MB Herald Quarterly Spring 2019

MB HERALD HAS UPDATED OUR BRANDING. YOU SHOULD TOO. PLEASE VISIT MBHERALD.COM/ABOUT TO DOWNLOAD IMAGES TO LINK TO MBH CONTENT ON YOUR WEBSITE AND IN YOUR E-NEWSLETTERS OR BULLETINS.

For all ages, volunteering provides an opportunity to use professional skills – or , just as often , to develop new ones – and to expand relational networks. It creates a space where the aroma of Christ we carry can open conversations with those who catch its alluring scent.

Volunteers form the backbone of churches. Who are the members in your congregation that exemplify a Christ-like attitude, giving their time, energy, and love to ministry inside and outside the church? mbherald@mbchurches.ca

AN EXPLOSION OF LIFE AND GLORY

If Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead, this universe and all the wonderful things that are in it will end in a whisper. Without the resurrection, there is no hope for any of us (1 Corinthians 15:19–20).

VOLUNTEERS: A world of good

“I started because I was newly retired and wanted to do something useful,” says Ewert, who delights in her discoveries, including Russian midwife records from the 1800s and her grandfather’s name on a map.

Durant’s favourite part of volunteering is “working together with others and interacting with those I am serving and hearing their stories.” Even three hours of peeling vegetables for an outreach dinner became enjoyable “because of the relationships created by spending time with the other volunteers.”

MCRS invites volunteers to study the same professional development texts as staff and join staff discussions. Interns in social work, migration, governance, international development, or communications gain frontline experience and valuable references.

Is volunteer culture changing?

Society is in transition: “We’re learning what it means to see the person we’re helping as an equal, not our beneficiary,” says Campagnola. Many refugees were leaders in their country – their influence is the reason they became a target. She tells her volunteers, “They made it 10,000 km without you. They can make it to the bank without you.”

On climate: the global church needs to CHANGE

Our lives are rooted in Christ. Whatever happens, God is always with us. This is not an excuse to sit back and watch the chaos unfold; rather, it is a time to CHANGE. As the global church, we can embrace this opportunity to reach out to those who are lost.

A MODEL FOR MINISTRY

The Collaborative Model is well suited to situations where multiple organizations serve the same constituency. To function well, this model has four components:

1: Common mission and agenda

2: Common measuring systems

3: Clear relational structures

4: Principal organization

All of the partners in the Collaborative Model – CCMBC as the principal organization, six provincial conferences (Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia), Multiply, and MB Seminary – will agree to function under these four components. This new way of operating can bring unity and focus to the mission of the MB family in Canada.

SPIRAL EVER DEEPER INTO CHRIST

Conversely, the liturgical year attunes us to a different narrative and a different reading of time. And when we follow its lead to measure time by the rehearsal of Christ’s life, we have the opportunity to consider our daily tasks and our very ordinary movements in light of God’s extraordinary story.