Summer's comin'

We have had such gorgeous weather this week. Friday hit a high of 22 C. Every day was sunny and mild. It's making us excited about summer and all the things that we're looking forward to doing.

Like going on vacation back to Ontario....

We also plan to enjoy some of the camping opportunities here in our new province. We're only minutes away from Bird's Hill Park.

The weatherman is forecasting snow for tomorrow and a high of -1. It's already snowing in western MB. But we are not going to complain, right? It won't last! It'll be back up to the mid-teens by the middle of next week. Of course it will warm up again! Didn't we just say summer's comin'? :)

Dead or Alive? Hot or Cold?

How do you measure the warmth of a church? What makes a church a strong church or weak church? How do you measure her spiritual temperature?

A description of the early church is found in Acts 4:32-37. This was a very unusual situation. Verse 32 says, “They were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.” They were unusually warm toward each other. Unusually alive and thriving. Verse 33 even says that the Apostles continued their witness in Jerusalem of the resurrection of Jesus. “And” it adds “great grace was upon them all”.

How then do you measure the warmth of a church? There’s to be a love for the Lord and for His Word. There is to be a love for doing what God has called us to. The love here for God is expressed in terms of a witness in the world. A very powerful witness. And when that happened great grace fell upon them all. That great grace could be seen in terms of God’s favour. But there is another way to see this. The great grace could also mean that favour of others because the word favour is not qualified in the sentence. The favour here could be the favour of those in Jerusalem who saw the church and admired the way the first believers cared for each other. That’s a possible interpretation, though the other is just as legitimate.

The point is there’s to be a love for others – a love for the brethren. A love for those outside the church: calling them to come in and take part in the resurrection of Christ by faith. This is what defines the warmth of the church. Consider what Jesus says in John 13:35 – “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.” By this: By how connected we are to each other. By how we love the fellowship. That is what Jesus is saying. And that is what will make a church strong. The higher we value our personal privacy and freedom from commitments, the shallower our grasp of fellowship will be. It will be reduced to moments of idle chit-chat over steaming coffee after church. But there’s more to it than just this – much more….

Luke, the human author of Acts, uses the word ‘koina’ meaning ‘common’ in Acts 4:32. They had all things in common. The focus of fellowship is on what believers have in common with one another, what we share with each other, putting into practice the truth that we are woven together as members of one body. This means stewardship. It also means using our gifts and talents for the good of the fellowship. Our time as well. Really, what Luke wants us to understand is that there was a real delight over belonging to the family of God. This delight brought a joyful eagerness to be with and share with each other and with new members.

Are we eager to share in our fellowship because we are delighted over belonging to the family of God? Can we say, “I’m so glad I’m part of this? I want to be used here by the Lord in whatever way He chooses”? We all have a part and a place that is very important for the well-being of each other. That is the measure of a strong church. These are the conditions that we see in God’s holy community. And you know what? God wants to use each of us.

the latest truck....

For those of you who've missed our search for our truck, this is the latest one. Cher liked it so much she took a picture of it.

The neighbourhood cat

This pair loves to sit on our septic mound cause the grass is green. But we're getting a little tired of them b/c of the mess they're making...

Recently this cat has been hanging around our place. He likes the kids and is good around them. But he's also been good at stalking the geese.

We keep wondering if we should bother with getting a pet. Everybody else's pet keeps coming to our place. :)

An important reminder

"For a man solemnly to undertake the interpretation of any portion of Scripture without invocation of God, to be taught and instructed by the Spirit, is a high provocation of him; nor shall I expect the discovery of truth from any who thus proudly engages in a work so much above his ability" -- quote from Owen in The Word Become Fresh by Dale Ralph Davis.

Thanks for the reminder!

Beheaded Easter bunny

Spring is different here.....

Rich exchanged this afternoon and since the pm service was earlier (3, as opposed to 4:30), we had some time on our hands this evening. So we headed over to Lockport to see where the floodway empties into the Red River. Above is the bridge over the swollen river.....

.....and here is where the floodway empties into the RR. There's quite a current here and we haven't even reached crest yet - it's expected by early May.

Something that took us by surprise when we visited here last June (can it be possible that we're getting close to a year from when the call was extended to Rich?????) was the abundance of pelicans on the river!

They look ridiculously out of place (to my eyes, since I've only ever seen pelicans by the ocean) but it's pretty neat to see them.

And amongst them, a loon - that's for you Ron ;)

We had a gorgeous Easter Sunday today - a day to just "soak in" what Christ has done and revel in our status as His children. A day to see beyond the cross and just be so very thankful that He is in our "here and now" - His power is ours for our every moment, every situation. Joy can be ours b/c Satan is crushed and we stand victorious with our Jesus!

No Hell

"Rob Bell controversy" in the National Post

Bell is the New York bestseller author of Love Wins and pastor of a mega church in the Michigan area. He claims that a good and loving God cannot condemn people to hell.

Shhhhh.......Secret Sisters.......

Our new church here has something I love called "Secret Sisters". Maybe some of you have heard of such a thing, but I hadn't and I think it's a great idea! Everyone who wants to be involved fills in a little "all about me" form and that form is given to another woman in the church. That woman becomes her secret sister and throughout the year sends her anonymous notes of encouragment and promises to pray. Gifts can also be given for special occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries or dates that have certain meaning. Neat, eh? Then, once a year, there's a wind-up where all the secret sisters are revealed.

Alison and Lisa T. - our hostesses and the head honchos of this secret society. Hmmm........I think I worded that poorly....... ;) They've worked hard to organize it, labour tirelessly handing out cards and gifts on Sundays (so as to keep the givers a secret...) and they pampered us all to a nice evening out last night.

No get-together of church ladies is complete without a baby or two. Here's sweet little Gaven - held by one of the many ladies fighting for holding rights :) Lisa N. - looks good on you! ;)

Lots of time to chat, play games and then came the handing out of the envelopes. Everyone had to write a card to their sister, revealing who they were. Exclamations, smiles, and many hugs followed. It was neat to watch. Will be even neater to be a part of it all next year!

Somehow Miriam seemed to be in the forefront of many of my pictures, hugging various people.....;)

Alison and Lisa T. presented a very unique devotional, enlikening the fellowship and friendship between Christian ladies to a recipe. A chocolate chip cookie recipe, to be precise. Each ingredient represented something that enriches our lives through Godly friendships. For example, like sugar adds sweetness to cookies, so fellowship with Christian woman adds a sweetness to our lives; as salt adds flavour, so our fellowship keeps our lives from being bland. Chocolate chips indispensable; nuts optional ;)

I didn't manage to ge a picture of Gavin with his own mom - I think the only time Jessica held him was when he needed to be nursed........ Here's Sharon taking her turn :)

Another new addition to our church family - Levi - what a doll, eh? I gotta get my hands on that one yet...... :)

Need I say anything here? What get-together is complete without food? :)

I'm so thankful for these ladies here. They've been the arms and feet of Christ to me, drawing me into their friendships, reaching out in love to the newcomer. I look forward to years ahead of deepening our friendships and encouraging one another in our walks with the Lord!

Kids and a webcam

Give kids a computer and look what the monkeys come up with.... Even Vetta knows what to do with a clicking mouse!!

Out by our sliding patio door

There are hundreds of these little creatures by our place right now. They settle here in the early spring before they migrate north. They're called juncos. There is a lot of different wildlife in MB that we are not used to seeing. We had a snowfall on Saturday (hence, the snow on the walkout). But it's already melted. It can snow in May too. ::::bracing ourselves:::: We're told it always melts soon after. How soon after, we still don't know. ;) It's been a slow Spring for everyone in Canada, it seems.