The MessengerSummer 2014

Art and the Spiritual Life

Content:

AGM Summary p. 2Art as Spiritual RenewalBy Julia Sandstrom p.3From Jeff’s Desk p.4Haiti Update p.5Poetry p.6-7Pastor as Artist, Artist as Pastor p.7-8By Kirsten and Steve WaldschmidtPaintings p. 10-15Church Planting Update p. 16-17Photography p. 18-20Variety in Worship p. 21By Bill HammTrellis Foundation Update p. 22

Superintendent’s Report

Encouraged delegates to listen for our values of biblical,

devotional, connectional, and missional during the

meeting. These are the values that allow us to be

Rooted and Built Up – the theme for this AGM.

New Staff: Sally Carlson Larson is the new financial officer for

the ECCC and Monica Doerksen is the new bookkeeper.Gerald Froese is resigning from his position as Director ofChurch Vitality in June. We thank him for his service.

Start & Strengthen Churches

Vitality pathways are available for established churches.

This work will continue after Gerald Froese moves on

from the director position.

Tim and Di Keener are former missionaries to France. They

will be planting an ECCC church in Montreal starting

this summer. $3,450 was given in offering to help the

Keeners move.Unedited Spirituality is a church in Calgary that is affiliatingitself with the ECCC.

Make & Deepen Disciples

CHIC is an opportunity for high school student AND for

adults who want to serve. Corinne Stoter is the ECCC

CHIC Liaison.

JAM was cancelled for 2014, but we will go back to the

drawing board to see what discipleship experiences

can be provided for Junior High students.

Adventures in Leadership was a great success in 2013 and

is scheduled to happen again in 2014.Trellis Foundation is now established and is taking grant appli-cations for a May 31st deadline.

Love Mercy, Do Justice & Serving Globally

We continue to work in Haiti. We have added new

partners like Food for the Poor and continue a

feeding program through a local Baptist church.

Support continues for Congo through World Vision, Kernels

of Hope, and a new partnership with World Hope.

Two groups went to Ecuador in the last 12 months: one

from Nelson Covenant and one with Andy and Jen-

ell Pluim.Our partnerships in Israel and Palestine grew with two trips in2013.

Resourcing the Mission

The 2013 financial statements were approved.

The 2014 budget was approved.

Keith Broad and Amanda Watchorn were added to the

Leadership Board. Rich Drinovz and Linea Lanoie

were approved for a second term on the Leadership

Board.Sally Carlson and Colin McClure complete their time on theLeadership Board. Our thanks to them.

Develop Leaders

North Park University is offering an increased discount to

Canadian students from the ECCC.The AGM approved the Ordination to Word and Sacrament ofEric Hedberg and Samuel Williams. First time Ministry Licenseswere granted to Preston Pouteaux (Chestermere) and MarcVandersluys (Malmo). A license for theological students wasgranted to Deana Verge (Edmonton).

110th AGM Summary | 2014 | Erickson, BC & Winnipeg, MB

Art as Spiritual RenewalBy: Julia Sandstrom

I was recently given a wonderful gift of three weeks ministry leave. My regular ministry responsibilities were put aside for a few weeksin order for me to enter a dedicated time of restoration and renewal. When I was considering what to do with the time away from theECCC, I immediately thought about painting. Somehow, in the process of paint meeting canvas, I find myself experiencing the crea-tive presence, peace, and love of God.

It really shouldn’t come as a surprise. We are made in the image of God after all and God is creative to the core. Not only did hecreate all that we experience in creation – sun, moon, stars, grass, flowers, ocean, dirt, animals, other people – he also continues tocreate. I’m extra mindful of this as my body works overtime nurturing a little life. In February, my husband and I will get to meet thiscreation that is a gift of God’s ongoing creative work in the world.

God is the source of all creativity that is good, beautiful, and true. We honour him in our creating. I used to think that I didn’t comefrom a very creative family. However, when I started to experiment with painting, I realized that just wasn’t true. My mom has a his-tory of painting, she just hadn’t done it much while we were growing up. (I’m happy to say that retirement has allowed her the timeto create some amazing work.) My dad makes wonderful wooden toys including baby rattles, toy cars, dump trucks, and more. Mysister is a pastry chef by training and there is no denying her creations are delightful. Once I realized how much creativity there wasfloating around me I discovered I was the one not exerting my creative energy. It was time to start.

As I began to paint I found that the harder I tried the worse the outcome. God has given some the gift of precision in artwork. Hehas given me the gift of abstraction. If you know me, this is pretty much the opposite of my personality. I am detail oriented, a per-fectionist, and a controls person. I think this is why I find so much joy in abstract art though. It allows me to experience God and my-self in ways that are freeing and downright playful.

I forgot this about myself when I started my first ministry leave painting project. We had just finished AGM and the theme of Rootedand Built Up was still rattling around in my mind. The verse from Jeremiah 17:7-8 was reverberating within: “Blessed are those whotrust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall notfear when heat comes, and it’s leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit.”

With these verses as inspiration I set out to paint a scene of a tree planted by a river. After working away for several hours, I sent aphoto to my mom and asked for her feedback. She gave me a few tips to make the perspective better, but then she said “It’s notreally you.” And she was right, I was trying to paint like I thought I should paint: controlled, precise, and recognizable.

The next day I set the painting aside and started with a new canvas. This time I told myself to just paint – paint “like me”. I had spentso much time away from my easel that I forgot for a time what painting “like me” looked like. I had let the false idea of who I was“supposed to be” take over whom God has made me to be. We do this to ourselves all too often. It is easy in ministry to think Ishould preach like her or have great relationship skills like him. It is easy in life to think I should parent like him or have her skill set.Living into someone else’s strengths will only leaveus with disappointing results and the feeling that“It’s not really you.”

The second painting turned out far better than thefirst and I’m happy with the end result. It’s a re-minder to me not only of Jeremiah 17, but also areminder to live into the person God has made meto be.

In this edition of The Messenger we take a look atthe role of art in the spiritual life. My story is one inwhich the creating of art was an act of worship.The process itself taught me something of greatvalue. Some of us are creators of art while othersmay consider themselves consumer. I encourage allof us to remember that we are co-creators withGod in any number of things we do each day. Sev-eral people contributed poems, photographs, andpaintings to share. Enjoy the richness of God’s giftsto the ECCC in these pages.

So what exactly is the point of the ECCC Annual Conference and AGM? Do we really need it to transact important business as acharity in Canada? While Canada Revenue gives us a simple “yes, absolutely” the answer is much richer to our family of churches.Yes with some value added; the historic value of our connectional DNA!

We find ourselves in a time when many denominational families are looking at ways to reduce the number of meetings. One Cana-dian denomination has a phone call AGM every other year to satisfy CRA. Our own ECC family in Chicago has just tabled a consti-tutional change that would allow (not mandate) for a meeting to be every other year; this in response to less than 30% of ECC con-gregations sending delegates. In the midst of this we found ourselves with 100% of member churches sending delegates and due tothe split location had a record number of delegates in total. The key is not the wonderful programming, controversial legislative mat-ters or spellbinding staff reports (available online in case you missed them). The key is the total commitment on the part of churches,pastors, Leadership Board and staff to lean into our connections as a denominational family.

As leaders we want to move the Annual Conference to even more emphasis on connections. This year we began our first gatheringof local church leaders. The time was facilitated by local church leadership without the presence of ECCC staff or pastors. Our hopeis to enrich these kinds of self-resourcing times at future Annual Conferences along with deeper attention to providing resource peo-ple who address needs that are expressed at the local ministry level.

One can’t reflect on the nature of our meetings without addressing the issue of cost. In our planning sessions we always try to thinkthrough cost issues. One of the reasons we have resisted going to a hotel/conference centre is because of the automatic extra costsof simple things like coffee breaks where everything must be purchased. When our local churches host, their hospitality helps keepthe cost of meetings at a more manageable level. Further, each year the local host churches work hard at providing meal optionsthat are both enjoyable and affordable. The movement to a split meeting every-other-year is primarily about travel costs and accessi-bility. In a survey of delegates over 25% said that they would not have attended the meeting if it were in the other location! Finally, itis important to note that the leadership has made the conscious decision to not see the Annual Conference as an income generator.Many non-profits use these gatherings to add to the bottom line; we feel this may actually decrease connections, which is the highervalue for this event.

If you are looking to connect I want to invite you to consider the 111th Annual Conference and AGM to be held in Strathmore, Al-berta next May 28-31; it’s gonna be good!

From Jeff’s DeskSuperintendent

Recent Transitions:

Sally Carlson to Hope Community CovenantChurch, Associate Pastor and to ECCC, Fi-nancial Officer.

Jeremy Duncan to Kensington Commons

Mark Hill from Minnedosa ECC.

Tim Keener to Montreal Project

Mark your calendars:

2014

October 6-8 ~ Pastor/Spouse Retreat, Can-more, AB

October 17-19 ~ ALIVE, Canmore, AB

2015

January 26-30 ~ MidWinter, Denver, CO

February 24—March 6 ~ Ecuador MissionTrip

May 28-31 ~ 111th AGM, Strathmore, AB

Update on Haiti

The ECCC has had a long relationship with Haut Limbe, acommunity in the north of Haiti located about 40 minutesfrom Cap Haitien. At one time we had over seven teamsfrom Canada travel to work primarily on the constructionof a medical clinic and small inpatient hospital facility.While we have tried hard to consider cultural issues andbest practices for global ministry we watched somewhathelplessly as the internal relationships at the EbenezerClinic deteriorated. Ultimately, Dr. Manno, our primarycontact over the years, was asked to leave the clinic by theboard.

In seeking to find a way forward we could take one ofthree paths. First, we could do what many outside groupshave done and simply move on to another new partner-ship. The length of relationship makes this option unten-able. The second would be to “fix” the situation using best practices that we would use if we had an issue within our own de-nomination. Again, this is neither workable nor proper. It would take dignity away from these partners. [A helpful YouTubevideo done by LifeChurch is called Helping Without Hurting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a339VZRE3CM ]

Finally, and the option we are taking, is to stay in relationship and to look for opportunities to support our local partners asthey solve issues that are presently blocking our ability to fully engage with them. To this end we are supporting three specificministries: diabetic treatment done by Dr. Manno, the Sarepta Food Program (food for elderly) administered by the women’sgroup at Haut Limbe Baptist Church, and we are involved with a feeding program for young children in the Petit Anse area. Ineach of these we have good partnerships and can feel confident regarding the accountability at both ends.

We are hoping to reengage through the sending of groups later this year or early next year. We will work through Merge Min-istries and Tammi Biggs who is an ECC Missionary living in the Dominican Republic. If your church would like to begin a con-versation about such an experience please contact Jeff Anderson (jeff@covchurch.ca).

Unplugged ?Pattric SieppertStrathmore, AB

I close the lid, and walk away;

Leaving my computer, for another day.

It beeps and chimes, and calls me back;

So much to do, I can barely keep track!

My anxiety is high, there is so much to do;

Just trying to get by, trying to make it through.

I finally walk away, and make it through the door;

Trying to remember, what I'm put here for.

So I go to my vehicle, still in haste;

To go some where, I can slow my pace.

I feel a tiny nudge, on my heart;

That perhaps today, I should go to the park.

I sit on a bench, to rest a while;

And when seeing a lonely person, to share a smile.

We greet and chat, and talk and share;

And soon I see, the reason I'm there.

But all too soon, it's time to go;

To say our goodbyes, and hit the road.

Who knows what seeds, were sown today;

I just have to listen, and to obey.

As I head to my vehicle, I can't help but grin;

For the opportunity, to be used of Him.

"You're Unplugged!", the world would say;

Because I'm off, of electronics today.

But I'm "Plugged In", to the one-in-three;

The true source, of power for me.

Is your life crazy, busy - head in a spin?

Stop, take a second, check - where are you plugged in?

Wind of GodJim Fenton

Saskatoon, SK

Wind of Godblow!

Caress my facebringing

refreshmentrenewal

life.

Blow gentlywhen I need healing.

Blow strongly,make me hang on,

when you need to move meor get my attention.

Blow like a whisperbringing a sense

ofpeace andtranquility.

Blowas I feel the

warmthand

intensityof

the Son’slove.

Wind of God blow!Never be still in my life.

Wind of GodBlow!

Poetry

Praise and WorshipPattric SieppertStrathmore, AB

The music starts, the praise begins,I feel it starting at my chin.On and on the music goes,

I feel it now all the way to my toes,I love the way the music flows!

It cleans away the dirt and dross,And heals me of the hurt and loss.

It fills my heart up to the brim,And the praise renews my walk with Him,And the praise renews my walk with Him!

The Rusty GateDeborah WaltersSarnia, ON

I sit crumpled at the rusty gateTired and wornShould I try again?

I sit crumpled at this rusty gate,I have given much effort to force my entryIt is necessary.My heart tells me so.For where I stand is dim and dullWhere I stand is dry and tired.And so am I .

I sit crumpled at the rusty gateand peer with longingAt light and hope.At new, and refreshedI am barredAnd I long for entry.

I have tried my weight against itIt will not yieldI have forced and pushedStrained and sweat.Still, It will not permit.

I have given my best thought,I have not surrendered, but foughtStill my might and wit are no match.

A heap now, I sit frustrated, perplexedWith out hope,But yet not with out longing.There must be a wayThere must be a most powerful way

But thenI recall..There is a key, I have yet not tried.I remember ,....how could I have forgotten?I rise again and lift my voice.Thankful word spill from my heart and off my lips.Thankful , powerful words.The rusty gate must relentThankful words,more mighty than I and all my force and thought andwill.

Wide open swings the formidable foe.It beckons me enter and welcomes me home.

NoticeDeborah WaltersSarnia, ON

I want to see YouEven if it is out of the corner of my eye.I want to notice you.I know if I see you,If I notice you.I will be different- ChangedI want to notice You.In the wind on my face.In the heavy lady pushing her grocery cart, searching forwhat she needs.I know you are there,Present.I want so much to see You,To hear you,In the voices of my friends,in the barking of my dog,in the brewing of my coffeeIn the washing , soothing rain of even my shower.You restore and speak.If only I would stop and hearPay attentionIn the simpleIn the everydaynessYou are here,If I would only be hear.Let my ears and heart be present and soft toward You.Help me notice,Help me pay attention.You speak freely and generouslyBut I must be intentional in the listening.So help me I prayIt is You I long for.You the giver of all wisdom and comfort.You are the One who noticed me first.You are the One who notices me every day,Every hourEvery minuteEvery breathFrom the beginning breath to the last.How I long to notice You.

Kirsten grew up playing piano and singing in worship services since she was 13 or so. She enjoyed writing songs to encouragepeople’s connection with God. Steve was playing guitar for worship since his teens and studied theatre partly so that he couldlead worship through drama like Curt Cloninger, who had impacted him at CHIC’91. Covenant Bible College (and PaulLessard’s mentoring) increased our hunger for the Church to embrace the arts and artists more fully.

During the early years of Hope Community in Strathmore, we were newly married and in university, studying music compositionand theatre, respectively. We experimented with engaging all our senses in worship under Pastor Rob Peterson’s coaching. Wetried baking bread during a service, live painting, and a drama centred on the scent of silage. Feeling called by God to clarifyour art and our theology, we went to gradute school at Regent College. We found significant mentors in professors like DonnaDinsmore with her approach to worship leading as creative tension, Loren Wilkinson and his earthy imagination, MaxineHancock and the power of wordcraft, Jeremy Begbie’s theology (understanding who God is) through the arts, and DarrellJohnson’s conviction that we incarnate the presence of Jesus.

Our time at Regent was crucial for our sense of vocation. God called Kirsten to be a pastor. Her arts thesis project was an amaz-ing experience of growth through her avant-garde music composition and yet what surfaced even stronger was a call to walkalongside people as a pastor. At the same time, Steve was wrestling with internal unspoken expectations that being called to min-istry should mean a call to pastor. He says (with a smile) that he had to go to seminary for four years to hear God tenderly say,“Being a pastor has always been your idea. I’ve called you to to be an artist.” He took what felt like a huge risk to embrace hiscalling as artist, seeking to be a pastoral presence along the way.

As artist and as pastor, both are callings to be part of God’s expanding Kingdom – to join Jesus in announcing and incarnatingthe new world order of God’s gracious reign in every realm of life. Sometimes that means incorporating art to enrich our Sundaymorning worship. Other times it means advocacy for those who don’t have voice. Other times it is about making somethingbeautiful and powerful just because – and that glorifies God. As we write this article, it sounds like we do very different things. Butthat isn’t true. Kirsten pastors with the bent of an artist and Steve approaches being an artist in a pastoral way.

Pastor as Artist, Artist as PastorBy: Kirsten and Steve Waldschmidt

Practically speaking, as a pastor, it is handy to be ‘artsy’ as well as having an ‘artist in residence’. Steve’s theatre designexperience brings a unique perspective to being thoughtful about the worship space. What do we see in the space? What storydoes the visual ‘scene’ tell about who we are, about what God is saying to us? What do we want to communicate throughimage? The same is true when it comes to other art mediums – wordsmithing a sermon is crucial for clarity and for honouring thepower of language itself, Scripture reading comes alive when approached as dramatic reading, music selection and quality ofmusicianship also matter. Sometimes these things are very noticeable to the community and other times it is probably moresubtle.

We both plan worship as an act of storytelling. Kirsten plans with whoever is leading worship to shape the storytelling for thatSunday. Sometimes that is with Steve. (With three little kids in the background - keeping things interesting!) Each week we aretelling one part of the Big Story – God’s overarching story of creation and redemption, from Genesis to the consummation inRevelation. How might we tell this part of the Story well with what we have at hand in our community? Is there space for creativesurprises? Are we discovering our own stories within God’s Big Story? How are we inviting our community to respond to God thisweek?

In 1998 we started Tapestry, an annual arts concert and gallery event, hoping to make a venue for artists in our church commu-nity to share their work and to encourage those who don’t see themselves as “creative” to reconsider that assumption. Thepurpose of Tapestry is threefold: to release the creative gifts God has knit into us, to share our artistic work for the common goodand God’s glory, and to cultivate imagination and craftsmanship for the sake of Jesus’ kingdom. Artists are asked to read a shortletter about creativity and God’s kingdom. Each participant then writes a short statement about the significance of the piecebeing submitted (or their art medium) in their life with God. These submissions are posted alongside the visual works in thegallery and in the performance programme.

We have hosted about ten Tapestry events since then and we know the tradition has spread to a few other churches. While edit-ing our original letter for artists this year, we noticed that in 1998 we were commenting that it seemed like the North AmericanEvangelical Church did not have a whole lot of room forthe experience of art. Sixteen years later – as artist andpastor – we would have to say the church absolutely doeshave room for art! There is a hunger for artistic expressionand the richness that it brings to our experience of life andour relationship with God. There is a delight in art, adeepening that is happening, and a celebration of creativ-ity. Other than making us feel kind of old - it is so excit-ing to notice this shift and movement over the years!

We wonder if the related movement that God might beinviting us to is a renewed sense of welcome for artiststhemselves in the Canadian Covenant. People who mightbe new to church ‘lingo’ and church ‘expectations’ - andwho see things very differently. This is a diversity we willboth be challenged by and flourish in. Art continues tonurture and deepen, to question and delight us. It informsour ministry and enriches our lives. Thank God that, inmaking us in his image, we – His children around theworld – could catch some of His creative genes!

Painting: New Mercies, Steve Waldschmidt, acrylic oncanvasPhoto: Exterior Cross at Hope Community CovenantChurch, Strathmore, AB, designed by Steve Wald-schmidt, powder coated steel

Kirsten and Steve Waldschmidt attend College ParkCovenant Church in Saskatoon, SK. Kirsten is the pastorand Steve serves with his artistic gifts.

While we Hounur the Past, We Cannot Live ThereJudy Nelson, Oil on Canvas, 24”x45”

Norquay, SK

Paintings

Out of the Believer's Heart,Julie Drew, Oil and Ink on Handmade Paper and Canvas. 30”x 15”, 36”x 18”, 30”x 15”

The painting is based on Ezekiel 47 and John 7:37-39.The water flows from the temple and where itgoes it brings life. In John, the water, living water (Holy Spirit), flows out of the believer's hearts. Asthe Spirit works through us, in us, surrounding us with His love, we are part of the bringing of life tothe world around us. Although it may be difficult to tell from this photo, the dry desert part of this

painting is handmade “onionskin” paper and the lower land area is a yellow “Cottonwood seed” pa-per, both of which I made and used for added texture.The rough edges end at the bank of the river.

RiskedNatalie Salimen RudeEncaustic, mixed media, 23 kt gold leaf, 24”x24”

Risked embodies the following statement: “That by embracing a holy in-security, betting it all on God, fear is neutralized and in turn we becomeour true selves.”

Larry / John / AnnabelPreston Pouteaux, Chestermere, AB

Watercolour on paper, 10”x14”

I painted portraits of people in my congregation tohelp them see themselves as people made in the im-age of God, and thus participants in the mission ofGod in the world. It was a transformative experience

for myself as a painter and pastor as I helped myfriends seem themselves in new ways.

Crimson PassionHeather Lockhart. Mixed Media, 16”x20”

Sarnia, ON

PraiseAlecia Stevens

Prince Albert, SK

A few years ago my imagination was gripped by a piece of art. Actually, it was the combination of the piece and its title- “FaithCould Move You”. Jesus was fond of word-pictures, and He often referred to “little things” that made big impact.

Light a candle in a dark room and all eyes are drawn to its glow. Sprinkle a few grains of salt over the surface of your meal, andexperience the flavor coming alive! Gently stir a tablespoon of yeast into warm milk and its powerful fermenting action begins. Planta mustard seed in your garden and watch it spread like wildfire. Have a little faith and move a mountain!

As we consider the size of the continued task in front of us ofhelping to start twenty churches, it could be overwhelming; how-ever, when we embrace the principle of “small things” in Christwe have great hope. Across the nation, new congregations arebeing birthed. Small pinpricks of light are appearing in the dark-ness. As planters engage their communities and neighbourhoodsand begin to build relationship, the savory influence of their“salty” lives is being felt.

Would you pray with us and for us as we continue to fan the flames on this fledging work of God. We continue to be reminded that“Faith Could Move You”: both in the sense that faith in who God is and what he does will move us forward in our shared work, butalso that we are moved and changed in the process.

Covenant Church Planting Canada UpdatesWe are really excited by the growing number of projects that we are involved in as a community of churches. As you read this, newprojects in Calgary and Montreal are beginning! Here are some snapshots of our shared church planting efforts:

Lake Ridge Community Church continues to faithfully serve and care for the community of Chestermere, Alberta in its fourth year.Significant challenges in securing a Sunday morning gathering place are being matched by significant opportunities for outreachand being a blessing to their neighbours. In many ways, Lake Ridge is at its best as they respond to the needs around them withcompassion, care, and mercy. Pastors Evan Dewald and Preston Pouteaux serve and lead a committed and growing community ofservant leaders. They are seeing people beginning to follow Jesus and are being a blessing to those around them. To see more ofwhat’s going on at Lake Ridge, check out their website (lakeridgecommunity.com) or find them on Facebook.

Avenue Community (www.avenuecommunitychurch.com) in Toronto, Ontario continues to grow and develop into a thriving multi-ethnic community. Through intentional outreach, small groups, prayer nights, and weekend worship, Pastor John Cho and his teamare encouraging their community to grow “with God and with people”. Pray for and with them as they transition into their new loca-tion on August 10th and into the fall.

Truly I tell you, if you have faith as smallas a mustard seed, you can say to thismountain, ‘Move from here to there,’and it will move. Nothing will be impos-sible for you. ” Matthew 17:20 (NIV)“

Faith Could Move You

Encaustic by Natalie Salimen RudeChurch Planting UpdateBy: Glenn Peterson

Holy Community Covenant Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba continues to look for intentional ways to be the Body of Christ in andfor their neighborhood. They gather together on Sunday evenings and continue to see new people connecting to their commu-nity. Pray with Pastors Gavin Jensen and Julia Sandstrom and Holy Community as they look for a place to meet on Sunday

mornings, develop new relationships, and faithfully serve Jesus in the West End of Winni-peg. See what’s happening at HCCC (holycommunitycovenantchurch.com)!

Kensington Commons (http://www.commonschurch.org) is what happens when a growingyoung church with a vision to plant meets an established community with a vision for morefully serving their neighborhood. Over the last 6 months, an emerging church plant inCalgary began discerning with

Kensington Road Church about ways they might partner and mutuallyhelp one another live out God’s call on their lives. Their new churchlaunches September 7! We celebrate the faithfulness of Covenant workin Calgary and look forward to continued faithfulness, mission, and life!

Our fifth and newest project is currently being launched in Montreal!Parlez vous francais?! The Keeners, recent missionaries in France, are inthe process of relocating to Quebec. This initial season of ministry is de-signed to pave the way for future Covenant Church ministry in Québec.The goals of this project are to:

Discern how God is at work in MontrealNetwork with local churches and believersGain ministerial experience in the Québec contextBe a pastoral presence to the communityInventory possibilities for future partnerships and ministries

Keep your eyes open for updates and ways to follow this nouveau pro-ject!

WE NEED OUR HELP!!!That headline might sound strange, but it’s meant to highlight the fact that our shared work of starting churches is in fact, OURwork. How is God inviting you to help support the work. Here are some ongoing possibilities:

Pray. Luke 10, “ask the Lord of the Harvest to send more workers...” Pray for Canada. Your province. Your community. Turnyour hearts, minds, and imaginations to this great work of God.

Visit. If you live within a couple hours of one of our plants, make time to visit them.Encourage your local church to support our shared work of church planting: We are thankful for the vision and commitment of

established churches over the years that have released staff and people to start new communities. We’re also thankful for theongoing stories of support - churches that are putting church planting in their budgets, churches that have supported plantingthrough initiatives like Man on a Bike, and communities that are looking for ways to encourage the spread of the Gospel.

Give. Personal financial support is an extremely significant way you can be involved in church planting in Canada. We needyour help to resource this mission. We’re asking for your generosity to continue to sustain this shared work of startingchurches.

Thanks for reading this update. Have you been moved to help in some way? Big or small, God is inviting us all to expand HisKingdom in Canada.

For ongoing updates on Canada Covenant Church Planting Projects, please check out our Facebook page(www.facebook.com/CanadaCovenantChurchPlanting). For further information, questions, or ways to support our shared work,please call Glenn Peterson (403.934.7638).

$2,000 per monthThe black and white reality of starting our work in Mont-real is that Tim and Di Keener need to raise $2,000 per

month for housing.

Could you or your church help?

We are looking for individuals and churches who willspecifically support this project with prayer and financial

resources.

Questions contact: Glenn Peterson(glenn@covchurch.ca) or Tim Keener

(tim.keener@me.com)

Man on a Bike is headed to Alberta!Dave McIntosh will once again take to the road in an effort to raise awareness, encourage new connections, andsupport church planting. Starting at the British Columbia border on August 31, he’ll visit Covenant churches in south-ern Alberta over labor day weekend before turning north and arriving in Saskatchewan on September 6. Pray forDave and Trudy as they continue their adventure of purpose. Donations from this year’s ride will be supporting Ave-nue Community and our new project in Montreal.

September Long at Buck Lake, Carolyn Kuerbis, Breton, AB

Photography

Fair are the Meadows, Jim Fenton, Saskatoon, AB

Rosebud, Alberta, population 100, has a thriving arts school where most of its teachers are permanent residents. As a result, the

local congregation (the only one in our hamlet) is made up of farmers, teachers, artists, students, tradesmen, and more. It's a

beautiful mosaic (not melting pot) of people who are free and accepting of each other and their worship style preference. Here

is why I think we have come to this level of acceptance: We have an odd way of leading worship. We have a group of lay peo-

ple who take turns leading, and are responsible for the whole service. We consult with the pastor to see if there are special

guests or presentations, and then design the service from there. A sampling of our leaders:

There's Leah - who grew up the daughter of an Anglican minister, and shares from her experience with liturgy. She loves it

and we all buy in. She will organize the Advent Sunday services and because she has some Jewish heritage, she has lead

several Seder services.

There's Ray - a local farmer who played sax with his dad in a dance band back in the day. He loves the worship songs of the

70s. He really does love them with all his heart. We buy in 100%.

There's Paul & Heather - a married couple who came to study music and acting at RSA. They share their own music as well

as the current trend of new worship music. They love it and share it with skill.

There's Bill (me) - who has a degree in choral conducting and loves traditional hymns, but also plays guitar in a bluegrass/

folk group and can lead contemporary songs and sometimes plays trumpet along with his sons on trombone and tuba.

There's Doug & Carolyn - now well into their 80s, they no longer lead, but for decades they led traditional hymns with a

fervor and heart that professional singers could learn from.

There's Randall - a visual artist who wrote a play about the disciple Thomas and has toured it extensively. He performed it in

our service as the sermon.

There's Angie - a graduate actor from RSA who for her final project for graduation memorized the book of James and per-

formed it as the sermon on a Sunday morning.

There’s Jeany - who loves the Bible and is skilled at putting it on its feet.

Our leaders have often combined a mix of styles and songs in one service. There might be a traditional hymn sung with piano

followed by a contemporary worship set. Some of us who have the skill to do so may lead entire services with no instruments at

all - completely a cappella. I was introduced to Taize services about 14 years ago, and still lead them monthly at RSA. These are

contemplative services with an emphasis on prayer and silence as well as music which is repetitive and meditative. I have also

led them at Rosebud Church, so we have learned to be comfortable with silence.

Our congregation has no idea who is leading from one week to the next, or what kind of service they will get, so they've learned

to accept it all. We have given up nothing. We have retained traditional music and also embraced innovative ideas. We've re-

tained many types of worship styles and the congregation receives it all. This is why:

1 - The pastors of the past 20 plus years have welcomed it. They are leaders who say yes.

2 - The seniors in the congregation have encouraged the variety including what is new.

3 - Lay members have given their all to prepare interesting services.

4 - The congregation is made up of real people who have nowhere else to go, so we learn to accept.

From time to time I’ve tried ideas that didn’t really work and I feel like it must have been a dud worship service. However, I then

get people coming up to me afterwards who were blessed by the service. Go figure. And sometimes it just doesn’t work out how

you thought and you say, «Well, I tried something and it fell flat this week.» We learn from our experiences. I suspect that a

service which doesn’t quite hit the mark bothers us much more that it bothers God. There’s always next week. Try again.

I applaud Rosebud Covenant Church as a beacon of inclusion and acceptance. I exhort congregations to involve many people

in worship leading and design. Highlight lay peoples’ strengths and interests, and let them lead. You can have it all.

Bill Hamm is the Music Director at Rosebud School of the Arts (RSA) in Rosebud, Alberta, just over an hour NE of Calgary,

where he attends the Rosebud Covenant Church.

Variety in WorshipBy: Bill Hamm

Photograph: Orthodox Church, Natasha Westerhoud, Norquay, SK

Trellis Board: Kirsten Waldschmidt, Shauna Jean-Jacques, Audra Reinhardt, David Johnson, and Larry Peterson

In May the Trellis Foundation board received nine grant applications

totaling $55,094. This year the foundation had approximately $45,000

to hand out in grants. In the end seven grants were approved for a total

of $32,950. Trellis is excited to be a catalyst for biblical, intentional,

and innovative discipleship in the following churches and ministries.

Lighthouse Community Church, Sarnia, ON—Enhancement of Vacation

Bible School Program

$1,000 was granted to Lighthouse Community Church to enhance its

existing VBS.

Faith Covenant Church, Winnipeg, MB—Internship Program

$8,000 was granted to Faith Covenant Church to support its internship program. Faith has a history of training up pastors and this

grant allows them to do that with greater impact and over a longer timeframe.

Minnedosa Evangelical Covenant Church, Minnedosa, MB—Women in Ministry Soul Escape Event

$500 was granted to the Women in Ministry group of Minnedosa ECC. The funds will be used to help cover the cost of a one day

Soul Escape Event.

Kensington Commons Church, Calgary, AB & Hope Community Covenant Church, Strathmore, AB—Discipleship Journal

$4,250 was granted to a joint application between Kensington Commons Church and Hope Community Covenant Church for a

discipleship journal. The discipleship journal will be used at both churches for a year of teaching.

Sanctuary Covenant Church, Edmonton, AB—Community Outreach

$5,000 was granted to Sanctuary Covenant Church to assist their summer outreach programs. These programs include a variety of

community outreach events and classes.

Faith Covenant Church, Breton, AB—Youth Ministry Intern

$7,000 was granted to Faith Covenant Church to begin hire a youth ministry intern. This program seeks to develop leaders in min-

istry and make intentional investment in the youth program of the church.

Additional Grants One additional grant was awarded with conditions. The organization is working hard to meet the conditions out-lined for them by Trellis Foundation. We will announce the recipient of this grant in the future.

Trellis Foundation is accepting grant applications for an October 31, 2014 deadline. Approximately, $12,000 in funding remainsfor 2014.

For more information see the website: trellisfoundation.ca

ALIVE Mission Statement:

To provide an opportunity for adults of the

Covenant Church and friends, to connect and

experience Christian community through worship,

fellowship, study, and encouragement related to our

journey with Christ.

THE GREAT INVITATION:

CHRIST INVITES US TO LIVE IN UNIONWITH HIM

Come and learn about the great invitation found

in John 15. Gordon Smith will teach on the unique

location of the words of Jesus in John 15. He will

also explore the remarkable call of union with

Christ and how our loving one another is an es-

sential counterpart to union with Christ. Lastly, we

will explore the fruit of that union which is joy.

Guest Speaker:Gordon T. Smith (PhD; Rev) is the president ofAmbrose University and Seminary, in Calgary, AB.,where he also serves as professor of systematicand spiritual theology. He has published a num-ber of books, including two in 2014: Called toBe Saints: An Invitation to Spiritual Maturity,and Spiritual Direction: A Guide for Directors andDirectees (both with IVPress). Gordon is marriedto Joella and they have two grown and marriedsons.

Registration until Aug. 15th

□ Couple $330 □ Individual $275

Registration until Sept. 15th

□ Couple $380 □ Individual $325

Registration includes hotel and three meals(two breakfasts, one lunch)

Program only participation (no meals)□ Couple $100 □ Individual $50/

www.covchurch.ca/alive

Staff:Jeff Anderson, Superintendent/President

Julia Sandstrom, Director of Ministry SupportGlenn Peterson, Director of Church Planting

Sally Carlson, Financial OfficerMonica Doerksen, Bookkeeper

PO BOX 23117RPO McGillivray

WINNIPEG, MB R3T 5S3

Ph: 204-269-3437Fx: 204-269-3584

office@covchurch.cawww.covchurch.ca

The Messenger is a publication of the Evangelical Covenant Church of Canada.Editor: Julia Sandstrom

Cover Image:Chosen RoyaltyHeather LockhartMixed Media on Canvas, 30”x 40“Sarnia, ON