Memories of a ‘CHRISTSAM’ past
Always first were the grade ones and twos who did the Christmas acrostic. Margaret was first and she boldly held out the C. “C is for the Christ child, born that morn so long ago,” she said crisply. The concert was off to a fine start. Harold was next, and during practice, he had had some difficulties with his line which was simply, “H is for King Herod who slew the Hebrew boys.” Harold looked confident.
Co-pastoring in EMC: does it work?
“Sometimes when there’s something new, everyone looks at it to see if it can work, [but] all sorts of churches … have done well [or] have failed with single pastor hires or multi-team hires.… Things go wrong all the time.… If [co-pastoring] fails, it doesn’t mean it always is going to fail, and if it works, it doesn’t mean it’s always going to work.”
Two kings, two kingdoms
The Pax Romana was a phrase coined by perhaps the most successful authority figure in world history. Directly translated it means the “Roman peace,” and it was a phrase dreamt up and made common by Caesar Augustus, the first and by most considered the greatest Augustan emperor of the renowned Roman Empire.
Relying on his power!
We were in the dark, quite literally. Due to an accident and damage to a transformer on the Saturday evening before our planned deacon commissioning service, we experienced a widespread power outage in our area.
My little thief
♪ Do you remember the good old days? When we could walk to the corner store, pick up milk, chocolate bars, maybe a new bike? You can’t get away with that anymore. They have surveillance cameras now. Well, theft is no laughing matter.
Steinbach Bible College moving to new campus in 2026
Steinbach Bible College (SBC) and Steinbach Christian School (SCS) are announcing today that SCS has acquired the SBC campus, and SBC will be moving into a new campus in 2026.
Timbits and the sea
June 23, 2024, Multicultural Sunday, was celebrated at Abbeydale Christian Fellowship by recognizing the diversity of believers in our church family in a number of ways. About 20 languages were represented either in Scripture reading or song.
Prayer needed for conflict in Burkina Faso
Join us in prayer for Burkina Faso. Siaka Traoré, a leader in the Evangelical Mennonite Church of Burkina Faso and Regional Representative for Mennonite World Conference, is asking for prayers as the country continues to face terrorist attacks.
Stories of tragedy and trust: honouring the legacy we started with
♪ “We came in 1875,” my father tells me. Dad is 94, and a trip to the ER is giving him a sense of urgency to pass on the stories his mother shared.
Pre-dedication at the core
This year has held so many beautiful and heart-warming blessings to praise God for. The parent/child dedications. The multiple baptisms. The member acceptances. The involvement and leadership in a huge community-wide children’s VBS program.
MCC executive directors respond to concerns of former workers
♪ As the executive directors of Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Canada and MCC U.S., we want you to know that we are listening to the concerns recently raised by alumni, staff and others, and are holding them with humility and compassion. We are practicing prayerful discernment that will allow us to work with wisdom and grace toward resolution and healing.
Editorial: MCC association doesn't mean we discount allegations
♪ In this issue, we are including an investigative article covering allegations made by former Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) staff about unjust terminations by MCC. It is unlike anything we normally print, and this may raise questions about our reason for including it.
Mental health, presence and prayer
♪ The ministry staff I work with at Inner City Youth Alive (ICYA) walk closely with many people experiencing anxiety, depression, trauma, addictions and other challenges. We are not mental health professionals, but we encourage our staff not to underestimate our role as “boots on the ground” ministers.
Half-finished projects
♪ I was thinking about Adam and Eve while I pushed my wheelbarrow full of dirt and weeds to my discard pile. What was tending the garden like for them?
Letter
Recently we were made aware of a rumour that the General Board was beginning a review process for evaluating conference affiliations with other agencies. Specifically mentioned to be at the centre of this discussion was Mennonite Central Committee. Upon reading the Conference Council minutes of June 29, 2024, the rumour was validated.
We don't live for this world
♪ “During her cancer journey, I would often tell her that I’m jealous; jealous that she gets to be with Jesus before me.”
Sitting and hearing Ernie’s story reminded me of a foundational truth that I so often forget; eternity with Jesus is the hope that we cling to.
Missions committees: thinking outside the box
♪ According to the information we have from our churches across Canada, approximately half our congregations have a missions committee of some sort—though how they function varies.
Dead trees and dead heroes
♪ If you go to the place where the Tigris and Euphrates rivers meet and converge, you won’t find the Garden of Eden anymore. You will, however, find a nicely manicured park with a large tree at the center.
Can God fit in you?
♪ A prayer from the African pastor Augustine in the 4th century has stirred my thought for some time: God, “you were closer to me than I am to myself.” If you place that prayer alongside Paul’s prayer that the Ephesians be “filled [with] … all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:19), you quickly find yourself in a bottomless sea of wonder and prayer.
The untold stories of returned missionaries
♪ You’ve been back in this country for a little less than three months and you’re just wrapping up another talk at one of your sponsoring churches. People walk up to you after the service and shake your hand to welcome you. “You must be so happy to be home!” they proclaim earnestly as they insert words into your mouth before you can even open it in protest.