The 2009 Ride

It looks like the time of year to enjoy a good motorcycle ride is upon us again. Since last year's ride, I have been dreaming of taking a group of riders to Vancouver Island. We have one MCBC congregation on the Island, so what better connection than to work with them.  Thankfully they also have a few riders in their midst.  I have met with leadership in the church and with some of their riders, and the folks at the Black Creek United Mennonite Church are excited about being our host for this year's ride.  

The details are not all finalised, but here's a sketch of what we might do.  We are planning for the weekend of August 8-9.  We would take the ferry across to Nanaimo early Saturday morning and ride to the church (approximately 2 hours north - between Courtenay and Campbell River).  We would ride all day Saturday and folks from the Black Creek church would host us Saturday night.  

We would join them for worship on Sunday.  I am planning to preach, but we would welcome others from the crowd of riders to make a contribution to the worship.  Sunday afternoon we would ride again, ending up at Nanaimo to take the ferry home.

What do you think?  If you wanted to stretch it out a little more, you could go to the Island on Friday and find your own accommodations, joining the rest of the group on Saturday.

I am really looking forward to coming together with brothers and sisters from across Mennnonite Church BC in worship, learning, fellowship and food. I hope you are all planning to come.  

We will be led in our worship by Dan Loewen and the worship team from Level Ground Mennonite Church. We will hear interviews of a variety of people talking about missional activities that are happening through congregations across our church in BC. We will see photos and video of what God is doing in our midst. 

You will meet people who care about the church and God's mission. Come and see what the Lord is doing!

Come and be part of it!

Mothers' Day doesn't get better than this!

My Mom was able to fly out from Saskatchewan to be at Jill and Andrew's wedding. Remember that 15 months earlier, she had a massive brain aneurism.  Due to immediate surgery, much prayer, and time, Mom started getting significantly more alert and self-sufficient last fall.  It was in December that she first showed interest in coming to the wedding.  My brother Howard and his wife Lori accompanied Mom on the trip out to BC, but he said that she really didn't need any assistance.  What a miracle!  

All along, my Dad was the healthy one.  Yet, as the wedding day approached, he had this nagging cold that kept him down.  In the end, he was unable to come.   We always thought it would likely be the other way around.

What a great Mothers' Day gift - to have Mom back!

A Son-in-Law

Our daughter Jill was married to Andrew Goertzen on April 4th, 2009.  It was the most wonderful day.  I was able to just be the dad for the day.  Jill and Andrew's former youth pastor at Sherbrooke Mennonite Church, Rod Wiebe, did a marvellous job of working with Jill and Andrew in putting together the wedding ceremony.  Rod also presented a very good word to them in the wedding message.  

Diane and I couldn't be happier. Please pray for Jill and Andrew as they start their new life together.

The wedding took place at Sherbrooke Mennonite Church in Vancouver and the reception was at the Delta Town and Country Inn (near to our home). Jill and Andrew are living in an apartment in southeast Vancouver.

MCBC Annual Meeting - February 21, 2009

OLD COAT-NEW CLOTH: FASHIONING THE FUTURE FOR MCBC

(I have to give credit to Amy Dueckman, our MCBC writer for the Canadian Mennonite, for much of this article.  She gave me permission to use excerpts from her article in the MCBC News 'n Notes.  In fact, you could just go to the Jan./Feb./March 2009 News 'n Notes on the MCBC website for the full version of her article - and photos.)

I would say that we had one of our best Mennonite Church BC annual meetings in a while.  I would also say that a key reason for this is the new level of commitment and trust that our re-covenanting has given us.  While we are a diverse body of congregations, and we wouldn't all want to live completely in each other's skin, we are in a place where we prepared to be the church together and get on with the mission to which God is calling us.  

A feeling of unity and moving forward pervaded the MCBC annual meeting at Cedar Valley Mennonite Church on Feb. 21st.  Delegates witnessed Level Ground Mennonite Church signing the MCBC covenant.  This is the new congregation formed as a result of the coming together of the West Abbotsford Mennonite Church and Wellspring Christian Fellowship.  

Delegates also witnesed the appointment of Rob Tiessen as Executive Director of Camp Squeah, after having served as Interim Executive Director for the past two years.  Camp Squeah reported on the building project of two new buildings scheduled for completion later this spring. It was reported that $1.3 million has been raised with $600,000 left to be raised.  Delegates were challenged to engage their congregations with energy to raise what is left.

The delegates came through with an amazing affirmation of what it means to be in a covenant relationship with each other.  First Mennonite Church Burns Lake has gone through two rounds of difficulties that has caused the congregation significant loss of membership over the past years. They are now a small congregation, yet with a unity in purpose unseen for some time.  The delegates committed to assist the congregation with up to $27,000 annually for 3 years (as needed) in order for them to have a fulltime pastor who will lead them back to good health.