Website and Blog Update

I love the new look to our website!--pretty much the same actually, but it displays better now and seems cleaner/clearer.

I also recently learned that you can't read the blog entries straight through because the teaser on the home page doesn't show, so you either have to go back and forth or miss the first part.  I've gone back through all of my 2009 posts to correct that though, will fix 2008 soon, and do it right the first time for 2010! 

Dec 30, 2009 at 10:22 AM

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Have Yourself a Messy, Magnificent Christmas!

One illustration that didn't make it into my sermon for last Sunday was "Messy Church."

Apparently some churches offer "Messy Church" as a regular part of their ministry--it's especially for children as you might guess from the title, and each child must bring an adult.  Most of the time is spent on a craft (which is where the messy part comes in), followed by a brief kid-friendly worship time, then a messy grace, followed by a simple supper.  I think it's a great way of sharing the good news with children, of inviting families that might not already belong to a church, of building community among old and young.  Messy Church, anyone?

Dec 23, 2009 at 5:43 PM

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Christmas Surprise

This morning I almost stopped mid-sermon since I saw Joon Park and his daughter Dona sitting up in the balcony!

Linda (as worship leader) had already welcomed everyone, including several students home for Christmas (Laura back from Kansas, Rachel and Anna-Marie back from Winnipeg), and she even asked if there was any returning student she had missed.  No one said anything, but then I saw Tom and Jordana (back from Kelowna) sitting behind me, and then later during my sermon Joon and Dona (from the seminary in Elkhart)!  Turns out that Joon had come back for some meetings related to his creative writing work, and Dona had come with him, leaving her sister Shina and mother, Shim, still in Elkhart.  I was glad to talk with them after the service, and sorry they're in Abbotsford only overnight, then off to Vancouver for a few days and back to Elkhart in time for Christmas.  We miss them!  

Dec 20, 2009 at 2:21 PM

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Stressed Out by Christmas?

My sermon last week generated a lot of response from a wide range of people and ages, from high school students to middle-aged working people to retired folks. Some had stories to tell about their own difficult experiences, others asked for the quote from Frank Peretti.

Here it is from The Wounded Spirit:  "begin treating everyone who passes your way as a priceless, precious, miraculous creation of God, a person for whom Jesus Christ bled and died, a person who matters to God just as much as you do."

The quote doesn't use the word "gentle," but I related it in my sermon to Philippians 4:5 "Let your gentleness be evident to all."  In stressful times, one of the ways to de-stress is to be gentle with everyone including yourself!  To treat everyone "as a priceless, precious, miraculous creation of God" because that's what they are and you are too!

Dec 16, 2009 at 4:29 PM

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Hello from New Orleans!

Each year, I feel privileged to attend the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) as part of my professional development. It's a very stimulating time of learning and interaction that I always look forward to, but last year, when I heard that the 2009 sessions were being planned for New Orleans, I had mixed feelings.

How do you feel about having SBL in the French Quarter of New Orleans next year? I asked one of my Mennonite colleagues.   Going to seminars in comfort and luxury when other areas are still in need of rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina?  Should we arrange time to visit these areas?  Arrange a work party?  Or would that be an unwanted and crass tourism under the circumstances?  In the end, given the focus of the conference sessions and our short time in the area, we simply left it at that--and now that I'm actually in New Orleans, I'm again very aware of those same questions and the uncomfortable ambiguity of it all.

I suppose that's part of being New Orleans--a colourful city, full of contradictions, "chaotic" as one person described it to me last night, "where luxury and being run down seem to exist side by side" as someone else said to me tonight.

The sessions themselves have been wonderful--too many good things happening at once to go to them all, but so far I've been to sessions on preaching (aptly named Feasting on the Word); a session on why the Dead Sea Scrolls have captured the (North) American imagination; another on images of Jesus in popular art; how 2012 is surfacing in the apocalyptic imagination of some; a Pauline seminar; another session on preaching that focused on how the book of Exodus contributes to our understanding of good preaching.   I've also spent some time at the book exhibits, and connected with faculty friends from Eastern Mennonite Seminary, Canadian Mennonite University, and Tabor College.  It's been a very rich time--and there's more to come tomorrow!

Nov 22, 2009 at 6:55 PM

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The Two-Minute Talk-About - Global Perspective

Last Sunday we tried another "two-minute talk-about" as a response time after my sermon, but this time verbally acknowledging that some might prefer to continue in reflection on their own which was perfectly fine and with one of our music team members keeping time so we wouldn't go over two minutes. Some responses:

- is the two minutes over already??

- when I think of global perspective, it seems overwhelming....I don't know where to start

- I like having different cultures in the church, but sometimes I feel awkward talking to someone of another culture

- part of global awareness means recognizing how what we purchase can affect people in other parts of the world....buying from Ten Thousand Villages may help someone have a living, a pair of pants bought at the mall may have been made in a setting with deplorable living conditions 

Other comments?

Nov 13, 2009 at 8:57 AM

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The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs

This book was sitting on my desk at home when we still lived in our house, and I finally started reading it this last week while on vacation. It's subitlted "One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible."

So far, I've only read the first hundred pages or so, but it's certainly living up to it's billing as hilarious, tender, entertaining, fascinating and even inspiring.  Written by a self-proclaimed agnostic, it's a kind of spiritual quest that explores the Bible with intelligence, curiousity, and honesty that I find refreshing and thought-provoking. 

I like the Scripture quotations scattered throughout the book, the clear explanations of Bible stories, the discussion of various interpretative and historical issues involved in understanding the Bible--these are all over-simplified by the author's own admission since any one of these could fill an entire book on its own, but it's done very fairly I think and  makes for a very entertaining and informative read.

This book could only have been written by a man--you'll see why when you see the beard he grows as part of his quest and hear his account of dancing in religious celebration with several hundred Hasidic men--but it makes me ask questions about my own faith and the writing process.  How do I understand and interpret the Bible and live it out in my own life?  If I were to write a book about living biblically--if you were to write a book about living biblically--what would it say?

Have any of you read this book? 

Nov 5, 2009 at 11:33 PM

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Women's Survey Deadline Extended

If you haven't filled out the Mennonite Church Canada Women's survey yet, there's still time before the extended deadline of Nov. 1.

Copies are available at the Welcome Centre in the church foyer, or you can fill it out on line through the Mennonite Church Canada women's blog at www.mennowomencanada.blogspot.com/ 

Oct 25, 2009 at 6:19 AM

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Thanksgiving Blessing

Last week, I was pleased to see an older gentleman from the church's neighbourhood join us for Sunday morning worship. He had called me the day before to wish me a happy Thanksgiving, and I had invited him to the service, letting him know that I would be speaking, the children would be singing special songs, and we would have a processional to bring our offerings to the front of the church.

Much to my surprise, he actually came (o ye of little faith!).  Afterward, he said my "talk" was very good, he had met a couple with "a very kind heart," and that he was most "impressed" that we were collecting dimes for a project in India--it made him wonder what he and others from India could also be doing, and he was going to think more about that.

I gave him a ride home after the service, since he and his family have moved a little further away from the church.  And then he insisted that I come in to say a prayer of blessing on his family for Thanksgiving; so I could see how much his grandson had grown; so I could greet his wife, whom I had visited and prayed over at their request once before when she was recovering from eye surgery.  And then of course, I must have a glass of apple juice and a chocolate chip cookie and visit with him and his wife and daughter, who hugged me and said thank you and they will think about coming to one of our English classes.

I got home from church a bit later than I expected that Sunday, but at the same time I was glad to spend the time with them and to receive their blessing of thanks and hospitality in return.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Oct 16, 2009 at 7:43 AM

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To Shake or Not to Shake (hands that is!)

H1N1 seems to be in the news everywhere these days, and as a church we've received info on pandemic preparedness from Mennonite Church Canada, Mennonite Church BC and other sources. In response, our deacons and Worship Committee are asking worship leaders not to direct the congregation to shake hands during the worship service.

We don't have a meet and greet time as part of the service every Sunday anyway, since by the time the service starts many people have already said hello to whoever is sitting beside them and have been actively engaged in conversation already.  We are also arranging for hand sanitizers to be available in the church foyer and at the office entrance; for information to be posted in the washrooms; and for information to be distributed to group leaders who are a vital part of our caring ministry as a congregation.

We're not quite sure where all this leaves greeters who normally shake hands with people as they welcome them to the church, and I'm not quite sure what I should do since I normally also shake hands with people as they leave the sanctuary.  To shake or not to shake, that is a question!  Shall we rub elbows instead as some suggest? (although since people are being told to sneeze into their arms, I wonder about that!)  Or bow as my husband suggests?  Offer hand sanitizer to each another?  Wave?  Dismiss all this as an over-reaction?  

We're not banning handshaking as some churches have done--beyond the few suggestions I've outlined here, our deacons and Worship Committee are leaving it up to individuals to decide what they will do.  Let's do that with sensitivity and care for others--if you extend your hand and receive a bow in return, I hope you'll understand, and if no one reaches out to you, I hope you'll still feel welcomed and cared for in the church.

Oct 10, 2009 at 7:29 AM

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