Hope Centre Ministries

Introduction to Disability Concerns

2011-08-29T11:32:00.000-05:00

Disability Concerns is a Synodical committee of the Christian Reformed Church in North America.

Disability Concerns seeks to bring about the full participation of all the people with disabilities in the life of the church and the full participation of the church in the lives of people with disabilities.

Wow! That is an amazing mission statement! It is the hope of Disabilities Concerns that churches more and more become hospitable, inclusive,and healthy communities that intentionally seek:

to end the isolation and disconnectedness of persons with disabilities and their families,

to nurture the spiritual lives of people with disabilities so that they become professing and active members of their churches, and

to encourage the gifts of people with disabilities so that they can serve God fully in their churches.

The desired outcome for the work of Disability Concerns is this: in every congregation, everybody belongs and everybody serves.

For more information, we encourage you to see the website: www.crcdisabilityconcerns.org-- it has many resources for worship, caring, and accessibility as well as more than 20 issues of their newsletter, Breaking Barriers, which contain personal stories and descriptions about various disabilities.

Hope Centre Ministries joins them in their mission to build inclusive worshiping communities that see all people as created in God's image, gifted and capable of making a contribution. If you want more information on how we can help your local congregation provide an environment that is inclusive and welcoming, please connect with us!

info@hopecentreministries.org !

A New Season

2011-08-29T11:18:00.000-05:00

Blogging for me is not second nature--- it is something I always 'mean to do'. I think it is a wonderful way to share what is happening as well as provide resources through but I have to commit to putting it in my actual list of things to do and not in my 'when I get around to it' list.

I have had a wonderful summer--- so many amazing things have been a part of this summer.

First-- there was SERVE--- a mission week for youth. The SERVE that I was involved in was held in Winnipeg and hosted by Covenant Christian Reformed Church. This SERVE was intentionally designed to accommodate youth with disabilities. If you are interested in seeing what this week looked like I invite you to visit:
http://www.ronhosmar.blogspot.com/ Read the blogposts related to Winnipeg SERVE and you will see how youth were engaged and impacted. These weeks are a lot of work, but really so worth it. I am amazed at how God works through all of the little ripples and I am excited to see how projects such as this one will impact our churches.

Second: I had an amazing holiday with my family. Together we drove from Winnipeg all the way to PEI and home again. We had so many adventures. Amazing country we live in. So vast, so diverse and so beautiful. Reminded me of our slogan at HCM: "We ALL have gifts, they differ". There is beauty in the unique.

Third: Time for quiet reflection. I am amazed at how busy I can keep myself. How I crowd out the quiet. Taking time to sit, to think, to read to pray has energized and inspired me and I feel ready to begin a new season of Ministry.

It is my hope to update this blog with things that are happening at HCM-- stories and personal insights, but also to review resources and share things that are available for those wanting to to be proactive and inclusive.

God is Here!

2010-11-22T16:21:00.002-06:00

Last night we gathered in our new worship space for the first time. It was an amazing evening for our community. We took time to pray and to praise as we reflected on who God is. The focus for the evening was on the question "Where is God"? There have been times in the past when God has shown himself to his people in some pretty incredible ways:

To Moses, he appeared in the burning bush! To the Israelites fleeing from Egypt, he was in the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. Later, God gave instructions for how to create a dwelling place for him--- the tent of meeting or the tabernacle was made with specific instructions. In the centre-- the holy of holies--became God's dwelling place. King Solomon built a temple that became the splendor of the nation. It too, had a holy of holies--- where God dwelt. The burning bush, the pillar of cloud and fire, the tabernacle and the temple all represent the same thing--- God was with his people.

It will be advent in a few short days-- a time of year when we reflect on yet another amazing way in which God has made himself known to his people. He came as a. . . . BABY! Jesus gives us a picture and an understanding of who God is. When he died, the curtain in the temple ripped and the separation between God and his people was removed. Where is God? God is here! God is with his people!

It doesn't matter where we meet. We can move and change addresses, but God doesn't change. He is the same forever and he is always with us.

Last night was a great reminder of this. God is with Hope Centre Ministries. God is here. We were also blessed by the prayers and words of our extended family. Tony, an 'icon' of the past sang a blessing to us as we take these steps into the future. It meant a lot to have him participate in this way. We were also blessed by words from family at Covenant, Transcona and Good News Fellowship. This new location has introduced us to new family members. We were welcomed and reminded to seek God in the 'sanctuary'. Some of our new family includes a Spanish Ministry that uses the building on Sunday evenings. We asked them the name of their group and it translates to mean: The Lord is here! I love how God weaves everything together.

God is with his people--- God is here!

Sometimes a Family Has to Move

2010-11-08T17:07:00.000-06:00

Today, Hope Centre Ministries is announcing its plans to move into a new office. We are excited about this upcoming adventure but it has got me thinking...

A couple of years ago my family and I had to move. We were excited as we looked ahead to the new things we would experience in Winnipeg and we were sad at all of the goodbyes we left behind. There were more than a few bumps in our journey and yet we knew we had to move. More than once we asked ourselves "WHY?". Moving changed us. We placed ourselves in God's hands and entered into a relationship with him that was based on trust. We knew he had big plans for us-- good plans. We knew this because he promises that and God ALWAYS keeps his promises. We are his children and he cares for us as such.

We had to move. Moving opened us up to new possibilities and taught us how to listen to God's voice in a new way. It opened us up to new opportunities, new ways to grow, new relationships and new ways to follow God's will. Exciting, sad, scary--- all wrapped up in one experience. Looking back and seeing God's hand in every step along the way is reassuring and fills us with the confidence to continue to step out for him.

I see this move that HCM is planning in much the same way. Hope Centre Ministries has to move. We are excited as we look ahead and already see the signs of new opportunities. We also acknowledge a sadness as we say goodbyes. There will be bumps in our journey and obstacles along the way to overcome but we are not stepping onto this path alone. We are moving in order to open us up to new possibilities, new ways to grow, new relationships and new ways to follow God's will. It is exciting, sad, scary---all wrapped up in one experience. We go with these words found in Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." We are hoping this move will help us to listen to God's voice in new ways and to trust him as he directs us.

Below is a photo journal of the upcoming move, intended to give you an idea of what got us so excited.

As you enjoy the pictures, please take time to pray for HCM during this time of transition.

Why does this family want to move?

We really wanted to have a space that was very accessible in many ways for our members. This is a picture of the bus stop just a short walk from our front door. Having easy access to transportation that does not involve a walk down a dark North End street at night will allow us to invite more people!

Parking has always been an issue-- it is hard to invite people to join us when we didn't have a parking lot. Look at all the parking places--- when one of our members saw the parking lot he said, "Good, now we can get people to come!"

Our new office will be located at 83 Henderson Highway. This is the address of Mennonite Brethren Church of Manitoba and MBMS International. There are other groups in the building as well: SOUL--School of Urban Leadership, Community Ventures--Day Program for individuals with disabilities and Christian Family Centre-- Inner City MB church plant. We are excited about new relationships.

Part of what we do includes being a resource for churches. We really wanted to have an office that was inviting and welcoming, a place where we can sit and have conversations with church leaders and others who are interested in learning how to foster inclusiveness in their church and faith communities. What a cozy setting.

As a ministry that exists to celebrate the gifts and uniqueness of individuals with disabilities, it was very important to us to have an office that was accessible and free of physical barriers.

An office is a 'hub'. A central place where things happen, a place to work, dream, plan and meet. Soon there will be windows facing the lobby installed and then with a few finishing touches it will soon be ready.

This is part of the same building. People coming to programs run by HCM will enter the building through these doors.

Now inside, you can see the hallway that goes through to other side. Our office is located at the end of this hall.

Since we are a 'Winterpeg' based ministry, having a place to hang our coats is VERY important.

This is the sanctuary inside the building. At one time it served as a chapel for the old Concord College (now CMU). What a beautiful worship space. We are very excited about the amount of extra chairs (already set up!) as they create opportunity for growth. Another exciting piece is the grand piano-- we have a faithful pianist who is really looking forward to playing that!

A Sunday at HCM is not complete without an opportunity to have a cup of coffee and spend time in fellowship with each other. Here is where we will set that up on Sundays as the fellowship hall is used at that time by a Spanish ministry. So exciting to be worshiping alongside another ministry.

This is the fellowship hall. Here is where we plan on holding our Thursday Friendship group. We looked at this room with some of our members who are already looking forward to a movie night (projector:)!

This is the week to make announcements, to share in our excitement and to ask many to be in prayer for us. You can read the announcement on our website by clicking HERE!

Family Reunions

2010-11-07T21:19:00.002-06:00

Last night we had the opportunity to gather with our extended family--- members of the various Winnipeg CRC churches. The theme of our evening was "Celebration of Gifts". We wanted to gather together and celebrate that even though we are all very different, we are united through our common faith. We are brothers and sisters and all called children by a loving heavenly father. Because we were made by a creative God who loves variety-- we have all been given different gifts. We ALL have gifts, they differ!

What a variety show we had--- there was singing, laughing, playing of instruments, acting and even a little mind reading. It was great-- and those who came thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Why was the crowd so small?

Why it is so hard to get people to come together?

Why is it so easy to fall into a pattern of busyness that keeps us focused on our selves?

By not connecting with extended family we miss vital relationships-- relationships that can strengthen and encourage us--relationships that help us to celebrate the foundation of who we are.

I think we still see differences before we see similarities. We see weakness before we see strength and many see disabilites before they see abilities.

This community evening was intended to flip this--- to see similarities before differences--- to see strength before weakness and to see abilities before disabilities.

That is exactly the picture that those who came got to see. Maybe next time, we'll be able to get even more of our family to come. . .

WOW!

2010-06-27T16:52:00.001-05:00

Time is going so fast. . . I can't believe that we are only days away from July! The programs at HCM have ended for the summer and we are dreaming dreams for next year. Our board met to reflect on this past year, and when you list everything that we have been working on it is a huge list.

As I reflect, I realize that although I have been typing furiously and at my computer many times, I have not been very faithful at updating this blog.

April- now has held many activities-- each one has grown and stretched me in different ways and I'll admit that there were days when I did not want to grow anymore -- did not want to take something further.

It's a great thing we are not in charge of the plan for our lives. It is so exciting to see how God works in us-- and with us

Easter People in Good Friday Moments

2010-04-03T21:21:00.002-05:00

Lynell Bergen is Outreach Coordinator for Hope Centre Ministries and author of the following:

This week I visited one of the Hope Centre members in the hospital. I'll call her Sara. Sara is in considerable pain, at times. And because of her intellectual disability, Sara is not able to be stoic, to accept that pain is a part of life. She cannot deal with her pain rationally.

She cannot understand that the people around her are not able to relieve her from pain, at least not all the time, and that fact actually increases her suffering, because she gets so angry and so upset at the failure of those around her to do for her what she needs done.

So Sara is often angry when people come to visit her, and she may swear at them, or tell them to "Go home!" in no uncertain terms. We are all useless to her, because we cannot do what she most needs us to do for her.

When I first arrived one afternoon this week, Sara was once again in pain, and therefore understandably upset. And I knew that she was not really angry at me, so I didn't take it personally. But it was frustrating because I didn't feel I could do anything to make her feel better. So after awhile, I went to get a health care aide, because I knew if they moved her a bit, it might relieve some discomfort.

The aide came, and began to move Sara, but the moving itself caused her even more pain, and she yelled, and tried to scratch the person who was helping her. Sara only experienced the immediate pain. She couldn't understand the gain that would come from it. She couldn't comprehend, and she therefore did what she could to defend herself against the person she perceived was trying to hurt her.

Less than five minutes after the aide left, Sara was much more comfortable, and smiling, and we talked, and I sang hymns to her, one after another. And she protested when I got up to leave – "stay here, sing some more" And as I prayed with her, she loudly joined in with her own prayer: "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."

I think her intellectual disability makes it difficult, if not impossible, for Sara to be an Easter person in the midst of Good Friday moments. That doesn't mean she loves Jesus less or that her faith is less sincere. When she is in "Easter mode" she can be there in a big way!

What do I learn from Sara? That being in Good Friday mode is painful, not only to myself, but to others around me. But that there may be times when I can't be anywhere else, because there may be times for all of us when we can't see Easter.

But when I do have the chance to get to Easter, we need to celebrate, in a big way. And I need to sing until my voice is gone, and I need to declare loudly, for all to hear, that "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."

LiveLoveLaugh*HOPE

2010-03-12T11:47:00.004-06:00

I love to laugh and it feels great to laugh with other people. Laughing is actually an important part of being community. When we laugh together we not only build bonds and form memories but we also help remove barriers.

Hope Centre Ministries is looking forward to an evening that includes laughter and fun: Live*Love*Laugh*HOPE! There are so many facets to this event and it is exciting to be a part of this. Here's what many people may not know:

Awareness: We wanted to host an event that would get people excited and that many people would be happy to promote. Through our media sponsors we are able to connect with churches and have conversations that make people aware of our initiative to be a resource to churches. Simply put, this is a really fun way to tell churches about our services.

Community: Hope Centre Ministries represents community and so we wanted something that would bring all kinds of different people together.

Inclusiveness: So many times events happen that raise money for a cause, but that cause does not have a physical presence at the event itself. We want to offer a picture of inclusiveness and when people attend this event they will see our members involved. We want people to realize that inclusion means "with" and not just "in".

Laughter: Laughing is something that all people, regardless of ability, enjoy. It is a wonderful gift and fills us with hope and encouragement. We chose to invite Ken Davis because of his unique way of communicating a gospel message. He is extremely gifted and extremely funny and we are confident that everyone who attends will be blessed.

"Because of this my heart will be glad, my words will be joyful, and I will live in hope." Acts 2:26

Prayer Builds Bridges

2010-03-12T09:41:00.003-06:00

One of the individuals that we work with has become very passionate about her love for God. Every time I see her she tells me how much she loves him. She loves music and is always asking for information on certain songs. "God speaks to my heart when I sing" are her words. Wow! Over a year ago she shared her desire to attend church and had in her mind a very specific church. Since I consider it part of our mission to build bridges with churches we talked about a plan.

Our plan and her plan in a nutshell:

Our Plan: We discussed how we could have contact with her home and the church. How we would advocate for her and how we would look for opportunities to connect her and begin to build a bridge.

Her Plan: She had her mind set on something very definite and her plan included nothing but prayer. She prayed. Every time we talked about how we were going to work this out she said, "I keep telling God what I want, please tell him too"!

My Lesson: She has been attending the church of her choice for a while now. She knows the pastor and attends Bible Study. She loves it and is so excited to share what is happening at 'her church'. When I asked her how this all came about so nicely she wisely told me, "I told you to tell God. He made it happen. Wow, I love him, he's so awesome!". Can any of us say it better?

I think it's easy to see that she has a lot to teach all of us about simple persistence in prayer. God has definitely used her to teach me. Instead of looking at my calendar to see when I can try to have a conversation with a pastor, I am now looking at my calendar to see when I can join her to worship at 'her church'. I hope that's soon.

God is awesome, indeed!

Our 'Not-So-New-Year' Happenings!

2010-03-11T08:23:00.007-06:00

Today is raining and dismal, but behind that lies the promise of Spring. For the past week, I have been eagerly looking out the window to see how far our snow has receded. This morning I see grass-- not much but it's there and with that glimpse, Spring feels very close.

As I write this, I realize I haven't been on here for a long time (I've missed winter:) and the truth is, it's just been busy!

This 'not-so-new-anymore' year has much to offer us as a ministry-- read on to find out how this year has been going and learn some things that wait in our future.

Some HCM Program Highlights

Part of what we do is host programs to support individuals with disabilities in their faith walk.

Friendship group is a bible study fellowship group that meets weekly. We have a wide range of individuals who attend and on Thursday evenings I may need anywhere from 15-40 chairs. One of the challenges of Friendship is how to take what we talk about and put it into practice (isn't that the challenge of every Christian?). How can we match our talk to our walk? How can we make it real? That means that we are looking for authentic opportunities. At least once a month we have a Thursday with a service aspect where individuals are challenged to do for others. It is amazing and quite telling to note that these evenings are the most energetic and interactive. I love the picture that I get to take home on these nights--- people working together, talking together, laughing together, giving together----JOYFULLY! I leave blessed and encouraged and energized. In fact I think of those evenings as a true gift to me.

Some giving aspects that have happened are: collecting pop tabs/stamps/soup labels for various agencies within Winnipeg, making blankets/scarves for Winnipeg's homeless, clothing drive, bookmark making, Christmas treat bags for kids, Christmas card preparation and our very latest-- Easter Basket Bonanza. We are currently in the midst of preparing at least 130 Easter Baskets to be given to children in the North End this Easter. This is only the second year, but I love the enthusiasm and the ownership that our members have for this project.

Learning to give beyond ourselves is important and empowering; many of us need to be encouraged to incorporate giving into our daily lives. Friendship this year is a reminder that we all have been created to serve.

Hand Chimes

We have begun to make beautiful music! We started this year on all different levels and our notes were disjointed. But as we have gotten to know each other as a group, as we have discovered our individual gifts and comfort levels, we have also learned to make music together. Our "joyful noise" is now filled with melody and song! We are ready to play in front of others and have contacted several churches. Our hand chime choir is a chance to bring a message to churches: individuals with disabilities have the ability to glorify God through the gift of music.

New Initiative!

Church Resources: Part of our ministry is also to encourage churches and other Christian Ministries to be proactive and inclusive. Sounds good but what does this mean? How can we be intentional and proactive ourselves? How can we be a resource and a support for churches?

We have committed to answering these questions in two ways:

Building and maintaining a resource library
Preparing a series of workshops aimed at encouraging and equipping those interested and/or involved in ministry to and with individuals with disabilities. We are excited about this initiative which has the following works in progress:

In HIS Image: Understanding LD/ADHD
Sensory Integration
Hand-on Inclusion Kit: Equipping Sunday School teachers with tools and strategies
Disability Tax Credit and Registered Disability Savings Plan
Leaving Home and Moving On
Spiritual Milestones: Nurturing spiritual growth for individuals with intellectual disabilities
Enfolded and Empowered: Spiritual care for members with disabilities
You Name it!

So as you can see, we are busy! I have a list of stories to add and share--and hopefully will be able to add them soon.

January Highlight

2010-01-29T19:23:00.004-06:00

Wow! As I look at the calendar it is hard to believe that 2010 is only 29 days old. So much has happened in the past 29 days and I am realizing already how behind I am in my 'good intentions' of keeping this blog current.

One of the highlights of this month was the opportunity we had to host two different groups from Steinbach Bible College. These first-year students were in the city exploring different forms of ministry. We had a group attend our Friendship evening and a group attend our Hand Chimes.

Before the students interacted with our members we had a time of learning and discussion. This was a great opportunity to share our desire for churches to look for ways to minister to and with individuals with disabilities.

One of the pictures we wanted these students to see is that everyone is created to give--- everyone has the ability to be a blessing. We need to find and create opportunities for everyone to experience what it feels like to give. The theme for Friendship evening was creating and giving. We had a very busy evening-- an evening of cutting and tying, of laughing and sharing, of making and creating. When the evening was finished we had made 4 blankets and 32 scarves. Everyone can do something. Regardless of ability we are all called to touch the world around us and reach out to others. We demonstrate our love for Jesus by loving our neighbour with actions as well as words. The blankets and scarves were made to give away--- through several missions in the city it is our prayer that they will be used to give some much needed warmth.

Hand Chimes evening had the same focus--- EVERYONE has gifts. We combined our talents and put together a beautiful piece of music--- bells, voice, piano, rhythm. It was so nice to hear. As I listened to and participated in making 'a joyful noise' I found myself wishing we could see this kind of worship happening in more of our churches. People were definitely excited to be participating. Each one contributed and had a role-- isn't that how the body of Christ is supposed to be? I couldn't help but wonder what role these 'parts' of the body have on a Sunday morning. . .

A New Year's Prayer

2010-01-01T10:50:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year! The following is a New Year's prayer that I hope you will enjoy. The author is unknown. I love how it puts things into perspective. Not one of us can look ahead and expect a year without any hiccups. Sometimes people think that the fact we have trials and hardships shows that God is not present in our circumstance. I hope that by reading this perspective you will see that God is in the middle of every circumstance and situation we may find ourselves in. He was there in 2009 and will be in 2010 as well. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever!

May God make your year a happy one!

Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain~~

but by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes;

Not by making your path easy~~

but by making you sturdy to travel any path;

Not by taking hardships from you~~

but by taking fear from your heart;

Not by granting you unbroken sunshine~~

but by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;

Not by making your life always pleasant~~

but by showing you when people and their causes need you most,

and making you anxious to be there to help.

God's love, peace, hope and joy to you for the year ahead.

Giving and Serving

2009-12-16T08:28:00.004-06:00

Do you have individuals with disabilities in your church? If you answered 'no', you need to think about the 'why not'. Is there something that prevents your church from being a place where individuals with disabilities feel welcome? That in itself will have to be an entirely different conversation. If you answered 'yes' would you also say that these individuals are 'part' of the church?

Many churches have programs to serve individuals with disabilities-- to teach them-- give them something to participate in. This is a good starting point, but what about what they have to offer your church? How are they serving? How are they giving?

I wholeheartedly believe we have all been created in God's image. We are designed for a purpose: to serve him with the gifts that we have been given.

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works which he has planned in advance for us to do" (Ephesians 2:10).

The word 'we' is inclusive-- there is no differentiating between who is and who isn't God's workmanship. WE are ALL his masterpiece!

So often we view individuals with disabilities as individuals who need to be served. We work with them, help them and serve them. Their presence among us makes us feel good because it gives us the opportunity to serve. We feel good about it. We are doing good. How sad it is that we so often miss this true fact: individuals with disabilities experience joy when they too figure out how to serve and give.

So are the individuals with disabilities in your church serving and giving or are they simply 'there'?

Yesterday at a meeting, I listened as my colleague explained our 'dream' for churches to be truly inclusive. It can be characterized in a conversation that may go something like this:

"This is my friend. She is on the praise team and helps serve coffee. She loves to help in the office and often helps with set up in the sanctuary-- oh and she also happens to have a disability."

I would love to hear stories from churches who are striving to be inclusive. Churches who are going beyond the simply 'there' to looking for ways to have everyone experience joy through serving and giving.

If you have such a story, please pass on to me: shellie@hopecentreministries.org

Bethlehem!

2009-12-14T08:54:00.003-06:00

The other day as I listened to one of my favourite Christmas cd's I was struck by how quickly we sing carols without even thinking-- maybe you recognize these words:

"Once in Royal David's city, stood a lowly cattle shed. Where a mother laid her baby, in a manger for his bed". . . "Come to Bethlehem and see, him whose birth the angels sing, Come adore on bended knee, Christ the Lord the newborn KING". . . " O come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant-- O come, ye o come ye, to Bethlehem".

So that is what I did yesterday with many of our HCM friends. As a very large group we attended "Bethlehem LIVE". This living nativity was put on by an area church and brought to life many aspects of the Christmas story. We started in Herod's palace and then travelled through a crowded marketplace all the while trying to avoid the Roman soldiers who were on the lookout for people avoiding taxes. Thank goodness we weren't among those who needed to be part of the census-- that line was long!! We heard a Rabbi teach and shuffled towards an inn. The innkeeper was not happy to see us-- apparently with the busyness of the census he is very tired from trying to accommodate weary travellers. His daughter showed us the amazing thing that happened in their stable--- a young couple with a baby!

As we stood at that manger scene I looked at the faces of my friends. Awe, wonder and eyes as big as saucers. Joy, excitement and pure happiness. Hands clapping, hands reaching to try to touch a little bably. An amazing sight. An amazing lesson.

How often have our eyes seen a nativity scene? How often have our ears heard the story?

If you are like me, probably hundreds of times. But yesterday was special in that I got to see it through different eyes. I was reminded in a very simple way of the pure joy found in the centre of the Christmas story.

I am constantly amazed at how God speaks through our HCM friends and how he uses their honest and heartfelt reactions to teach us and help us gain perspective.

This Christmas, I hope you will find a way to 'come to Bethlehem and see. . .'--- find something that allows you to experience the wonder and excitement of Christ's birth. Find a way to hear the story as if for the very first time. Allow your eyes to grow as big as saucers and your hands to reach out to touch that baby.

With Bells On!!!!

2009-12-07T08:26:00.003-06:00

Things don't always go as planned. Last night, I had planned for us to take a good look at a bell. If the inside is missing a very little part, it can't ring. We are like bells, in that we need to ring out God's story and without Jesus in our hearts we can't ring.

John the Baptist was a bell ringer. He announced boldly God's message-- that Jesus was coming. He was special and important and he was faithful to his call-- he called people to prepare for the coming of Jesus.

Well, we did talk about John the Baptist but something took over. It was quite lively-- lots of excitement, lots of joy and definitely lots of enthusiasm when it came time for the ringing of bells.

Maybe this is a better message-- bells are a symbol of joy and excitement. While we are 'preparing' for Christmas we need to keep Jesus at the centre of the preparations. When we do we will experience the true joy and excitement of the season.

Never thought of the following as a Christmas verse, but now it fits perfectly: "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy" 1 Peter 1:8

Things do not turn out as planned-- sometimes they are better!

As we prepare for Christmas yes, let's be like John and 'Tell it on the Mountain' --keep Jesus central and remember it's about him.

But like my friends showed me last night, let's ring our bells with excitement and joy-- be enthusiastic. Ring them loud and have fun as we anticipate Christ's birth. Let's approach Christmas Day 'with bells on'!

We ALL have Gifts

2009-12-04T08:08:00.002-06:00

Last night was Friendship with Hope Centre Ministries. We typically have around 25 individuals with disabilities, staff and some volunteers. We meet every Thursday evening and follow a monthly cycle of lesson, social/fellowship activity, lesson, meal. Last night was lesson night. We are taking a look at the gifts that God has given his people. It is great fun and very moving to see and hear this group make the statement : "We all have gifts, they differ" (Romans 12:6).

It can become so easy to simply talk about it, but the teacher in me wants to help my friends practice and experience the lessons in a real, practical hands on way. Our last lesson had 'talked' about giving and what it means to help-- last night was intended to practice this.

There were four helping stations: 1: Christmas card mailing labels, 2: Newsletter folding and envelope stuffing, 3: Christmas treats for children at a local drop in centre, 4: Bookmark tags.

These jobs were simple and could be very tedious. The joy with each task was completed with was so inspiring. Words like "Look at me", "I like this", "We're helping", were combined with "This is fun".

I'll admit it-- I don't often say those words while I'm doing a tedious task. Newsletters often tire me, assembly line tasks are ones I put off and yet my friends were so enthusiastic I had to ask them to stop so that I could get packed up to go home!

God loves a cheerful giver and last night I had the honour of being surrounded by cheerful givers. Made me think of a verse that comes several verses later in Romans 12:11---- "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord."

Gifts are given, but joy is experienced when we use them in service to God. I was reminded of that last night and the picture I took home is a beautiful one.

Billy Graham put it nicely in this devotional prayer: "Even the smallest job I do today is part of my service to You, Lord. Help my heart to be so filled with Your Spirit I will rejoice whatever task is set before me."

Amen! It's time to begin another work day, '. . . serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope. . .' Romans 12: 11,12

Missing a Note

2009-12-01T20:47:00.002-06:00

Bell night. Tonight was bell night. Every Tuesday a group of 15-17 individuals gather together to enjoy music and fellowship. Each member has at least one bell-- some have two. The notes are projected onto the wall and we are learning together to make beautiful music. Most Tuesdays are lively evenings filled with laughter. Tonight was supposed to be about joy-- "JOY TO THE WORLD". However instead, anger and frustration crept in.

As a result one note from our song did not get played. One bell sat untouched. Some may say this is no big deal-- it's just one note. As we played we were all very aware of the missing note. I couldn't help but think about 1 Corinthians 12--- "one body, many parts". There we were one choir -many notes. Each note is equally significant. Our song was incomplete. We missed a note.

Reminded me of the end of the passage: "If one part suffers, every part suffers with it"(vs.26).

On the ride home I spoke with a friend who in a very unique way said what I didn't even know I was thinking until I heard her : "People need to see that although we are different, although we have disabilities we still do things. We have feelings-- we get angry and sad but we also are happy and have fun. We dance, we do activities and like to be needed. We just do it all in our own way."

How true. Tonight anger brought two powerful reminders. Two lessons learned: we all get angry, we just do it in our own way and every note is needed.

First Sunday in Advent

2009-11-30T08:35:00.005-06:00

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas". . . This song has been running through my mind this weekend as I put up a Christmas tree with my boys and prepared for our Sunday worship group. The light dusting of snow seems to have transformed the neighbourhood and the lights along the rooftops shine boldly. The stores mark this season with decorations, outrageous sales to entice every frugal shopper, and repetitive carols. Everyone seems to be gearing up for Christmas. How does the Christian Church prepare? Traditionally, churches that follow a liturgical calendar enter into the season of Advent. Candles are lit, carols are sung and we are reminded that this is a time to spiritually prepare for the celebration of Christ's birth. We anticipate Christmas Day as the day our saviour was born, but we also recognize that we are living in Advent as we wait for his return. This tradition is rich in symbolism.

The goal for Advent at HCM this year is to experience this symbolism and anticipation in a hands on way. I want to do more than just talk about it-- I want our members to take a piece of Advent home with them each week in a very concrete way. Last night we began our Advent season by making an advent wreath of meaning.

The wreath itself is very meaningful and although we used very simple, easy to locate materials the final products were beautiful as they symbolized a connection made to this wonderful season.

Here's what we learned:

A wreath is a circle and just like God it has no beginning and no end. God is both Alpha and Omega. He is the same through the ages and his love endures FOREVER!

The greenery used to decorate the wreath is "EVERgreen". It never dies and therefore symbolizes and helps us to remember eternity.

We added a bow to help us remember that God's son was a gift: "For God so loved the world he gave his one and only son and whoever believes in him will have EVERLASTING life." (John 3:16) When we accept the gift we are 'evergreen'!

There were red berries to help us remember that the baby that we are remembering grew up into a man who died for us. The berries remind us that this baby is our saviour and through his blood we are clean.

We added candles. Four candles to represent the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day and then a Christ candle for Christmas. Jesus is the light of the world. Every week we are lighting more candles and as we get closer to the day of Christ's birth, the light gets brighter.

It was fun to see hands busy at work and hear the excited conversations that happen. This activity was simple and the meanings are simple. I am constantly reminded though, that sometimes it is the simple things that are actually most profound.

Embrace the Advent season-- find a way to make this a 'hands-on' time!

What's with Food?

2009-11-26T09:01:00.002-06:00

Tonight is Friendship supper. One thing I've learned in the last year is that you MUST have Friendship supper at least once a month. We've settled into the routine of eating together once a month on the last Thursday. We've tried several things, but what is working best is if I set the menu and then individuals who attend pay $3.00 for dinner. It's quite a bargain. Tonight we are having chili and buns with veggies and dip and the 'very important birthday cake' to celebrate the November birthdays.

We can cancel Bible study nights, we can even get away with missing a social activity. But if we miss the supper, we need to have an immediate plan for post-poning it. It is not something that is skipped.

Is this because the food is so remarkable? Can't be, the menu is often something that can be done in military size batches and then frozen if we don't eat it all --so that is limiting. Is it the atmosphere? A multi-purpose room with plastic round tables is hardly 'ambiance'. So what's with the food?

Jesus was always eating with people. Sitting down and sharing a meal together is a very spiritual thing. Eating together and sitting around a table together is a way of sharing our lives with each other. Sitting around a table breaks countless barriers and makes us equals. The saying is not "You are what your eat" but rather "You are with whom you eat".

Jesus was often criticized for who he ate with and that is because by eating with the poor, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, he was in a way likening himself with them. He put himself on their level, and put them on his. Barriers were broken-- at the table they were equals.

So as I get ready to make a HUGE batch of chili I do so with this thought in mind. It is barrier breaking chili (cool cookbook title:). Tonight I will get to eat with my friends from Friendship. We will be sharing our lives-- we will be family. It is proven that families that eat together on a regular basis and talk around the table are stronger and healthier than families that don't. Friendship supper is important. It is something that can't be missed and it has nothing to do with the food.

Jesus Is Light

2009-11-22T23:42:00.002-06:00

It's difficult for anyone to lose a friend or a co-worker. Death brings sadness. For individuals with disabilities this sadness can become a roller coaster. Over the past couple of months there have been a number of deaths of friends of individuals associated with Hope Centre Ministries. It is not uncommon to hear someone say "I'm sad" before or after prayer. There have been several times where my phone has rung and one of our members is upset because someone else has died. What do you say?

This week, an individual called me very upset. "Another one" was all she said. We talked about how it is OK to be sad. We talked about what it must be like to be able to be with Jesus. "Oh, that would be good" she said. We prayed.

Tonight she told me that she liked to picture Jesus: "Being sad is dark. It's not nice. It's scary. When I pray, I picture Jesus. Jesus is light. Last night when I was sad, I saw the light. That was cool."

Tonight as I get ready for bed, I'm thinking about the LIGHT. We so quickly say that Jesus is the Light of the world. Well I was reminded in a very simple way tonight how that LIGHT can break through darkness.

My friend experienced it in a very real and simple way and I am so thankful that she shared it with me. Jesus is light.

A New Season

2009-10-01T08:22:00.002-05:00

As I reflect on this past year it has been a year of waiting and a year of watching. I have been working at trying to discover all that Hope Centre Ministries has been in the past and dreaming about what it can become in the future. More than once I have asked myself, "Why me, God? "What's your plan for us, Lord?". It has also been a healthy spiritual journey of walking on my knees.

One thing is certain-- our God is the same throughout all ages and remains faithful. Even through a past that has included controversary and a fair share of turbulence, God is there. He uses different people at different times and his kingdom is growing.

I walked in the fall air this morning-- it is definitely fall. It is a new season. That's how I feel with HCM-- a new season is upon us. Yes, the church calendar year marks a new season and we are ever mindful of that, but also a season of transition is over and we are embarking on a new adventure.

I hope to use this blog to journal the journey-- new starts, new directions, new relationships, new ideas------- same God.

Hidden Treasures

2009-08-10T15:56:00.003-05:00

When Jesus came to earth he did not spend his time with rich people living in fine houses. Instead he intentionally made his home among the outcasts of society. Jesus ministered to the sick. He reached out to the homeless and those with disabilities. Jesus was on a mission to make the 'outcasts' the 'in-casts'. he did this through healing and teaching. When he looked at people he saw past their outward appearances beyond their sickness and disability. When Jesus looked at people he saw the treasure that God was building inside their hearts.

There is a bible passage that demonstrates this well.

John 9:1-3: As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. "Teacher", his disciples asked him, "why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?" "It was not because of his sins or his parents' sins," Jesus answered. "He was born blind so the power of God could be seen in him."

When we look at one another we often see what makes us different. The challenge we have is to look at one another regardless of ability and recognize the hidden treasure. We need to look and see that the faces of others fully reflect the image of God. Image bearers come in all kinds of packages!

Inclusion in the Church

2009-05-18T19:16:00.003-05:00

Lynell Bergen is the Outreach Coordinator for Hope Centre Ministries. She wrote the following article for our May newsletter.

Whenever we talk about inclusion, we are also talking about exclusion. We have all had experiences of feeling excluded, such as when a group of people are talking about a shared experience you weren't a part of. It is good that these people have shared experiences that they enjoy talking about, but if they only talk about experiences you haven't shared, you don't really feel included in the conversation.

When we gather to worship on Sunday mornings, we have a shared language of faith, and that's a good thing. But we have to be careful that this shared language ~and the sheer number of words we use~ doesn't exclude those who are not comfortable with volumes of words, or who don't understand the "language" of church.

While it is impossible to create a barrier free worship experience, there are simple ways that we can help to include a variety of people in our worship times. We can use meaningful visuals and word images during messages. We can invite people to participate in singing using rhythm instruments or by moving their hands or bodies to the sounds they hear.

We must also recognize and use the gifts of all people whom God brings to our churches. Everyone wants to feel needed and gifted. And everyone is given gifts by God. Taking time to learn what those gifts are, and how they can be used in the church, will benefit the whole congregation. We can also step out of our comfort zone, to get to know, as individuals, some of the people in our congregation who live with disabilities. They may have labels like "autistic" or down syndrome" but they are more than their labels- they are individuals created in God's image.

God wants all of his children to come to his house to worship and share together. But God also requires us to welcome and engage each person into the family of faith so that they can feel valued and blessed.

The Road to Emmaus

2009-05-17T20:50:00.000-05:00

Tonight we talked about a walk-- a walk that started in Jerusalem. It was at the end of the day and was getting dark. Two of Jesus' friends were leaving Jerusalem and were on their way to Emmaus. They were very sad because of all the things that had happened in Jerusalem. Jesus had died. They had hoped that he would be able to save them. Instead he had been captured and crucified and now they were very sad, disappointed and confused.

As they were walking a man suddenly appeared along side them. He asked what they were talking about. The men were surprised that this stranger hadn't heard of all the things that had been happening. They told him how Jesus had died three days ago and how some women were saying that Jesus wasn't dead, but that he is alive! These men did not understand what was going on.

The man walked quietly beside the two friends. He listened carefully to everything they said. Then he told them some wonderful things. He began to teach them what all the bible stories they knew, meant. He said: "Long ago, God promised to send a Saviour into the world. God said the Saviour would die and then would live again."

The journey went by very quickly as they listened to this man. He was able to help them see how God had planned for a Saviour and how the scriptures revealed that plan. They arrived at Emmaus and the man was going to keep travelling. These two friends just loved having this man with them and so they invited him to come with them. "The day is over and it is dark", they said to the man. "Please come with us and rest at our home after this journey." The man said yes and followed them home.

They all sat down to have a meal together. There was bread on the table and the man took the bread, gave thanks to God, broke the bread and gave it to them. As soon as he did this the two friends recognized who this man was. This was Jesus! Jesus was alive!

All of a sudden, Jesus disappeared. The two friends were so amazed and excited. They ran all the way back to Jerusalem to tell the others. "It's true! Jesus IS ALIVE!"

This is the story of the road to Emmaus. This road went two ways. It went to Emmaus and it went to Jerusalem.

The friends that were travelling, travelled in two different ways. As they walked to Emmaus, they were sad and disappointed. They were hurt and angry. They did not understand who Jesus really was. But they were not alone.

We know that the man who walked with them was Jesus. He listened to them and then walked beside them. It was with his help they were able to understand what God meant in his promise to save them. They learned that Jesus was their SAVIOUR.

When they travelled to Jerusalem they were happy and excited. They were filled with joy and they wanted to share this good news with others. They ran.

We are like the friends. We are on a journey. We need to decide what way to go on the road.

I once heard a minister say the road to Emmaus was actually pronounced "ah- mess". I like that. There have been times in my life where I have been sad and disappointed, hurt and angry. It seemed like things were a mess. But just like the friends on the road, I am not alone. Jesus is with me. He IS alive and if I let him into my life, like the friends let him into their home, he WILL set me on the road to JOY. It reminds me of Revelation 3:20 where we read, Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me."

Tonight we were reminded of Jesus, our Saviour, our friend, the one who walks with us, right beside us ~ even when we are headed for a mess. When we experience him on the road let us do as the friends in the story: run with great joy, ready to share the news that Jesus IS ALIVE!

The Season of Singing!

2009-05-17T16:39:00.000-05:00

"See the winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come!" Song of Songs 2:11-12

I love the season of spring and after our first Winnipeg winter, I welcome it wholeheartedly! Spring is so refreshing and inspiring. I love spring flowers and my very favourite colour is the bright green of brand new leaves. This whole season is a reminder of the Easter season. I can't help but see the connections as I look around me in awe. In order to fully appreciate spring we need to experience winter ~ there is a cleansing that comes from the dead of winter. The foliage was gone, but only temporarily. Our winters become more bearable as we know that spring is coming. The resurrection of Jesus is a beautiful spring after a harsh winter. As we look upon our gardens and marvel at the new growth of this season, may we be reminded that Jesus is our lily of the valley: "I am the Rose of Sharon and the lily of the valleys". Song of Songs 2:1

The season of singing is here for he has risen indeed!

Easter ROCKS!

2009-04-12T20:37:00.000-05:00

The rock has been rolled away. . . the grave is empty! Our risen Lord fills us with Easter hope and reminds us of the beautiful plan for his people. “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD'S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.” Psalm 118:22.
I have had a long time fascination with biblical “rocks”. They are mentioned often in scripture and provide a visual reminder for many great truths. Rocks also seem so strong and indestructible. It’s no wonder they sealed Christ’s tomb with a rock—and it is the moving of that rock which gives truth to the words: “There’s nothing my God cannot do!”
I have chosen to include below a poem that I wrote a few years ago. It was written for children. I am including it as a reminder for us to come as children to the empty tomb of Christ. Let us gaze with a renewed sense of awe and exclaim wholeheartedly:

“Alleluia! He has risen! He has risen indeed! Alleluia!”

RESURRECTION ROCK

by Shellie Power

Sometimes I feel so little
And not the least bit strong.
And when I try to help myself
So many things go wrong.

The stories told of Jesus
Say he’s mighty as can be
He healed so many people
And calmed an angry sea.

Some people tried to stop him
They had him crucified.
They took his body to a cave
And locked him up inside.

They sealed the tomb up extra tight
With a giant rock.
What happened next surprised them all
And gave them quite a shock.

Nothing is stronger than my God
He’s big as big can be.
He moved away that great big stone
To set his people free!

This little resurrection rock
Helps me to feel strong.
It tells me of my mighty God

With Him I won’t go wrong!

Basket Blessings

2009-04-04T19:04:00.000-05:00

Hands and Feet

Audio Adrenaline

"I wanna be Your hands

I wanna be Your feet

I'll go where You send me

Go where You send me

I'll be Your hands

I'll be Your feet

I'll go where You send me

Go where You send me

And I'll try, yeah I'll try

To touch the world like You touched my life

And I'll find my way

To be Your hands"

The words from this chorus perfectly describe our motivation behind our Easter Basket project. As a group the members of HCM assembled 120 Easter baskets that are going to be distributed this Easter to children in Winnipeg's North End. This was a project of faith and obedience. Every person has been created to glorify, obey and serve God. We live out our faith in him when we serve others and come together to touch those who hurt and are in need. We all "touch the world" around us in different ways and for the members of HCM this giving project was an exciting, hands-on opportunity to feel the joy that comes from reaching out to others. We all face the challenge of finding our way to touch the world-- and when we do it in God's name, we become his hands and his feet.

The excitement was high and almost everyone at HCM was involved in the basket project:

~The Sunday worship group took collections and paid for the contents of the baskets.

~The Seniors made gift tags.

~The Friendship group assembled the contents and also spend additional time filling plastic eggs.

~A fellowship group helped assemble Jelly Bean Prayer baggies.

~ We are all praying for the children who will receive the baskets.

Each basket contained a Bible (Thank you to LifeLight Ministries:), chocolate, jelly beans, a cross necklace, an inspirational bracelet, a toy and some more candy.

For our members it was an important step to be on the giving end. We have felt incredibly blessed by the support we received for this project and are already looking forward to next year!

Our Lenten Journey Box

2009-04-04T08:22:00.000-05:00

As a worship visual we have been collecting objects from each service during Lent. We have been placing them in a box that we have labeled our "Journey Box". This box represents our journey with Jesus and the objects placed in are reminders of what we have learned. Our box is almost finished but here is what we have placed in it so far:

Sand
Jesus' ministry journey began in the desert. When we read Matthew 4:1-11 we learned

that Jesus was fasting for 40 days and during that time Satan himself visited Jesus in hopes of tempting him. By reading about this temptation we learned how Jesus was human, like we are and he knows how we feel. We saw how Jesus used God's word to overcome Satan. Satan is sneaky, he comes at us when we're weak-- we need God to make us strong.

Mountain
Tonight we read about Jesus' transfiguration from Matthew 17:1-9. Here we learned what an amazing and exciting time it was for everyone: Peter, James and John saw Jesus in his glory (dazzling white-- so white it was hard to look at him) and also saw Moses and Elijah. They also heard the voice of God on top of the mountain. Peter was having such an amazing and wonderful time on top of the mountain that he wanted to build three structures and stay there. We talked about how important and exciting times in our lives are not the end of something, the are the beginning~~they often lead to other exciting times. We added the mountain to our "Journey Box" to remind us that learning who Jesus is is the beginning of a journey and not the end! It is exciting to be on top of the mountain but we have to come down and continue the journey.

Rocks
Tonight we talked about walls. Walls are good things- we need them, but they can also cause frustration. Rules and laws are kind of like walls; they keep us safe and help us live with other people in a happy way. We read from Exodus 20, a story that talks about rules. The 10 Commandments are kind of like walls. They protect us from ourselves and others. They keep us safe and let us know what we are supposed to do. We added stones to our "Journey Box" because the rules were written on stones but also because stones can be made into walls. The stones help us remember that God cares for us and protects us with rules.

Wheat
Tonight we read from John 12:24 where Jesus predicted his death with these words: "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies it produces many seeds." Jesus is the wheat. We also made the connection between wheat and bread and were reminded how Jesus said that he was the bread of life. Wheat and bread are reminders of what Jesus has done for us. We took time this evening to remember how he was broken and poured out for us as we came to the table and shared Communion together.

Batteries
Tonight we looked at Mark 1:35 where we read: "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." When my cell phone battery is empty, I plug it in. When my body is tired I sleep. Jesus was a very busy man who must have been physically exhausted at the end of a day spent walking, preaching, healing and driving out demons! Jesus made it a priority to spend time in prayer-- he recharged his spiritual batteries. Today we put batteries into our "Journey Box" as a reminder for us to follow Jesus' example and spend time in prayer.

Lenten Journey

2009-03-16T15:01:00.000-05:00

Our worship during Lent is a journey. We are on a journey and throughout the weeks that lead up to Easter we will be collecting things and placing them in a box, a journey box as symbols of our journey.

The following is a responsive reading that we have been using to remind us of this journey:

We are on a Lenten Journey------------- we follow Jesus.

Sometimes we travel with joy in our heart----------we follow Jesus.

Sometimes we are not so sure-----------------we follow Jesus.

We wonder what will lie ahead for us--------we follow Jesus.

We are on a Lenten Journey----------- we follow Jesus.

As we journey we know that our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth-----we follow Jesus.

Grace, mercy and peace to you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit----

AMEN!

Lent Observed at HCM

2009-03-16T14:52:00.000-05:00

Lent officially began on Wednesday, February 25. The season of Lent is the 40 days plus the Sundays before Easter. What does it mean? In some ways it can be seen as a 'countdown' Easter. It is a time to get ready. Just like we take time to plan and prepare for big events in our own lives, so we take time in church to prepare our hearts and get ready to remember Jesus' death and resurrection.

The time of Lent is also a time where we reflect on our own sin. Sin separates us from God. We take special time during Lent to say confess that we have sinned against God. We have sinned in our thoughts, in things we have said and in things we have done. There have been times when we have not loved God with all of our heart and there have been times when we have not loved our neighbour as ourselves. We take time to say sorry to God and we are thankful that he is full of compassion and slow to anger. We remind ourselves and each other that there is always forgiveness with God. As it reminds us in 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Spiritual Food-- Take Time to Pray

2009-02-08T21:38:00.000-06:00

In Mark 1:29-39 we read how Jesus heals the mother-in-law of Simon. Tonight, led by Lynell, we read the story as a call and response so that all were involved in the reading of scripture.

Jesus

And his disciples

James and John

Went to visit

Simon and Andrew

At their house.

The mother was there--

Her name is Sarah.

She was very ill~

She had a fever.

poor Sarah!

Sad family!

Jesus!

Sarah is ill,

Please come help her.

Jesus came.

He took her by the hand-

He lifted her up

The fever was gone!

Sarah was well,

She even made supper for all the visitors!

Many people

In the town

heard what Jesus did

They brought sick people-

Many sick people-

To Jesus

To be healed.

The whole town

Came to see

What Jesus was doing.

Help us Jesus!
Help us Jesus!

Help us Jesus!

Lots of people

Many, many people

Wanted Jesus to help them.

Early the next morning

Jesus got up

And went to a quiet place

To pray

Sshhh!

Jesus is praying

(silence)

The disciples wondered

Where is Jesus?

They looked for him

They found him

Jesus!

People need you!

People are looking for you.

Jesus said,

"We must go

To other towns

To spread the message

About God.

That is why

I am here."

So Jesus

And his disciples

Went to many towns

To tell the people

About God

And to heal them

When they were ill.

We all like to be helpful. We all have jobs that we can do that make us feel like we are being good friends to others. Helping makes us feel that people need us, and when people need us, we feel more important. It is good to help. That's why we have made a list of jobs we do at church. We take turns helping at church. We help each other and we help HCM.

If we are going to help, we also need to do what Jesus did-- we need to pray. We need to take some quiet time away from other people, and be with God, so that we can talk to God, and listen to God.

It's kind of like taking time to eat-- if we work and work without eating, soon we will run out of energy and we will fall down and not be able to work any more. If we work and work without spiritual food, without praying and reading the Bible, we will run out of spiritual energy, and we won't want to help anymore, or we will do things for selfish reasons, not because we want to really care for others.

Jesus took time to pray, even though all these people were making demands of him, he went away to be alone, to pray, to be filled with spirit food, so that he had the energy he needed to help all these people.

We need to work, to help others just like Jesus did and we need to pray to be filled with spiritual food-- just like Jesus did.

This evening we entered the building to worship God. We spent time with him and learned that we can honour God by both helping and resting. As we got ready to leave, we were reminded that we come to worship and we leave to serve. We left with this blessing from Corinthians 13:14: May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

And together we say: AMEN

God Will Fill You Up!

2009-02-01T22:34:00.000-06:00

"In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom." Daniel 1:20

We began this evening by sharing what we know about the book of Daniel. Here are some things that we listed:

It's about Daniel
The fiery furnace
The lion's den
Daniel was very wise

Tonight's text is a small verse, but we can learn a lot when we look at this verse very carefully. First, we learn that there is a king. The king mentioned here is King Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon.

King Nebuchadnezzar is the king who declared war on Jerusalem. After winning the war he told told his servants to go and capture some of the young men from Israel. He had some very specific guidelines: The men had to be from noble background, be handsome, smart and healthy. King Nebuchadnezzar wanted the best! Daniel was one of these men who was taken to Babylon.

Daniel 1:20 also lets us know that Daniel and his friends were 10 times smarter than the magicians and enchanters. We find out in this verse that Daniel and his friends were considered wiser than the wisest in the kingdom, smarter than the smartest. How was this possible? How could this be? We need to go back to the beginning of the story.

Daniel and his friends were taken to live in the king's palace. There they were to be part of a 3 year program to learn the language and literature of Babylon. They were also assigned to eat food from the King's table. King Nebuchadnezzar wanted these men to become the best-- he wanted them to eat good food as to keep up their strength.

Daniel asked the king's servant to be given something else to eat. He did not want to eat the food from the king's table.

Why? Babylon is an idol worshiping place. The people of Babylon worshipped idols and practiced many things that the Israelites as God's people had been taught was wrong. The food from Nebuchadnezzar's table was also given to idols as a gift and poured out as an offering to the pagan gods. Daniel did not want to be a part of that.

We read how Daniel and his friends were healthier and stronger than any of the other men after choosing to eat only vegetables. God blessed them-- they came out as the best of everyone at the end of three years!

Daniel and his friends found themselves in a hard situation. They were stuck in a place that went against everything they knew was right. They made a choice. Even in this place they were going to stay faithful to God: They decided to refuse to be filled up with anything but God-- no matter what and to watch for what God would do. God filled them fuller than full. We read tonight that they managed to do better than excellent work as they brought glory to God, despite the threat of execution, fiery furnaces and lions!

We took a container of rice that looked almost full. This represented all of the things that we try to fill up on. Next, we took a tennis ball and tried to add it to the container. We saw that there wasn't enough room. This tennis ball represented God. God cannot be added as an afterthought. We needed to start over. As we emptied the container, we decided it would be best if we put God in first-- and then an amazing thing happened! We were able to add all of the rice to the container. Putting the tennis ball in first we could fit everything in.

Nobody can fill themselves up-- many people try-- but it is only God who grants success. We need to learn to be like Daniel and to fill ourselves with God first and then allow him to fill us up.

We left with the "Daniel Challenge" and these words from Romans 15:13: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Time to Exercise

2009-01-25T21:31:00.000-06:00

This week I was reminded of something I have not been very faithful in. I tried on an outfit that I hadn't worn in a while and it didn't fit as nicely as it used to . It was a little tight in places. It wasn't so tight that other people notice, but I could feel that it didn't fit as nicely as it had a few months ago. I used to exercise pretty regularly. I am sharing this confession because at HCM we have been talking about being part of the body. We have looked at how we are all important and how we are all connected through Jesus. Last week we were reminded that there are rules to follow to help us get along as a group-- or help us stay healthy. As a body, we want to be healthy and strong. Tonight we read from Exodus 15:2. "The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my Father's God, and I will exalt him."

Strength. Being strong. We often say that the Lord is our strength-- how does that make us strong?

Try this at home!

Take a styrofoam cup-- this represents the world. Our world is filled with things that can hurt us as Christians. There's temptation, fear, peer pressure, persecution-- lots of things that challenge us. To represent these things add some water to the cup (fill about half full).

Now take an ordinary sheet of white paper. This paper represents you and me. Place two books on a flat surface about six inches apart. Use the paper to make a bridge between the two books.

What do you think will happen if you put the world full of temptation and other bad stuff on top of us? Do you think the paper bridge will be able to hold up the cup? NO! The paper is too weak. It is just like us--we can't handle all of the things that we put into this cup. On our own we would give in to the pressure. What can we do?

Well the answer is simple! We need to make the paper stronger. The paper needs strength. We need to do something so that it will be able to hold up the cup. We need to find ways that we can become stronger. We need to exercise! What kind of exercise will help us build up our faith?

As you list different ways, fold the piece of paper like a fan.

Read the Bible-- learn what it says.
Pray-- have conversations with God.
Listen-- take time to hear his voice.
Worship-- Give God your praise.
Put God first.
Serve others.

Now comes the fun part. Take the folded paper and place it as a bridge between the books. Now balance the cup on top. It will be able to withstand the pressures of "the world". The Lord is our strength. We need to exercise our faith in him so that we grow stronger and stronger.

We also read from Nehemiah 8:10; "The joy of the Lord is my strength".

There is a story in the Bible, in the book of Nehemiah, that tells of Ezra reading the scriptures to the people. The people didn't have Bibles of their own, so they depended on the priests to read it to them. Everyone was gathered around, and Ezra read from early morning until the middle of the day. The people listened very carefully. They realized that they hadn't been living right and were very sorry. They all began to cry! Nehemiah, the governor, told everyone to go and eat a special meal and give food to the poor. He told them to be happy in the Lord. His exact words were, "The joy of the Lord is your strength." The people did as Nehemiah said and started living with a joyful heart because they understood God's laws.

What does this story mean for us at HCM? Can we have strength in the joy of the Lord today? Living God's way is still the way to have strength and joy.

We need to exercise to keep our faith strong and we need to show each other and remind each other through JOY-- the joy of the Lord is our strength. JOY is actually an exercise that will help us to stay strong.

J-- we need to work at keeping JESUS first.

O-- we need to love OTHERS

Y-- we need to put YOU last.

In a "me, me, me" world this is not easy. We need to work at it daily. Exercise.

Stay strong.

Family Rules

2009-01-18T22:31:00.000-06:00

Tonight we reflected on Ephesians 4:25-5:1. Here we read:

"Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children. . .

Tonight Lynell reminded us that although we are different in many ways, as Christians we have something very important in common. We are followers of Jesus, we all try to obey what Jesus told us to do, and to be a part of God's family. We are part of the same family, because we have the same father, God, and the same brother, Jesus.

But it's not always easy to be part of a family. Sometimes families can be hard to get along with. Sometimes family members fight, or don't say nice things to each other. Sometimes our differences can make it hard for us to get along with eachother. That is why we read from Ephesians 4:25-5:1. Here we see that God has provided some ideas about how we can treat eachother so that we can get along even when we don't always do things the same.

Family Rules:

1. Speak the truth-- don't tell lies.

2. You can be angry at someone, or about something, but don't let your feelings lead you to do sinful things. Your feelings are your feelings, but you still have to be in charge of your actions.

3. Don't steal from others.

4. Watch what you say to others.

5. Don't make God sad by what you say or do.

6. Don't use mean or hateful words.

7. Be willing to forgive others-- we all make mistakes.

8. Do what God does. You can learn from God how to act by watching what he does. God is love. God loves us all and gave his life for us.

Tonight we ended our service with some quiet time. It was an opportunity for all of us to talk to God and make a promise to God. We, all in our own ways, asked God to help us follow the Family Rules and identified an area that we want to work on.

Wouldn't it be great if as a faith family we could follow these rules. It certainly would be a family that everyone would want to belong to!

One Team

2009-01-11T21:11:00.000-06:00

This week I have been thinking about sports. Sports are both fun to watch and to play. There are all types of sports teams. With the great variety of teams comes an even greater variety of players. Each and every player has a certain job to do.

Last week at HCM we talked about the body. Sports remind me of the body. Every part is important. Every part is needed. Every position on a team is needed. Yet with sports, even though each player has a different job to do on the team, each player also has the same job.
It is their job to work together, as a team, and to win the game. When a team works well together they have a better chance of winning.

The picture of the body that we drew last week could also be a picture of a sports team. Christians are a team too. We are all part of the same team-- the Christians. We all have our separate jobs to do, our separate schools to go to, and we all like different things-- but we are still a team. all teams need a good coach-- someone who will help them work together. We have the best coach-- Jesus! As members of Jesus' team, Christians all work together to spread the word of love for Jesus Christ. We opened the Bible to John 17: 20 and 21: ""my prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me."

Here we read that Jesus prayed for all of us. He prayed to God that we would all work as one team, to love one another and work with one another in telling everybody about his love. he wants us all to believe in him and try to be more like him. All of us are on the same team. All the Christians in the world are one team-- working together for Jesus.

It is important for teams to work together and to practice together. Jesus knew that his team would need help staying together. Today as we gathered at HCM we were reminded that we are only part of Jesus' team. how can we connect with other members of Jesus' team? How can we feel connected to other parts of the body?

When Jesus went back to heaven to be with his Father, he left behind a picture for us to remember him by. It isn't a picture in album but it is a picture that can help us to remember what he did for us. We call it "The Lord's Supper". It is also called Communion. Communion means sharing something that we have in common. Communion is acknowledging something that all Christians have in common. The greek word for communion also means fellowship-- we come together. Jesus wants his team to be one and he left a beautiful picture for all the team members to look at. Just before Jesus was crucified, he called his disciples together for a meal. He took a piece of bread and he told the disciples that the bread was to remind them of his body that would be hung on a cross for them. Then he took a glass of wine and tld them that the wine was to be a reminder of his blood that would be shed for them on the cross. He told them that whenever they ate the bread and drank the wine, it was going to remind them of what he had done for them. We still eat the bread and drink the wine today, and when we do, we do it to help us remember what Jesus has done for us.

It has been more than 2000 years since that night and we still use that same way to remember Jesus. Jesus gave us these symbols as a very special way for us to connect with other Christians. Remembering him and his great love for us-- gives us something in common with all other Christians all over the world. That is COMMUNION!

These symbols connect us with our team mates all over the world. It is what holds us together--we have this picture to keep us together and to help make us one.

The picture that we drew last week is a picture of a body. Tonight we broke bread together and looked at another picture of the body-- the body of Christ.

Every Part is Valuable

2009-01-04T21:22:00.000-06:00

Tonight was our first service together in 2009. As a faith family we boldly step into this year knowing that God is the same. 2009 is in many ways like a brand new sheet of paper-- the beginning of a new notebook! How exciting to have so many new opportunities to serve God!

Tonight we opened God's word to find out what we would write on this clean slate we are given. We drew a body! It is a very simple body but it is drawn as a symbol to remember the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:12&13: "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."

Every part is important. Every part is needed. Every part is valuable. We all belong. Together we are stronger. These were the main ideas that we discussed.

I couldn't help but think of pennies as I prepared for this evening. Pennies are our least coins, and because of that, too often we are careless with them. We leave them in our pockets and throw them through the wash. By themselves pennies seem like they can't do very much. We can't buy anything for a penny-- in fact a penny seems useless. That thinking is backwards. I need to think of what the pennies become when they are collected and held together as a group. Once I have 100 I suddenly have a dollar. This seems a lot more significant. Yet now when I stop to consider the worth it is suddenly worth more. Now if I remove a penny it lessons the value of what is in the group. A penny is actually very important.

Sometimes we treat ourselves or one another as we treat pennies. We often act as though some people don't matter as much as others. We get down on ourselves and think that we aren't worth much. That is not true. When we read 1 Corinthians 12 we are reminded how very important we are. We all belong! When we do not work together with the other parts of the body we lesson what it can do.

Tonight we closed by taking a penny as a reminder of "the least coin". We need to remember that we are not meant to work apart from one another. We need to work as a unit-- made up of separate parts-- but only 1.

"We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord"!

HCM Christingle Service

2008-12-29T19:36:00.000-06:00

We gathered together on Sunday evening for a Christingle service. Christingle means 'Christ Light'. We entered into God's presence to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the light of the world.

Our service began with children, carrying homemade Christingles. The Christingles were made from oranges-- round like the world we live in-- to remind us of the world which God created and loves. Inserted into the orange was a candle, representing Jesus, the light of the world who calls us, too, to shine as light in the darkness. There was a red ribbon wrapped around the orange as a reminder of the blood of Jesus which he shed for the sins of the world. Just as the ribbon is wrapped around the orange, so Jesus' love reaches all around the world. Also attached to the oranges were four toothpicks holding fruit and candy. These represented the four seasons of the year during which God provides for all of our needs.

The children, carrying Christingles, offered simple prayers and lit their candles from the Christ candle. After the prayers were finished the children went and helped light the candles of those gathered in worship.

The children then placed their Christingles into the manger and we listened once again to the familiar story of Christmas. As we listened we couldn't help but be in awe of the manger as it glowed with light. A great reminder of how the world was so dark that God could hardly be seen. Then, God sent Jesus, who made a way for us to see God.

It was so nice to hear the Christmas story after Christmas. So often we celebrate Christmas and then move on. As Christians, the Christmas story is a story that needs to be celebrated often. Our challenge is to share the light of the manger by letting our light shine. What a gift we have been given! As we move forward into this week, we do so with the prayer that God will use us to bring light to others.

God our Father, you give light to this world so that it shines with your glory; lead us to see the beauty of your heavenly glory.

Lord Jesus Christ, light of the world, make our lives pure so that we may shine with your light in this world for you.

Holy Spirit, moving across the face of the earth, breathing new life and shedding new light; renew us as we shine with the light of Christ in the world.

AMEN!

Prince of Peace

2008-12-21T20:45:00.000-06:00

Tonight was the 4th Sunday of advent. That means that it is the last Sunday we will be together before we celebrate Jesus' birth. Today is the last Sunday before Christmas. As we lit the candles on our Advent wreath our worship space seemed brighter. There was more light in the room as all of the candles flickered. It was a reminder of how close we are to celebrating the birth of our source of light. Jesus is the light of the world.

We have been using Isaiah 9:6 as an advent theme. "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given. The government will be on his shoulders. And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Child--Son--Counselor--God--Father--Prince! I don't know about you, but I can't help but be amazed by how complex-- how hard to understand Jesus is. How can a baby, a child, be called a father? This verse reminds us of how this baby was born and he was EVERYTHING for EVERYBODY. This verse holds the mystery of Christmas-- how a God who has no limits, who has no beginning and no end-- became human in Jesus, God the Son. He took on human form. He became one of us. He came to earth and became the weakes. He was a baby. The mighty God who created the world needed to be cared for as a baby. Wow!

Tonight we were looking at Jesus, our Prince of Peace. Our text came from John 16:33 [Jesus said] "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Prince of Peace. Jesus came into this world as a baby so that we may have peace. What does it mean that Jesus is our Prince of Peace?

We took a look at a bell. This time of year we see many bells. We sing songs about bells-- we hear bells played in storys. Bells are a happy, joyful sound. In fact this evening we began our worship service with bells.

Bells are rung to announce something-- to get people's attention. Bells helped us to undersstand how Jesus is our Prince of Peace. We looked at bells in the bible. In the old testament God made a law that included bells. He told this law to Moses. He said that the High Priest-- who was the priest who would make the sacrifieces-- that the high priest had to wear a long robe that had bells all along the hem. The people would have known, by the noise of the bells that the high priest was offering sarifices for their sins. It was important for people to hear the bells ring. Hearing the bells helped them to feel peace-- they knew that their sins were being forgiven.

The important message at Christmas is that it is only in Christ that we can have true peace. When we have our sins covered by hiis blood, we are able to have peace with God. Having peace with God through Christ and living a life faithful to Christ will allow us to be at peace with ourselves and others.

The sound of the bell is a reminder to us that Jesus is our High Priest. He offered himself as a sacrifice and help bring us peace. Our sins are forgiven and we can come before God without being scared. Without Jesus in our lives we are enemies with God. Without Jesus we can't have peace. When we beilieve in Jesus, the baby in the manger who grew up and was crucified, then we can have peace. Jesus brings us peace with God.

The bells are also a reminder for how we as Christians need to respond to Christmas. We have a job to do. We need to remember that a bell is made to ring. We need to have Christ in us-- we need to ring-- so that others will learn how to have peace.

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas, let's do it joyfully. Let's ring loud so that the message of salvation is heard. We need to let others know that we have a deep and wonderful peace throug a baby who was born to overcome the world!

From everyone at HCM: We pray that you will encounter the Christ of Christmas, our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Friendship Ministry Begins!

2008-09-18T15:48:00.000-05:00

240 Powers Street was buzzing tonight! We had a wonderful turnout for our first evening of Friendship. Singing, laughing, sharing and planning were our goals tonight. We accomplished them and even had time for some snacks.

Our theme for this year is going to be "Who is Jesus?". We will be looking at the 'I AM' sayings of Jesus and learning more about our Saviour. Taken together the "I AM" sayings tell us that everything anyone could have ever wanted, every good thing that God has ever promised, is coming to its fullness in Jesus. Jesus, because He became human, understands our physical needs and it is through His death and resurrection that we are able to stand before our heavenly Father as His sons and daughters--- FORGIVEN! What a wonderful theme to be able to study together.

We also had a fun time planning some activities and meals. Coming up in the near future: camp fire night, backwards dinner, bowling, Ukranian dinner, and a Christmas Party. We're going to be busy but we'll be having fun. I hope and pray that relationships will form and that God will be honoured.

Worship Time

2008-09-07T23:05:00.000-05:00

Today, we worshiped together at Hope Centre. It was my first night leading the service. I know that for many this transition time is difficult. It is for me too. Our family is in the midst of major changes. We have changed cities, school and church. It seemed very relevant to have as a theme for tonight's service: FEAR.

The verse I chose to reflect on tonight has been an inspirational verse to me for years. Philippians 4:13 says "I can do EVERYTHING through HIM who gives me strength!" To understand what this verse can teach us we looked at who we are. We are nothing on our own. We are weak and flawed. Yet when we align ourselves with HIM, our Father. we are empowered and strengthened. God fills us with His Spirit and enables us to do things that may even seem daunting and frightening. We need to hold on to Him and stay close so that we may be continually strengthened. When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, when Christ "dwells in us richly" we can balance our fears with reassurance and our fear will not destroy us.

As we move into these transitions we need to uphold eachother and pray for one another. Tonight began a new chapter in HCM and it is my prayer that God's Kingdom may be expanded as we seek to honour Him and reach others in His name.