Hi there!

“Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him… Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.” Psalm 127:4-5

It’s good to have family around particularly when your children are all married and living with their families in various communities throughout the land. Our son, Rob and his wife, Jessica, with their 3 girls (Sydney, Jade & Ava) arrived this past Thursday evening for a visit over the weekend. Jess is very much pregnant with their 4^th coming due mid October. Please pray for a safe baby delivery (C-section) in Moose Factory across the river from their home in Moosonee. They return home Tuesday after two weeks of holidays. They even survived Hurricane Earl during a wedding in Halifax. Rob is Chairman of the Deacons Board at Moosonee Baptist Church. It is exciting to hear of this church’s growth. Please pray for positive adjustment as they merge with another church in town this month and ongoing efforts to reach out to this needy Cree community. Our second son, Lee and his wife, Mel with their 2-month old baby boy, Aiden, are in the process of moving to Hespeler, ON which is so much closer than Surrey, BC. God has certainly blessed Gary and me with a quiver that is overflowing! Until today I had not realized that the above verses were in the same psalm as the first verse which we had inscribed in our wedding rings so long ago - “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain.” - and have quoted to numerous couples getting married since then.

This next Thursday the Credit Valley Association Pastors’ Luncheon start meeting here each month for another year. Please pray for these Fellowship Baptist pastors in our Peel region with all the responsibilities they face day by day in leading their various congregations. A retired pastor, Rev. Brian Gibson, has just been diagnosed with Myleodysplastic Syndrome which could move to acute Leukemia. He begins a 7-day treatment tomorrow followed by 3 weeks of rest. Please pray that his health will be fully restored.

Please continue to pray for wisdom and direction for our whole Fellowship denomination as well as the ongoing follow-up of the St-Eustache church people who want information.

Home Group will again happen this coming Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at the Burton home. We have been studying all the sermons in the Book of Acts. Come and join us in our study.

I seem to keep having problems with the publishing of our automatic mailing list for this blog. Thanks for being patient with me and for those who let me know when it is not working.

God bless,

Wendy

wendy.carter@kainos.org

[1] This blog is a summary of our 9:00 Sunday morning services held at 7777 Churchville Rd., Brampton, ON L6Y 0H3, 905-230-8116.

So What Do You Know about Einstein? by Gary Carter: You might be acquainted with Einstein’s theory of relativity which says that energy is equal to mass times the speed of light squared. Most people are not really sure what all that means but there are a lot of things in life that are relative. A friend often complains about the struggles she has over her non-cooperative co-worker; however yesterday it was learned that our doctor is contending with the vindictiveness of an associate doctor who had erased all her patients’ billing from her computer for this past week. Even though someone else’s pneumonia won’t help cure your cold, it is important to keep in mind what is relative so that you can keep your wits about you throughout life.

The children we support in our Myanmar orphanage seem very happy, well disciplined and extremely grateful but we must realize they have nothing. It is also heart-wrenching to see and hear the reports from Pakistan of the people’s suffering from the terrible floods. Our society often does not show its gratefulness for all that it has. We, as Christians, must remind ourselves to give thanks constantly in all circumstances. This is Biblical (I Thessalonians 5:18) and health-producing. “A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.” Proverbs 15:30

Barnabas, The Encourager (not a one hit wonder!) by Chris Burton: We first meet up with Barnabas (meaning a son of encouragement) in Acts 4:36. His real name was Joseph and was a Levite from Cyprus. He had some wealth for he had sold a field and brought the money to the apostles for distribution. When Barnabas accepted Christ he became a significant character in the early days of the church for often he would come along side of another person to offer encouragement and help. Eventually he was martyred.

Barnabas was an encouragement for a desperate man (Acts 9:21-28): When Saul was converted he had a hard time getting a hearing from the Jews in Jerusalem because of their fear and prejudice towards him. Barnabas went out on a limb and stood up for him. He gave Saul (Paul) a chance even though Saul may have been putting on an act.

Barnabas was an encouragement to other believers (Acts 11:22-23): Barnabas was sent to the church in Antioch (where believers were first called Christians) which was beginning to take off. He looked beyond the faults of others; he did not look for their hidden agenda.

Barnabas was an encouragement to the discouraged (Acts 15:36-40): Barnabas became Paul’s mentor who probably started out quite raw. As things developed during their first missionary journey Barnabas often allowed himself to step back and Paul moved forward. For their second journey Barnabas wanted John Mark to accompany them but Paul refused because of John’s desertion of them in Pamphylia. With no resolution to this disagreement Barnabas leaves for Cyprus with John Mark. He didn’t write him off but gave him a second chance. Paul went to Syria and Cilicia with Silas. Great work was accomplished in Cyprus but eventually Paul and John must have reconciled for in 2 Timothy 4:9-13 we learn that Paul wants John to come to him in Rome because he had been helpful to him in his ministry at some point.

Barnabas’ legacy included helping the growth of the Christians in Antioch which became quite an epicentre; he nurtured Paul so that he was enabled and empowered; and he restored John Mark.

One Another – Colossians 3:16 - by Gary Carter: “One anothering” is a two-way street. Too often the arrow on the one side of the street is wider than the arrow on the other side. This probably was the case with Barnabas; he gave much more than he got. Last week we looked at admonishing and teaching one another. Are you a “mug” or a “jug”? The purpose of a “jug” is to perfect a “mug.” A “mug” may justify himself for falling short because of problems with a neighbour, wife, poor health etc. Will you say to your Saviour when you meet Him face to face, “I wish I had given more!” Suzannah Wesley was a mother to 17 children. She was able to teach the Bible, giving time for each one of them along with her other multitudinous chores such as looking after hens and collecting their eggs daily. Who is the person you have mentored?

From the following list which would you find the most difficult?

Love one another

Be devoted to one another

Look to one another

Bear with one another

Teach one another

Admonish one another

Many find it most difficult to admonish someone else. The dictionary meanings for this word are to caution, advise, counsel against something; to reprove or scold in a mild, good-willed manner; to urge to a duty. In today’s terms it refers to “kicking one another’s butt!” In order to admonish you must be prepared by saturating yourself in Christ’s Word (Colossians 3:16 – does it square with Scripture?). You must be aware or clear about the issues (Philippians 3:15). What about your own position? Are you a growing example (I Corinthians 11:1-2)? Sometimes if you do put your life on the line your effort will fall flat and your impact counts for nothing. Don’t be discouraged. With the Holy Spirit’s help you can move on.

A Couple of Sports Daffynitions (since the Macdonald family are away camping this weekend!):

A duffer is a golfing enthusiast who shouts “Fore!” takes five strokes, then writes three on the scorecard.

A pro football coach is a man who’s willing to lay down his players’ lives in order to win.