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“On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. John 2:1-2

Weddings are exciting times and usually not without some hitches to enliven the event. Yesterday afternoon a wedding occurred in our village of Churchville in the large empty lot by the Credit River diagonally across from our home. In order to identify the location some how our address of 7777 Churchville Rd. was given out. There for a few days Gary and I thought the wedding was going to land up in our backyard since many were asking us where it was being held. Saturday came and the bride arrived in a 1920s model car owned by a neighbour. By the sound of the music that wafted across the road from a huge white tent invited guests seemed to have a good time even with the drizzly rain in the evening. It is significant that Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Marriage is to be honored.

Heather Macdonald said she had an incredible time in Nova Scotia over the past week. Thank you for your prayers for her. Please remember her father, Steve, who is suffering with a sinus infection. Too much stress these days from his work at the TTC.

William is still researching the saleability of a portable solar system in his country. He reports, “Normally, in a village, a family will pay 150 kyats per night for a light bulb given by a generator. Generally, they can only get a light bulb from the owner of a generator. If they want to use two light bulb they need to pay 300 kyats per night. The cost for a light bulb will 4500 kyats per month and 54000 kyats in a year, multiply it by 3 for 3 years will be 162000 kyats.” Our system will cost considerably less than that. I will be sending more money for his ministry and Richard’s this week. Please remember to pray for our foundation search. We have now made proposals for Myanmar funding to three foundations and one corporate business. We will take a positive answer from any one of these organizations who give international aid.

Happy birthday to Debbie Macdonald who is celebrating tomorrow, August 22nd. Thanks for all the breakfasts you and Steve have provided for Heartland over the summer. Also birthday greetings to Cassidy Burton who is turning 12 August 27 plus congratulations on her silver medal from the national finals softball today. Kaiya Burton also received silver last weekend for her provincial softball tournament.

Please remember to pray for Danny McDowell, a former Heartland church attender whose wife Theresa died this past week. She had been confined to their home for the past couple of years due to bad health.

Pray for Gary’s ongoing development of a book and website called See You Next Week! which is a system of helps for churches to keep visitors coming back for more. Check out www.seeyounextweek.info to listen to a great interview from one of our friends who describes her visit to a church for the first time.

Home Group happens this Thursday at the Carters at 7:00 p.m. We are continuing to view Don Carson’s series on the Bible and praying together.

Take care,

Wendy
wendy.carter@kainos.org
This blog is a summary of our 9:00 Sunday morning services held at 7777 Churchville Rd., Brampton, ON L6Y 0H3, 905-230-8116. It can always be found at www.blog.heartlandfellowship.ca.

How Many Have Sat Around your Dining-Room Table? by Gary Carter: When Gary and Wendy were first married they lived in Windsor, ON in a three-bedroom apartment above a pool hall used only for the occasional soccer party. The apartment cost $90 per month. They purchased a dining-room table with buffet as they were bent on being hospitable even though Wendy had not cooked much before in her life. During that year many were served around that table. It was sold when they moved back to Toronto to finish their schooling.

A few years later the dining-room suite that is now in their home was purchased. It is hard to determine how many have eaten around the table through the years (maybe 1000? with Danny & Theresa McDowell being one couple) but there have been the best conversations, often with lives being changed. It is important to practice hospitality, keeping it simple. Their family has grown to 18 now and it is still very special to have everyone sit down at one table to eat together. Patterns were set early on and have been passed on to the extended family – table grace was said at every meal and at the end of the meal, children always asked to be excused. Since Wendy was a stay-at-home mom clipping coupons was an important activity and leftovers were always kept for the next day or frozen for later use.

In today’s society there has been a demise of this family structure with working moms and busy dads; however the Bible strongly exhorts us to open up our homes. Romans 12:13 says, “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” I Timothy 5:10 affirms a widow who shows hospitality. Hebrews 13:2 is an interesting verse, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” I Peter 4:9 tells us to “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” 3 John 8 exhorts Gaius, “We ought therefore to show hospitality to such men so that we may work together for the truth.” Young people need to learn to cook while they are young so that they can show hospitality to their friends at their table. We must all recapture this act of kindness and build it into our lives.

While in Rome (Part 2) by Steve Macdonald: Paul arrived in Rome in 60AD. He was placed under house arrest (Acts 28:30-31) which allowed him the freedom to continue spreading the Gospel to anyone who came to him. He also was able to write four letters: Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians and Philippians. His companions already known to be in Rome were Timothy (Philippians 1:1, 2:19; Colossians 1:1; Philemon 1:1), Tychicus (Ephesians 6:21; Colossians 4:7) and Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-4:18).
A companion that came along later was Onesimus (meaning profitable; useful - Colossians 4:9; Philemon 1:8, 1:10) who was a slave of Philemon that ran away. How he got to Rome or met up with Paul again is unknown. While he was in Rome did he remember listening to Paul explain the Gospel to his master in Colossae (seeds planted!)? Does he remember Philemon accepting Jesus and this prompts him to look for Paul? This runaway slave came looking for a Roman prisoner (crop harvested!). Paul’s response is in Philemon 1:17-19.
Another companion, Aristarchus (meaning the “best prince/best ruler” - Acts 19:29, 20:4, 27:2; Colossians 4:10; Philemon 1:24), first appears during the riots in Ephesus where he was seized along with Gaius by the mob, likely to be questioned about their companion Paul. After this riot, Aristarchus is always with Paul, even on the trip to Rome and during his house arrest. Aristarchus is identified as one of the Seventy. Why put up with riots mobs, hurricanes shipwrecks, prison? James could have been talking about Aristarchus when he wrote James 1:12. When did John Mark (Colossians 4:10;  Philemon 24) arrive on the scene and why was he there? Many traditions, although unreliable and unsubstantiated, hold that Barnabas was martyred in 61 AD. Was he martyred or did he die of natural causes, resulting in Mark seeking out Paul?
Luke, Epaphras and Demas were also with Paul (Philemon 23-24). Epaphras (Colossians 1:7, 4:12) is derived from the Greek meaning “foamy.“ He was a “dear fellow-servant” and “a faithful minister of Christ“ who came from Colossae (Colossians 4:12 - “one of you”) and a teacher of the Word (Colossians 1:5-7). He was a co-worker helping to do a job that was never intended to be done by any one person (like our William on the other side of the world in Myanmar). He is a faithful servant of Christ, just like every believer is to be (Matthew 12:30). Demas was likely from Thessalonica or that area (Berea/Philippi/Neapolis). His name means popular which maybe gives a hint as to why he fell away from the Gospel. Was he so popular in the world that he could not ultimately give it all up for Jesus like the rich young man in Matthew 19:16 and Mark 10:17?

Ready … Reset (Esther) by Gary Carter: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” (Andy Warhol) “The essential ingredient of politics is timing.” (Pierre Trudeau) “Early on, they were timing my contract with an egg timer.” (Conan O’Brien)
We cannot control timing but we can agree with the Psalmist, “…I trust in you, LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me.” (Psalm 31:14-15 ).

Due to their lack of faithfulness Israel, the northern kingdom, was taken over by Assyria who pillaged the Jewish people’s brains and money. About one hundred years later Judah, the southern kingdom was captured by Babylon. Then about one hundred years after that both kingdoms were seized by Persia. During this phase Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther lived; each one found some unusual favour with the king at the time. Greece through Alexander the Great then took over about a hundred years after that and the Greek language became the trade language of the day. About two hundred years fter that Rome dominated the scene politically but controlled this huge expanse with military peace.

As you look back in history you can better understand your story and recognize certain turning points. History is “His” story. Greek was the most precise language ever set up and became the common language throughout the New Testament. Rome built roads so Paul and others could get there. Canada today has universal healthcare due to Tommy Douglas and that has become part of our Canadian identity.

Even though God is not mentioned directly in the book of Esther you can see His hand on the Jewish people through Esther’s winning the “Persia’s Got Talent” contest.
Mordecai had adopted his niece after her parents had died. He was a faithful Jew who sat at the king’s gate or courthouse. He took Esther (Hadassah) to the king’s palace when the king was looking for a new queen. She was chosen above all other girls. When Mordecai learned about a conspiracy to assassinate the king he told Esther and she reported this coupe to the king.

Some time after, Haman was honoured above all the other nobles; however when Mordecai refused to pay Haman homage, Haman became very angry and wanted to get rid of him along with the rest of the Jewish people. These were Mordecai’s words to Esther when he learned about Haman’s evil plan. “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” Esther took his words seriously and said she would speak to the king without the king asking her - that just wasn’t done. But she said, “If I perish, I perish.” She risked a meeting with the king and invited both the king and Haman to a banquet. Because the Holy Spirit became active energizing the king’s conscience the night before King Xerxes learned that Mordecai had never been honored for finding out about the coupe. Even though Esther was scared through this major conversation the Jews were not wiped out. Little moments from faithful people (15 minutes of fame) at the right time can produce big results e.g. a teenage girl in Bethlehem years later became the mother of Jesus.

Communion: The Christian message is distinct – Christ living in us, the hope of glory – and so we remember His death and resurrection each month. Many have died for their faith or religion but only One has died for our sins.

Punny Authors by Steve Macdonald:
Early Transportation by Orson Cart
Religion by Abel Lever
Fast and Easy Breakfasts by Hammond Eggs
Clementine by Omar Darling
How to Apologize by Thayer Thorry
The Bouncing Bullet by Rick O’Shay
Going to the Dentist by Phil MaCavity
Continental Breakfasts by Rolland Coffey
Tightrope Walking for Amateurs by Betty Falls