bouva. The reservoir would water market gardens.

More information can be found at www.hearttohearthaiti.com and www.haitiarise.org.

– Pearl Reimer Pearl Reimer (part of Abbeydale) now lives in Strathmore, Alta.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 19

With Our Missionaries

Five years of Quest Brazil

20 The Messenger • July 2013

the team take up residence there.

Second, learning the difficult language of Portuguese and being able now to communicate so effectively.

Third, God’s provision in adding Dwayne and Shannon Klassen are members of Community Bible Fellowship in Swan River, Man. Brazilians Carol, Jessica, and, most recently, Samuel February camp season, including (Samuca), to the Quest team; each one retreats (men/women, young adult, brings their unique gifts and talents. marriage), and team building and Fourth, supplying each person on leadership training seminars for their board to oversee the work, and church groups and organizations bring accountability and transparsuch as businesses, schools, and ency. Fifth, locating and only recently orphanages. receiving the deed to property where Eighth, plans for Phase 1, a multithe camp will be built. Until now use building; its design is ready for Quest had to use rented facilities at approval. The goal for construction of various locations in the state. the building is the January 2015 camp Sixth, the many relationships that season. have been forged with individuals, So much has happened in the past churches, and organizations which five years, it will be exciting to see now provide such a rich network what God does in the future. Anyone from which to tap into for needed interested in joining a team—for resources, camp staff, and support. example, to help with construction— Seventh, a full calendar of opshould contact the Klassens. portunities outside of the January/ – Kevin Penner PHOTO:BOM

BRAZIL

Quest Brazil celebrated five years on March 28, 2013.

Quest Brazil is a mission organization formed by EMC associate missionaries Dwayne and Shannon Klassen together with Scott and Patsy Buhler. Both families serve with TeachBeyond (formerly Janz Team) doing camp work and leadership development.

The party—held at the Quest office in Schroeder, Santa Catarina, Brazil— was complete with cake, candles, and singing. There to mark the anniversary were the Quest Team: Shannon and Dwayne Klassen and their children; Scott and Patsy Buhler and their children; Carol Wilbert, and Jessica Koepp.

There were special guests.

Patsy and Dwayne’s parents, Abe and Francis Klassen, were there for an extended visit from Steinbach, Man. Jarret and Chris were Manitoba friends passing through during their travels in South America. Kevin and Carolyn Penner, with daughters Natalie and Lindsay, visited from Swan River, Man., for ten days during Spring Break.

Although the celebration may have appeared rather lowkey, the significance of the event was not overlooked. Looking back over these past five years, it is easy to recount the many evidences of God’s answers to prayer for wisdom, guidance, and direction.

Let’s name a few.

First, the decision by Klassens and Buhlers to locate the Quest office in Schroeder and have

With Our Missionaries

Celebrations LESOTHO

what He has done and is doing in this mountain kingdom.

Our most honoured guest was the Minister of Health, Dr. Pinkie Manamolela.

He shared the interesting bit of trivia that Lesotho’s current prime minister, the honourable Tom Thabane, was, in fact, the The Honourable Minister of Health, Dr. Pinkie Principle SecreManamolela, speaks during the program. tary for Health 33 years ago when MAF received that invitation to come and be a part of the Lesotho Flying Doctor Service.

There are no coincidences in God’s economy, and as we look to the near future with the hope of building a new facility to house and maintain our aircraft, we see that He has these people in place for such a time as this.

It is our hope that, as we strengthen the relationships with those we serve, we will have a better understanding of who God is and how He wants to work through us to reach the lost for Him. All praise and glory belong to Him. – Kari Peters PHOTO: KARI PETERS

MAF has been working in Lesotho since 1980 when it was invited by the Ministry of Health to come and be the wings for the Lesotho Flying Doctor Service. Since that time MAF has enjoyed a good working relationship with various government departments to serve the Basotho living in the isolated mountain areas.

The Irish government was very involved in funding the Flying Doctor Service in the early years, even purchasing a new aircraft for MAF when one was lost in a crash in 1997.

Our presence has allowed mission organizations to place missionaries in these remote areas, knowing that MAF is available for transportation needs particularly in emergency situations. We have been in a position to give assistance to the National church as they seek to reach out to their own.

In March of this year, MAF Lesotho held a celebration event that was long overdue. As a team we felt the need to honour those who have been instrumental to our presence in Lesotho and to those who use our services regularly.

As a way to thank them, we invited them to an appreciation dinner at our hangar, catered by a local restaurant.

Those who arrived early were treated to a sunset flight over the city of Maseru.

One lady told us that this was something she had always wanted to do ever since coming to Lesotho more than 20 years ago. We were able to fulfill one of her dreams in a simple 15-minute flight.

We shared a meal together and finished the evening with a short program focused on thanking our guests and praising God. We invited the people that we fly to celebrate 33 years in Lesotho and to praise our Father in heaven for

•• Morweena EMC

With Our Churches

MORWEENA, Man.—Eric and Jen Isaac have served as Morweena’s pastoral couple since Jan. 1, 2012. We were delighted to welcome them after over a year without a pastor.

– Janet Hamm

PHOTO: THE HAMM FAMILY

New pastoral couple

Our pastoral family: James, Jennifer, Pastor Eric, and Clara Isaac.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 21

With Our Churches Portage Evangelical Church

Team blessed by missions trip to Texas went through into Mexico. Then God answered his prayer this year by sending our team. The time we were there he was smiling and praising God. In addition to building the play structure, we painted the nursery, sanctuary, and foyer; built a patio; and fixed wiring and cracks in the walls.

The ladies went to Teen Challenge one morning, while the men worked around Grandview Baptist Church, where we were staying. Some of us spoke at the Youth For Christ clubs in the high schools.

We saw a lot of God, as he helped us overcome challenges we faced on the trip. He kept us safe as we drove through a snowstorm on the way down, and gave us the patience and love needed to get along with each other on our two-day bus journey.

He also gave us patience while living in such close quarters in the church; the ladies slept in bunk beds in one room and the men slept on mattresses on the floor in another room.

••

Heartland Community Church

Heart, hands, help, hope LANDMARK, Man.—Many Heartlanders preach the gospel through a heart of compassion and helping hands to give hope and improve those whose lives have been devastated or neglected.

Sherry Plett reported on work in Texas: “A group of 20 from Heartland Church, which included 11 youth spent time in Bastrop, Texas, served with MDS during spring break. The Bastrop region had a forest fire that destroyed over 700 homes. We were able to work on three different homes in varying stages during our time there.

22 The Messenger • July 2013

The Lord also kept us calm when all of our leaders left us at El Sembrador without directions on how to get back to Grandview. Even though we were not supposed to have cell phones with us (because the leaders didn›t want it to take away from our time with God, and our interaction with each other), God must have known we were going to need one, as one of the ladies on the team had forgotten to leave hers at the church. This proved to be handy, as we used it to get directions on Google Maps and made it back safely.

Everyone on our team grew in their faith through the challenges we faced, the people we met, the work we did, and even just by talking and working with people on our own team. Our theme verse for the trip was, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I will give to you” (Acts 3:6).

– Bronwyn and Kaitlyn Evans

“Some of the work we did included: painting, dry-walling, moving furniture, hanging cabinets, building stairs, skirting, and railing. We were fortunate to have experienced MDSers Denis and Wilma Keating, Ian Keating, and Kris Dueck join us.

“It was surreal to see the same home we’d left last year (with only the drywall done and plumbing unfinished) being lived in. It is a home now for Veronica, her husband, daughter, and granddaughter.

“A highlight for them was being able to have lunch with Veronica and

PHOTO: HCC

PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man.—During Spring Break, Portage Evangelical Church sent a team of 37 people by bus to El Paso, Texas, on a 10-day missions trip.

We went to El Paso to build a play structure for a church and to connect with people there. We met hardworking people who were passionate about Christ, and we faced challenges along the way.

Upon our arrival, Pastor Jeremy, his wife Tara, Rosemary, Robin, and Zac greeted us. They were our leaders, drivers, cooks, and friends for the week. We also had the privilege of meeting Roberto, pastor of El Sembrador Church, and his wife.

Pastor Roberto is a man with a strong faith. He told us how the Lord provided him with a building for his church, and that he had been praying for many years that God would send him a team to help him.

He had seen many missions teams, but none stopped in El Paso; they all

Tiffany Froese in the Dominican Republic.

see her in her renovated home. We were blessed to have been able to be a part of God’s Kingdom in a culturally different environment.”

Tiffany Froese reported, “I had the opportunity to spend eight months in the town of Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic, teaching English with an organization called Outreach360.

Those eight months taught me more about learning, faith, and life than the past 19 years of my existence.

“Teaching is truly a rewarding job.

Not only did I have the opportunity➢

With Our Churches a child’s spirit within a classroom atmosphere without extinguishing the flame inside that makes them who they are.

“Throughout the experience I was pushed, pulled and stretched farther than I knew possible. I tripped, stumbled, and faltered to the point of tears and heartache. But I also learned the value of perseverance and faith through the inevitability of pain by which one grows.

“I’m not sure that I would have been able to endure the eight months on my own strength. Rather through

••

Pleasant Valley EMC

Missions and dedications ROSENORT, Man.—Our missions committee did a great job of organizing January as Missions Month.

Each Sunday the committee (Dan and Florence Loewen, Peter and Tina Friesen, Clarence Dueck, and Danae Parkinson) supplied us with a prayer card listing the names of four to five missionaries to pray for. Care packages were also packed by Sunday School classes for the missionaries of our church.

Missionary speakers Garry Barkman, Dallas Kornelsen, Rob Massey, Christina Kroeker and Ed Loewen were brought in to give reports. A big appreciation to the staff of The Messenger for having pages in the centre of the magazine listing our missionaries and their prayer needs.

Members were involved in missions activities. Bert and Elma Kornelsen spent several weeks in the Dominican Republic helping with the building of homes through a ministry run by Larry and Pearl Friesen. Karly Eidse spent two weeks in the Dominican Republic through Providence University College.

Savannah Brandt spent several

each trial, our faithful God remained by my side and continuously spoke words of comfort to me through friends, family, song, and of course His word. In Him and through Him, there is no challenge too great.”

Alvin and Katherine Plett ministered in Bolivia; Quinton (Mike) Blair and his bandmate Jon ministered with Bob and Trudy McLaughlin in Kugluktuk, Nunavut; Winston and Viola Penner and Wil Wieler helped build a seniors’ home in Mexico.

This was all in the name of Jesus.

– Brigitte Toews

PHOTO: PLEASANT VALLEY EMC

to spend my weeks surrounded by the wonders that are children, but I was also fortunate enough to spend a whole school year seeing the progress and growth of every one of my students.

“Not every student began nor ended the school year in the same place, but each made significantly noticeable progress in English, Spanish literacy, behaviour, and social skills. The most intriguing part was seeing the unique path each individual took to arrive where they are today. I learned a lot about the importance of focusing

weeks in Mexico and Ecuador through YWAM. Katherine Penner distribA parent-child dedication was held on June 9, 2013: Pastor uted baby bottles to be filled with loose change Darren Plett, Lauren Reimer with London, Matt and Kaylee Friesen with Bramwell, Brenden and Teresa Johnson with Dex. between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day for the On May 26 our annual Sunday ministry of Crisis Pregnancy Centre School teacher appreciation lunch in Winnipeg. was held and hosted by our EducaAfter a process of prayer and tion Committee: Deanna Kroeker, listening, three elder couple nomiTwyla Bartel, Carl Stevenson, Dave nees were identified and called; they Friesen, and Renee Waldner. consented and on April 28 we held On June 9 our church family coma vote of affirmation for all three mitted themselves to look after the new elder couples: Rick and Karen spiritual well-being of three recent Friesen, Brenden and Teresa Johnson, newborns and their parents at our and Mike and Alyssa Thiessen. parent-child dedication service. We On that same day the church fampromised to support them in their ily affirmed our commitment to each role of parenting, helping to make other through a symbolic signing of their task both joyful and fruitful. our Community Covenant. It was a Jacob, son of Deanna and Ben worship service filled with gratitude, Waldner of Rosenort and Deanna, praise, and anticipation. daughter of Cesar and Elisa SalamanThe men of our church made an ca of Bogota, Colombia, got married annual weekend trip in June to ICYA’s on Feb. 19, 2011. Two years later she Gem Lake wilderness camp. This men’s got her Canadian visa; and this was weekend started with lots of hard work followed by a celebration of great joy, and ended on Sunday with an incredible praising God on his parents’ beautiful time of worship and encouragement out yard on June 28, 2013. in God’s beautiful creation.

– Marilyn Kornelsen www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 23

➢

With Our Churches Blumenort EMC

Blumenort flourishes and grows

PHOTO: BLUMENORT EMC

BLUMENORT, Man.—Our church continues to flourish Wurtz gave their testimonies and grow as God leads us in to the church. The church was the way we should go. packed and the day was special.

Junior and senior youth Blumenort church, acgatherings occur weekly during companied by a church from the school months—junior Vermillion Bay, Ont., runs a youth every Tuesday and kids camp for seven weeks senior youth every Thursday. in the summer. The week is a The youth group is packed blur, filled with activities such with tons of eager teens full of as swimming, archery, crafts, zest for life. chapel, canoeing, cabin times, Accompanying youth recreation, firesides, and meals.

Baptized on May 19 were (top) Corey Reimer, Mark Brandt, pastor Vince Kehler, 16 youth Two weeks of camp are Wellington Driedger, (middle) Weston Loewen, Waylon Petkau, sponsors help out by encouragfor Whitedog First Nation, an Andrew Doerksen, (bottom) Lynetta Wurtz, Jessica Harder, and ing the teens and being their Ojibway community north of Nathaniel Thiessen. friends. Youth gatherings Kenora, Ont., and just east of involve service nights—where they Reena Nerbas, one of the organizManitoba. Our church works with serve the community and others in ers from Club DJ, said, “A highlight residents from Whitedog on a regular different ways—games nights, small was definitely seeing kids get excited basis, and camp is just another way we group nights, and Bible study nights. about Jesus and handing Bibles to connect.

Eight senior youth, along with kids who have never stepped inside – Ebony Kampen youth pastoral couple Vince and Maof a church before.” The whole year vis Kehler went to Thompson, Man., was packed full of fun and learning during Spring Break on their fifth experiences from Bible annual missions trip. Landon Plett, studies to the corn Davis Loewen, Mark Brandt, Shaelyn maze to hearing misWiebe, Katrina Reimer, Robyn Kamsionary reports. One pen, Ebony Kampen and Myka Plett of the really fun events were the youth. that Club DJ had was Together they served on three a big car rally to which native reserves, worked on projects all the parents were at the Thompson Bible Chapel, and invited. helped out wherever needed. Some May 19 there was highlights were having a wiener roast a baptismal service with locals from Thicket Portidge involving nine young and hanging out with a few faithful people who also GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY AND MINISTRY Christians in Thompson. became members A Graduate School of the Church rooted in Our church once again did a clubs of Blumenort EMC. the love of God, program this year from October to Mark Brandt, Andrew the grace of Jesus Christ, November and February to March.

Doerksen, Corey Reand the communion of the Holy Spirit.

Every Wednesday the parking lot was imer, Weston Loewen, packed with families from the comWaylon Petkau, JesThree Programs of Study | Semester and one-week courses munity, many who do not regularly sica Harder, Nathaniel Enrol now for Fall 2013 | cmu.ca attend our church. There were about Thiessen, Wellington 146 kids enrolled in both programs.

Driedger and Lynetta CANADIAN MENNONITE UNIVERSITY

24 The Messenger • July 2013

With Our Churches Crestview Fellowship

Magic and mirth WINNIPEG, Man.—On April 7, Greg Wood, a magician-comedian who uses his art form to convey the gospel, entertained the children in Sunday School and then brought his act to the pulpit.

Greg likes to involve the audience and asked Savannah to help him illustrate Luke 17:33: “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.”

Greg had Savannah put her name on a loonie to represent her life. He proceeded to teach her (and us) that if we try to keep our life for ourselves we will lose it, but if we trade our life for what God has in store for us He gives back to us more than we could ever ask for.

Savannah gave her life (the coin)

to God and at the end of the object lesson she not only got her coin back but another one as well.

The school year is winding down and many of our church programs are taking a break for the summer as well. It’s time for Sunday School and Kids’ Church teachers to stop and take a breath, but, wait, VBS is just around the corner. This year’s theme is Athens: Paul’s Dangerous Journey to Share the Truth.

Our annual Sunday School picnic took place on the church yard on June 9. Everyone brought their lawn chairs and came prepared for an outdoor service.

Plan B came into effect when we were showered with blessings as soon as Pastor Darrel started his message.

Once we had settled down inside to continue the service, his suggestion that we sing “Our God Reigns” met with lots of laughter.

A barbecue lunch followed the service and the children were treated to creative face painting courtesy of Rose and Laura. Some outdoor games and a candy scramble completed the afternoon.

A Ladies Night was held on June 12. We had a casual evening of fellowship around the table and got to know each other a bit better. Who knew that some of us have such a weakness for potato chips?

Thanks to Audrey who shared a meditation on hearing the Father’s voice and thank you to Darlene for organizing the evening.

– Sharron Straub

•• Roseisle EMC

ROSEISLE, Man.—A parent/child dedication was held on April 21. Brian and Danielle Derksen (with son, Shane) and Scott and April Bickford (with children Emily and Riley) publicly expressed their desire to train and nurture their children so they would come to know and love Jesus as their personal Saviour.

It is such an encouragement to see young parents wanting to raise their children in a Christian environment. As a church family, we committed to supporting and praying for them.

We had a HayDay the weekend of May 24-26. Our church was transformed into a farmyard for a three-day Vacation Bible School event.

The enthusiasm and attendance was great as the kids, ages two to grade six, learned through Moo-sic, Bible adventures, hog wild games, and projects with a purpose that “Jesus will always love us.”

PHOTO: ROSISLE EMC

Dedications and VBS held

Danielle, Shane and Brian Derksen

The weekend ended with a Sunday celebration where our whole congregation could get in on the fun action.

On July 1, our youth once again served a waffle breakfast to those that came to our community for the Canada Day celebrations. Currently, our youth group is very small, so it was great to see so many from our congregation step in to help wherever needed.

I believe, once again, they provided an awesome start to the celebrations in our small town by feeding 550-plus people.

– Eleanor Friesen

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 25

Columns • Further In and Higher Up

Evangelical, Mennonite, Catholic: the EMC as God’s dream church

I Layton Friesen

am delighted for the chance to share some writing with a group of people I love and miss. A concern in most of what I do, whether in preaching, writing or studying, is to test out a theory, a prediction. The prediction is that God’s dream church is EMC: Evangelical, Mennonite, and Catholic.

Why Evangelical? It names a concern for the personal devotion to faith, the grabbing a hold of the goodness of the good news with the fibre and tissue of the soul. Turn or burn. Get thee to the river and be baptized. Shout’n glory.

Get out from under your steeple and give that homeless man the bread of body and the water of life. Get off your laurels and do something about it. A theme text for Evangelicals might be Acts 1:8.

Why Mennonite? Because the kingdom of God is more a slow infestation than a flash flood.

Because if we can just avoid worldliness in even some obvious ways the gates of hell will not prevail. Because a feeble, inconsistent, but still attempted colony of heaven on earth is all the notification the kings of the earth will be given about where the whole enterprise is headed.

Because somebody needs to state the obvious: in a world with the Church in nearly every land and language, you can’t fire a gun in any direction without hitting your sister in the Lord.

Because sitting down beside your neighbour and suffering for him is a better path to knowing the crucified God than concocting an airtight syllogism to secure his existence. Because the family of the Spirit should love each other, not with words alone, but with casseroles and sandbags. The theme text for Mennonites might be Luke 6:20-21, 27-28.

But Catholic? Didn’t Menno Simons get us out of that racket? What I mean is catholic with a more primal meaning. In The Last Battle C. S.

Lewis talks about a small stable that is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. That works as a picture of the church catholic.

She encompasses more of the human community in a congregation of a dozen than the U.N. She envelops more of the truth of the cosmos in “Jesus Loves Me This I Know” than Britannica. She has real-time fellowship with billions of saints and angels in heaven and earth, and is run by library committees and grumpy organists.

Every nebula and quasar, every goose and gooseberry finds its whole deep-in-the-bones origin and destiny in the totus christus, this unity which is Christ and his hands. As catholics we are a grasping, reaching, straining operation attempting to bring the entire catalogue of created truth, goodness and beauty in through the door of the stable.

It’s the narrow gate, the eye of the needle (dare I say the birth canal?) through which we become really, really big people. A theme text for Catholics might be Ephesians 1:22-23.

So, if you will humour me for a bit, I will make a few attempts to suggest what being “EMCers” is all about.

In a world with the Church in nearly every land and language, you can’t fire a gun in any direction without hitting your sister in the Lord.

26 The Messenger • July 2013

Editor’s note: Layton Friesen is a guest columnist for four issues. Raised in Manitoba’s Interlake region, he is an EMC member and minister who has served as a pastor at Crestview Fellowship and Fort Garry EMC, both in Winnipeg. He holds BRS, MCS, and MTh degrees and is currently engaged—in the service of the Church—in doctoral studies at the University of Toronto, connected with Wycliffe College (an evangelical Anglican institution). He lives with his family in Oakville, Ont.

News

Dr. David H. Johnson new Providence president Part of Prov since 1990, a Free Church minister and provost, vice president for seminary academics, and chairman of biblical and theological studies.

He is a professor of New Testament and holds a BS in Economics/ Secondary Education, a ThM in Old Testament and Semitic Studies, and a PhD in Theological and Biblical Studies. Johnson, 58, is married, a father, a grandfather, and an ordained Evangelical Free minister. A formal installation ceremony will be held in the fall of this year.

– PTS release and website

PHOTO: PTS

OTTERBURNE, Man. – The board of governors at Providence University College and Theological Seminary has appointed David H. Johnson, PhD, as the institution’s 14th president, effective July 1, 2013. His appointment follows the presidency of Dr. August Konkel who retired in 2012.

Connected with Providence since 1990, Dr. Johnson served as interim president since July 2012. Previously he held other administrative posts, including executive vice president

Dr. David Johnson

PHOTOS: SBC

••

Jillian Klassen

Nathan Dyck

Pauline and Cliff Loewen

SBC announces hirings Steinbach Bible College is pleased to announce the hiring of Nathan Dyck (Riverton Gospel Chapel) as the new Dean of Men, Pauline Loewen (Blumenort EMC) as the new Ignite! ensemble director, Sarah Barkman (Mennville EMC) as registration assistant, and Jillian Klassen (Bothwell Christian Fellowship) as the new receptionist. Thank you for your prayers during the hiring process and for Nathan, Pauline, Sarah, and Jillian as they begin their new roles at SBC. – SBC

Sarah Barkman

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 27

News

SBC bears clubs, can house more students Additional dorm to be ready by fall STEINBACH, Man.— SBC’s third annual golf tournament saw 128 golfers enjoy a beautiful day on June 4 the Steinbach Fly-In Golf Course and a barbecue steak dinner served by SBC chef Gil Drolet at the Mennonite Village Museum.

A silent auction at the dinner stimulated excitement.

Participants bought tickets to win one of many prizes donated by local businesses, including a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey signed by James Reimer. Sponsorships, golfer fees, on-course contests, and the silent auction brought in an income of just over $46,000.

We praise the Lord for a good day, the generous sponsorship of 37 businesses, and the enthusiastic participation of 128 golfers. We look forward to the next tournament on June 3, 2014.

This fall SBC will be able to acommodate even more students on campus thanks to a new 40-bed dorm. Only a few final touches remain before students move into the dorm in early Sept. The dorm will also be available to youth groups, family gatherings, and other rental options during the summer months.

On June 7 a thank you barbecue was held for those who worked on the project. More than 40 people came for a dorm tour and a supper, seeing the finished product and how their part has contributed to the whole.

Plans are underway for the dorm’s grand opening on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 11 a.m. All are invited to celebrate God’s faithful provision, receive tours of the facility, and enjoy a barbecue lunch. Visit SBCollege.ca or call 204-326-6451 for details.

– SBC

••

Grassy Narrows leader awarded Michael Sattler peace prize GERMANY– Judy DaSilva, a First Nations woman from Grassy Narrows, Ontario, has been awarded the Michael Sattler Peace Prize from the German Mennonite Peace Committee (GMPC).

“We want to award the prize to Judy DaSilva in order to honour the nonviolent resistance of the Grassy Narrows First Nation against the destruction of nature and for the preservation of their indigenous culture,” said Dr. James Jakob Fehr of the GMPC. DaSilva is a mother of five children and has organized countless youth gatherings, women’s gatherings, protests, speaking tours and participated in blockades to advocate for justice and a healthy environment. Her humble, passionate and relentless advocacy has resulted in a suspension of logging on Grassy Narrows territory for nearly five years.

While in Germany Judy spoke throughout the country to promote Grassy Narrows’ grassroots boycott of Weyerhaeuser Corporation.

28 The Messenger • July 2013

PHOTO: MWC

Awarded for advocacy in justice, environment

Dr. James Jakob Fehr, Iruwa DaSilva, Barbara Fobister and the peace prize winner Judy DaSilva at the award ceremony.

The prize ceremony took place on May 20 in the Abbey of St. Peter in the Black Forest near Freiburg, Germany.

The prize, named after a 16th century Anabaptist leader, acknowledges groups or individuals who work for peace, for nonviolent Christian witness, for reconciliation work or for dialogue between religions.

The German members of the Peace Committee first learned about these struggles during a delegation to Grassy Narrows that they co-organized with Christian Peacemaker Teams.

– GMPC/MWC

News

‘I am learning so many skills’ ABBOTSFORD, BC—Rorisang “Rori” Moliko works hard helping to plant more than 50 varieties of pumpkins in the green house at Willow View Farms in Abbotsford.

Although pumpkins are a common crop in Lesotho where Rori comes from, corn is what most farmers grow.

But Rori is learning new things at Willow View and dreams what he will do when he returns home after his year here.

“I am learning so many skills,” he says. “I want to do more. I am encouraged to be a farmer.”

Rori is a participant with MCC’s International Volunteer Exchange Program. IVEP is a vocational and cultural exchange program for young adults. People from 30 countries around the world come to North America for one year to live and learn.

Participants are billeted with families and gain vocational skills through a volunteer work placement. For Rori, that placement is at Willow View Farms, a small scale fruit/

PHOTO: MCC BC

Investing in Lesotho one farmer at a time Murray and Sharon Siemens with Rori Moliko

vegetable farm owned by Murray and Cheryl Siemens who attend South Abbotsford MB Church.

Willow View Farms has been family owned and operated since 1960. The Siemens have been farming here since 1991 and have grown their business to include agritourism and direct farm sales. Murray, who has a degree in geography, loves farming and sharing his knowledge, so when the opportunity came to take on an IVEPer, he was excited.

Back home in Lesotho, Rori was already involved in farming, working for an organization focused on conservation agriculture. Here in Abbotsford, Rori has learned skills from planting to grafting and pruning, tractor driving to juice making. To learn more, visit ivep.mcc.org.

– MCC BC

••

‘Sister Care’ crosses borders CHIHUAHUA, Mexico—Five months had passed since the murder of Diana Sandoval’s pastor, Josefina (Chepina) Rempening Diaz, in Cuauhtémoc, Mexico, but Diana’s insecurity remained. Not until attending a workshop called Cuidándonos entre mujeres (Sister Care) did she experience release.

The “Sister Care” workshop series in Latin America is a joint project of the Movement of Latin American Anabaptist Women Theologians (MTAL) and Mennonite Women USA with support from additional churches and agencies.

At each location of the traveling workshop, participants’ experiences give a particular focus on the sessions.

On May 24 to 26 in Chihuahua, in northern Mexico, the sessions about losses touched the women deeply. They felt both the loss of a pastor and the loss of their sense of security. The women came from various conferences and cultures, including Hispanic, Germanic and Tarahumara indigenous.

They found sisterly similarities and mutual support.

Rosy Guillen, mission worker in Chihuahua, Mexico,

PHOTO: MMNN

Assists in dealing with losses

Coordinators Olga Piedrasanta and Ofelia García

did a dramatization of the Samaritan woman with an emphasis on how Jesus helps women to remove their masks.

In small groups participants responded to the questions, “What is the mask that I wear and what do I hide behind it?” Then one by one each woman removed her mask and was affirmed by the group.

At the workshop the women also celebrated the tenth anniversary of the MTAL, recognizing its roots in the 2003 Mennonite World Conference Assembly in Zimbabwe. In addition to follow-up in Mexico, additional regional Sister Care workshops are scheduled in Colombia during the month of August and Bolivia in November.

– Linda Shelly, MMN

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 29

News

BENI SUEF, Egypt — Bola Melad Ragheb is a typical Egyptian youth, with a shock of dark hair and a warm smile.

Only 17, he enjoys playing soccer on a computer with his friends.

Yet when Bola walks, he faces an added degree of adversity. At age three he contracted polio, causing him to limp.

“Because of the problems I have with the muscles in my legs, I grew up thinking I wasn’t good at anything,” he confides. “Then my mom heard about this program that helps young people with disabilities. I learned that I have potential, and decided to try things out to see what I might be capable of.”

Bola is referring to a program, run by St. Mary Church in the town of El Fashen, whose aim is to help students with disabilities integrate and succeed in education. The program is sponsored by MCC’s Global Family education program through a partner, Ekhlas Coptic Organization for Development.

A goal “is to build the students’ confidence and encourage them that even though they have disabilities, they also have capabilities and rights,” said Trish Wiebe, MCC Egypt’s program coordinator, from Blumenort, Man. Although school is required through grade six, supplies cost money, and parents are less likely to spend money to educate girls and children with disabilities beyond the required level.

Bola is lucky. He is getting a secondary education, and after a year in St. Mary church program, he gained the

MCC PHOTO BY ISAAC FRIESEN

MCC encourages Egyptian youth with disabilities to counter stigma

Bola Melad Ragheb stands in the shop where he works after school.

courage to apply for a job at a fertilizer shop. He got the job and was soon trusted to help customers and manage the shop every morning.

Currently, he is in the second year of a three-year vocational school, studying commerce. He works part time at the shop in the evening, studying between customers.

When Ekhlas offered to pay for Bola’s younger sister’s school expenses, he declined because he was making enough money to pay it himself.

He helps support his family, which includes two sisters and three brothers.

“It feels great that I can help my family in this way,” he smiles. “God willing, I will one day have a shop of my own.”

Sponsors are needed for this Global Family program.

You can support Egyptian students living with disabilities and girls in this program at donate.mcc.org/project/ global-family-egypt-education-for-all – MCC

••

CFGB grateful for giving WINNIPEG, Man.—In March, the Canadian Foodgrains Bank finished our budget year. We are happy to report another good year of giving by people across Canada. We continue to be grateful to God and to our supporters for their generosity.

Together with support from the Canadian government, we were able to provide about $43 million of assistance for 2.1 million people in 37 countries in 2012-13. This included 40,678 tonnes of food and seed.

– John Longhurst, CFGB

30 The Messenger • July 2013

In Memory

Byron John Thiessen 1956-2013

Byron John Thiessen was born to Norma and Leora Thiessen at Ste. Anne, Man., on Aug. 16, 1956. He was a healthy baby until he was 11 months old. At that time he got sick with spinal meningitis and encephalitis. This was a life-changing illness that affected him until his death.

In January 1986, Byron moved to the Deer View Lodge in Wawota. All the staff became Byron’s extended family. The family thanks you for the daily care and the constant unconditional love you gave Byron. The compassion that was shown

to Byron and to us as a family during his final days touched us deeply.

On Feb. 24, 2013, Byron went to be with the Lord where he is “dancing with the angels while the lions roar!”

He will be lovingly remembered by his parents, Norman and Leora, and his siblings: Dale (Janet), Cheryl (Harold Friesen), Rhonda (Tim Sweeting), Myra (Wes Kroeker), Brian (Frieda), Steven (Leanna) and their families.

– His Family

••

Kevin Jonathon Nemez

1964-2013 Kevin Jonathon Nemez was born on May 4, 1964, to Joseph and Naomi Nemez. He had a happy, active childhood. He enjoyed motorbikes and for several years participated in motocross races.

He was in a 4-H horse club and enjoyed caring for and showing horses in the ring. He was an expert rider from a very young age. He liked to hunt small game with his pellet gun and later with a shotgun and a rifle.

He showed some interest in archery and fishing.

He loved to follow big brother Stuart and enjoyed teasing sister Shirley, both whom he admired and respected. Kevin also played hockey during his childhood and teens. Kevin had a calm and comforting personality with

a keen, quick sense of humour that was sometimes very droll. He saw the funny side of almost everything.

Kevin attended school at Heyes, SVJH, and graduated from SVRSS. He then went to Assiniboine College in Brandon and became an auto body repairman. He gained experience in this trade at several shops in Winnipeg, Portage, Neepawa, and Swan River.

He tried his hand at other things like truck driving, school bus driver, and running a coffee shop-restaurant.

He spent the last six years managing Phatboys Custom Auto Restoration in Swan River. He demonstrated great integrity in his dealings with customers and employees.

Kevin met Margaret Campbell in Winnipeg while she was attending Providence Bible College. They were married on April 7, 1990. They were blessed with five beautiful, healthy children, Kyle, Ryan, Reise, Addison, and Peyton. Kevin was a loving, faithful, and respectful husband.

He loved his children more than his own life, always sacrificing his time, money, etc., to support and be with them. He was also an honourable son who demonstrated his respect for his parents in many, many ways.

Kevin attended Church at Little

Woody Baptist until he and his family moved to Community Bible Fellowship. Kevin became a born again Christian at a very early age and committed his life to his Saviour and God. He wanted to go into full-time ministry, but things didn’t work out that way. That did not stop him. He studied the Bible and took some Bible School courses on the computer. His faith was strong and became very apparent during times of hardship or stressful situations.

Kevin’s heart was for youth. He worked with youth groups at Little Woody Baptist Church and at Community Bible Fellowship. His door was always open to them and his heart was for them.

Dozens of teens and young people have been positively affected by his love, advice, and spiritual leadership. Kevin’s wife, Margaret, has supported and helped and encouraged all in of Kevin’s work and ministry. She, too, has loved and encouraged the young people as he did.

Kevin went to be with his Lord at 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 2, 2013, at the age of 49 years. He leaves many behind many who will miss him greatly.

– His Family

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 31

In Memory

Elizabeth L. Reimer

1926-2012 Elizabeth L. Reimer went to be with her Lord and Saviour on Saturday, Aug. 4, 2012, at the Bethesda Hospital in Steinbach, Man., at 86.

Elizabeth was born in the Ste. Anne Municipality on April 3, 1926, to Klaas R. E. and Anna (Loewen) Reimer. She was the second of five children.

Her father died suddenly of a heart attack at 46. The eldest son, John, was 21 at the time and the youngest child was eight. Elizabeth’s mother continued farming with the help of her children.

Thirteen years later, Mom passed away following a stroke. This was a challenging time for the young family.

Another hard event took place in 1956, when their brother John, the farm manager, was struck with polio.

He recovered enough to come home and was able to participate in the farming in a limited way.

His health declined sharply in the last months of his life. John died in 1968. This was another difficult time, as Elizabeth and the remaining siblings carried on without John.

Elizabeth took over as the “mom” of the family. However, each one had their responsibilities in keeping the family together and the farm running.

Elizabeth was baptized upon the confession of her faith on July 28, 1944, at 18. She reminded us of this baptism date once again while she was

32 The Messenger • July 2013

in the hospital.

Elizabeth was deeply devoted to Jesus, her Lord and Saviour. Her commitment to the church was most remarkable in attendance, prayer, and generous giving.

She was faithful in attending prayer meeting every Tuesday morning. Elizabeth also loved attending and participating in the Mission Helpers group where they prayed for and wrote letters to missionaries. She attended her last Mission Helpers meeting on the Monday before she was admitted to the hospital.

Elizabeth was a great prayer warrior, praying for family, missionaries and friends. We trust the power of her prayers will continue to affect our lives. At any gathering of family, reading of scripture, and singing were important to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was faithful in many areas. Embroidery was a hobby and she enjoyed baking yeast breads and buns.

Even in her last weeks she managed to take part in the baking, pointing out the nicest loaves and buns which should be kept for company.

She was a true caring friend showing her love in whatever way she could. At home Elizabeth saw to it that everyone was dressed appropriately before they left the house.

Her visual impairment the last ten years did not stop her from enjoying her usual activities. Nor did she complain. She displayed a thankful attitude and expressed her appreciation for any help extended to her. We will miss her friendly, welcoming smile.

Elizabeth is survived by her brother Henry, sisters Annie and Helen, Aunt Tina Loewen and many cousins, relatives and friends. We sorrow, but not as those who have no hope.

Viewing was held at the Ridgewood EMC on Wed., Aug. 8, at 7 p.m.

Funeral services were held on Thursday, Aug. 9, 2 p.m. at the Ridgewood EMC. – Her Family

Calendar Manitoba September 12-14 An Urgent Call to Truth for Critical Times Winnipeg Prophecy Conference http://www.wpgpc.org Victoria Inn - 1808 Wellington Ave., Winnipeg

November 29 Training Seminar on Legal Obligations for Pastors

November 30 – December 2 Conference Council Prarie Rose EMC Landmark Ministerial Retreat Wilderness Edge Retreat & Conference Centre Pinawa

December 2 – 3 New Leaders Orientation Wilderness Edge Retreat & Conference Centre Pinawa

Shoulder Tapping EMC pastoral needs* *With any applications for EMC church pastoral positions, candidates are expected to also register a Ministerial Questionnaire with the EMC Board of Leadership and Outreach, which can be obtained through Erica Fehr, BLO Administrative Assistant, at efehr@emconf.ca or 204-326-6401.

Taber EMC is seeking a full-time youth/associate pastor. Candidate should have the ability to plan and oversee a comprehensive youth ministry and oversee associate pastor ministries as arranged by the church leadership. Valuable assets would be skills in sports and music. Contact church board chair Abe Klassen at 403-223-0588 or 403-331-9563. Send resumes to Taber EMC, Box 4348, Taber, AB T1G 2C7 or taberemc@ yahoo.ca.

Christian Fellowship Church (EMC) in Birch River, Man., is currently seeking a part-time pastor. We are a small community church located 500 kms north of Winnipeg, Man., next to the Porcupine Provincial Forest, which lends itself to excellent hunting, fishing and camping opportunities.

We are a friendly congregation with approximately 40 attendees and a vibrant community youth program. We have a history of long-term pastors with a heart for our community and varying levels of education.

We also have strong ties to Steeprock Ministries, which runs a Bible camp that touches the lives of 300plus children from local First Nations communities every summer.

Interested applicants may apply by sending a resume to Greg Thiessen at g.thiessen@yahoo.com; to Greg Thiessen, Box 224, Bowsman, MB R0L 0H0; or phoning 204-734-8395.

Vanderhoof Christian Fellowship, an evangelical and friendly Christ-centred church with approximately 100 regular attendees, is looking for a senior pastor who is especially gifted in preaching, teaching, and biblical guidance. Located in a vibrant forestry and mining community, one hour’s drive from Prince George, BC, we are looking for someone who can fulfill such pastoral duties as conducting weddings, baptisms, baby dedications, and funerals.

With an ability to minister to all age groups, the applicant should be committed to a personal Christian faith and be a disciple of Jesus Christ. He should be a willing and teachable leader, and a person whose love for the Lord is reflected in his ability to work well with others. Feel free to check out our website at www.vcfemc.com for information.

If the Holy Spirit seems to be inviting you to pursue this further, please contact Marcy Giesbrecht at mikegiesbrecht@msn.com., with your résumé and cover letter attached.

Steinbach Evangelical Mennonite Church is seeking an energetic director of worship arts to function in a half-time capacity within a team environment together with a lead pastor, associate pastor, youth pastor, community pastor, and support staff.

Responsibilities and qualifications include the

following: provide leadership in programs such as coordination of worship services, overseeing music related groups within the church, strong administrative support. other responsibilities may include overseeing Toddler Time and Kidz Kamp programs and responsibility for music and equipment purchases.

Submit resumes and cover letters to chair of search committee, 422 Main St. Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5; or semcsearchcomm@gmail.com.

204-837-9490 or Scott Groen, board chairman, at 204-885-0233 or send questions and/or resume to sgroen@shaw.ca or by mail to Scott Groen, c/o Crestview Fellowship, 271 Hamilton Ave, Winnipeg, MB R2Y 0H3. Those nearing graduation and new graduates are welcome to apply. Salary and hours are negotiable.

Kola EMC is looking for a full-time pastor, but would also consider an intern position. Previous experience is preferred and housing is available.

Kola, in southwest Manitoba, is a small but aggressive little town in the middle of the oil patch with a lot of construction and farming in the surrounding area. We currently have approximately 100 people attending on a regular basis. For information, call 204-556-2037 or e-mail at kolaemc@gmail.com.

Mid-Way Christian Leadership, based in Thompson Man., is looking for an adult life coach, youth life coach and office manager. Please email generaldirector.mcl@gmail.com for full job descriptions or inquiries.

La Crete Christian Fellowship is seeking candidates to fill the role of senior pastor. LCCF is located in a beautiful, prosperous farming and logging community in northern Alberta. We are a multi-generational congregation with a strong commitment to missions. Our average Sunday attendance is 450.

The senior pastor would be a team member working with and providing general oversight to the associate pastor, youth pastor, office staff, lay minister and a large, supportive ministerial. He would have appropriate Bible college education and preferably a number of years of pastoral experience.

He would agree with the EMC Statement of Faith and Church Practices. Duties include, but are not limited to, preaching, teaching, some administration and officiating at various church functions.

Information can be found at www.lccfc.ca.

Please contact Darryl Olson at darrylwolson@gmail. com or 780-841-0287 if you can serve together with us in this capacity.

Inner City Youth Alive seeks a full-time administrative assistant to provide reception services for all ICYA staff and programs, and to provide assistance to administration staff. Contact Dory Richards, dory@ icya.ca. Further description at www.icya.ca.

New Life Christian Fellowship seeking a senior pastor who has a heart for people and loves the Lord. We are an evangelical church located in Stevenson, Ont. The Church is mostly young families with average attendance between 80 to 100 people. The majority of the people attending have a Low German-speaking background. We seek a pastor who has the heart of a shepherd and a desire to see our church grow. He should have strong preaching and teaching skills and ability to develop leaders. Pastoral experience is preferred. He must be in agreement with our constitution and statement of faith. Anyone who possesses these qualifications and is interested in this position can forward their resume to nlcf@ciaccess.com Crestview Fellowship (www.crestviewfellowship. ca), an EMC church located in Winnipeg, Man., is prayerfully seeking applications for a half-time youth pastor or director. If you feel God calling you to this position, or if you have any questions about the position, please call Pastor Darrel Guenther at

Other opportunities

Arborg Youth for Christ is seeking a director to lead an active youth centre in Arborg, Man. Contact: Keith Tarry, 333 King Street, Winnipeg, MB R3B 0N1; keith@ yfcwinnipeg.ca; 204-669-4205, ext. 204.

Gem Lake Wilderness Camp, a ministry of Inner City Youth Alive, is looking for committed, passionate Christian leaders to work as counsellors and lifeguards this summer. Openings for July-Aug. are available. Contact Gord at gord@icya.ca or call 5828779 ext. 212 for details.

Mennonite Community Services is looking to hire a radio marketing and administration manager.

Core duties: find sponsors, sell ads, supervise staff, facilitate schedules, train volunteers, ensure appropriate equipment is available and functioning, and provide overall administration and support.

Please send cover letter and resume to Mennonite Community Services at 16 Talbot Street East, Aylmer, ON N5H 1H4 or email to annab@mcson.org First Mennonite Church, Burns Lake, in northern BC, is looking for a part time or full time servant leader pastor. The desired person should share our vision and will work with us to fulfill it. The candidate will have ability to inspire discipleship, outreach, and a desire to embrace our community, while holding firm to sound biblical doctrine. Our candidate will agree with the Confession of Faith in the Mennonite Perspective. Send your resume to FMC c/o Wilf Dueck wedueck@telus.net, (phone) 250-692-3455 (cell) 250-692-6454.

Rosedale Bible College (Irwin, Ohio) invites nominations and resumes for the role of president. Inquiries and/or resumes should be submitted electronically to:presidentsearch@rosedale.edu.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 33

Columns • here and far away

Risky obedience

by Jocelyn R. Plett www.writewhatyousee. wordpress.com

Do we trust God more than we trust the safety of an airplane?

When God asks us to do crazy and scary things, promising that He will be with us, reassuring us that He is sovereign no matter the results, do we feel as though acting in obedience is a risk?

Do we give second thoughts to sharing our conviction that Christ is the best thing that’s happened to us with the sceptic in our book club or on our hockey team? Or are we more at ease boarding an aircraft that travels trans-Atlantic?

God’s involvement in human history relates multiple examples of a “regular guy” being asked to do an irregular thing: march around a huge fortified city seven times, ending with blowing trumpets. What in the world? Bear a child after menopause. Egad!

I already feel like my body is too old to bear a child and have lain awake at night wondering

34 The Messenger • July 2013

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

R

isk is something that follows us around on a daily basis. It’s a risk to walk down the steps; you might fall and break your neck. It’s a risk to drive anywhere in a moving vehicle.

In a developing country one quickly realizes that the levels of risk are even higher. When Solo plants his rice fields in September he invests all his money into the planting, with the hope that he will gain a harvest that will feed his family for the next year. If cyclones or a dry “rainy’” season ruin his crops he has no insurance to float him through to the next planting.

When Michel’s sister is in a car accident that paralyses her, requiring platinum plates to be inserted into her spine, there is no insurance or health care to help pay the large hospital bills.

When I am fully certain of something—the safety of an aircraft, for example—it does not feel as though there is a lot of risk involved. I have confidence that it will carry me to where I want to go, I am not afraid that it will break down en route.

Do we trust God more than we trust the safety of an airplane?

about all the “what ifs” of a high-risk pregnancy.

These biblical stories are of real people being asked to take huge risks, with no concrete assurance—or insurance—of what they’ll find if they obey.

The great stories are of those who did obey, who took the risk, and found God’s name glorified as a result. No one remembers what’shis-name who felt led to do something crazy, but prudently decided not to, thereby saving his nestegg and avoiding potential humiliation. His name isn’t remembered. But God’s still is. He will achieve His purpose with the help of others who are willing to risk being obedient, for the glory of His Name.

Obeying is frightening and risky. Do we trust God more than we trust the safety of an airplane? Should we second-guess His instructions as much as we do? The rewards, He assures us, will be beyond our greatest expectations. Not what we expect, most likely, which is perhaps what frightens us.

Columns • stewardship today

If I had a million dollars

I

f I had an unexpected imaginary windfall, I’d invest in our pastoral leaders and the future health of the church by funding financial literacy programs at Bible colleges and seminaries.

Debt is a huge issue confronting Canadian society. The average Canadian owes $1.65 for every dollar of after-tax income they earn. It would take over half a year’s salary for the average Canadian to repay his or her consumer (non-mortgage) debt.

How much training do church leaders get at seminaries and Bible colleges so they can help people to live within their means? Basically nothing. When I asked about this at a Mennonite ministerial gathering this winter, some nodded and murmured assent. No one disagreed.

Not only do seminarians graduate illequipped to help church members in this area, increasing numbers are graduating with crippling debt loads that impair their ability to serve and may force them out of ministry.

Debt also reduces the pool of candidates able to serve smaller congregations.

A shortage of pastors willing or able to serve small and rural churches is a major and increasing concern across Canada, according to a recent study by the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.

Some seminary graduates have student debt loads approaching and exceeding $100,000.

Graduates head into ministry and are offered part-time positions, sometimes with few benefits. Many times their first churches are in small or rural communities where there are limited opportunities to earn additional income unless they are handy with a hammer or a computer.

It’s hard enough for pastors to talk about money, let alone lead by example, without unresolved personal challenges in that area.

Fortunately, some organizations are taking steps to address this problem.

Luther Seminary in Minnesota has a

financial coaching program through its Center for Stewardship Leaders. Any student who applies for financial assistance at Luther is paired with a trained volunteer coach.

Coaches are transparent about their own choices and situation, and provide a safe environment to guide students over at least one academic year. “The job of financial coaching is to help you get your financial life in order, clear the way to a sense of well-being about money and free you to be a stewardship leader,” the coaching manual states.

After developing the coaching manual and recruiting mentors, the seminary spends only a few thousand dollars a year on the program, director Charles Lane told me.

The United Methodist Church in Indiana takes a more holistic approach. Matching grants from the Lilly Endowment provide educational programs for clergy and lay leaders, plus grants to clergy and/or clergy spouses.

by Mike Strathdee

A shortage of pastors willing or able to serve small and rural churches is a major and increasing concern across Canada, according to a recent study by the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.

If I had a million dollars, I’d fund Bible colleges and seminaries to offer financial literacy programs. Tuition and materials would be free for anyone who commits to full attendance and participation. On successful completion, a graduate would get the added bonus of a grant that can be applied against student debt.

We ask a lot of our pastors. Giving them the training they need in financial matters would be a great gift for them, their congregations and the wider church.

Mike Strathdee is a stewardship consultant at the Kitchener, Ont., office of Mennonite Foundation of Canada. For information on impulsive generosity, stewardship education, and estate and charitable gift planning, contact your nearest MFC office or visit www.mennofoundation.ca.

www.emconference.ca/messenger • The Messenger 35

Columns • kids’ corner

W

by Loreena Thiessen

hen the earth was first formed God made the dry land and the deep waters (Genesis 1: 9-10).

The dry land, the earth, is made of different types of rock.

In the rock are metals and materials like gold, silver, diamonds, iron ore and coal, which are mined for a variety of uses. To find and dig them out, rocks are broken. By breaking big rocks smaller bits are left.

Rocks change all the time. Water and wind wear them down and carry the tiny bits and particles away, where they collect and stick to each other and new rocks are formed.

Rocks can tell us is what kind they are.

There are three basic types of rock. One kind of rock is from volcanoes. The volcano erupts with force and fire and spits out rock and steam that pour down its sides as lava. When it cools, it hardens. This forms a rock called igneous, formed deep inside the earth. Moon rocks are igneous rock.

Another rock is sedimentary, formed when layers of bits of rock, minerals, and pieces of plant material stick together and become rocks.

Sand and gravel are examples of these.

The third type of rock is called metamorphic. These are formed by high temperatures and are dense and compact, like granite, which is a composite or formed from different rock materials that stick together.

Shapes of rocks tell something too. Smooth rounded rocks are older and have travelled farther. They have been smoothed by the wind and water and rubbed by other stones over a long period of time.

Different chemicals make the colour in rocks: gold flecks, silver veins or crystal bits that glint in sunlight.

There are man-made rocks too, like cement and bricks. Cement is crushed stone that is mixed with water and sand and hardened. Bricks are baked clay; the hotter the temperature, the darker the brick.

36 The Messenger • July 2013

PHOTO: DESIGN PICS

Rocks talk

Ever changing rock

Paintings on rock inside ancient caves tell us about people who lived there, their activities, and the animals they hunted. They are story pictures of a time thousands of years ago.

Rocks are markers. One example is the Inuksuik built by Eskimos to mark who has been there, which direction to go, or where there are seals or caribou to hunt for food. Shaped stones on graves mark the names and dates for us to remember people who have died.

When Joshua led the people safely across the Jordan River God told him to set up a cairn, a pile of twelve stones to mark the place where they crossed. He wanted them to remember how the mighty hand of God helped them, another sign that God was with them.

Read the story of the twelve stones in Joshua 3:15-17; 4: 5-9, 20 – 24.

Activity: What story does your rock tell?

Need: Choose a rock or several rocks you like, pencil, story writing paper, tempura paints, and a camera.

Do: Look closely at your rock. Touch it. Is it smooth or rough and jagged? What does it look like? Of what does it remind you? Try to remember where you found it. Why did you pick it up? What can you tell about it? What story does it tell you?

Paint the rock if you want to. Write down what’s important about it. Take a photo of your rock. Share its story with a friend or family.

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