Siggy Islander

AVATAR: a metaphor for evangelism

2010-01-20T10:24:00.000-08:00

Here's an interesting take from Florin Paladie on the 'e' word and the movie AVATAR. Agree? Disagree?

"Although evangelism is a term associated with the evangelicalism (for apparent reasons), anyone who’s set to follow in the way of Jesus will inevitably be involved in evangelism. It is what has been called The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; Luke 24:46-47 and Acts 1:8). The question is: what does it mean to do evangelism?

The recent movie Avatar is a great illustration of the way Christians have been relating to the rest of the world and a lesson for how they should relate. Truth is, we don’t relate to the “other” from a position of equality. For a long, long time Christians have made evangelism a one way street. They have projected themselves to be God’s brokers to the world. Their role was to bring God to places where there is no God. This approach has put Christians in a posture of superiority. If Christians built relationships with the other (be it a next door neighbor or someone from a far off country) it was ONLY to learn their ways SO AS TO get a chance and a way to present their God. Like Jake Sully, they learn about the other in a dry, mechanic way without any emotional investment. There is an AGENDA! There is no real interest in the other. As Samir Selmanovic writes in “It’s really all about God”, we don’t think the other has anything of value to offer us about God. We certainly don’t need them; they are the ones who after all need us. If we care, we care for “their potential”.

This is where the Avatar movie is a great metaphor for what evangelism could and should become. Although Jake Sully entered Na’vi world initially with an agenda in mind, he got to appreciate their way of life, its beauty so much so that he wanted to become part of it. Eventually his presence there really helped to save them. But it was something organic. Evangelism should really be a two way street. We enter the other’s world because we really believe we are enriched by the interaction and our horizons will be enlarged. We celebrate good and beauty where ever we find it[1]. Jesus often found faith outside his religious tribe (Israel, God’s people) and praised it (Matthew 8:10; 15:28 to name a few instances). Actually, when we read the Gospels we often find Jesus saddened by the lack of faith among his own people and followers.

We don’t bring God to the other, but find God in the other.

We get to know them so as to see what God has been doing before we got there and learn alongside. Evangelism is a take and give, give and take love relationship. We initiate the relationship because we believe there is a treasure in the other we can’t miss. We evangelize “to be evangelized.”[2] If we’ve got something of value to offer (which we certainly do) it should become evident in the relationship. But let’s not force it upon the other but let it grow naturally. Just as we find value in the other, the other will find value in us. This kind of evangelism the world needs desperately. We need it desperately."
___________________

[1] Rob Bell: “Velvet Elvis”
[2] Peter Rollins: see his post.

BIG NOISE

2009-09-23T20:13:00.000-07:00

Did you hear the big noise this morning about 7AM? The air vibrated, the ground shook, dogs howled, babies cried, and I'm sure the deer and bear are half-way to Tofino by now. They warned us, but I don't think anyone expected it to be that loud!

Hip 2B Holy

2009-05-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

A Lesson in Cellphone Etiquette

2009-03-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

May this be a lesson to us all.

Who You Following?

2009-03-17T16:37:00.000-07:00

“The ultimate issue in the universe is leadership. Who you follow and what directs your life, is the single most important thing about you.” ~ Jan Hetinga

Who Is Your Role Model?

2009-02-26T19:42:00.000-08:00

Don't scroll down until you've done 1-5. You don't want to skew your answer.

1) Pick your favorite number between 1-9

2) Multiply by 3 then

3) Add 3

4) Multiply by 3 ..... (I'll wait while you get the calculator....)

4) You'll get a 2 digit number....

5) Add the digits together

With that number, see who your ROLE MODEL is from the list below:

1. Einstein
2. Oprah Winfrey
3. Snoopy
4. Imelda Marcos
5. Bill Gates
6. Gandhi
7. Brad Pitt
8. Tiger Woods
9. Darcy Siggelkow
10. Barack Obama

P.S. Stop picking different numbers!!
I AM YOUR IDOL JUST DEAL WITH IT!!

Friends

2009-02-24T11:38:00.001-08:00

In this latest installment of CBS News’ “Assignment America,” Steve Hartman visits an animal sanctuary where a dog and an elephant have formed a very lasting, and unusual, friendship.

Watch CBS Videos Online

Calvin and Hobbes: Scathing Social Commentary

2009-02-16T13:40:00.000-08:00

This comic was published 15 years ago! I thought it was from Saturday's paper...

Josh Wilson's version of "Amazing Grace"

2009-02-15T13:31:00.000-08:00

Mt. Washington

2009-02-07T18:39:00.000-08:00

The pictures are deceiving. It looks like they have snow! But we had a fun time.

Super Bowl Bible Study

2009-01-31T22:13:00.001-08:00

Dear Saddleback Family,

Some of you have asked me if the Bible gives us any clues as to who might win the Super Bowl between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburg Steelers. Here's my answer from my personal study today:

1. Does the Bible allude to either the Phoenix Cardinals or Pittsburg Steelers?
YES! "I am like a wild bird in the desert." Psalm 102:6 (TEV)
"If a person is a stealer, he must stop stealing and start working. He must use his hands for doing something good!" Ephes. 4:28 (ICB)

2. Who will have the advantage playing in Tampa? Not the Cardinals.
"Anyone away from home is like a bird away from its nest." Proverbs 27:8 (TEV)

3. What verse favors victory on the field for the Cardinals?
"I will throw you on the ground and toss you in an open field. I will make the birds perch on you and feed on you!" Ezekiel 32:4 (GW)

4. What verses favor the Steelers?
"Just look at the strength of his back, the powerful muscles of his belly...his huge legs are like beech trees. His skeleton is made of steel, every bone in his body hard as steel. " Job 40:16-18 (Mes)
"With your well-muscled arm and your grip of steelâ€” nobody trifles with you!"Psalm 89:13 (Mes)
"Wherever they turn, I will spread my net over them, and bring down the birds."Hosea 7:12 (NJB)

5. Who is favored to win?
"The Lord told me to say: Just as you cannot break steel, you can't defeat the enemy that will attack from the north. I will give them everything you own." Jeremiah 15:12-13 (CEV)

The scarlet & white uniforms of the Cardinals may be overwhelmed by the team from Three Rivers stadium:
Shields flash red in the sunlight! The attack begins! See their scarlet uniforms! Watch as their glittering chariots move into position... but they stumble in their haste, rushing to the walls to set up their defenses. But too late! The River Gates are open! The enemy has entered!" Nahum 2:3-6 (NLT)

I'm kidding. Don't write me!

Rick Warren
Saddleback Church
Purpose Driven Network

Jump

2009-01-25T22:13:00.000-08:00

Property rights eroding state of marriage

2009-01-24T10:13:00.000-08:00

By MINDELLE JACOBS, Sat, January 24, 2009, The Edmonton Sun

One of these years, there may be no difference, legally, between couples who marry and those who simply shack up.

Is there no social good left in marriage? Does society not bear a responsibility to promote it as a stabilizing, healthy influence in a world of fleeting pleasures?

Maybe I'm old-fashioned but I still believe in the institution of marriage. It signifies -- or ought to -- commitment and responsibility, as well as starry-eyed love. Yes, I shacked up with my husband for a couple of years before we tied the knot. But marriage feels different, more permanent.

Perhaps I'm just viewing the institution through the lens of history, with its swirl of age-old cultural/religious trappings. Nevertheless, I stand on my lonely perch to defend marriage, a formal bond amidst the rising tide of cohabitation.

In 2002, the Supreme Court of Canada also took a stab at defending marriage, in a Nova Scotia matter involving a common-law relationship breakup. The woman in the case was shocked to discover she wasn't entitled to half the family assets.

The Supreme Court declared there was no right to a 50-50 asset split. "If they have chosen not to marry, is it the state's task to impose a marriage-like regime on them retroactively?" the court asked.

But the provinces were left to devise family law as they saw fit and changes in recent years have gradually erased the legal distinctions between married and common-law. For a long time, all couples have been treated equally with respect to issues like child support, alimony and survivor benefits. (In Quebec, common-law partners who split up aren't entitled to alimony, but more on that later.)

The right to division of property was different, however, depending on whether you were married.

That is falling by the wayside. Manitoba has the most equitable legislation in this regard. There, if you've lived common-law for three years, you have all the property rights of married couples after separation.

In Alberta and Ontario, there is no specific legislation related to property division in common-law cases. Judges decide such matters on a case-by-case basis.

Alternately, common-law couples can draw up cohabitation contracts agreeing to marriage-like property-split obligations in the event of a breakup. Other provinces offer similar procedures.

A lot of people think that they are, in effect, married after three years of cohabitation. But that's a myth, says Toronto family lawyer Jack Hope.

They're "in for ... unhappy surprises at the end of 10- and 20-year relationships," he warns. "They have to resort to complex concepts from trust law in order to try and gain a piece of the other person's property.

"It becomes a huge, very uncertain lawsuit without any legislative support. But if you're married, then there's a very clear set of rules."

But back to Quebec, where a 34-year-old woman is fighting in court for $50 million plus $56,000 a month in support from her former common-law partner, a billionaire. (She already receives $35,000 a month in child support for their three kids.)

Arguably, there's a case to be made for spousal support for poor Quebec women, not just this Brazilian-born beauty, whom the billionaire met on a South American beach when she was 17.

But her lawyer wants all common-law unions of three years without kids -- and one year with children -- treated as marriages.

It begs the question: Is marriage losing its meaning?

My new hobby

2009-01-09T19:08:00.000-08:00

wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

We weren't whining about nothing!

2009-01-06T13:05:00.000-08:00

Our endless December snowfall set a record
Darrell Bellaart, The Daily NewsPublished: Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Nanaimo's snowfall has now officially topped the one-metre mark. It's something that has only happened twice before in December in all the years since Environment Canada has been keeping records.

"This year we had 116 centimetres of snow at Nanaimo Airport," said David Jones, a climatologist with Environment Canada's Vancouver office. The weather office measured 111 centimetres of snow in Nanaimo in 1964 and 107 cm in 1968. Even in December 1996, the most awe-inspiring winter in recent memory, snowfall reached 95.2 cm in the city. The all-time record for one month was in February 1975, when 122 cm fell.

Nanaimo's snowfall has only exceeded 80 cm 12 times in December since the agency first started keeping records in 1947.

2008-12-25T15:42:00.000-08:00

Well, things were such a mess at the Vancouver International Airport that after his midnight run, Santa came in to sort it all out. Either that or the down turn in the economy has forced Santa to take a second job!

Whiter Christmas

2008-12-24T15:36:00.000-08:00

Enough snow. Next year, we want a green Christmas.

White Christmas

2008-12-22T13:47:00.001-08:00

Here is the veiw from my office window. Merry Christmas everyone! Now come help me shovel...

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

2008-12-20T09:03:00.000-08:00

Current Weather Updated: Saturday, December 20, 2008, 8:00 PST - Nanaimo Airport
A few clouds, -19C!

What?! Did someone forget that this the West Coast? This is not a 'dry cold'!

And we've had over 2 1/2 feet of snow with more on the way! I feel like a shovel has been sugically attached to my arm. This is too much like Alberta.

Blame it on Global Warming.

How Not to Mess Up the Great Commission Too Much

2008-12-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

A Neighbourhood in Search of Salvation

2008-11-20T16:00:00.000-08:00

Here's a great article published in the Nanaimo Daily News that tells some of the old history of ET Family Church (Evangelistic Tabernacle). You can catch the full story here.

Like the street it is built on, the building at 25 Victoria Rd. has gone from modest to rowdy to downright seedy. Some hope turning the 117-year-old building into a performing arts centre will return the area to respectability once again.

People came to 25 Victoria Rd. to drink beer, meet friends and dance to music that echoed through the streets on Saturday nights.

They also came to worship their Lord and saviour on Sunday mornings.

Some longtime residents think the modest, 117-year-old building has a split personality, serving as a well-respected church for decades before showing its wild side in the seventies as one of the hottest nightclubs in Nanaimo.

Pastor Wayne Nelson knows this better than most people his own history is contained with the building's walls.

Nelson was introduced to the word of God there as child in the early 1970s, temporarily "fell away" from his faith while partying in the building as a teenager, and later as an adult helped return the historic place to its original purpose as a place of worship in 1996. That was after it was a bar for more than two decades.

The symbolism isn't lost on Nelson.

"It was like God was taking back the land. . .a declaration that he isn't finished with Nanaimo," said the Mountain Eagle Church pastor, as he looked up at the building, still bearing the cross from when it served as a place of worship last spring.

Not everyone thinks that the building's 20-year nightclub phase was bad for the community. Former bar staff say it livened up the street and, combined with the now-closed Caprice Theatre next door, created a destination spot for entertainment in Nanaimo.

But over the years, things have changed. That strip of Victoria Road has earned an unsavoury reputation for being a hangout for drug dealers and sex-trade workers.

Now, residents and city officials hope a plan to transform 25 Victoria Rd. into a performing arts centre - slated to open Nov. 28 - will bring back some of the street's appeal while revitalizing the neighbourhood.

It's a day Nelson awaits with pride.

The building was born out of controversy in 1892, when members of the St. Paul's Anglican Church split from the main congregation and built St. Alban the Martyr at 25 Victoria Rd.
Homes began to sprout on either side of a seven-block stretch of land bordered by Nicol Street and Victoria Road years before the first cornerstone was laid at St. Alban. The strip of land was once an active coal reserve, delaying development until 1891.

Even in its early years, this part of Nanaimo - often criticized today for having to carry more than its fair share of social services for addicts and the homeless - was defined by service-providers, including a fire hall, schoolhouse and church, rather than being a commercial-heavy area.

The Anglican fallout out didn't last long. By 1903 the church was closed when members rejoined St. Paul's.

Details on what exactly happened to 25 Victoria Rd. after that aren't clear, but it likely continued serving the community as a house of worship. Fire insurance maps from 1930s show that it was operating as a Pentecostal church. Then from 1955 to 1975 the building served as the Evangelistic Tabernacle. (*note: I think 1955 was just when we changed our name to ET...)

Its appearance changed considerably during that time. A Nanaimo Daily Free Press article from 1958 details how church members spent three years reconstructing the place. They added a second storey for Sunday school rooms and even dug out the basement by hand. (*note: I've heard stories about dynamite!)

"The reconstruction has been so extensive as to constitute in effect the construction of an entirely new church," reads the article.

Towards the end of the Tabernacle's days, Nelson attended Sunday school with his mother there nearly every week. It became a defining part of his childhood.

"I have memories as a child doing Christmas plays in there," said Nelson, a towering man with a deep, booming voice.

But when the Evangelistic Church left the street for its current location on Princess Royal Road, the aged building that had served as a religious haven for more than 80 years was about to change.

The doors would now be shut on Sunday mornings, but open to the crowds on Saturday nights.
For Nelson, the building's transformation into a nightclub symbolized the years he lost touch with his faith as a teenager, often frequenting the club to party with friends.

But for others, after the old church was renovated it became one of the most exciting places in town.

The party spot had a number of different names over the years - best known as the old Wichita North Nightclub - starting in 1975 with the title Shooters, according to City of Nanaimo business license records. Through the years, disco, country and then rock and roll music echoed down Victoria Road, sometimes drawing complaints from neighbours.

Brent Mark worked there for about seven years in the 1990s, when it operated under the well-known Wichita moniker.

"I had a blast working there," said Mark, who was employed as the audio engineer, ensuring the sound systems went smoothly for the club's live bands. "It was quite busy, there was a lot of big acts."

He easily rambles off a list of bands that played at the club: Carlene Carter, Prairie Oyster, Colin James.

Also at that time people could catch a movie at the Caprice next door, or have dinner at a nearby restaurant - other amenities that secured Victoria Road's reputation as a fun place to be in Nanaimo.

Toward the end of his time working at the Wichita, Mark started to notice that the neighbourhood was changing; sex-trade workers began plying their trade further up the road, for example. But the area remained a hot spot right up to about 1997, when the building's role as a piece of Nanaimo's nightlife ended.

Mark hopes a new performing arts centre will bring some of that excitement back.

"There was a whole different feel to it (Victoria Road) back then compared to now," said Mark.
With the nightclub gone, Nelson saw a perfect opportunity to "take back the land."

The Southside Christian Fellowship, later becoming Eagle Mountain Church, had bounced between locations for years until members purchased 25 Victoria Rd. - the church's first and, so far, only permanent location.

Renovating the building was especially satisfying for Nelson.

Most of the interior was painted in dark, gloomy colours, he said, and "tearing out all that black" had special significance to him. He was taking down something that represented a darker part of his life.

"It was quite a profound moment for me," said Nelson, who added that church members even gutted the bar's beer cooler and turned it into a nursery.

"My heart went out to the neighbours when we first bought it. They were coming out and thanking us with open arms because of all the grief they had over the years with it being a nightclub, the loud noise at all hours of the night."

From then on, until the building was sold last spring, it was the site of Christmas plays and Thanksgiving dinners, Sunday services and even a place where a homeless person could sometimes grab a meal or get out of the cold.

"We grew more as a tight-knit group," said Nelson.

In 2002-03, Nelson said that the once-pleasant neighbourhood took on a different dynamic.
"Definitely it changed, there was a lot more street activity happening. Even right out front of the church for a period of time there was open drug deals," he said, adding that the situation became better thanks to the efforts of the RCMP.

But such activity wasn't why Eagle Mountain Church moved to the Southgate Mall last spring, he said. The new higher-traffic venue makes their church more accessible for people and provides more suitable parking.

But one day, the congregation hopes to purchase another church and develop the same sense of community they had on 25 Victoria Rd.

Despite the screams of power tools and a few drywall dust-covered building materials scattered in front of the stage, Camela Tang said she can feel the history within the walls of 25 Victoria, now called Nanaimo Centre Stage.

"It has a lively feel to the place," she said with a smile.

Tang, president of the Centre for the Arts Nanaimo, said the renovations are needed to ensure the structure meets building code requirements, is wheelchair accessible and also conforms to the layout required for a performing arts centre. A box office has already been constructed as well as a "green room" for actors.

Preserving the history of the building is a major part of the renovations, said Tang.

"Not only do we want to improve that, we want to enhance it," she said. "The people of Nanaimo invested a lot of time and had a lot of fun in this building, and we're definitely bringing that back."

The City of Nanaimo paid $460,000 to purchase the former church last spring. Since then, the centre has been undergoing modifications, at an estimated cost of $150,000.

The purchase made headlines when outgoing mayor Gary Korpan called the building "earthquake bait" that would cost the taxpayer a large amount of cash to repair and maintain. The comments drew the scorn of residents in the area and arts groups, which maintain that a small performing arts space is needed.

But such a centre might benefit more than Nanaimo's culture.

Russell Thomson has been done business in this neighbourhood since 1988.

Most homes around 25 Victoria Rd. no longer house longtime residents; they've moved out over the past five years, he said. Lower property values have drawn more transient residents.

Just up the street from the old church, a billboard advertises a house and adjacent empty lot for sale. It's been there for a while.

"It's cheap stuff to buy, so it gets bought and sold bought and sold," he said.

Thomson thinks the street really started to change when the methadone clinic opened on Nicol Street in 2003. But he doesn't blame that service for social problems facing the area. In fact, things are better than they once were.

Still, he can't wait until the theatre opens and draws a new crowd of people into the neighbourhood.

Pamela Shaw, geography instructor at Vancouver Island University, previously told the Daily News that putting performing arts centres in downtown areas that need revitalization has worked for other communities.

"This could add a new dimension to that neighbourhood, now you have people who will be in that neighbourhood during the day as office workers, in the evening as theatre patrons. That's what changes the whole dynamic of the street," she said.

Shaw references urban critic Jane Jacobs's "eyes on the street" theory, that crime can be reduced by having more people in a specific area.

Wayne Nelson wouldn't have it any other way. He said that if Eagle Mountain Church wasn't able to sell their church for what he sees as a positive community-building function, like a performing arts centre, the church wouldn't have sold it at all.

"That area needs more good things happening," he said.

Community History of Chase River

2008-11-11T11:22:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder about the story of your community? Here's a brief history of the neighborhood we live in. It is interesting stuff! You can read the original here.

In 1852 Governor James Douglas’s militia pursued and caught one of two murder suspects along a creek south of Nanaimo, and thus the name “Chase River” was born.

Apart from aboriginal settlement, Finnish immigrants were the predominant settlers of Chase River in the last half of the 19th Century. They made their living working in the coal mines and forests, as well as farming. In 1910 they worked together to build a community centre, the “Finn Hall”, at the site of the present Moose Hall.

Chinese settlers, who had come to work in the mines, had market gardens in the present Cinnabar Valley area. Louis Stark, a black settler, farmed a 500 tree orchard on the present school site, and his original barn still stands near the Stark’s Railway Crossing.

The first school, Southfield, was built in 1891 on Haliburton Street and still exists as a private residence. A second school was built on Cedar Road at Fielding in 1898, but it burned down in 1942. The present school was opened in 1951 with two classrooms. A Methodist Church, later to become a United Church, opened its doors in 1912 on 13th Street east of Cranberry Avenue. A volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1949 and still serves the community today as Station 4 of the Nanaimo Fire Department.

The present commercial centre is located in the approximate area of the original village core.

From 1949 until 1975 Chase River was an autonomous District of Nanaimo and extended from Robins Street in the north, and bounded by the communities of Cedar, South Wellington and Extension to the south. In 1975 Chase River was amalgamated with the City of Nanaimo.

Make Your Choice

2008-10-13T12:18:00.001-07:00

Vote! Let Your Voice Be Heard!

2008-10-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

It's time to speak up and help shape the face of the nation. Here is who I'm voting for:

An Island Education

2008-09-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

Chalk this up to learning about your community. You can view the original article here.

Growers expect bumper pot crop
RCMP see increase in outdoor plots
Dustin Walker, Daily NewsPublished: Tuesday, September 30, 2008

After a couple years of dismal outdoor marijuana harvests due to rainy weather, Vancouver Island could see a bumper crop of bud this fall.

Some growers have already harvested their pot plants, often hidden away in secret gardens deep in the woods, but the optimal time to harvest marijuana is normally the first week of October, said Ted Smith, who teaches a free course about hemp and Cannabis -- called Hempology 101 -- at the University of Victoria. He thinks that if current weather holds for the next couple weeks, this season will mark the start of the crop's recovery on the Island.

Vancouver Island's mild climate often provides ideal conditions for growing marijuana, but the past two years have been hit with rainy summers and little sunlight, which can cause plants to rot. This has led to more people growing pot indoors, instead of going through the hassle of tending to an outdoor crop concealed within a forest, said Smith.

"There haven't been a lot of new people getting into (growing pot outdoors). There might be more next year, with this year kind of recovering," said Smith.

In the Nanaimo area, police have noticed more outdoor marijuana-growing operations this year compared to previous years, said Const. Gary O'Brien. In July, police busted an 800-plant outdoor growing operation in the Bowser area.

"It was quite a significant year for outdoor grows," he said. "Weather was a factor this year."
Although indoor operations can lead to fires and other hazards, said O'Brien, outdoor operations aren't any safer. Hikers can stumble onto booby-traps left by growers to protect their crops, he said.

But Nanaimo marijuana advocate Richard Payne said organized gangs are usually the only ones who go to such lengths to protect massive crops. The "common guy" who grows pot on the Island would usually have just 20-30 plants hidden in the bush.

"All around this time you'll have different people who are harvesting," said Payne, who is trying to set up a marijuana-buyers club for sick people in Nanaimo. "It think it's probably been a pretty good season so far."

Both Smith and Payne said people who grow marijuana outdoors worry more about animals munching on their plants or thieves finding them than police confiscating the pot.

"Far more plants are stolen every year by thieves than police actually get. The bush in general is seeing a lot more people out and about," said Smith.

"It's a really stressful thing, growing, at times because you're always worried about who's going to rip you off," said Payne.

Although it has its challenges, Smith said people will never stop growing marijuana in the forests of Vancouver Island.

"Outdoor is always going to have its fans. It's easy, you don't need to be paying rent and deal with a whole bunch of other factors."

Authentic Faith

2008-08-30T11:39:00.001-07:00

One of the books I've been wading through this summer is Authentic Faith - the Power of A Fire-Tested Life by Gary L. Thomas. This is the best read I've had in a long time. Thomas basically asks "What if life isn't meant to be perfect but we are meant to trust the One who is?" Thomas doesn't pull any punches in dealing with issues like suffering, persecution, selflessness, and mourning. He has made me think about what following Jesus really means.

Check it out here on Amazon.ca

Logos Bible Software Blog

2008-08-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm bowing to shameless commercialism! Actually, it's just a great opportunity to grab Tyndale's new Cornerstone Biblical Commentary on Matthew and Mark. I've already got the hard copy of the Prison Epistles (Ephesians - Philemon) and it looks like a very helpful set - it uses the New Living Translation, which I love! And I don't mind giving Logos a plug - their Bible software is amazing! Check it out, here.

Guy Siggelkow

2008-07-05T10:40:00.001-07:00

Guy Smiley

Guy Siggelkow

Thanks Kevin!

Quote of the Week

2008-06-27T12:26:00.000-07:00

You gotta love the Georgia Straight. Not the water, the Vancouver quasi-newspaper. Here's Ken Eisner's first lines on Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed the documentary by Nathan Frankowski opening today.

"Truth begins and ends with the title of Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, a semislick advertorial for “intelligent design”, the sanitized public mask of creationism, itself invented by Christians who think their God is too stupid to have come up with evolution on his own." (You can catch the rest of his hilarious take here.)

You gotta love that - and I'm not being cynical when I say that. If you're in downtown Vancouver, you gotta understand this is how a lot of people think. I'm not mad about it. In fact, I miss it. Maybe I'm just strange.

So, if you can get to the Cinemark Tinseltown Theaters today, you can pony up your $8.50 and see for yourself. If we still lived downtown, I know that's where I'd be tonight! ...sometimes I really miss that place...

And if you're too lazy to find them yourself, here are a couple of other articles on Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed.
Globe and Mail Arts column
Georgia Straight Movie Feature

The Life and Times of Ernie Siggelkow

2008-06-19T13:08:00.000-07:00

Eulogy for My Dad

2008-06-18T12:49:00.000-07:00

It's amazing to be a part of a faith community that cares. Here is the wonderful email sent out by the Albert District of PAOC regarding my Dad.

It is with sadness, we inform you that Rev. Ernest (Ernie) Siggelkow passed into the presence of the Lord early on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 15, 2008 at the age of 90. To cherish his memory, he leaves his wife, Rev. Hilda (Mueller) Siggelkow, and their sons, Rev. Darcy (Aileen) Siggelkow of Nanaimo, B.C. and Rev. Dallas (Heather) Siggelkow of Vegreville, Alberta. Ernie was predeceased by his first wife, Clara (Lincoln), in 1966. Ernie leaves their children, Sharon (Ron) Davis of Calgary, Alberta, Darla (Wayne) Lowenberg of Eston, Saskatchewan, Douglas (Donna) Siggelkow of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and Carolyn (Les) Dueck of Estevan, Saskatchewan to cherish his memory.

Ernie began his pastoral ministry with the Apostolic Church of Pentecost in 1942 and then after marrying Hilda, he joined The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada in 1967. He has been a faithful and well loved pastor serving in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. His final pastorate was in Whitecourt, Alberta before retiring in 1992.

The funeral for Ernie will be held at the Vegreville Pentecostal Church, 4615 Maple Street in Vegreville, Alberta on Thursday, June 19 at 2:00 PM. Interment will be the following day in Burdett, Alberta. Please continue to pray for the Siggelkow family.

We still have Uncle Darcy...

2008-06-17T13:30:00.000-07:00

Here's part of an email we recieved from Aileen's sister Pam. Her son Carson is about 5 years old.

"I told Carson, that Darcy's Dad had passed away and he went to be with Jesus, and of course I'm crying and Carson asks me why I'm crying. I couldn't get some words out at the time, so he says to me, "Are you sad?" I nod yes. He says to me, "It's OK Mom, we have pictures and we still have Uncle Darcy to remind us of him."

4 AM phone call

2008-06-15T13:16:00.000-07:00

The phone rang at 4 AM this morning. As soon as it rang, I knew that it was my brother, telling me that our Dad had just slipped into eternity.

His passing was expected, and on his part, wished for...longed for. He was not exactly a 'patient man', and when he got something into his head, he wanted it to happen sooner than later. As his illness slowly beat his body down, his one desire was to get on with the next adventure. Dying was taking too long.

But he did it so well. He was ready to go, at peace with himself, those he loved, and his God. We were able to have our last long chats, to say our good byes, and to have him lay his hands on our heads and pray for us and bless us one last time. The grace on his life through his last days and hours was amazing.

So Father's Day 2008 became the day my Father went to see his Father in Heaven. It's the best Father's Day present he ever got. And while we miss Dad, we don't wish him back. That he is 'in a better place' is far more than a trite saying. It's true.

So tonight I catch a plane to Alberta to help with all the arrangements that accompany this sort of thing. I'm pleased to go. It's an honor.

keeping the plates spinning

2008-06-10T11:26:00.000-07:00

Gary Taitinger is the Senior Pastor at Mill Woods Assembly in Edmonton. In a recent article of Enrich (April 2008) he was talking about the challenge of having an effective church service. He said "the ideal is to achieve optimum fruitfulness in a generation-blended service. To do this means to simultaneously address the spiritual interest spectrum of the curious, the convinced, and the committed while entreating to music taste buds and learning biases intrinsic in five different generations." That's kind of wordy, but he makes the point well.

Then he drops the bomb: "We reluctantly conceded that our staff wasn't smart enough to keep all those plates spinning at the same time. It may still be possible, but a combination of consumerism and individualism has rendered it a formidable puzzle at present. Some would argue that we are only appeasing those factors by doing what we're doing [creating a weekend worship service geared toward the thinking, non church young adult], and they may be right." He then goes on to tell how they found the 'all-star' young adult pastor to come in and how this new service grew from 45 to 1200 in a year. From what I understand it became the hottest thing with YA crowd in Edmonton...and depending who you talked to, was successful in attracting the non-Christian...as well as vacuuming up many of the YA crowd from the other churches in the city. Then, after a couple of years, the key leader left, and from what I hear, the service crashed and burned.

His thoughts and the history of the experiment have given me a lot to chew on. The church I'm in is a true multi-generational church. 5 generations under one roof. Senior seniors, a whole bunch of babies [literal babies; I'm not speaking metaphorically!], and everybody in between. So how do we make that work? If Gary Taitinger and his awesome staff feel like they can't keep the plates spinning, then how can we ever hope to? I must admit that at times it feels like an overwhelming task...and we often wonder if we're really doing the job.

Well, we already have an good YA service - Island Tehillah, a Monday night event for the 18+ crowd. We're working hard on maximizing it's potential, which involved keeping it true to its DNA as a city-wide gathering, not just an ET specific event.

And we want work really hard to honor and respect the Builders of our congregation. These Saints of God have sacrificed a lot to allow our church to become much more contemporary in style than Mill Woods probably is on a Sunday morning...but I don't know that for sure. I do know that ET is more contemporary in it's music and such than I was expecting when I showed up 2 years ago. But we still want to connect with and minister to our seniors - not just on Sunday morning, but in other generation-specific ministries through the week.

But the nagging thought I have is whether we are really asking the right question. Is it really all about the worship gathering? Is that really to be our focus? Is that how we are supposed to measure church and define success?

Our worship services are important, and as the most visible aspect of a local congregation do get the most attention. But is that focus misplaced? And if so, what should be the focus and the measuring stick of a local congregation?

All I know is what we are doing is marginally successful. Are we really making an impact in our community by seeing people come to Jesus? Not nearly as much as we would like. Is our 'Sunday service' approach going to make the difference in the micro-culture we call Nanaimo? Hmmmm.

The Rest of the Story

2008-06-09T17:24:00.000-07:00

Here's the news item that Chandra mentioned in her story.

One killed, six injured after vehicle goes into lake
June 09, 2008

One person was killed and six others were injured Saturday afternoon when a pickup truck went off a logging road and into Upper Campbell Lake.

According to Campbell River RCMP, the driver appeared to have lost control of the mid-sized truck. The vehicle left the road, went down a steep embankment and came to rest in the lake.

No other details were released about the victim. The other six people were transported to Campbell River Hospital and treated for various injuries.

Alcohol does to appear to be a factor in the accident which remains under investigation.

Kenzie was found!

2008-06-08T17:16:00.000-07:00

Here's the story from Chandra about their adventures on Saturday. I got the crisis phone call from her Saturday afternoon to pray. Aileen was on the phone with Chandra while we were in the vehicle heading to Campbell River to be with them when they got the news Kenzie (who has just turned 2 years old) had been found safe and sound. It is a miracle, and Chandra and Mike want to thank everyone involved. Here's the story from Chandra:

"Thank you to all who participated in our emergency prayer chain on June 7th.

"While we were camping just outside Campbell River our two year old daughter, Kenzie went missing. She was only discovered to be missing within minutes, but despite our efforts to look for her it turned up nothing. Luckily we chose a site away from water or any dangers, but she still managed to wander off.

"After 45 minutes of about 6 people searching the trails, we had called 9-1-1 which involved the Search and Rescue team. Two of the six people proceeded on horse back and one on a quad to search for her. The search team involved a search dog, 2 helicopters from Comox and a large group of people.

"30 minutes after the team showed up a vehicle drove into a lake up the road. Some of the team and a helicopter left to assist in the accident. Those people involved in the accident were seriously injured, but because of Kenzie's disappearance this may have saved their lives because everyone was just minutes away instead of a half hour away.

"After she was missing for 2 hours we put out the emergency prayer chain. This all took 4 and a half hours, but she was found in the end by the search dog and one of the people on horse. She was safe and content when she was returned to us.

"We just thank God for the amazing events that took place and the people we were surrounded with in the effort to find her.

Thought for the day

2008-06-06T12:31:00.000-07:00

"Christians who let their weaknesses and inadequacies hold them back are just as self-focused as are believers who use their strengths to build self-glorifying kingdoms. When will we learn that it's not about us? God is not impressed by our gifts, nor is he frightened by our inadequacies." (Gary Thomas: Authentic Faith)

Nanaimo high school locked down due to threat

2008-06-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here's another day in the life of our girls at thier school. It's like the second or third time this year. But I'm glad that the administration do take this stuff seriously, and I'm super-proud of friends like Dave who step in and make sure things are safe! Here's the story:

Nanaimo high school locked down due to threat
Police are searching for 13-year-old youth
Danielle Bell, Daily NewsPublished: Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Police locked down a Nanaimo high school this morning after a threat of violence toward the school.

Hundreds of students at Nanaimo District Secondary School were locked inside their classrooms after a teacher overheard an indirect threat of violence made by a 13-year-old boy.

Police investigators and school administrators determined the youth who made the threat is not inside the school, according to a statement released by Nanaimo RCMP spokesman Const. Gary O'Brien.

Officers with the Nanaimo Youth Response Team are inside the school assisting teachers and students while they investigate the incident. Police are working to locate and question the youth involved.

All exit doors are locked and movement in the school is restricted.

The lockdown came a day after the school sent home a letter notifying parents of a "worrisome graffiti message" scrawled inside the NDSS boy's bathroom. Both police and school officials continue to look into that incident, though neither will elaborate on the nature of the graffiti.

You can catch the rest of the story here.

Prince Caspian

2008-05-30T07:11:00.000-07:00

I actually ponied up the $8 bucks to see "Prince Caspian" in the theatre on the weekend. Most everyone else was there to see Indiana Jones, but for me that can wait for DVD.

Caspian was good, even better than "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe", which I thought was better than average. But I've been in love with these stories since I was a kid, so I was pretty eager to see them. [My favorite part is when they finally meet Aslan at the river. His encounter with the dwarf reminds me of some things I've seen during 'hot' altar times in church or at camp!]

Anyway, Caspian was way, way better than "The Golden Compass". I happened to see that on a flight a while back and was curious as to what all the fuss was about. I'm always up for a good yarn, and while it started off intriguing, it fell flat about a third of the way through and never recovered. So much for the controversy. Bad movies are hard to get excited about. Here's a good article from Time that explains "Why Narnia Hits While Golden Compass Flops".

So now I get to wait for "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader", which was always my favorite story of the Chronicles. But May, 2010 seems a long ways away!

Courageous Leadership #2

2008-05-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

What makes a church thrive and flourish? Location? Denomination? Great facilities?

How about great preaching? I've heard Bill Hybels preach. He's one of the best speakers I've ever heard - and being a guy who loves to preach and study preachers, I don't say that lightly.

So here is what Hybels says about trying to build a thriving church on great preaching: "Although many preaching-centered churches attract large crowds, their impact on the community is often negligible. The church is packed for an hour Sunday, but empty during the week. Sermon junkies tend to stay in their comfortable pews, growing ever more knowledgeable while becoming ever less involved in the surrounding community. Conversions are rare because their is little outreach. Community experience is shallow because there is no infrastructure of small groups. The body is being fed and satisfied in a corporate teaching setting, but that's about all that happens." [Courageous Leadership p.25]

He goes on to say that he doesn't mean to minimize the importance of effective teaching and preaching; the church withers without them. But it takes more than that.

Allow me to pick up on that... It takes more than great preaching. It takes more than a snappy worship band, a hot media or drama presentation, friendly greeters, or anything else that makes up a typical worship experience at a typical church that is trying to thrive and flourish.

Important stuff? I think so. I hope so. It seems most of my life is wrapped up in that stuff. But it's not the only stuff needed for a church to flourish.

So should it be the primary focus? Should it be the measuring stick we use to gauge our progress? How do we look past this to the important horizon beyond when it seems like for all our tireless [tiring!] effort, we can't seem to get it right to our satisfaction?

Lars and the Real Girl

2008-05-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

Good movies seem to be few and far between. "Juno" was good, but a little crude in a gritty sort of way. "Dan in Real Life" is another of my recent favorites, mostly because it's about a Dad and his three girls and their relationship. I haven't seen too much of Steve Carrol's stuff, but he's actually very funny in this one - which wasn't my opinion of him in "Evan Almighty".

But... if you haven't seen "Lars and the Real Girl", go to the video store, pop some popcorn, and get comfy on the couch, 'cause it's well worth the watch. It's a hilarious, touching story of a family, church, and community that shows how we need to care for people. Everyone. Especially the special ones. In the words of Larry the Cucumber: "I laughed, I cried. It moved me, Bob."

Courageous Leadership

2008-05-27T22:26:00.000-07:00

Bill Hybels is fond of saying “The local church is the hope of the world.” The post-modernity emergent church crowd have really dissed him for that. I guess when you’ve planted a church that has led the western world in a new paradigm and grown to 20,000 people, you’re an easy target. I remember reading one blog where the guy was practically screaming “The hope of the world is not the local church! The hope of the world is Jesus Christ!” I have to admit that I’ve spent some time chewing on that, and part of me agrees…but the real issue is that most critics probably don’t understand what Hybels is really saying.

He says “I believe that only one power exists on this sorry planet that can [transform the human heart]. It’s the power of the love of Jesus Christ, the love that conquers sin and wipes out shame and heals wounds and reconciles enemies and patches broken dreams and ultimately changes the world, one life at a time. And what grips my heart everyday is the knowledge that the radical message of that transforming love has been given to the church.” [Courageous Leadership. p.21]

Yeah, maybe you or I wouldn’t feel comfortable being part of a mega church, whether as a member or staff, and maybe the seeker friendly model isn’t your [or my] cup of tea. But can you really argue with the idea that the local church – the hands, feet, and voice of Jesus, is the hope of the world?

The Garden Gulag

2008-05-26T12:41:00.000-07:00

I was concerned that Maryn's vegetables would try to escape, so I have imprisoned them. These veggies will just have to stay behind the fence until we eat them! [Actually, I'm just trying to keep the pesky neighborhood deer from beating us to them. Bunch of thugs...]

Nanaimo third-best in Canada for walking

2008-05-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

Danielle Bell, Daily NewsPublished: Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Nanaimo has been judged as the third-best place in Canada to take a stroll. The Harbour City finished No. 3 overall, behind only Vancouver and Fredericton. The contest was open to the country's 100 most populous cities.

POPULAR WALKS:
1. Harbourfront Promenade
2. Westwood Lake
3. Neck Point
4. Jack Point
5. Piper's Lagoon
6. E&N Trail
7. Parkway Trail
8. Extension Ridge Trail
9. Colliery Dam
10. Chase River Estuary Trail

I've done at least part of 8 of the 10. And some of the them are amazing.

We get to share Dave with the whole country!

2008-05-06T19:46:00.000-07:00

If you care about this, you undoubtedly already know, but let me add my 2 bits. Dave is an awesome guy and I'm super proud of him and excited about the gift he is to our PAOC Fellowship as our next General Superintendent. But...I'm sad because I probably won't get to hang around him so much. He is truly one of my favorite people who has had a profound impact on my life. So I've just decided to approach it this way: BC is not loosing Dave, we're just sharing him with the rest of the country.

Here's the scoop from the PAOC website.

From boring teenagers to wild animals

2008-05-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, so his last point about escapism needs to be taken under advisment, but this 'bout says it all. You can read the whole article here.

From boring teenagers to wild animals
By YUKON JACK
VIDEO GAMES NOT TO BLAME

For the past week, virgins everywhere have been locked in their basements playing the biggest video game in history, Grand Theft Auto 4.

Soon, you'll be hearing about all the sales figures that it smashed, about how the video game industry is bigger than Hollywood and about how gaming isn't just for nerds anymore.

And now that the moms and dads and social watchdogs have had a chance to check out the content of Grand Theft Auto - the stealing, the shooting, the blowing up, the cop killing, the knife weilding, the bank robbing and, of course, the pimping and prostitution we're hearing Nancy Grace and the likes whining about how video games are responsible for the downfall of society.

"The rotting morals of our youth can be attributed to video games. Video games are to blame."

No they're not. You are to blame. Parents. Uninvolved, dis-interested, selfish, irresponsible parents. We ALL grew up with "bad" pop-culture influences. Maybe it was Cheech and Chong, NWA, Freddy Krueger, Porky's, 2 Live Crue, Black Sabbath, Southpark, Madonna, or The Simpsons.

Whatever it was, whenever it was, it didn't matter if your parents were involved in your life. If your parents were there to keep you grounded and make sure you knew the difference between fantasy and reality, then it was never a problem.

So, moms and dads, before you go pointing your fingers at the makers of video games, have a look at yourself first. 'Cause if you're a good, responsible parent, then your kids are probably equipped to handle a little escapism. I'd rather have my kid shooting up a schoolyard on my Playstation than shooting up a schoolyard. In the meantime ... I'll just shut my big yap.

Another Great Tune!

2008-05-03T21:16:00.001-07:00

Great Tune!

2008-05-02T21:35:00.000-07:00

Starfield Brings the House Down!

2008-04-26T08:55:00.000-07:00

Yikes - This is scary! It happened the day after Adam and a bunch of our youth leadership saw Starfield in Victoria. This is why we never allowed a mosh pit when I was at Harvest City Church. The floor just couldn't handle a hundred people jumping up and down at the same time. I think the engineers need to re-think thier load-bearing calculations for churches with this in mind!

Here is the article (for those of you who won't bother to go here).

Church stage collapses in Abbotsford, B.C.
JEREMY NUTTALL Globe and Mail Update
April 26, 2008 at 10:47 AM EDT ABBOTSFORD, B.C. —

There was carnage at a Christian rock show in British Columbia Friday night when the floor of the venue collapsed.

Twenty three people ended up in hospital with injuries ranging from minor to serious. The incident happened around 9:30 pm about 70 kilometres East of Vancouver in Abbotsford at the Central Heights Church. About 1,000 people were at the church to see the Christian rock band, Starfield.

"The portion of the floor that gave way is directly in front of the stage," said Constable Casey Vinet of the Abbotsford police. "

Const. Vinet said a section of the floor roughly seven meters by seven meters gave way at some point during the show. When the floor collapsed, it sent audience members — most of them teenagers — plummeting five meters to the church basement. Why the floor gave way has not been determined, but some witnesses have said equipment fell from the ceiling and crashed into the floor, causing the collapse.

"Everything that can be done will be done to determine the cause," said Const. Vinet. "Right now, we've called out our detective unit and our forensic identification services team. They will take over the scene and begin an investigation."

Const. Vinet said 32 people were treated at the scene. David Plug of Fraser Health said two people were sent to special units in Vancouver for care. He would comment on the nature of the injuries.

The emergency room of Abbotsford Regional Hospital was packed last night as victims of the fall waited to receive care. Mr. Plug said as many as 15 people were told to go to other hospitals, all within a half an hour drive. The waiting room was filled with people bearing somber eyes and frowns. Others seemed in disbelief as they waited for medical attention. Mr. Plug said staff were ready for the push of wounded concert-goers.

"It was a relief they handled it so well," said Mr. Plug. "And that there was not as many people injured as their might have been."

Mr. Plug also said, because of a local pastor and his knowledge of families in the area, it was much easier than usual to locate relatives of injured youths. He said that help keep operations at the hospital running smoothly. There has not been comment from the church on the incident.

Ponder

2008-04-22T13:54:00.001-07:00

"Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes off the relish of spiritual things, whatever increases the authority of your body over your mind, than thing for you is sin.” - Susannah Wesley

What season is this?

2008-04-19T09:26:00.001-07:00

What season is April? Right now I am in in Alberta visiting my parents, and it is a freezing cold -9, with a few light flurries. But then Scott Chadwich emailed me some pictures that he took THIS MORNING of his yard in Nanaimo. I thought he was joking. Well, at least I don't have to worry about my new shrubs drying out while I'm away!

Getting things to grow

2008-04-03T20:36:00.000-07:00

We've been busy planting shrubs and ground cover the past few weeks. We've put in about 160 plants so far, and we still have to do trees and large shrubs. Most of what we've done so far are a couple of different types of yellow varigated cedars shrubs,

a bunch of creeping broom, which is supposed to be a great ground cover for steep slopes, (looks kind of ugly now!),

and some scotts pine, among other things. Let it grow!

The grass is green and growing

2008-04-02T19:45:00.000-07:00

Well, thankfully the snow didn't hang around and I was able to get back to the yard work. Yes, the lawn actually needed cutting.

But to be honest, I also had to try out the new mower. I traded the one I had purchased last fall in on a new self propelled model. The old one was a good machine with a 6.5 horse Briggs and Straton motor, but it seemed a little heavy, and the hills in the to yard just proved too much for the regular push job!

So the new one is orange. And yes, Don, it is a Husqvarna, a 5521BBC with a Honda motor to be exact. Variable speed rear wheel drive, blade brake (so you can turn off the cutting blade but still walk the machine), single leaver multi-wheel height adjustment, and of course option to mulch, side discharge, or rear bag. We take lawn mowing very seriously.

It better quit snowing, 'cause I need to mow my lawn

2008-03-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

Hmph. It's after Easter on Vancouver Island. This isn't supposed to happen. ANYTIME! Let alone "spring". Yesch, give me a break. I have yard work to do!

A Pentecostal, an atheist, an Anglican and Buddhist went to heaven...

2008-03-22T10:22:00.000-07:00

Here is a great article from the Vancouver Sun ~ The great beyond: A dialogue on Heaven . My friend Pastor Karen Reed, who is on staff at Broadway Church participated in a panel discussion that explored questions about whether heaven exists, whether it's a metaphor, whether it's a place, whether it's in the mind, how one gets there, different ways to interpret scriptures, and whether it is more important to create a heaven in this life than to yearn for an afterlife. It's good stuff. Way to go Karen! You're my hero!

Nanaimo is the Capital of Google Earth!

2008-03-21T22:51:00.000-07:00

Have you heard the news? The city of Nanaimo has mapped nearly every conceivable thing using Google Earth and Google Maps, according to Michael Jones, Google Earth's chief technology officer. We have more information about our city than the people of San Francisco.
You can read the TIME article here, or check it out for yourself at earth.nanaimo.ca. There is actually a great hi-rez picture of our house, even though it is about 2 years old, which was before we moved in and before I planted our lawn (which by the way, is growing and will need mowing soon!)

Preachers should pause...

2008-03-20T12:13:00.000-07:00

A a preacher I've been aware of the huge communication shift that is going on in our contemporary (read 'postmodern') culture. It should have tremendous influence on how guys and gals like me present, er...preach. I know I am challenged by this, and struggling with it.

Here's an interesting take from Christine Persaud's blog MarketnewsGadgetTalk that underscores the interactive path media providers are exploring. It's not new news, but it's worth keeping in mind.

Early Easter Trivia

2008-03-15T09:12:00.000-07:00

With Easter very early this year, coming on March 23, I found this interesting. You may have seen it already.

Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st Full Moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20th.) This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify Passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.

Based on the above information, Easter can actually be one day earlier, falling on March 22nd, but that is pretty rare.

This year is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see the rest of our lives. Only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early before - only those 95 years old or more! None of us have ever, or will ever, see it any earlier than it is this year. (And all the music pastors said 'AMEN!')

Here are the facts:

1). The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was in 1913, so if you are 95 years old or older, you are the only ones who were around for that!

2). The next time Easter will fall on March 22nd will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22nd was in 1818. So, no one alive today has ever seen or will ever see it any earlier than it is this year!

Nanaimo is Canada's 18th most dangerous city

2008-03-13T12:32:00.000-07:00

Maclean's has come up with a list of the most dangerous cities in Canada (pop. 50,000 or more) based on 2006 per capita crime rates. The study took into account six types of crimes: murder, sexual assault, aggravated assault, robbery, breaking and entering, and auto theft.

Nanaimo came in 18th worst. Surprsingly, Regina tops the list (keep your head down, Dustin!), although it was in a virtual dead heat with Saskatoon and Winnipeg. Only one eastern city, Halifax, made the top 10. Five of the top 10 cities are in B.C., although Vancouver comes in at a surprisingly low No. 9. The others are Prince George (4), New Westminster (6), Chilliwack (7) and Victoria (8).

According to Maclean's, the break-and-enter rates in Chilliwack and Victoria would put them among the top 10 per cent of all American cities.

If You Die, I'll Kill You!

2008-03-07T12:27:00.000-08:00

BORDEAUX, France (Reuters) - The mayor of a village in southwest France has threatened residents with severe punishment if they die, because there is no room left in the overcrowded cemetery to bury them.

In an ordinance posted in the council offices, Mayor Gerard Lalanne told the 260 residents of the village of Sarpourenx that "all persons not having a plot in the cemetery and wishing to be buried in Sarpourenx are forbidden from dying in the parish."

It added: "Offenders will be severely punished."

The mayor said he was forced to take drastic action after an administrative court in the nearby town of Pau ruled in January that the acquisition of adjoining private land to extend the cemetery would not be justified.

Lalanne, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Wednesday and is standing for election to a seventh term in this month's local elections, said he was sorry that there had not been a positive outcome to the dilemma.

"It may be a laughing matter for some, but not for me," he said.

Is Facebook Over?

2008-03-07T12:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, maybe I'm just old, but I have to admit, I'm bored with Facebook. Actually, I never really got too excited about it in the first place. Chris Sorensen, Business Reporter for the Toronto Star has got a good take. Check out his article Has Facebook fatigue arrived? where he says that some of the social network's 67 million users are bored. But if growth is slowing among older people, the website is essential for those aged 12 to 34, who find that without Facebook, 'you're not in the loop'

Reveal: Where Are You?

2008-02-29T11:01:00.000-08:00

I just picked up Reveal: Where Are You?, the Willow Creek publication by Greg Hawkins and Cally Parkinson that articulates what has been dubbed ‘Bill Hybels’ Confession’. Some have used this to attack the seeker church model that Hybels pioneered, but it really has nothing to do with sin, as some would like to make it out to be. Some of you have been asking me about it, so here is a summary.

Based on a significant scientific research project (which was interesting as Aileen is currently taking a research course the deals with qualitative and quantitative research methods) done at Willow Creek from 2004-2007, the research team discovered that their church was not doing as well as they had thought when it came to spiritual growth. Not only where they brave enough to ask the hard questions, but they were brave enough to share their findings with the world. Hardly scandalous!

The questions the project raised and observations they made have revolutionized the way they look at the role of the local church. They say the church and its myriad of programs has taken on too much of the responsibility for people’s spiritual growth, which they define as ‘an increasing love for God and for other people’. I love their definition. Their findings certainly clarify some of the issues I’ve had in the back of my mind as I have thought about the church and its role over the past years.

Willow Creek made six key discoveries based on their data:
1. Involvement in church activities does not predict or drive long-term spiritual growth. A higher level of church activity does not correlate directly to an increasing love for God or increasing love for people. Church busyness is not next to godliness.

2. Spiritual growth is all about increasing relational closeness to Christ. God has wired us to be in a growing relationship with him – not with the church. There is a passionate instinct born in all of us that desires to draw closer to God. As we draw closer, we begin to see a dramatic change in how we live our lives and relate to other people.

3. The church is most important in the early stages of spiritual growth. Its role then shifts from being the primary influence to a secondary influence. As one matures in Christ, the importance of services and small groups for spiritual development decreases. The church’s role becomes more a platform to provide serving opportunities. This makes a lot of sense, because as the mature believes step into a serving role, they minister to the new believers who need this to jump-start their spiritual lives, so both groups are in a place where they can experience profound spiritual growth.

4. Personal spiritual practices such as prayer, journaling, solitude, and scripture study are the building blocks for a Christ-centered life. They are the driving force in spiritual growth, so the church doesn’t need to handhold people who are moving along in the later stages of the spiritual continuum.

5. A church’s most active evangelists, volunteers, and donors come from the most spiritually advanced segments. The more one grows, the more one serves, tithes, and evangelizes. This surprised Willow Creek because their assumption was that new believes, with their passion for faith and relationships with people who where not Christ followers, had the highest evangelistic fervor.

6. More than 25 percent of those surveyed described themselves as spiritually “stalled” or “dissatisfied” with the role of the church in their spiritual growth. (Many of these people are considering leaving their church – which for a church as good as Willow Creek is frightening – I mean, if Willow can’t keep people coming, who can?)

Stalled people are those who consider themselves close to Christ, but haven’t grown in their spiritual life. They are Christians who have run into difficult life circumstances or come face-to-face with a personal weakness (addiction, inappropriate relationship, emotional issue) that has become a significant barrier to spiritual growth. Dissatisfied people see their faith as central to their lives, but feel their church is letting them down. Essentially, they have a high level of expectation for what the church can and should deliver, but have become jaded, cynical, and disillusioned.

Considering these observations, and looking specifically at the Stalled and Dissatisfied segments of their survey group led the research team to the big “aha” moment of the project. The data indicated that both the Dissatisfied and the Stalled portions still look almost exclusively to the church to lead their spiritual growth. They tend to voice complaints about the need for more in-depth teaching, more connection opportunities, more serving options and more of everything they feel is missing from their church experience. But the heart of their unhappiness may be the fact that neither segment seems to realize that much of the responsibility for their spiritual growth belongs to them. Obviously this isn't strictly their fault. The church has had something to do with it!

After taking over two years so assimilate the data, they are making three strategic changes to their vision:
1. Change the message to the congregation. It is not the role of the church to meet everyone’s spiritual needs. They want to move people from dependence on the church to a growing interdependent partnership with the church and see people take an increasing level of responsibility for feeding themselves through personal spiritual practices.
2. Coach next steps. They want to transition the role of the church from spiritual parent to spiritual coach. They are working on a tool that will assist them as a church to help people discern what is the next step they need to take in their spiritual development. It will be interesting to see what this looks likes.
3. Extend the impact of their weekend services. Focus more attention on those who are further along the spiritual continuum by providing tools like journals, study questions, and commentary notes that themed with the message to assist people digging into scripture for themselves. I imagine that this is a big shift for the mother of the seeker sensitive church.

To Ponder...

2008-02-20T14:06:00.000-08:00

DREAMS

What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?

~ Langston Hughes

Settlers Solution

2008-02-17T20:10:00.000-08:00

Tired of chasing all your Settlers paraphenalia through multiple game boxes and numerous expansion packs? Then mosey on down the your local Walmart sporting goods department and pick up some tackle boxes. The top one is thinner with lots of little compartments for all the little stuff, plus enough room to sqeeze in those big boarder pieces, and the lower one is thick enough to take the hexs and cards and even the Cities and Knights chart thingys. After a few weeks of testing the devices, I'm please to say it works like a charm. Settin' up is easy, and clean up's a breeze. And for 'bout $5 a shot, the tight-wads won't even do too much sqeakin'.

I Love the West Coast!

2008-02-13T11:41:00.000-08:00

Most of Canada under winter weather warnings
Canwest News Service
Published: Wednesday, February 13, 2008OTTAWA — Environment Canada issued weather warnings for all parts of Canada Wednesday except B.C., Yukon, and southern Ontario.

Toronto residents woke up Wednesday morning with 10 cm to 20 cm of snow...

Residents in New Brunswick are expected to be hit with a mixture of snow and ice pellets, anywhere from 10 cm to 20 cm. “This is shaping up to be a really big event for Atlantic Canada.”

The prairies are experiencing a bitter cold snap. Heavy snowfall warnings were issued for portions of southeastern Alberta, where winds are combining with snow and generating blizzard conditions.

Blizzard conditions are also affecting residents across Saskatchewan, where officials are warning people to stay off the roads.

Environment Canada issued a number of warnings for southern Manitoba where blowing snow and high winds are creating dangerous wind chill values. “Winds of 10 to 15 km/h are producing wind chills of minus 50.”

Wind chill warnings and blizzard conditions are also listed for parts of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Nanaimo Weather Current Conditions

7 °C Observed at: Nanaimo Airport
Date: 11:00 AM PST Wednesday 13 February 2008
Condition: Sunny
Forcast: High of 9 °C

Missional

2008-01-17T19:17:00.000-08:00

I came across a great definition of missional in an article by Rob Lindeman in and old copy of the Pentecostal Testimony (July, 2006). Food for New Year's thought.

He says “The word missional has been around for about a hundred years. Missional is an adjective that describes the way in which we do all of our activities, rather than identifying any one particular activity. For Christians, to be missional means to align all of the functions and activities of our lives around the mission of God in the world.”

12 Days Of Christmas

2007-12-26T10:56:00.001-08:00

Here's a YouTube clip worth watching! The original members of Straight No Chaser perform their comedic vrsion of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" at the Musical Arts Center, Bloomington, Indiana.

Opening Night

2007-12-07T22:51:00.000-08:00

Yeah, it's 'Tree Time' again! After 8 months of preperation and 3 months of rehearsals, it was show time. By all accounts, opening night went very well. The best blooper was when Sir Julius crashed his giant tricycle into the people in the first row, namely Pastor Les. It was great! Oops. Thanfully no one was seriously hurt. And we did have a sound track problem that hopefully will never happen again ~ it's very annoying when the music gets stuck halfway through the introduction!

1 performance down, 9 to go.

Christmas time is near...

2007-12-01T23:22:00.000-08:00

It's not as romantic as it looks. 20cm of wet cement in 12 hours. At least I had my fair share of shoveling this fall to get in shape for it. Now we'll see if we can get to church tomorrow ~ and if anyone else will show up! Thankfully this was not a 'Tree' weekend!
The view across the valley:

My New Hobby

2007-11-17T21:15:00.000-08:00

'Tis the Season...almost

2007-11-14T17:38:00.000-08:00

Okay, maybe I'm rushing things abit, but seeing as I've been working Christmas since April it seems about time! Besides, it wasn't raining this morning, so you have to make hay while the sun shines. Actually, the sun wasn't shining either... But we'll see it soon. Maybe in May.

Getting the lights up are actually a HUGE moral victory. I had lights up and down about four times last year before I finally gave up in disgust. First it was the stupid light clips that were a total joke, then it was stupid light strings that either didn't work, broke whenever you touched them, or were pink, white, or purple when they were supposed to be red. Hmmph. So this year, Santa is happy, and my girls are very impressed with Dad.

By the way...notice the grass? Day 57.

Lumber Jacks

2007-11-14T13:28:00.000-08:00

Yes, we have real, live lumber jacks out here in BC. I heard the chain saws buzzing and was surprised to see them trimming up a huge tree in the school yard above our house. He lopped off the lower branches on his way up, and I guess they are going to take the tree down. It may have been damaged in the huge wind storm Sunday night, making it unsafe, particularily for a school yard. As of tonight, it was still there, so maybe they had concerns about which way it was going to come down and needed to bring in some different equipement. Wouldn't want to wipe out a house or something...

I hope this guy isn't afraid of heights, 'cause he's a looooooooong way up!

Beautiful Bride

2007-11-12T19:20:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'd marry her all over again! Gotta love the '80's poofie sleeves - all we need is the poofie hair to go with it! Even more beautiful almost 20 years after the first time I saw her wear this.
The girls dug it out for a bridal party fashion show that's coming up this weekend for a young lady in the church. And yes, it still fits perfect.

Church on the Move...very slowly

2007-11-06T12:48:00.000-08:00

Here is an interesting visual metaphor to think about.

Here's the story: Heuersdorf, Germany, October 25, 2007—A flatbed truck slowly drags the 660-ton Emmaus Church toward its new home in the town of Borna, 7 miles (11 kilometers) away from its native village of Heuersdorf in eastern Germany. More than 700 years old, the Romanesque stone church had to be relocated to make way for open-pit coal mining near Heuersdorf. Traveling at a speed of 1 miles-an-hour (1.6 kilometers-an-hour), the church will arrive in Borna on Wednesday.

Compare the above picture to this one. Any thougths?

Mark and Katie

2007-11-02T22:46:00.000-07:00

Some friends of mine have moved to New Delhi India for a bit to help launch a marketplace missions project. Check out Mark and Katie's blog...they are having quite and adventure!

Day 43 - Guess What I Did Today!

2007-10-31T16:22:00.000-07:00

Guess what I did today...I put custom stripes on my new lawn. Okay, so it probably really didn't need mowing, but I needed to mow it. I mean, what's the point of having a lawn mower if you never use it?

I love how you can alter the colour in the computer and make things look really green. Actually, I just made it look as green as it looks in real life!

Single Leadership Structures

2007-10-24T11:55:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm bored with watching grass grow. It looks like I won't get to mow my lawn until next spring, which is a huge disappointment...Oh well, I just have to get over it and move on.

Here's a provoking thought from Alex McManus (Erwin's brother):

"Take this first list:
1) The single leadership structures that are assumed at every popular leadership conference are unbiblical.
2) The leadership structures of almost every church in America are not scriptural.
3) There are no examples of single leadership in the NT.
4) Practically every Pastor we admire leads from an unbiblical leadership paradigm.

Do these ideas cut against the current corporate church leadership culture? You bet they do."

A question I have is whether church leadership structure a cultural issue rather than a 'biblical' issue. Was plural leadership a reflection of the culture of the NT and is singular leadership merely a reflection of today's culture?

Another thought is that I don't think the leading pastors we admire today are a 'alone' as they may appear. I bet everyone of them has an close leadership team that works with them. They just happen to be the 'face' of the organization, which is merely a cultural reflection of the way we do things. So maybe McManus' comments are much to do about nothing...

Day 30

2007-10-18T09:49:00.000-07:00

One of the great things about living on the Coast is that you get to plant winter flowers! (Eat your root seller out, all you prairie people suffering through killer frosts and serious snow!)

Day 29

2007-10-17T21:34:00.000-07:00

Things are green, but not thick or long enough to need mowing. I'm begining to think that the lawn mower will sit until next spring. Also, with all the rain, the ground is really soft, so at this point it would be good to avoid walking on it. Now If I can just get the deer to cooperate!

Day 24

2007-10-12T19:19:00.001-07:00

Day 21

2007-10-09T18:39:00.000-07:00

Day 15

2007-10-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

The difference a couple of days make...

Day 13

2007-10-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

Things suddenly look green - if you get it from the right angle! Looks like the big rain didn't hurt.

Day 12 - the big rain

2007-09-30T20:27:00.000-07:00

Well, we had our first big rain of the season last night - about 50mm in 12 hours. I'm not sure how much damage was done to the lawn...time will tell.

Day 11

2007-09-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

Day 10 - you can see the green

2007-09-28T19:17:00.001-07:00

This is the best part of the lawn. I think it has a little more shelter and a little more warmth. But the rest is coming along.

Day 9 - all reved up

2007-09-27T18:26:00.000-07:00

This...leads to this... Yes, it's an experienced machine. With the grass being new, and me not having a lawn to mow for the past 8 years, I thought it would be good to have someone that knew what it was doing. Any ideas for a name?

Day 8 - The real thing at last!

2007-09-26T19:44:00.001-07:00

Hold on to yer seats, folks! I think we have the real thing starting to show. The previous two blades have obviously been imposters. Now this is something you can SEE and FEEL! You have to look really, really close (you can actually see grass in the picture below), but if you brush your hand just over the dirt you can feel the new blades! It is just on one section of the lawn, but it is the area that is the most sheltered with the most sun, so hopefully the others areas will be showing signs of germination soom...like maybe TOMORROW?

Day 7 - signs of life?

2007-09-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

Another sign of life?

Day 6

2007-09-24T18:27:00.000-07:00

Okay...now I know where they get the saying that "This is as exciting as watching grass grow..."

Day 5

2007-09-23T18:16:00.000-07:00

Ah-ha! There has been a deer on my lawn...and a dog...and a kid with little rubber boots...

Day 4 - the first blade?

2007-09-22T21:39:00.001-07:00

Things were looking pretty much the same today, but then I saw IT! Is this blade really the first grass to grace my dirt? Is this a biological over-achiever? Or is this just an imposter? A weed that has lurked in my dirt for a week before sprouting and decieving my inexperienced, naive grass growing mind? Only time will tell...

Day 3

2007-09-21T21:36:00.000-07:00

Rainy day..but that's okay.

Day 2

2007-09-20T21:10:00.000-07:00

Still no grass, but remain optimistic. Good day for growing. Rain in the morning, partly sunny for the afternoon. Went mower shopping, but decided that purchase wasn't urgent. Here is a close up. Mostly looks like ground-up recycled paper...

Day 1

2007-09-19T22:12:00.000-07:00

No grass yet...but I went lawn-mower shopping! (Faith in action...)

Day Zero

2007-09-18T22:15:00.000-07:00

Hydro-seeding! Oh joy! What bliss! Grass at last!!! (Faith is about unseen things hoped for...)

Day Zero minus 1

2007-09-17T22:21:00.000-07:00

The dirt is ready! I'm gonna have a lawn!

Wheel Barrow Racing!

2007-09-14T22:52:00.000-07:00

After living on the prairies and in Richmond, we thought a multi-level yard would be nice for a change. Hmmmm. About now, flat sounds really good.

Day Zero minus 1 week

2007-09-12T22:30:00.000-07:00

It's a dirty job...but we want a lawn! See my head behind the big dirt pile? We had 55 cubit yards of dirt to move - that's 3 big dump truck loads. No wonder I'm tired...

Day Zero minus 13 months

2007-09-12T21:41:00.000-07:00

Here's what we started with...