live A Baptist resource for women on a mission July - August 2018 · $3.50
A CALL TO bear witness WE SEE WHAT YOU ARE DOING Patty Nacho – Integral Mission in Bolivia (p3)
ROOM TO PRAY A Thanksgiving fast from criticism (p8) Involve your youth in back-to-school prayer (p10)
A QUESTION OF FRIENDSHIP Spiritual friendship bears witness to love (p14)
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cONNECTING
in this issue columns Connect to Mission 3 » We See What You are Doing 6 » A Window on Africa 8 » ROOM TO PRAY – A Thanksgiving fast from words of criticism 10 » ROOM TO PRAY – Back-To-School Prayer Room Connect with Others 18 Come Thirsty | Drink Deeply 22 » A History Moment 23 » We Remember BIBLE STUDY 16 Bible Study: A Call to Bear Witness
features Connect with gOD 11 How Will God Use Your Story? 12 Insight from the Carpool Catching the evildoers 14 A Question of Friendship Spiritual friendship bears witness to love
Cover photo: AntonDariusThesollers/Unsplash.com
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I don’t always connect with the very personal nature of mission, that when we bear witness to what God is doing in our lives we overcome the enemy. When we pay attention to God and allow our thoughts and decisions to be radically altered as a result of being in His presence, we become living proof—witnesses—of God’s power. We overcome Satan’s ploys to destroy our identity as God’s children, co-labourers, Bride. Mission is personal. And when we choose to do mission from that place of rock-solid reliance—in God alone— our work becomes victorious: We have brought the very presence and power of God into the places where He’s called us to serve. One of my April Conference highlights was Meghan Matthews’ declaration that God’s more is the more of miracles. I forget that. Instead, I slide into the faulty thinking that I’ve grown in faith and in ministry . . . on my own merit and through sheer force of will. I’ve grown accustomed to seeing the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ miracles through the sepiaed patina of flannel boards and old-fashioned cutouts. It takes 10 minutes of daily silence in God’s presence for me to realize that all of who I am and all of what I do starts with and is prompted by the Holy Spirit’s work in me. Those Gospel miracles . . . they merely hint at the supernatural power of God—a power that defeats Satan as together, as Baptist Women, we faithfully do what He’s asked us to do. Mission is personal. It’s miraculous too. RJ
VOLUME 91, NUMBER 4
live (formerly The Link & Visitor) began as The Canadian Missionary Link (1878) and Baptist Visitor (1890). Published bi-monthly by Canadian Baptist Women of Ontario and Quebec 5 International Blvd., Etobicoke, ON M9W 6H3 416-620-2954 Fax 416-622-2308 bwoq@baptist.ca www.baptistwomen.com Executive director Diane McBeth Editor and communications director Renée James 416-651-8967 rsejames@gmail.com Art director Donna Lee Pancorvo of GEPM Group Inc. (www.gepmgroup.com) Contributors Kay Derby, Linda Ellsworth, Isabel Federgreen, Jessica Hartwick, Meghan Matthews, Rev. Tina Rae, Sandi Smoker, Morgan Wolf Circulation and subscriptions Subscriptions 416-620-2954 live@baptist.ca Subscriptions Individual: $20* (direct or through promoters) US & overseas: $39 All currency in $C unless otherwise noted. The publication of comments, opinions or advertising does not necessarily imply CBWOQ agreement or endorsement. All material is copyrighted and may not be reproduced in print or on websites without permission. Advertising inquiries and freelance submissions should be addressed to the editor. Member, Canadian Church Press. ISSN 2293-5096. Canada Post Customer Number 1008592. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada for our publishing activities. *includes HST
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We See What You Are Doing Patty Nacho talks about the Integral Mission Projects run by Canadian Baptist Ministries and her call to serve in Bolivia.
In 2001 and 2002, Patty Nacho lived in California, planning to build her life there. She had learned English and enjoyed the spiritual refreshing of a strong church community. After 9/11 however, visas became more difficult to procure and she had to return to Bolivia. Back in Bolivia, she volunteered on a number of short-term mission trips run by Canadian Baptist Ministries (CBM). She could keep her English polished. At one point a CBM position opened up but she didn’t get the job. Instead, she worked for eight years for the Norwegian Alliance Mission. Then in late 2014, her cousin, CBM global field staff David Nacho, asked her to look for possible candidates for another CBM position. She began to pray that the right candidate would come along. Two weeks later, Photo courtesy CBM
by Renée James with reporting by Diane McBeth live • July - August 2018
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David’s wife asked her: “What about you?” Patty reread the profile and thought, “You’re right—it does sound like me.” She also felt that her calling to the Norwegian Alliance Mission might be coming to an end, so she applied. This time, she was offered the position. Patty started as global discipleship coordinator with CBM, a position that carried a substantial learning curve. She had also just come out of a very painful situation with her church. “ I can see with clarity that God brought me to this ministry not only to be part of it but to be healed by it,” she reflects. In this role, Patty bridges between Canadian teams and Bolivian ministry. She also tries to find ways in which Canadian teams can serve and be a blessing . . . but she also wants them to be blessed themselves. “We hope to send them back with a different perspective and with the idea that the church can do something for the community,” whether in Canada or elsewhere. For Patty, a good short-term mission trip is one where team members allow themselves to be
vulnerable, so that “they see the ministry as an opportunity to grow.” This communicates to the people they are serving that they want to be there. Patty is very involved in CBM’s Integral Mission Initiatives (IMI) program in Bolivia, a new program that Baptist Women supported in 2017 and continues to support in 2018. The majority of projects in the program are existing programs of local churches, but IMI grants give them seed money to advance them. They will receive funding for one to three years each and they will continue to run on their own after IMI funding is complete. For example, Villa Nueva in Santa Cruz was already running but had no tables and chairs for the children when the program started. The program focuses on middle school children who are sent to the program because they are considered problematic. The school’s principal came to the church to thank them—the children were getting better grades and their behaviour had improved. “I think the difference is that people in the church really care about the children and think they can change,” says Patty.
Two wonderful IMI projects in Cochabamba Emmanuel Supported by First Baptist Church, Cochabamba, Emmanuel provides academic and spiritual support for the children of prostituted women. Located in Cochabamba’s red light zone, 38 children come to the program. It’s a safe place for them (their mothers may only be renting a room in a brothel). They get a meal, homework help and an opportunity to take part in a program like Sunday School. They also get psycho-social support. As these children become teenagers, it’s harder for them to accept that their mothers are prostituted women. They need to learn how to keep loving their mothers. Cristo Rey Also located in a less-developed neighbourhood, this is a weekend sports program that invites community kids to release their energy in positive ways and to learn some Bible stories. It’s also run by a church plant. No more than 35 people belong to this church plant and yet most of them get involved in the program. Leaders meet with the families of the children and try to be responsive to their needs. The women’s ministry takes charge of snacks. Youth help out also.
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Integral Mission Projects in Bolivia Left: Adriana, Programa de Educación Pre Escolar “El Paso” at the Evangélica Bautista “Misionera” Right: Maria Luz, Apoyo de educacion integral at the Congregación Bautista Cristo Rey in Cochabamba Photos courtesy CBM
At the core of the IMI program is the big ministry heart of typically small churches. “It is very touching how a small church can have the compassion required . . . I think when they grow up, the children will for sure remember that they were important to someone from the church, and that they can be used by God,” says Patty about the Cristo Rei project. Her words are true for all the projects in the IMI program. It’s no surprise then that Patty’s prayer requests for these projects are equally big. She asks Baptist women to pray for those running these IMI projects—that they would be protected and encouraged. “It’s a spiritual battle, and because they are doing the projects, they are exposed.” One special request is for Goretty, the leader at Emmanuel, who has cancer. (Read about Emmanuel and Goretty’s story in the March-April 2017 issue of live magazine.) Patty has her own prayer requests: for physical, emotional and spiritual health as she works with teams. The work means long hours. She also requests prayer for her parents and siblings in La Paz. live • July - August 2018
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A Window on Africa Marthe Ekollo’s testimony Marthe is the president of the Baptist Women’s Union of Africa (BWUA). As a member body of the Baptist World Alliance-Women’s Department, Canadian Baptist Women of Ontario and Quebec is privileged to partner in prayer wtih the BWUA until 2020.
Dear sisters in Christ, I am privileged to be included in live magazine as the president of the Baptist Women’s Union of Africa (BWUA). Here is a bit of my story. My background I am from Cameroon, in Central Africa. In 1472, Fernando Po, a Portuguese explorer discovered a fishing village built alongside a river full of shrimp. He was so impressed that he named the river Rio Dos Camarões (River of the Shrimps). Cameroon was named after that river. I live in Douala, but I grew up in Yaoundé, the capital city. Douala is the coastal commercial city where 6
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people from the hinterland as well as foreigners come for business. Missionaries started God’s work in Douala, the country’s entry gate. I was born into a Christian Baptist family. My mother, a Christian from a young age, is a woman I admired all my life for being totally committed to Christ. She served for 10 years as the president of the women’s group in a local church. She educated her children in the biblical values of love, humility, obedience, respect, peace. We always prayed, “Our Father, who is in heaven . . .” As a child, I knew God was the loving Father who watched over us. We faced financial and psychological destruction when my father died. Widows and orphans are
Marthe Nguimè Ekollo
used to this in Africa because widows are not given any property. I grew up with bitterness, hating my father’s family. Even so, in 1988 I joined the women’s group of Hope Baptist Church in Yaoundé in order to follow my mother’s footsteps and serve Christ. My deliverance Twenty-one years ago, as I attended a midweek service in Houston, Texas, I heard teaching on forgiveness. Emotion overwhelmed me. Tears ran from my eyes and I felt like a different person. God had freed me from unforgiveness and my loaded heart became lighter. I declared my life would never be the same again.
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God was preparing me for a leadership position and He knew I would not be able to lead women if I could not get over anger and revenge. My journey with BWUA started after my deliverance.
Baptist Women in Africa—Their Strengths and Challenges Across the continent, women suffer many harmful financial and cultural practices that perpetrate discrimination against them. They live in economic exclusion with limited access, if any, to land. They know poverty. Their participation in political and public life is capped. The majority of girls lack access to education and most are unable to stay in school. Girls grow up knowing gender-based violence. Marriages happen early for them, often arranged. And women of all ages face the fear of rape. Baptist women in Africa are tender-hearted builders. They delight in building their family, taking care of children and husbands, and serving the Lord. They speak with truth as they aim at building a loving community. They are food producers, the agricultural labour force, and manage small businesses. They are fearless. They are confident in God. They can walk for hours to attend women’s programs at church. They strive to be good examples to the generation to come. They labour for Christ to impact the world.
My call to leadership When God called me into leadership in 2017, I asked Him to continue working on my life for effective ministry. I have prayed that He would give each Baptist woman the strength to confess unforgiveness. So, for the 2018 Africa Day of Prayer program, God inspired me to choose the theme, Arise, shine, be influential through forgiveness. Since I have entered into leadership, I have travelled once and attended the successful executive committee and General Council of the All Africa Baptist Fellowship in Malawi and I attended the national 2017 women’s annual gathering. The BWUA upcoming regional conferences are scheduled from July to October 2018. . How has God been influencing my life? He is working on me so that I shall depend on Him totally. When I was appointed BWUA president, I was employed. But in January 2018, I left that job in accordance with the Word: “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew
6:24 NIV). I have decided to serve only my Father. He knows all my needs and will provide (Matthew 6:32–33). How can Canadian women pray for me? Like King Solomon, I say to God, “You have made me president of Baptist women in Africa, so give me the wisdom and knowledge I need to lead this great people of Yours. Otherwise, how would I ever be able to do so?” (2 Chronicles 1:9–10). Kindly keep on praying that I will receive divine wisdom and knowledge so that I shall be like King Solomon. 2 Corinthians 12:9 is important to me because God’s grace is permanent. It comes from His great love, since His only Son died on the cross for our sins. This text has enabled my Christian life to grow stronger and stronger. I know that on good days the river is calm, and that on bad days, waters overwhelm me. However, I am assured His grace is enough. I humble myself, praying and surrendering to Christ so that I stand firm. He is my strength because, as the Lord tells us of Himself in this verse, “My power is made perfect in weakness.” I am totally dependent on Him. Truly, God disregards nobody. He has a plan and a purpose for all of us. I am grateful for the opportunity to share my story with the readers of live magazine. To the Lord be the glory, Marthe Nguimè Ekollo live • July - August 2018
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ROOM TO PRAY - A fast from criticism As part of our Room To Pray program for 2018, we invited women to pray and fast in April as a way of preparing their hearts for our Baptist Women’s April Conference. This Thanksgiving, we invite you to pray and fast from criticism. In her book, A Closer Walk, Catherine Marshall reflects on the fast from criticism she did one day. “For the first half of the day, I simply felt a void, almost as if I had been wiped out as person . . . I listened to others and kept silent . . . I noticed that my comments were not missed.” She then writes that during the second half of the day, she was filled with a vision of joy for someone for whom she’d prayed for many years. God showed her that a critical spirit: “makes us unhappy; blocks the positive creative thoughts God wants to give us; prevents good relationships; blocks the work of the Spirit of God . . .” Fasting from criticism teaches us that the most effective way of dealing with those thoughts is to be silent. Before we ever blurt out a single word of judgment or criticism about a brother or sister, we
should take those words to Jesus and allow HIM to shoulder our sin. He is able. The goal of our fast? That the Lord would do such a deep work in our hearts that the words that come out of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts would be acceptable to Him. (Psalm 19:4)
the plan
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Mark off Monday, October 1 – Sunday, October 7 in your calendar. This will be the week when you fast. Decide that you will not criticize anybody about anything during these days.
Follow the prayer prompts and questions provided (or choose other Scriptures to direct your prayers). As you pray and fast using these prompts, daily ask the Holy Spirit to keep words of criticism out of your mouth.
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Keep a record (journal). What words and thoughts filled your mind and heart? Write down your prayers of repentance, the names of people whom you may have hurt with your words and whose forgiveness you need. Record any encouraging words you receive from the Lord as you pray and fast throughout the week.
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Let Baptist Women know how it went. Perhaps your experience will encourage other women. Reach out to our Facebook community or email the office.
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ROOM TO PRAY - A fast from criticism PRAYER PROMPTS Psalm 19:14 (NIV) May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Ask yourself: “What is on my mind most of the time— the thing I think about the most—if I’m honest?” Psalm 141:3 (NIV) Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. As you make a point to avoid words of criticism, ask the Lord throughout the day: “What words would you have me speak?” Pay attention to how God helps guard your lips and invite Him to put His words in your mouth. Proverbs 12:18 (NIV) The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. Ask yourself: “Is there anyone I’ve offended with my words whose forgiveness I need to seek?”
Mark 1:64 (NIV) Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. Ask yourself: When do I need to be silent? When do I need to speak out and what do my words need to be? Proverbs 15:4 (NIV) The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit. Ask yourself: Who has spoken words of life to me? How different would my life be if those words had never been spoken? 2 Samuel 23:2 (NIV) The Spirit of the Lord spoke through me; his word was on my tongue. Ask yourself: How can I become confident that when I speak, the Holy Spirit will speak through me?
Proverbs 9:10 (NIV) The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Ask yourself: How can I become more intentional about speaking words of praise and adoration to the Lord on a daily basis?”
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ROOM TO PRAY - Back-to-School Prayer Room As you consider hosting a Back-To-School prayer room this fall, here are some tips from Meghan Matthews. Meghan is a staff member with CBOQ’s Next Generation ministry and a youth leader at Kingsway Baptist Church in Toronto. Meghan also spoke at April’s conference. Get the full Back-To-School guide in your May/June issue or go online at baptistwomen.com/resources.
Tip #1 Get youth involved. This prayer room is a great project, an opportunity to go up and talk to teenagers. Invite a young woman out for a coffee. Sit down and ask her what she’d do for a Back-to-School prayer room.
Tip #2 Use Scripture. Youth look for truth. Scripture is important because those words are truth. Use Scripture in impactful ways, whether it’s one verse used in multiple ways throughout the room, or several different passages. Have Scripture written out at prayer stations—an important way for youth to connect their experience of a station with the Word.
Tip #3 Design your stations with flexibility and freedom in mind. Time: Teens will do shorter, smaller things. Stations that have a set clock won’t work. For example, at one prayer station some youth experienced, the instructions were to sit down and listen to a song that was looped to repeat. “One young person said they felt trapped. ‘I didn’t like the song, and if I moved, I felt it would look as though I couldn’t finish the station.’” Ways of interacting with stations: Design with many different ways to interact with the elements of the station in mind. For Easter this year, the prayer team at Kingsway recreated the Last Supper for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. In the sanctuary on the dais, the team placed tapestries, bowls of fruit, unleavened
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bread, bowls of nuts, a bowl of oil. The cross was also on the platform, pushed back, but looming. Anyone could come and take their position at the “table.” Nibble. Sit in silence or chat with friends. Look at the cross. Leave when they were ready to leave.
Tip # 4 Talk about the Back-to-School prayer room with youth when it’s over. Youth who are in the process of making their faith their own need an opportunity to talk about the prayer stations and their experiences in the prayer room after it’s over. Provide them with the opportunity to debrief; to talk about their experiences with you. Really try to check back in with your youth the day of or the day after if possible (not two weeks later!). The important thing is to ask good, open-ended questions. Some examples: • What did you think about ______________? • Do you feel any clarity over what you were praying about? • Do you think God was moving in that space? It’s equally important to be open about our own experiences. As you debrief with them, you may say something like, “I went in with this question and God responded to me like this.” “Here’s how that prayer room impacted me and my relationship with God.” When you share your experiences in these ways, that’s the beginning of discipleship and transformation, not just for youth but for the entire church. Meghan Matthews
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How Will
God Use Your Story?
This material comes from the Word!Out workshop offered by Baptist Women. It’s an edited blog post from Jon Hirst and I found it on the Lausanne Congress website after the third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization. It reminds us of why our stories matter. RJ
StoryBlocks.com
Stories inspire us. They provide teaching, encouragement, correction, and insight in a way that comes alive because the stories themselves are living. Much better than any lecture, stories are authentic examples of the lessons they wish to share. . . . Many of us feel as though our stories are very ordinary. We have suffered a little, had a few victories, and enjoyed times of service, but we don’t see our story as anything worth repeating. I challenge that thought. Here are a few reasons why: 1. Your story is accessible: To those who know you, your story is easy to relate to and understand. You have a common connection that allows your story to flow freely into their lives. 2. Your story is applicable: The experiences, struggles and victories you have had will make sense to many of those around you. When you share them, they will relate and respond. 3. Your story is authentic: The people with whom you share can validate your story and can affirm its truth. You are a representation of the truth because people can see it lived out in you daily. 4. Your story is affirming: When people hear your story, they will be affirmed in their aspirations, their struggles and their search for truth. Your experiences can show people that God is with us and for us— even in the hardest of times. . . . Many times testimonies are centered on the moment of salvation with little real life context. Sometimes this is because we are short on time to tell our stories. Other times it is because we don’t think the other parts of our story are important. Both of these limitations detract from your story. Don’t be afraid to tell your whole story to whoever will listen. You will be surprised what small details and circumstances God will use to touch a heart. Take some time to walk through your story in detail. Identify the moments of service, grace, suffering, encouragement, doubt, patience, sin, passion, confusion, trust, etc. Then be ready to use your story as a vehicle to communicate the Good News with those around you. live • July - August 2018
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BigStockPhotos.com
Insight Carpool from the
Catching the evildoers
by Morgan Wolf Morgan is a writer from Calgary, AB. She blogs about her faith and writing at www.anothergratuitousmdash. blogspot.ca.
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I used to carpool to work with my dad and his identical twin brother. My uncle would pick us up in his dark blue Chevy Suburban and together the three of us would drive downtown to our respective work places. My uncle is a slow driver. He enjoys the ride. He revels in the conversation. Being with him is like sitting on a sunny patio with a cold drink on a summer afternoon. It’s easy to wile away the time, laughing at his jokes and then wonder where the day went. One winter morning when the snow was wet and clinging, he missed a sign forbidding right turns onto a residential street during rush hour. A cop was lurking nearby and promptly pulled him over. The police officer seemed abashed for giving him the ticket when the sign was covered in snow but explained (somewhat defensively, it seemed to me in the backseat) the danger of rightturning traffic between the hours of seven and nine in the morning. Unflappable as ever, my uncle nodded and said in his affable, Jeff Bridges-like manner. “Hey, it’s important to catch the evildoers.” “I wouldn’t say ‘evil’,” the cop responded with rehearsed professionalism. “Just someone who, for a variety of reasons, happened to make a mistake at a particular point in time.” Funny how words go out of fashion, isn’t it? Even when used self-deprecatingly for the sake of a dry rejoinder, “evil” is out of
fashion. Instead we must prevaricate and couch all of our words in semantic bubble wrap to avoid labels and judgments that some might find offensive. But if social media has taught us anything, it is that offence is a recreational sport. Winston Churchill once opined, “You have enemies? Good! It means you stood up for something, sometime in your life.” God didn’t give us our lives so we could learn to walk so softly that we would never bend a blade of grass. Instead, we are to bear witness to the truth. Being a witness sounds passive, but it is the farthest thing from it. It is about overcoming evil. It sounds a little hyperbolic to word it like that, but it is true according to Revelation 12:11. When Christians bear witness to the truth it will undoubtedly rustle up some enemies. Not the flesh and blood kind, though; but rather the ones that lurk in this present darkness beyond the sight of our natural eyes. Spiritual forces, who know better than we do, the power of our individual proclamation of what Christ has done. Those same spirits seek to render us mute, lest we, the people who make up the Church, figure out that in worshipping our God; in declaring His greatness; in proclaiming His faithfulness to each of us personally . . . it is in those acts that God displays His might, and our enemies are routed. It is easy to reduce the notion of witnessing to telling someone
about how you became a Christian, as though the story ended at conversion, rather than beginning there. But whenever we tell anyone—even other believers—what Christ is accomplishing in our lives; how He is revealing the truth of His Word in our individual circumstances; how He is transforming us
Being a witness is about overcoming evil by His grace, we triumph over evil by the word of our testimony. The blood of the Lamb is already over the doorposts of victory. Whenever we testify as to what God is doing, even if it is only to our own selves, we overcome evil. We conquer by believing and speaking. In order to secure this triumph, we are only required to keep our eyes fixed on Christ; proclaiming as trustworthy witnesses the evidence we have seen. Because hey, it’s important to catch the evildoers.
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Interacting with God’s truth during Come Create | Come Receive workshop at Baptist Women’s April Conference Photo courtesy Jennifer de Luca
A Question of Friendship Spiritual friendship bears witness to love
“Do you love me?” That’s a big question; a God-sized question. Over breakfast at the lake, Jesus puts the question to Peter. “Do you love me?” Perhaps Peter remembers an earlier conversation, recorded by John, “I no longer call you slaves, but friends.” For sure, memory prompts the oppressive 14 live • July - August 2018
fog of shame that surrounds Peter and suffocating voices recall, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny you ever knew me.” But rather than condemn, Jesus invites Peter deeper. We understand from these exchanges that Jesus views friendship as mutual ground where
persons open themselves to each other in response to the Father’s will. Person, parson; the words share close association as offerers. Essentially, friends are priests together, bearing witness through administering Christ, extending light and salt from the point of loving friendship . . . to the world.
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“If you love me, feed my sheep,” invites Jesus. Friendship with Jesus opens the start-gate to all else. Relationships, work, creative expression, redemption and forgiveness. Everything. Henri Nouwen writes extensively on spiritual friendship in his book, In the Name of Jesus. As professor, writer, social activist and priest, Nouwen knew worldwide recognition. But, he says, “success” put his very soul in danger. Its demands frustrated his need for intimate community, culminating in the perfect storm of loneliness and despair. At his lowest, he found himself asking, “Does anyone love me? The question led him to L’Arche, a community of abled and disabled people, living together in friendship and solidarity. L’Arche became a haven where Nouwen discovered Christ’s unconditional love through mutual friendship in shared vocational call. But how, exactly, is love sown in the hearts of people for each other? Augustine prays, “No friends are true friends unless you, my God, bind them fast to one another through that love which is sown in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” Because God is the binder of persons in friendship, spiritual friendship finds its source of mutual love in Him. Therefore, interactions assume the Spirit’s agency. When friends address themselves to God in prayer, He affirms and aligns the friendship, inviting participation toward justice and mercy. What human characteristics
mark spiritual friendship? Aelred of Rievaulx writes a classic text on the topic. Spiritual Friendship records his lively conversation with two young disciples. He names friendship, “the guardian of the soul itself.” True friendship protects the reputation by keeping confidences, celebrates when the soul celebrates and grieves when the soul grieves. True friendship trusts all the contents of the heart to another without reservation. Belittling has no place in true
We long for spiritual friendships that image eternity through mutual love. We begin by speaking our desires to the Father as we focus on His invitation through Christ. The sweet taste of friendship with Christ bears good fruit and equips each of us toward true spiritual friendship with others. By engaging in spiritual friendship, we respond to Jesus’ question as Peter did: “Yes, Lord, you know I love you.”
Jesus invites Peter deeper. friendship. Rather, spiritual friendship offers wisdom and medicine for life. He writes, “In friendship, then, we join honesty with kindness, truth with joy, sweetness with good will, and affection with kind action. All this begins with Christ, is advanced through Christ, and is perfected in Christ.” (Aelred, 75) In our consumeristic culture, genuine friendship remains a refreshing not-for-profit venture. A for-profit relationship fails under the test of misfortune. Someone who befriends you with the hope of gain “calculates the friendship as marketable and not voluntary.” (Aelred, 104) Aelred prefers friendships with people who have little to offer except love because there are no expectations for gain. Such a friendship is not diminished by hardship. Instead, it stands firm, is reliable and steadfast. Love increases.
by Sandi Smoker Sandi is the former president of Women in Focus (the women’s ministry arm of Canadian Baptists of Western Canada). She volunteers as a counsellor and course facilitator at South Island Centre for Counselling and Training in Victoria, BC. live • July - August 2018
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BIBLE STUDY
Unsplash.com/BenWhite
A Call to Bear Witness
by Linda Ellsworth
I recently completed the papers required to clear me for jury duty. As I pondered the possible outcomes, I wondered how I would ever discern evidence I had not personally witnessed. It would, at the least, be a challenging dilemma for me! What characteristics would a credible witness possess? 1. Character—proven over time 2. Honesty—proven through past words and deeds 3. Intimate knowledge—proven through relationship.
Linda is the member care coordinator for Christian Camping International, Canada.
The Collins English Online Dictionary says that to bear witness means:
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1. To give written or oral testimony. 2. To be evidence or proof. READ Isaiah 52 and 53. Isaiah (often called the weeping prophet) “bears witness” to the sad past, the hopeful present and the joyful future of Judah. Isaiah “forthtold” the story of Judah over a period of 40 years spanning four kingships. He was certainly an “eyewitness” of proven character and renown. READ Isaiah 6 and then chapter 42: 4-6. To what “past” is Isaiah referring? _________________________ _________________________
What “present” is Isaiah describing? _________________________ _________________________ According to Isaiah, what does the future hold for God’s chosen people? _________________________ _________________________ READ Isaiah 52:7-9. What a beautiful portrait of “the watchmen” who bring, hear and proclaim (bear witness to) the joyful news that God has redeemed (bought back) Jerusalem. In these verses, the witness bearer and the watchmen speak of using their feet, their hands, their voices and their hearts to proclaim this great news. Connect these attributes to the verses: FEET _________________________ _________________________ HANDS _________________________ _________________________ VOICES _________________________ _________________________ HEARTS _________________________ _________________________ Remember in Isaiah 6:8 when God called Isaiah saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Isaiah’s immediate answer was “Here am I—send me!” And God said “Go, and tell this people. . . ” In the same manner, God calls us today to be “witness-bearers” of the redemptive faithfulness of the Father through the sacrificial love
of Jesus. READ Isaiah 53 again. “But how,” you ask, “do I, as a woman of God, do this? I am stuck in circumstances that don’t allow me to do much at all.” Several Sundays ago, my pastor made a profound statement when he said, “The circumstances of our lives are a personal assignment from God!” (1 Corinthians 8:8-17) Describe what this statement based on these verses might clarify in your life: _________________________ _________________________ Let’s move to the New Testament to see how Jesus “bore witness” to the truth of the Father. Feet READ John 4:1-25, 39. Travelling from Judea in the south to Galilee in the north, Jesus’ feet had to take Him through Samaria. Although the shortest route, this was unheard of. Do you know why? _________________________ _________________________ Describe the outcome of the route travelled by the feet of Jesus as He followed the Father’s path: _________________________ _________________________ Are there areas in your locale that you fear or disdain? Areas you would not dream of allowing your feet to go? Name them: _________________________ _________________________ _________________________
Are there people in those areas who need to have someone be the evidence of a loving God to them? Describe them: _________________________ _________________________ Tell the Father what keeps your feet locked in place: _________________________ _________________________ How can you be the feet of Jesus? _________________________ _________________________ Hands Of Comfort: READ Isaiah 52:9. READ Isaiah 51:12. Of Strength: READ Isaiah 52:10. Of Healing: READ Luke 8:41-42, 49-56. READ John 9:1-11. How can you be the HANDS of Jesus? _________________________ _________________________ Voice Silent in Hurt: READ Isaiah 53:6-7. Innocent in Speech: READ Isaiah 53:9. Teller of Truth: READ John 5:19-47. Healer of Hurts: READ John 8:3-12. live • July - August 2018
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Jubilant in Victory: READ Isaiah 52:13, 15. How can you be the VOICE of Jesus? _______________________________ ________________________________ Heart The Champion of Justice: READ Matthew 21:12-13. The Lover of the Lost: READ Matthew 11:28-30. The Sin-Bearer: READ Isaiah 53:4-6; 8-11. READ Romans 5:6-11. How can you be the HEART of Jesus? _______________________________ ________________________________ As an eyewitness of the love of Christ, you are called to bear witness to all those whom God puts in your path. Love through me, Love of God, Make me like Thy clear air Through which unhindered, colours pass As though it were not there. Powers of the love of God, Depths of the heart Divine, O Love that faileth not, break forth, And flood this world of Thine. Amy Charmichael; Toward Jerusalem; Christian Literature Crusade; 1936, 1977
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Come Thirsty | Drink Deeply because there’s more Conference Images and Highlights On April 27 and 28, 260 women gathered for Baptist Women’s Conference. Plenary speakers Terry Long and Meghan Matthews encouraged and inspired all present to choose God first versus all other thirst-quenching attempts. Impact slides reminded women of the mission work that Baptist Women supports overseas and in Canada, while an amazing History Wall and a Thank You Wall highlighted the rich heritage on which Baptist women stand today. Come thirsty. Drink deeply. Because there will always be more Kay Derby (Heron Park Baptist Church, Toronto) When attending conferences like this one, I have found that the secret in receiving a blessing lies in being prayed up . . . for God to bless and reveal Himself to us. He never fails to answer these prayers in amazing ways. What blessed me the most was a workshop by Terry Long, The Fragrance of Thanksgiving. We were encouraged to sit quietly and allow God to bring to our minds things to be thankful for. As I sat there, God brought faces and names to my mind of people who had prayed for and mentored me on my journey. They influenced who I am today. I came away, not only thankful, but inspired to be that mentor and woman of prayer for those God puts in my path. Jess Hartwick (First Baptist Church, Welland) It was such a blessing to be among three or four generations of women just praising the Lord and earnestly seeking to love Him and serve Him more. I loved the prayer room and that it was so interactive, yet also a quiet space to just be with Jesus. I also loved the worship team; specifically when we learned Ukuthula all together. What a beautiful moment! t Depicting streams of living water in Meghan McIntosh’s workshop: Come Create | Come Receive live • July - August 2018
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Renee James (editor, live magazine) Worth the registration fee: • The props used by plenary speaker Terry Long during her session—from a McDonald’s french fries container to a laundry basket. • Rev. Tina Rae’s art installation on the sanctuary stage that depicted the conference theme Come Thirsty | Drink Deeply . . . because there’s more (see photo on page 22. • Meghan Matthews, our plenary speaker on Saturday, talking about how she experienced a supernatural encounter with God while prayer-walking a labyrinth. • The interactive prayer room
created by Monique Tatsu from First Baptist Church, Chatham. Fun factor • Instagram takeover of the conference by Isabel Federgreen. • One word: Spanx. What challenged me: Terry Long’s challenge for us to make time to sit down and have an intimate dinner with Jesus: Terry spoke about four types of meals—gourmet, pedestrian, fast food and snacks—that stood for the ways in which we spent time and cultivated intimacy with God. I left reflecting on the many times I’ve chosen fast food or snacks over the gourmet meal experience. The need to have a water belt, no matter its cost, strapped on
q Ladies from the Trent Valley Association pose at the selfie booth. Third from left is our newest board member, Joan Peacock. u Monique Tatsu shares at Friday night’s Room To Pray dinner All photos courtesy Jennifer de Luca
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at all times: Meghan Matthews shared that having a water belt on her as she ran long distances meant she could always stay hydrated. I wondered what I kept on my person at all times that would keep me hydrated when testing and trials sapped my soul and spirit. What I’ve added to my “to read” list because of this conference: • Soul Sisters | cultivating spiritual friendships (a CBWOQ program). This is a series of gentle questions meant to spark conversation and connection for groups of women who want to share their spiritual lives with each other, and you’ll find it on Baptist Women’s website under resources.
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p Alyssa Sampson and Rev. Tina Rae at the selfie booth
Rev. Tina Rae (Westview Baptist Church, London) The April Conference stage design was created with our theme verse in mind, highlighting “streams of living water flowing from within.” I created the water as overflowing out of the baptistry, emphasizing that beautiful sense of movement that we should all have as the Holy Spirit overflows from within each of us. I was happy with the design, but did not have a full sense of the impact that it could have until a moment during our worship time on Saturday. God took my breath away mid-song. The thoughts God brought to my mind in that moment were; “You connect with God through Art. You worship God in Art. You help people worship with Art.” I felt affirmed personally, but was also humbled that God would use me in this way to help bring so many women to a place of worship with Him. Thank you for this opportunity!
Isabel Federgreen (Kingsway Youth) Thinking over how I felt, and how my heart opened after attending the Women’s Conference, there’s a quote I want to modify. “[God’s love is] all the time, and in a way that language cannot touch.” It’s incredible to listen to women I so admire speak about God; women like our speakers Terry and Meghan, both so gifted and wonderful at capturing a love I find so indescribable. To me, it is the moments when it’s as if you can see God’s love and spirit glowing from within them, driving them, that are most memorable. Out of all the moments I captured that weekend, these are the pictures that I find, though blurry, truly beautiful. live • July - August 2018
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A History Moment Mrs. C. E. Parsons was the one who gave life and breath to the cause of Home Missions in Eastern Canada. It was she who had a horse and buggy of her own and, when passing through the town of Beckwith, saw the abandoned Baptist church being used for a sheep pen. She returned to Ottawa determined to reclaim that church. The Home Mission Board of the Convention lacked funds to assist so she organized the Women. From Step by Step: A Chronological History Baptist Women’s Missionary Societies of Ontario and Quebec prior to amalgamation. 1876 - 1953
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TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 25 2018 Mount Hamilton Baptist Church | 626 Upper Wentworth Street a day to connect and grow with fellow CBOQ women in ministry
Dr. Cynthia Long Westfall author & professor at McMaster Divinity College
$20 includes registration & lunch
bwoq@baptist.ca email bwoq@baptist.ca to receive an invitation to register & pay online
please inquire for financial assistance
p Photos from Baptist Women’s April conference Smiles in the lobby t Top L -R: Workshop activity; art installation on stage, women posing in selfie booth. Bottom: Visual aid in The Fragrance of Thankfulness workshop
We REMEMBER These gifts in memory or in honour of family, friends and others you value will continue to bring good from their lives. Thank you. In Memory of Betty Conn, Stayner John Cunningham Paul Johnston, Kitchener Virginia Keith, Lakefield Eileen Pacey, Kitchener Belle Palmer Marjorie Pogson, Whitby Dorothy Rogers, Peterborough Linda Rothery, Cambridge IN HONOUR OF Mair and Denny Greaves, Whitby (60th wedding anniversary) Judith Mercer, Welland (50 years in ministry) Joan Watson, Barrie (80th birthday)
Bernice’s Picks ... J by Margaret Watson $20 The fictional story of how a university student and the prophet Jeremiah intersect and gift each other. God is Able by Priscilla Shirer On sale for $12.99 Got an IMPOSSIBLE situation? The anxiety it brings can wake you in the middle of the night and then stalk you in the middle of broad daylight. Explore the Scriptures with her to see how God is able to help you..
All titles available from ReadOn Bookstore 5 International Blvd. Etobicoke, ON M9W 6H3 Tel: 416-620-2934 Fax: 416-234-8840 E-mail: books@readon.ca www.readon.ca
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