Life Purpose

Church at the Dump

2009-12-02T11:19:00.000-08:00

These pictures are from the church in Manila that was built on a dump, where the village people live off of products collected from garbage. Northside Children's Church financed the building of the new church where we met. Pastors Sam & Lily Ong joined me at church this Sunday.

Conference in Palawan

2009-12-02T10:37:00.000-08:00

Manila

2009-12-02T10:30:00.000-08:00

Capital City Church

Foursquare Bible College Seminar

Davao Foursquare Church

2009-12-02T10:03:00.000-08:00

Philippines 2009

2009-12-01T15:36:00.000-08:00

Every year for the past 12 years, one of the highlights is my visit to the Church of the Foursquare Gospel in the Philippines. When Evangelist Don Schellenberg, from our church first asked me to accompany him and our team in 1998, I was quite nervous. My job on the team was to teach the Pastors who'd be helping us at the evening Crusade meetings.

It was such a successful work (12 churches were planted that first year alone from the new converts) and I accompanied Don on the next two trips - 1999 and 2000.

Over those 3 years, I fell in love with the Filipino people. We have 2800 churches there overseen by President Val (and Sally) Chavez. Each year I get to visit 3 or more Pastor's Conferences as their guest teacher.

This year I went to conferences in Cebu, Boracay, Davao, Manila and Palawan, in addition to speaking at churches on the two Sundays. Here's some pictures from each of the venues.

Cebu Foursquare Church
Suffering for Jesus in Boracay

Halloween 2009

2009-12-01T15:15:00.000-08:00

My good looking grandchildren before and Victoria categorizing her loot after trick-or-treating.

Kenya

2009-11-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

August 2009

My $10.00 per night room in Busia. I got the Chairman's Suite.

Life in Busia, Kenya.

This young man built his own mud house for no cost and said to me, "I could come to Canada and show people how to build a mud house."

Our congenial hosts in Busia.

We drove over the Equator in Kenya which was marked by this structure.

Kenya

2009-11-04T16:01:00.000-08:00

August 2009

To Kenya with Kristy & Jacob (my daughter & grandson) in the first picture. The second picture is of the Masai natives who live in the wide open spaces and herd their cattle from range to range.

Wild animals in the 50 square mile reserve.

Ethiopia

2009-11-04T14:46:00.000-08:00

August 2009

Both food & coffee (their specialty) were awesome. The Ethiopian coffee ceremony takes about 40 minutes from roasting the green beans, crushing them and brewing the coffee over hot coals.

August is a winter month in Ethiopia, so the flowers were in full bloom, the grass was green and the weather was mild.
Lisa, Amanda, Laura, Kristy, Dana, Matt & Jacob in action.

Life in Addis Ababa.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church believes the Ark of the Covenant was taken by Solomon's & the Queen of Sheba's son - to Ethiopia. They see themselves as guardians of Old Testament history. King Haile Selassie's seat is reserved for him in the church.

Abraham, Isaac (his son) & Jacob (my grandson).

Ethiopia

2009-11-04T13:59:00.000-08:00

August 2009

The main work that our team did was to put on a camp for the sponsored children. We gave them sports jerseys as gifts.
Pastor Samuel Kebede pastors our Ethiopian church, Cush Christian Fellowship, in Surrey.

He and his wife, Ruth, set up our visit and made sure all went smoothly.

Pastor Abraham (& his daugher) is the new appointed President of FGCE.

Our Kids Church painted yo-yo's to give as gifts to the church - the sponsored children were ecstatic - for some it was the first gift they'd ever received.

While the camp was on, I taught the pastors & leaders. They were such a ready & appreciative group.

Ethiopia

2009-10-28T15:28:00.000-07:00

August 2009

I'm posting a very few of the hundreds of pictures I took in both Ethiopia & Kenya in August.

One of the highlights of both countries was the music. Ethiopian music sounds a little like Middle Eastern and is highly energetic; while Kenyan music has a real swing Swahili style. Both are wonderful to listen to.

We all went by bus from Addis Ababa to Ambo (about 2 hours). I loved the singing and friendship between our team and the Ethiopian workers.

One of our first visits was to the very poor who are sponsored by our church families. They were so delighted to receive us. The one little girl grabbing my leg wouldn't let me go. I was so tempted to take her home.

Higher Ground

2009-08-17T10:15:00.001-07:00

Every once in a while I visit our Grace Campus and get to see first hand our church in action. Our food distribution, clothing give away and Father's Table are alive and well. Thank-you to the dozens of voluteers who make it all happen.

Isaiah prophesied and we've seen it proven over and over: Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help. Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind. Then when you call, the Lord will answer. "Yes, I am here," he will quickly reply. Remove the heavy yoke of oppression. Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors! Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring (Isaiah 58:7-11 NLT).

Red Letter Day

2009-08-12T11:09:00.000-07:00

July 25, 2009

This morning Susan and I were invited to breakfast in downtown Vancouver with Jack and Anna Hayford, the beloved President of the International Foursqaure Church. They were embarking that day on an Alaskan cruise. We are such a blessed Church to have had Jack and Anna as mentors over the past forty plus years: from the time I was 16 years old and Jack, as National Youth Director, spoke at our camp; through the years he has journeyed to Canada to teach pastors; in many Pastor's Conferences we have attended at Church on the Way; through his many books and tapes, and as our President over the past years, I have been thoroughly schooled, mentored and inspired by the Hayfords.

Thank you Lord for Jack and Anna - bless them as they shift gears to retirement from being the pope of Foursqaredom. I know their ministry will continue to flourish and bear fruit!

Life Purpose for Kids

2009-08-12T10:50:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday July 21st I taught about twelve children how to find their Life Purpose. We began our day with a visit to a cemetery to think about our finish to life on earth, "What will people say about us when we die?"

Then I read a story I wrote, "Joseph's Excellent Bad Day" for kids to help them understand their Life Purpose has been set by our Creator.

Finally I gave each child the meaning of their names and we made a poster to remind us of our prophetic beginning.

What a happy and fun day!

Jeremy and Chelsea's Wedding

2009-08-12T10:25:00.000-07:00

I love officiating at weddings, but this one at the Hart House on Deer Lake on Saturday, July 11th was very special.

On Feb 1, 1987 we dedicated our new Northside Church facility in Port Coquitlam. On the next Sunday I dedicated a month old little girl - beautiful Chelsea Oorebeek. She was our first baby in the church.

One of the advantages of getting older is that I get to officiate at the weddings of young adults that I held and kissed as babies. I was a very proud pastor to marry Chelsea and Jeremy Koehn on July 11th.

But I was humbled by what Diane Oorebeek (mom of the bride) said in her speech. She referred to what I'd taught the church 25 years ago, "to pray for our unborn babies" and when they are still infants to begin praying for their future (still unknown spouses).

Peter and Diane followed my counsel, so before Chelsea and Jordan (their son) were even born, they began praying for their children. Then after they were born, Peter and Diane began praying for their spouses.

At the wedding we all witnessed God's perfect answer to their prayers! Thank you, Lord!

Koinonia Foursqaure Church

2009-08-12T09:30:00.000-07:00

It was like being on the mission field for me to visit Pastor Obed and Adriana Mendoza in their very alive spanish speaking church. The music was electrifying - this Church under Pastor Obed's (his name means "worship") leadership has released a very professional CD of Latin worship music that is reaching many nations.

Beausejour Community Church

2009-08-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

June 28, 2009

Some of my most happy and memorable days are when I get to visit our churches across Canada. On June 28th Susan and I were in the small community of Beausejour, a couple of hours outside of Winnipeg and got to visit our Foursquare church there, pastored by Chris and Liza Jordan.

It was the very exciting dedication of their new sanctuary. Wow! What an awesome place - it was radiant with the love and blessing of God. Congratulations to the vibrant church there!

After our visit with the Jordan's, Susan and I recorded a couple of programs on "It's a New Day" for release in November. I spoke about two of my books, Good Mourning and Dying Well.

Wisdom & Wonder

2009-06-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009

This evening was a very big night for our kids church! It was the launching of our new curriculum for kids - Wisdom & Wonder.

A couple of years ago I stated as one of our 7-year objectives, that we would write & publish a new curriculum for our kids. It's my desire to disciple our children from 0-18 to be firmly rooted followers of Jesus.

Our Children's Pastor, Ingrid Janzen, took up the torch and ran with it. Erin Caldwell and a strong team of professional educators have now completed year 1 of "Wisdom & Wonder", for Nursery, preschoolers, children and tweeners. It's an awesome curriculum, all available on the web.

On Sunday the team introduced the new program, we ordained our Kids Church leaders, anointed them with oil and celebrated this wonderful milestone!

God bless our children as they Grow, Know & Sow!

BC Christian Academy

2009-06-29T12:57:00.000-07:00

June 5, 2009

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to speak at the chapel service of BC Christian Academy High School. What a sharp group of young teens!

I loved being in the school for more than to bless the kids and teachers. It was the school where my kids attended Elementary and the very gym in which we began Northside Church in 1979. A very nostalgic morning!

Mother's Day

2009-06-03T10:06:00.001-07:00

I loved the letter that Victoria (our grade 1 granddaughter) wrote to her Mommy, Kelly, for Mother's Day. I thought you might be as inspired as I was. It is written in her own words/letters:

Guess How much I Love you...

I Love you more then the

watermelon driping down my chin.
more than the sun setting over
the tall, tall Mountains. I Love
you more than Max and Alex
happily playing at Jacob's
house. I Love you more than
all the sweet smells of all
the flowers blooming. more than
all the fireflies shining in the
dark night. more than Me and Max
wrestling on a hot sunny day.

Guess how long I'll love you...

I'll Love you until a
volcano BURST! with lava rocks
till th eearth cracks in BIG CHUNKS!
till my soul rises to heaven until a hurricane
comes and when a tsunami washes to shore.

Love Victoria

Korean Foursquare Church

2009-06-02T15:09:00.000-07:00

What an honor it was for me & Susan to be invited to speak at the 26th Anniversary Service of our burgeoning Korean Foursquare Church in Vancouver's East end.

Our Korean family know how to honor their leaders (the service was designed to honor two retiring elders) and how to celebrate God's blessings.

After the service, we feasted with Pastor Sam (and Chung) and a few of the Church elders.

Our 40th Anniversary

2009-05-21T10:30:00.001-07:00

Susan & I celebrated our 40th Wedding Anniversary on February 28th. What a wonderful, happy privilege it's been to be married to the perfect wife for these past 4 decades. God could not have done better than to match us up when we began dating February 21, 1967. I knew that day we would be married and live happily ever after!

On Sunday, our home group, which is the same couples whose wives make up The Joy Club, put on a delightful party for Susan & me. They surprised us with a video of our lives together (kind of like you'd show at a funeral) and an exquisite meal they'd all prepared.

Alberta

2009-05-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

I was in Calgary on Saturday to spend the day with Alberta Unit Supervisor, Barry Marsten. Barry & I took a drive to Brooks, AB, where one of the largest slaughter houses in North America, employs the town (they process 5,000 cows a day).

We met with Pastors Dean & Lorenda & enjoyed a refreshing breakfast meeting together.

The Joy Club

2009-05-21T09:50:00.000-07:00

Susan has a group of lady friends who've been meeting as a Bible Study Group for a long time. They call themselves The Joy Club, I think because they laugh more than they study! But more than that, the grils bring joy to a wide circle of influence around them.

One of the women, our dear friend Norma Garrison, died last week of cancer. The Joy Club has surrounded both her and her husband, Les, with love & support. As a gesture of their grace, the girls presented Morgan, Norma & Les' only granddaughter, with their symbol of joy (a beautiful joy necklace) and made her an honorary club member. Morgan is 3rd from the right on the back row!

We pray for God's grace, comfort and love to cover Les & his family over the months ahead.

"Norma lived fully and loved deeply. Fortunate were those who crossed her path for they received her genuine smile and infinite thoughtfulness. She possessed a generous nature with a selfless and willing spirit to help others in need. She offered herself wholeheartedly when just the right word was needed or when a tiny act of kindness made a lasting impact.

Born in Wainwright, Alberta, Norma was raised a prairie girl. Having graduated from the Royal Alexandra Hospital in 1959, Norma worked diligently as an RN in various operating rooms: Winnipeg, Richmond and finally Maple Ridge Hospital from 1975-1988. She led with wisdom, taught with grace and profoundly affected many lives. She loved unconditionally and her
compassionate spirit left an indelible impression on everyone she touched. Norma’s commitment to her faith and zest for life shone bright; she was passionate for shopping, cooking, gardening and decorating, which she pursued enthusiastically with her own artistic flair. She cherished annual trips with Les to their 2nd home in Arizona that fulfilled and enriched her life.

With an unwavering love for her husband and children she created a strong and cherished bond, and through them, her light will continue to shine. Steadfast in her devotion to her family and many friends, her passing leaves a void in the hearts and lives of many. For her, the journey continues; for us, we inherit a guiding star."

Mexico

2009-05-21T09:45:00.001-07:00

Susan & I spent two wonderful & restful weeks in Mexico, just as the infamous Swine Flu was being announced (not a pig in sight!). We vacation very quietly (no surfing, hang-gliding or mountain climbing), so I was able to write a couple of books while sitting by the pool.

You can look for the sequels to Secret of Happiness over the next few months. Secret of Success is about our church mission statement, "Know, Grow & Sow", which I believe should be the mandate of every person individually as well as every church.

The other book, Secret of Fulfillment, is quite biographical; about my personal growth, as well as the growth of Northside Church. In the book I illustrate several personal & church growth principles.

Destiny Weekend

2009-05-20T14:16:00.000-07:00

April 18-19, 2009

One of the highlights of Susan's and my 30 years in Northside Church was our April celebration called Destiny Weekend. We invited the church to spend a Saturday with the pastors to thank God for our past with several video's of all the happenings of our church; look at our present; and to consider our future together as a church.

Because I've always planned in 7-year increments, we laid out a picture and strategy for the next 7 years of our church life.

The next 7 years (2008-2014) are called "Retrofitting" because we are rebuilding foundations for future growth and fruitfulness. Here's how we described retrofitting: To modify something with new parts. The added parts may not have been available or relevant when the building/bridge was first constructed. Examples may be a bridge retrofitted to carry increased traffic; a school retrofitted to be earthquake proof; a car retrofitted with a catalytic converter.

For the presentation of our future, I wrote an overview of our past, present and future called our "Strategic Plan". I can send a copy to whoever would like one, but these are the 20 objectives I stated that we are looking at by 2014:

1. A church with a strong Spirit-empowered emphasis on prayer and intercession that will result in kingdom dynamics evidenced in and through our daily experience.

2. A church who knows God deeper and knows His Word better; and who walks closer to God and to the principles of Scripture than today.

3. A church who consciously lives out the command of our Lord, who says, “Go into all the world, preach the Gospel and make obedient disciples.”

4. A church who readily participates in a well-ordered, effective missions program that reaches more people in more places with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

5. A church who gives enthusiastically and generously beyond our tithe, and who increases that graciousness as the blessing of God gives promised return.

6. A church who continues to multiply in numbers of wholly devoted followers of Jesus, by adding to the existing church family and also by planting new churches.

7. A church who enjoys seeing the restoring power of God heal and make whole, souls that have been broken or wounded by failure, addiction, sin or poverty.

8. A church who sees a new generation of children reared on the fundamentals and principles of the Word and the Spirit, who will become leaders and influencers among the youth of the next decade.

9. A church consciously raising up and releasing a new generation of youth to be strong, Spirit-empowered, godly, ministering adults.

10. A church who is learning and growing by participating in small groups with a wide curriculum of Bible, church and life courses offered in the church and Net Church.

11. A staff of able and godly Pastors and leaders and interns who know who they are, what their call and abilities are, who work in harmony and unity with each other and the church.

12. A church who is known and respected for the development of leaders who will be able to succeed and expand the work of those who have gone before.

13. A church that meets in multiple locations throughout the Tri-Cities, and province, pastored by campus pastors who are united by a singular vision and order of operation.

14. A self-supporting web-church that reflects the values and vision of Northside Church, but reaches and disciples those otherwise not connected to a local congregation.

15. A church who records and produces videos that will be regularly used in multiple campuses and house churches both locally and world-wide.

16. A church that is multi-cultural and intercultural; that recognizes and celebrates the beauty and colour of various nationalities, traditions, languages and cultures, yet binds them together as one church.

17. A church that communicates so as to be understood among leaders, with the congregation and with those beyond the circle of the church.

18. A church with properties and buildings that serve the living church with beauty, purpose and practicality.

19. A church that has firm vision and plans for the years to come, but stays in synch with the daily steps directed by the Holy Spirit, our Shepherd and Guide.

20. A church that has a good and godly reputation among other churches, city and provincial leaders and in the community.

Good News Bears

2009-05-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

Our church pastors were invited as the special guests to Good News Bears last month. The kids from grades 1-4 treated us like kings - specially made ice cream sundaes and all!

The highlight of our evening was the Master Pastor contest, where we were put on the spot with a variety of questions. Thankfully I was able to retain my "Master Pastor" standing.

Wee College Grad

2009-04-15T16:12:00.000-07:00

One of the most exhilerating programs of our church is Wee College. 60 children from 4-6 years old are being discipled to be young men & women rooted in the truth of Scripture.

What a delight to see these bright-eyed children quote over a hundred verses from the Bible at their graduation a couple of weeks ago.

I'm so proud of my daughter Kristy who serves as College President and the team of leaders who work beside her. And of course it was Susan's & my grandchildren Victoria (6) and Jordan (5) who were the stars (in our eyes anyway)!

Good Friday

2009-04-10T14:05:00.000-07:00

April 10, 2009 - Durham, Ontario

Last week Susan & I had the privilege of being invited to Durham (a couple of hours north of Toronto) to celebrate the 8oth Anniversary of their Foursquare Church, pastored by Louie & Gladys Foster.

Louie & Gladys have faithfully served God in their hometown for the past 23 years. What a delight to see my past students from Life Bible College again!

Hundreds of guests from other Foursquare Churches filled the hall where we met. It was a wonderful multi-cultural celebration and the turkey dinner made by the ladies of Durham was worth the trip! Here's a picture of the group of pastors who came to bless the Church.

On the way back to Toronto, Susan and I stopped at Mt. Forest, where our church founder in 1918, Aimee Semple McPherson, held one of her first miracle meetings. The town crier, who was also the town drunk, "Monkey Abe" was saved instantly from alcohol addiction and the service began a revival in that town. This is the street corner where young Aimee stood still on a chair for 20 minutes to gather a crowd. When a large number had formed around her, she jumped off the chair and ran to the mission where she was preaching. "Follow me!" she yelled, and they did. When all were inside she commanded the only 2 church members to bolt the door until she was finished preaching!

I was tempted to grab a chair and try it last week, but went to Tim Horton's for a donut and coffee instead.

New Brunswick Adventure

2009-03-31T14:40:00.000-07:00

I will never forget the week I spent in New Brunswick—and neither will the people of Alma. Tuesday morning went well. I left Vancouver to lead a Pastor’s Conference, and landed in Moncton at about 8:00 pm EST. After getting my 2008 Impala from Avis, I stopped at Tim Horton’s for a bowl of soup.

Finally on my way about 8:30, I adjusted my rear view mirror. As I did that I accidentally pressed a button, which I soon discovered, connected me to ONSTAR. The lady spoke kindly to me, I apologized for disturbing her and our conversation was over.

At Tim Horton’s I’d pressed into my GPS the address I wanted to find in the small village of Alma on the Bay of Fundy; then checked off “shortest distance”, and I was happily on my way.
It was dark on the road my GPS chose, and cold outside. I’d not brought a winter coat or shoes because I knew my work would be all inside the retreat centre.

About forty minutes into the drive, I realized the route chosen for me by the GPS was a short-cut through an unpaved mountain road, but I was making good time and Beverly (the lady who talks to me on my GPS) seemed to be pleased with the progress I was making.

As the snow got thicker on the road, I did wonder where I had gotten myself; and before I knew it everything was white under my car and all around me. I hadn’t passed another car or seen a house in the past thirty minutes—and by then I was carefully balancing on a snow track not more than ten feet wide. But I couldn’t turn around—I knew I would get stuck on the soft snow on either side. I certainly didn’t want to get caught in the middle of nowhere in sub-zero temperatures.

I was only fourteen kilometers from my destination when the unthinkable happened. My front tire slipped into a hole, and before I could move, the car had sunk to the frame. I was immovably stuck, at least fourteen kilometers from the nearest street light or human help.

Turning on my Blackberry, I saw that there was zero reception. My hosts were expecting me in thirty minutes, but I had no way of contacting them and no way of moving.

Then I remembered ONSTAR. I pressed the button and within seconds a kindly lady named Kathy, from Ontario, was on the line. We chatted about my dilemma for a while, then Kathy worked at getting me a tow truck. By 11:00 or so she’d found one about forty kilometers away, and had also contacted Susan as well as my hosts in Alma. She was able to pinpoint my position within fifteen feet!

By 12:00 pm, Kathy told me neither the tow truck nor the RCMP could get near me. I’d gotten onto a road only used by snowmobiles, with four feet of snow underneath me.

Meanwhile my friends in Alma had woken up the local Snowplow driver and he’d gotten the Fire Chief out of bed to come fourteen kilometers on his snowmobile to rescue the dumb city boy from BC. Unfortunately Dave, the Fire Chief was blockaded by a stubborn moose for several minutes, so he didn’t arrive till about 2:00 am. Finally he pulled up beside me and told me to hop on. It was a sight to see, me in my spring season duds, holding desperately onto my suitcase with one hand and briefcase with the other, hoping to God, I wouldn’t fall off the big machine and embarrass myself further. Dave drove very fast over the bumpy snow, but we made it.
Finally we pulled up to the tow truck and the RCMP officer who greeted me, “Now I’ve got to write you a ticket for not having a helmet!” (He was joking with New Brunswick humour.)
George, the tow truck guy was concerned because another man had frozen to death a while ago after walking from his truck that was stuck around the same spot. He also told me that ONSTAR didn’t usually work from that location.

By 3:30 am they got me safely to the home where I was staying. My car would have to be hauled out by a tractor later that morning. All my friends were waiting with a week’s supply of GPS, moose and BC gringo jokes at my expense. By daylight the Foursquare preacher from the west was the talk of the local Post Office.

There’s probably lots of lessons I learned that night, but one to remember is to always know if the person you are following in life really knows where he is going! Wandering off the right path can be very dangerous!

Trip to Toronto

2009-03-31T11:55:00.000-07:00

February 22, 2009

I spent my 62nd Birthday in Toronto this year, and had an inspirational visit with hundred of Foursquare friends.

On Saturday morning I met a couple of Indian brothers about churches in Toronto and India.

In the afternoon, the Ontario Churches rented a large facility to celebrate what they call Februworship - a grand celebration of many ethnic churches. We sang, danced and celebrated for 3 hours together. I loved it all but was mesmerized by the children who did a mime in the dark. With their white gloves they spelled out the story of our salvation.

On Sunday, February 22, I spoke at Praise Christian Family Church, a Foursquare Filipino congregation. I can't think of a happier more hospitable family to spend my birthday with. And there's always a feast that follows church (the picture below is just my dinner!).

I shared my birthday with Pastor Gina's twin 19 year-old daughters (theirs was on Feb. 21st).

One of the happiest birthday greetings I received this year was from my dear friend Papa Nazem Demian.

Nazem adopted me as his spiritual son several years ago. With his greeting, Papa Nazem sent a picture he'd had taken when I'd published my first book, Life Journey. The church put on a party for me in 2000. I was so honored to have my dad (who passed away in 2007) and Papa Nazem there to encourage me. Here's the picture we had taken that memorable day.

Grace Campus

2009-03-31T09:14:00.001-07:00

January 2009

In January of this year, it became official. Another church in our Port Coquitlam neighborhood pastored by Doug & Laurel Fortune, became our 3rd Campus at Northside. Doug has been the Lead Pastor of Grace Christian Fellowship for 5 years and we are so delighted that he and the Grace family are part of our family now. If you are interested in more info regarding Campus Churches, search my blog for my previously posted article: "Multi-Site Churches".

Christmas 2008

2008-12-25T11:44:00.000-08:00

This was a memorable Christmas because of the 36" of snow we got. I haven't seen so much snow since I was a boy.

On Christmas Eve it snowed all day, but rather than cancel our Christmas Eve Service, we had one in each of our 3 campuses. I thought maybe a few brave souls would show up, but over 300 came. We had an awesome celebration!

After the service our family came to our home for a Christmas Eve celebration. New pyjamas for all the kids are standard, along with Papa's & Nana's Christmas stockings.

The Church in Action

2008-12-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

December 2008

1. This week I've received 3 letters which represent a common occurence at our church. One was from Musu Taylor-Lewis of Pregnancy Concerns. Musu mentioned to our church a while ago that Pregnancy Concerns was moving into a new location, but the building needed some work.

I didn't even know how the church responded until I visited Musu a while later. She happily showed me the new facility and told me guys from our church had done the wallboard work, electrical work, painting and flooring. Musu grinned from ear-to-ear as she thanked me for all the church had done. I was a surprised and very proud pastor.

2. A single widow in our church lives in a trailer that badly needed some repair work. Not knowing what to expect she called Linda at Northside to humbly request help. At the same time I'd been talking with Phil Ransom, who'd volunteered his expert services. We matched up Phil with Diane. Here's an excerpt from Diane's thank-you letter:

"Thank you" does not adequately express my appreciation for the help I received from Northside. Last June I phoned CMCH's (Canada Mortgage And Housing Association) RRAP (Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program) for help with 'floor repairs' and was told I was eligible for their help (max $15,000.00 for my location). I completed and returned their application (with copies of the required documents they needed) and received no response. I phoned to ensure they'd received my application (they had) but they then told me that they were 'out of funds now' and that I should reapply in March (2009).

I'm sorry for making this so long but I wanted you to have kind of an idea of why and just how much everyone's help has meant to me. Starting with our Prayer Group, Gloria & Marge's phone call to Linda, Pastor Barry's approval and ending with, not only the time and effort Phil put into working on my repairs, but the wonderful end result of all his labor. To start with, trying to find anyone willing to work on a mobile is a job in itself. Repair work on mobiles seems to be harder than on regular homes and on the smaller mobiles, some repair jobs are outright horrific. Mine was horrific.

The space Phil had to work in was a challenge in itself. But even more horrendous, and what I was really worried about, was the condition the underneath part of my home may be in - and the only way to find that out is for someone to actually crawl underneath the home to look at it. I've had many workmen who have done a lot of repair jobs after my place was flooded. The flood happened a year after Jimmy, my husband, died (Dec. 17, 1996), which was approx. a year after we bought this place. Phil is the 2nd person (since 1997) to actually crawl underneath it at least 3 times.

My bathroom was never elegant looking, but now, especially compared to what it was before Phil started working on it, is now really quite elegant looking. Phil did a wonderful job, I can't thank him and Northside enough, God does indeed 'work in mysterious ways' - my faith is constantly being renewed. Again, my sincere THANK YOU!

3. After that I received a thank-you note from Pastors Ponciano and Evelyn in Manila. The $8,000 that our children's church raised and gave to build an addition on the church built on a dump in Manila, has bene put to good use.

Thank you to Michelle Abdou for her love for the children she visited in 2007, and her inspiration and willingness to build the biggest building in their town. Here's the note from Pastor Evelyn:

Dear Pastor Barry,

I'm sending some photos for our church building construction. I have emailed Michelle and she was happy about the photos I've sent.

Next week we will be cementing the floor and hopefully by the last week of January we will hold our worship service in our new church already.

As you have seen the photos, the finished parts are the roofing made of iron bars and galvanized iron, the insulators to protect from the heat of the sun, the walls made of hollow blocks. The unfinished parts are the floor, the windows and the comfort room, the installation of electricity and water. After the flooring the construction will be stopped for a while and wait for God's provision for the unfinished parts. We thank the Lord for the people He used in providing the needs of our church. Once again thank you and God bless you. More Power!

NorthRidge

2008-12-04T09:38:00.000-08:00

December 2008

We had a great visit with the new NorthRidge congregation in December. What a marvelous facility at Thomas Haney School. Check out their web page: http://www.nrchurch.ca/.

Master's Commission

2008-12-03T11:27:00.000-08:00

November 18-20, 2008

One of my favorite things to do is to teach the Bible from cover to cover. In November I was invited to the Bible Fellowship Master's Commission to teach the Old Testament. In three days we covered a lot of ground from Creation to the end of Malachi. I have the entire Old Testament overview on CD's. If you're interested, email me.

Philippines 2008

2008-12-02T16:15:00.001-08:00

November 2008

Earlier this month I spent 15 days in one of my favorite places in the world. I did some Pastor's & Leader's Conferences in Dagupan, Pangasinan, Manila & Ormac Leyte, in addition to speaking at a few churches.

One of my favorite stops was in a village on the outskirts of Manila that has been built on a city dump. The area is called Pagbabago (which means reborn or new life) because the residents take garbage and recycle it to earn income. I love the spiritual implications that infer God takes people we may never look twice at and recreates us into princes & princesses in His kingdom.

Last year Michelle Abdou from Northside was there and felt God directing her to help. She came back and had our children raise over $8,000 to send to the Foursquare Church there to double their church space. Our kids made yoyos that I was honored to hand out to the children there.

Pastors Val (& Sally) Chavez (President of the 2800 Foursquare churches in the Philippines) were my hosts, drivers and co-workers as we travelled the main Island.

In Leyte Pastors Gulliver and Verma Babor were my hosts.

Check out my pictures below!

Philippines 2008

2008-12-02T15:56:00.001-08:00

Philippines 2008

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Philippines 2008

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Philippines 2008

2008-12-02T14:35:00.000-08:00

Philippines 2008

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Philippines 2008

2008-11-28T10:57:00.000-08:00

Beavers

2008-11-28T10:24:00.000-08:00

November 28, 2008

I had an awakening yesterday.

It came in a very unusual way.

A friend of mine (another pastor) made an appointment to see me for lunch. After we sat down in my office to talk, he smiled and said, “I have a gift for you.”

I like gifts, so I smiled broadly and expectantly as Sam pulled out of his bag a big, brown, furry beaver. It was only a stuffed toy, but looked very real. He handed the rodent to me and I cuddled it close. I loved my friend’s thoughtfulness, but did not immediately understand why he gave me the beaver.

“As President of the Canadian Foursquare churches, I thought that it would be fitting for you to have Canada’s national emblem in your office. This little beaver is a picture of hard-working and wise leaders across our nation who are bringing change to their world.”

I was deeply touched by his gift. Bucky the beaver is sitting on my desk staring at me right now as I write this article.

The awakening came in that I’d never given more than a passing thought to the life lessons beavers teach us—even though they are our national animal and are pictured on every Canadian nickel.

This afternoon, especially with my furry pet looking at me with his big brown eyes, I began thinking about how inspiring beavers really are. Here are seven attributes , that go beyond their profitability to the early settlers of Canada.

Beavers are famously busy. “As busy as a beaver.” They tackle huge obstacles with enthusiasm and diligence.

But better than simply being busy, they are purposeful. Second only to humans, beavers have an uncanny ability to manipulate and change their environment. With their strong teeth and powerful jaws, they turn huge trees into dams. They can change the course of a river, make a meadow or turn fields and forests into large ponds. They are not stopped by obstacles—rather, they use them for their greater purposes.

Beavers build homes for their extended families. They are monogamous, family-focused and care deeply for the propagation of the next generation.

They have transparent eyelids that act as goggles when swimming underwater. I love the fact that these fifty pound rodents can see where other animals would not be able to see. We as leaders need to have vision where those who follow may not see clearly.

Beavers protect one another. Simply by slapping their leathery tails loudly, their friends and co-workers are able to hide and be safe from their enemies.

They are wise enough to build canals so they can float building materials long distances to where they are needed. They also look ahead and prepare for long cold winters by storing sticks and logs underwater for family to feed on when the grounds are covered in snow and ice.
I love my new pet. My grandchildren will ask me if they can have him, but I’m not giving him up. Maybe I’ll buy them each a beaver Webkin for Christmas and teach them about our national emblem.

Courts of Praise, Saskatoon SK

2008-11-04T17:15:00.000-08:00

October 2008 Installation of Pastor Larry & Becky Thomas

We headed for Saskatoon immediately after our Pastor's Conference and had the privilege of ordaining Pastor Larry Thomas as Lead Pastor of Courts of Praise Foursquare Church. The church has just purchased a beautiful new facility in Saskatoon and holds great promise for a bright future.

Foursquare Pastor's Conference, Winnipeg MB

2008-11-04T17:00:00.000-08:00

October 2008

What an awesome time we enjoyed at our National Canadian Foursquare Pastor's Conference in the beautiful Fort Garry Hotel.

Our very special guests were former Missionaries to Panama (and International Missions Directors) Leland & Barbara Edwards.

As a boy, I have wonderful memories of the Edwards family visiting our small Vancouver church and telling fascinating stories from the 1920's-1950's in Panama. It was a delight and an honor for Leland & Barbara to grace us with their memories of Foursquare history and challenge us to faithfulness. (CD's are available of their historical overview of the past 80 years).

Jerry & Barbara Cook have been mentors of Susan & me over the past 40 years. Jerry's book "Love, Acceptance and Forgiveness" was a pivotal prophetic word for the charismatic church of the 1970's. I have available my 2 hour interview with Jerry on DVD if you email me.

One of the highlights of our week, for me, was when Virgil & Christina Dawson presented me with a native blanket that Virgil had made. This ceremony was very significant. Giving me the tribal blanket was a sign of accepting me as an honorary brother in their tribe. I was deeply touched by Christina's love & sincerity.

Young Adult Retreat

2008-11-04T16:30:00.000-08:00

September 2008

Susan & I were invited to be guests at our Foursquare Young Adult retreat outside of Princeton this September. How inspiring for us to see this 150, 20-30 year old adults worshiping God with enthusiasm. Our theme was the Foursquare Gospel.

Jesus - Savior

Jesus - Baptizer in the Holy Spirit

Jesus - Healer

Jesus - Coming King

Ethiopia

2008-11-04T16:26:00.000-08:00

In early August I was privileged to fly to Ethiopia for a couple of weeks. My mission was to serve a group of Pastors & leaders there, and to begin the process of enfolding their churches into the Foursquare Gospel Church.

I loved every minute I spent with my new friends. They were gracious, passionate, loving & intelligent. Here are a few pictures I snapped of my visit.

My hosts Abraham, Assifa, & Samuel

Streets of Addis Abbaba

Ethiopia

2008-11-04T16:20:00.001-08:00

The Orthodox Church

Pastor Abraham & his family

Ethiopia

2008-11-04T16:13:00.001-08:00

Rural Life

Ethiopia

2008-11-04T16:03:00.001-08:00

Delicious Ethiopian Cuisine

Ethiopia

2008-10-09T15:40:00.000-07:00

The Church in Ethiopia

NorthRidge Church Birth

2008-09-01T14:27:00.000-07:00

September 2008

One of the most rewarding Sundays we've had this year was when we blessed the 60+ members of Northside Church & sent them as church planters to the eastside of Maple Ridge. My brother Rob & nephew David will serve as pastors of the new Church (As of March 2009, NorthRidge Foursquare Church has mushroomed to about 180 regular adherents).

Children's Camp

2008-08-23T14:19:00.000-07:00

August 2008

Later in August, Susan & I took a day to visit some of our church children at Kid's Camp. Because we've served Northside Church for 30 years, we've seen a generation of children mature from Kid's Camp to Parenthood. This new generation holds wonderful promise.

Life Purpose for Kids

2008-08-22T14:14:00.000-07:00

August 2008

Every year I teach a class of children how to find their life purpose. We begin with a trip to the cemetery to look at gravestones. I ask, "What do you want your grave marker to read?" From there we do a craft and I read my book - Joseph's Excellent Bad Day (Life Purpose for Kids). This year's group was exceptionally enthusiastic & bright!

Mexican Foursquare Conference

2008-08-21T10:54:00.000-07:00

July 2008

The North American Foursquare Churches are related like family cousins. As president, Susan & I have the privilege of participating in The National Conventions of Mexico and the USA, as their leaders do our Canadian Conferences.

In July of 2008 we were in Monterrey, Mexico. Meme & Graciela Sanchez serve as leaders of the 171 strong Foursquare Churches of Mexico. Here we are with the Sanchez's & Jack Hayford.

Ted Vail serves as co-ordinator of North American Foursquare Churches as well as overseeing Multi-Ethnic ministries in our continent. Sally Frostad and her husband Joel are Canadian Missionaries from Courtenay serving the Mexican churches.

Some pictures of beautiful Monterrey, Mexico. One of our Tijuana pastors has been a professional wrestler, so he kindly gave all of us wrestling masks. I won't name these otherwise dignified Missions leaders.

Burlington & Cambridge

2008-08-20T10:35:00.000-07:00

July 6, 2008

Doug & Rebecca flew home after our meetings, while Susan and I drove on to Ontario - to speak at our new two-campus church of Burlington & Cambridge.

We were delighted to get to spend time with Pastor Roland, who with his family, are moving from Saint John, NB to pastor the two campuses.

Between the two services, Susan, Roland & I (Rhonda Berkhiem was also there) stopped in Toronto to meet with our Filipino PCFC family for a picnic. Filipinos love to celebrate - they are wonderful cooks and share with everyone who passes by.

The young adults have become such good friends of Susan and me. It's such an honor for us to spend time with them. Some of them I've known for many years from my visits to the Philippines.

Montreal

2008-08-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

July 3, 2008

From Quebec City, the four of us drove to Montreal. It just happened to be the date of Montreal's Jazz Festival, so we had a very happy visit in Canada's 2nd largest city. The weather was spectacular!

Although the primary reason for our trip to Montreal was to sign documents so that Foursquare in Quebec could be registered as a charitable organization, we also took time to meet another Pastor and his family. Pastor Jacklin & Ketlene were so gracious to the four of us. We enjoyed a sumptuous lunch at their apartment as we got to know them and also discussed their plans for planting our first church in Montreal. We were very excited with the bright future that lays ahead of us all.

To Quebec City

2008-08-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

July 1, Canada Day! What a great day to fly from the West and East – to the heart of French Canada. I loved sitting on the airplane with Susan and praying from province to province for God’s grace to cover Canada. I thought of the 3rd verse to our National Anthem “O Canada”:

Ruler supreme, who hearest humble prayer,
Hold our Dominion, in thy loving care.
Help us to find, O God, in thee,
A lasting rich reward.
As waiting for the better day,
We ever stand on guard.

God keep our land, glorious and free.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!

Quebec City was celebrating their 400th Anniversary during our visit. We met Doug & Rebecca Friesen there so we could confirm the Hotel for our 2009 Canadian Foursquare Convention. There could not be a more lovely or historically significant place for us to meet, and to strategize planting Foursquare Churches in Quebec.

My Cherry Tree

2008-08-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

July 20, 2008

This isn’t a very clear picture but it is so important to me. A couple of years ago (on our 25th Anniversary of Northside Church) our Children’s Church under Pastor Ingrid Janzen’s leadership, gave me this cherry tree as a memorial of the fruitfulness our church has enjoyed among our children. We have almost 500 kids in the children’s ministry now. Because I’ve seen hundreds of former Kid’s Church members grow into fruitful adults, the cherry tree was very significant to me.

This year was a banner year. These are the first 2 cherries the tree has produced. They were a healthy beginning to a very large harvest in the years ahead. Unfortunately a bear invaded our back yard last week and devoured both of those plump cherries. I do hope he enjoyed them!

Downtown Eastside

2008-08-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

July 17, 2008
Today I visited a couple of pastors whom I greatly admire. John Sanders has been pastoring our Street Church in one of the most difficult stretches of real estate in Canada. The 5 blocks west from Hastings & Main are among the poorest and most destitute anywhere. Drugs, crime & alcohol have taken their toll. John has just resigned from the church – he’s given his best with love and diligence.

Trista and her son, Jesse, have moved into the heart of the Hastings strip to give their lives as missionaries to the disenfranchised. I could have listened to Trista’s story all day, but within an hour I’d decided that we need to do a video testimony (hopefully it will be up soon on our Foursquare Canada web page). Trista was raised as a suburbanite in our Coquitlam area, but experienced firsthand the devastations caused by running from God.

I am so excited to watch her see the vision God has given to her fulfilled in the Eastside of Vancouver. I’ll keep you updated.

Trip to Ontario

2008-08-14T15:29:00.000-07:00

May 18, 2008

This weekend I made a whirlwind flight to Ontario – the main purpose of my trip was to present the church Charter to Pastor Gina Dolor at Praise Christian Family Foursquare Church.
Pastor Gina and her wonderful Filipino church rolled out the red carpet for Marion and me as we proudly presented their Charter. The Church has flourished over their first 2 years.

After the service they killed the fatted pig and we feasted. I also was privileged to meet Folorunso & Olabimpe Akinniyi who are planting a new Foursquare church in Kitchener, Ontario.

Tom Burke (and Ron Morin) is now serving on staff with Ron at Hope for Tomorrow Church in Toronto. Every time I get to visit Pastor Ron, he announces a new church theirs is giving birth to. I’m sure the Apostle Paul and Ron would have lots of good stories to share. They have similar gifts.

My visit with Kiril & Daniela Popov and their children was inspiring. Kiril has communicated with us over the past several months from Bulgaria. He is a true church planter. As a young man he moved from Bulgaria to Greece, where he quickly picked up the language. Before long he’d started three churches there – Bulgarian, Russian and Algerian. We were so anticipating their arrival in Toronto, but felt the ground was so hard here, he may be disappointed. The Sunday following their arrival in Toronto, Kiril held his first Bulgarian service. He told me last month, he was already holding meetings in Russian, besides the Bulgarian church plant. Not bad for 3 months!

Arabic Conference

2008-08-14T15:07:00.000-07:00

May 2008
Today I was invited to be the guest speaker at an Arabic-speaking Conference in Surrey. Guests from Palestine, Iraq, Kuwait, and Egypt were delightfully responsive to the teaching. My hosts were Pastor Reda & Tahany Hahna (pictured above).

Nazem & Julia Demian have been friends and members of our church for several years. It was wonderful to spend the day with Papa Nazem. I learned more than I was able to teach from my new friends – the stories of conversion from Islam to Christianity were inspiring.

English Translation: Clean hands we raise.‎
To glorify our redeemer with complete joy.

We shout with power against our enemies.‎

Our Victory is great by Him who loved us.‎

Thomas & Rebecca's Wedding

2008-07-21T14:41:00.001-07:00

June 14, 2008

I don't do too many weddings anymore. I just don't have the time for 6 weeks of counseling, rehearsal & wedding. But this year I've officiated at a few.

One of my favorites was Thomas & Rebecca. I not only loved them as a couple, but the wedding was held on a cruise ship in Burrard Inlet.

It was a gorgeous clear evening, the wedding party delightful and the food delicious. It was a fun wedding.

Multi-Site Churches

2008-07-21T13:53:00.000-07:00

Multi-Site Churches

Things are constantly changing—
If we don’t adapt to those changes, we’ll become irrelevant.

Back when I was a boy in the 1950’s, my brothers and sisters and I would consider it a huge adventure to walk down Kings Avenue to 22nd Street to buy a treat at “The Ridge”. The Ridge was a 5 & 10 cent store just past Pauline Johnson Elementary School where we completed grades 1—6. At that small, dingy convenience store, we could purchase three jaw breakers or two double-bubbles (with free cartoons and riddles) for a penny. Three or four cents would keep us high on sugar for the whole day.

That was half a century ago. Today, The Ridge no longer exists. Some developer bought the property many years ago and built apartments where we once shopped for candy. As a matter of fact, I don’t know of many independently owned 5 & 10 cent stores that exist anymore in the Greater Vancouver area.

During those same years, my family attended the Friendly Foursquare Church. About sixty of us, plus or minus a few inconsistent adherents, regularly worshipped every Sunday. At 10:00 a.m. was Sunday School, 11:00 was the worship service and at 7:00 p.m. we returned for the evangelistic service. (I don’t remember anyone actually becoming a believer in any of those services.) The Sunday evening service always concluded with prayer at the altar.

In the 1950’s, following World War II about 65% of Canadians attended church every Sunday. (40% were Roman Catholic and 60% were Protestant.) Because of the Lord’s Day Act, all stores were closed and there was not much else to do. All of my school friends went to Sunday School, at least till they were 10 or 12 years of age.

It’s different now

As I said earlier, those Ma & Pa stores and restaurants of the 1950’s are all but extinct now. Small stores were replaced first by strip malls or plazas; then by larger enclosed malls, and now by big box stores and Outlet Centers. No economically savvy person would consider opening up an independent convenience store today. Small family restaurants also are all but a thing of the past.

Today it’s 7/11, Giant Dollar Stores or nothing for all those convenience items; Tim Horton’s and Starbucks; chain restaurants such as Milestones, McDonald’s, White Spot or Montana’s dominate the food industry.

How about those small family churches? Where are they now? Over the past twenty years in our Tri-City area, we’ve seen about fifteen of them try starting up. Almost none have been successful.

Multi-ethnicity is the new reality

The exceptions to the trend are ethnic churches.

When I went to Elementary school in West Van, I remember a few kids who immigrated. An English boy named Andrew, who wore short pants in the winter, a Scot named Angus, a German boy (his name was Heinz, but he quickly changed it to Butch) and an Italian girl who I remember learned English in six months flat. Her name was Lena. I can’t recall ever knowing a Chinese, Korean or Iranian student.

Today, if I were to walk into the nearest school to my home in Coquitlam, the majority of the students would have black hair (some dyed orange) and brown eyes. Most of them would be Asian or Middle Eastern.

New churches are almost all ethnic

In the last year, we in the Foursquare Church of Canada have started or connected with a dozen new churches. Ten of the twelve are ethnic—Chinese, Korean, Filipino, Ethiopian, Arabic, Spanish, Haitian—there are a rainbow of colours in our Foursquare family today. It’s wonderful! Any successful church plant in our community over the past twenty years has been ethnic.

As I observe the social and ethnic changes that are all around us, it is evident that the church has to adapt its growth strategies to the new realities, or it will not survive. Any who remain the same will be rendered irrelevant.

Two of the most significant trends in our communities today (this relates largely to the major population centers) are restaurant and retail chains and multi-ethnic diversity.

Ten Reasons to Consider a Multi-site and/or Multi-ethnic Church Philosophy

There are many new trends in North American church growth today. To name a few, there are mega-churches, Alpha groups, home-based churches, video churches, web churches and multi-campus churches. My observation is that multi-site churches are a notable trend worth our careful study.

A multi-site church has one vision, one mission, one lead pastor (we call him pastor but in truth he is an entrepreneurial spiritual leader) but two or many more location. The sites, which may be called campuses or satellites, may all be in one community (such as Northside Church’s three campuses which are all within a 10 km triangle), or across provincial and even national boundaries.

Following are some of the notable components of a multi-site church.

1. A strong visionary, entrepreneurial leader
Again, we often misname this person as pastor, when in reality he or she may do little pastoring. A more apt biblical title may be bishop, but that word is often misunderstood because of its historical usage and misusage. Lead Pastor is as good a title as any. His or her primary gift should be leadership, but must also be skilled at vision, business, relationship building and leadership development. Romans 12:6a, 8 “Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” Because he is a spiritual leader, he should be prophetic, experienced, discerning, servant-hearted, wise, faith-filled, a teacher, spirit-filled and biblically mature.

In my experience, I’ve met hundreds of wonderful, gifted, spiritually mature pastors, but few of these are strong, entrepreneurial, spiritual leaders.

This lead pastor would take the lead and be the primary voice to all campuses. He may use teaching or care teams, but those teams must be led by the lead pastor.

2. Gifted pastors serving each campus
These pastors will be gifted in pastoral skills, which include teaching, care, encouragement, organization, counseling, healing and small group leadership. They should be willing to be #2 and not biting at the heels of the Lead Pastor.

They may be a husband/wife team, male, female, full-time, part-time, retired from secular work, Bible College educated or specifically trained for pastoral care.

Each campus, whether it’s a small group who meet in a remote area, or a significant size should have a recognized pastor whom congregants can talk to and receive care or counsel. The Campus pastor will likely not be the primary teacher/preacher, but may speak once a month or on special occasions (e.g. Christmas, Mother’s Day, Easter). Because he or she would not be responsible for administration, finance or preaching, they could likely serve part-time or be sixty plus years of age.

3. Accounting and finance and administration
Likely these three areas of management would be done by the head office staff. Thus there is a cost saving because there is no need to duplicate administrative staff. Offerings would be counted and put in the bank by each campus, but management, accounts receivable and payable, and reports would be done by the hub branch.

4. Hub churches
Like any chain store, there would be a head office. Likely the management and accounting would be done by the head office. The Network could be diagramed like this:

Secretarial – Also in the hub church, the secretarial pool would do all the major preparing and printing of bulletins, web page, newsletters, correspondence, Missions co-ordination, etc.

Telephone/communications – The hub church may well be the nerve centre of all communications. When a person calls, the receptionist will answer, “Life Centre Foursquare Church, Lisa speaking. How may I direct your call?” Then after the person answers, she can direct the call to any campus pastor in that area code, or take a message for that pastor or department head to return the call. The pastor of a small home-based campus may have a full-time job but still would receive the email, text, or call on his cell phone wherever he or she is.

5. Name branding and influence
If the truth were known most people in our communities and most political or educational leaders do not know that most churches (50% of churches are 75 people or less and many have no permanent address) even exist. If we shut down one week, very few people would notice or care.

But consider a hub church, with six campuses all by the same name who were spread throughout the community, advertised together, enjoyed each other’s success (one may specialize in 12 Steps, another in Alpha, care for the poor, or helping single moms); name brand t-shirts were worn by the teens and kids, bulletin boards and bus stops bore the church name and logo. Name branding and influence are important components of growth. The more campuses means more circles of influence and a wider reputation of the church.

In Northside Church, some have heard of our work with the poor, others with addicted, homeless, unwanted pregnancy, newspaper articles, TV appearances. A good reputation in our communities is a biblical directive.

6. Video
We live in a wonderful age to do church. Because the entire forty and under generations have been virtually reared on television, using video in church is as normal as live preaching was to their parents.

Focus on the Family, Alpha, courses such as marriage, divorce-care, grief care and others have been using video teaching successfully for years. It’s already widely accepted as a preferable way of communicating. In any church of four hundred or more, very few people actually have a conversation or relationship with the pastor. He is simply the person up front who preaches or teaches.

Listening to and watching a video is actually easier than a little live pastor on the stage. The image is often portrayed on two or more screens, is larger than life, brighter and placed higher than the pastor would normally stand.

7. A variety of traditions meet a variety of interests
Some multi-site churches offer a variety of worship styles. Northpoint Church, just north of San Diego has twenty-seven venues. Each offers the same sermon via video, but a different worship tradition. One campus may offer hymns with organ and piano music; another Christian Rock & Roll; another unplugged guitars and drums or Country-style. Several venues are side by side in a strip mall, so a family can come to church and each person can worship in the way God speaks to him.

A multi-site church may offer different campuses for a variety of ethnic traditions. The sermon may be the same; all the children and youth meet together, but the adults may gather in separate venues where the sermon is translated into Chinese, Korean or Farsi.

8. Cost Savings
Financing a church is an expensive endeavor in this generation. In the 1950’s a church, with a parsonage and about 70 congregants, could support a pastor and his family. Today it takes a church, with no parsonage and about 200 congregants, to support a pastor (and maybe a part-time youth leader and secretary).

Multi-site churches require that only one Lead Pastor be paid and the work he or she does is simply spread out further. One phone number for the church and one receptionist to answer the phones. One bulletin, one administrative person, one church council, one staff.

If buildings are close enough, programs can be run in any available space at either campus.

More buying power: Besides having more influence with Civic leaders, Newspapers and other churches, multi-site churches also can benefit from bulk purchase with suppliers.

9. Staff meetings are fun
In small one-pastor churches, leadership can be very exhausting. The pastor must serve as Jack-of-all-trades.

In a multi-site church, which becomes a multi-pastor church (even if the host pastor is volunteer or part-time) a pastor can work according to his or her gifts. That promotes fulfillment, productivity and joy.

Then there becomes a staff, who may meet evenings or weekends who are each working within their own gift, talent and skill set. Together, they are less competitive and more collegial. Staff meetings become fun and stimulating.

The Leader gives vision, direction, challenge and encouragement – everyone else finds satisfaction in being a part of something bigger and more influential.

10. Multi-site churches should not come from necessity, but by choice
None of us respond well to being forced into a corner. Churches are like people – they need leadership, but must choose to follow. Any decisions to move into multi-sites should be presented well in advance to elders, church councils, staff and membership.

The church needs to feel ownership of the vision (the big picture), as well as every enjoined campus.

Conclusion:
Multi-campus ministry is by no means a new idea. About 3000 years ago, a prophet named Samuel was given a 3 point charge by God.

Samuel’s circuit took him from Bethel, to Gilgal, to Mizpah. These three cities formed a triangle about 20 km wide. Samuel actually lived in Ramah, but made the circuit regularly.He worked as a judge (same word as savior) and a priest in all 3 places.

Much later in history, Methodist preachers in the US began traveling by horse back as circuit-riding preachers to multiple sites. Along the way they preached in people’s homes, court houses, fields and street corners. In 1784 there were 43 circuits and by 1844 they’d grown to 4000 circuit riders. Methodism grew to be the largest denomination in the US during those years because of their multi-site philosophy of ministry.

Calgary & Edmonton

2008-07-21T13:21:00.000-07:00

June 21, 2008

I had a great visit in beautiful Alberta this week. The highlight of my trip was the induction of Barry (& Audrey) Marsten as the Lead Pastor of our new 2-campus church in Calgary & Airdrie.

I've attached an article I wrote for them on Multi-site churches, following this entry. We have 7 of these Multi-site churches in Canadian Foursquare at this time, but I feel like this is just the beginning of a new wave.

During the weekend I also had an opportunity to meet with some new & also long-time Foursquare Pastors.

Jose & Ana Acosta are experienced Foursquare Spanish pastors who are starting a church in Calgary for Spanish-speaking people.

Doug & Lois Boyd and Jana Wasylyshyn are pastoring up in Edmonton. I was very excited to hear and see their plans for remodeling and adding to their present facility - New Life Church.

Greg & Val Kurjata are serving as Foursquare Evangelists. I love listening to the enthusiasm and passion that Greg brings to the table.

I first met Jonathan & Aimee Seloza in Manila. Jonathan was a Foursquare Pastor there in the Philippines. Now that he has come to join Aimee in Edmonton, their plan is to plant a Filipino Church in Edmonton.

BC Christian Academy

2008-07-21T13:14:00.000-07:00

June 18, 2008

I've worked alongside the leaders of BCCA since its inception. It's a great Christian School led by principal Ian Jarvie.

This week I had the honor of praying a dedicating prayer over the school, teachers and students as they move into their new building.

But it was a double honor because their new facility is what was formerly Lincoln Elementary School. Not only did our children, Kelly & Kristy, attend Lincoln from Grades 1-7 but it was also the school where our Northside Church was birthed and spent our first 7 years.

I hadn't been back since we built our PoCo Campus in 1987 - It was very nostalgic to stand and pray in that place that was dedicated to God on May 27, 1987.

Blessings to BC Christian Academy.

International Convention

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Houston, Texas

May 25, 2008

Several of our Foursquare leaders from Canada flew to Houston to meet together, while enjoying the encouragement and stimulation of the USA Convention.

About 20 of us were there altogether - we were treated like royalty by our American and International friends. And of course, we took one day to tour the Houston Space Centre.

Vancouver Korean Church

2008-07-21T11:46:00.000-07:00

May 25, 2008

On this Sunday I spoke at our largest Canadian Foursquare Korean Church. But more important than my sermon was the privilege I had of praying for (ordaining) several new deacons in the Church. Pastor Sam Nam was a gracious host to Susan & me.

Praise Christian Family Church

2008-07-21T11:40:00.000-07:00

May 18, 2008

We have 6 Filipino congregations in the Foursquare Church in Canada either fully going or just beginning. In May I was invited by Pastor Gina Dolor in Toronto to present their much-coveted Church Charter.

Congratulations to my beloved Filipino friends. Attending Gina's Church was just like being in the Philippines. After Church we had a grand feast including a roast pig - always the centre of any big Filipino celebration!

Francophone Conference

2008-07-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

April 21-23, 2008

Tom Gardner & I travelled back to Virginia in April. We have a wonderful Foursquare Conference Centre there called CrossPointe in Christiansburg, VA.

When the Muslim stronghold went bankrupt (a few Foursquare ladies nearby were praying for that) the Foursquare Gospel Church purchased the 100+ acres and developed it into a conference and retreat centre.

The Francophone Conference was attended by Foursquare Pastors & leaders from many of the 44 Francophone nations. I've included here an excerpt from Tom's notes on the conference:

We saw a video from the ICFG Convention in Jerusalem that chronicled the tearing down of a minaret (Moslem prayer tower) that was a part of the Conference Center in Christiansburg. The property had originally been purchased and developed as a training center for Islam in the geographical center in the Eastern part of the US. The center had a mosque that had never been worshiped in but had spiritual implications. The leadership of the US Church felt that the tower and mosque needed to be torn down. So Pastor Jack explained the rationale and the impact and promise of “towers coming down.” We viewed a DVD chronicling the fall of the tower on the property and we felt as though we were there and we appropriated this promise of the towers of Islam falling around the world and specifically in the French speaking countries of Africa and France.

The morning of April 22, 2008 was significant in that Canadians were the main presenters:

Barry opened with a brief overview of Canada communicating on some of the national
characteristics of our people and culture.

Shannon shared next about the struggles of coming into Quebec and breaking into the culture. She showed a video that helped people understand various parts of Quebec life and the need for the Gospel. Very interesting was the reality that Aimee’s meetings spawned many churches in Quebec and yet we have only the work in Sherbrooke at present.

Then Dan Fontaine shared passionately about the struggle for identity in Quebec and showed some very powerful videos to educate people about the history of Quebec in Canada. Dan represented us well.

Every meal we ate was representative of another French Nations cuisine. I believe this conference will spur us on in our development of Quebec as a Foursquare Province. Other national leaders, including Dan & Martine Lucero, who oversees our International French-speaking nations was enthusiastic about working beside us.

International Dinner

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February 2008

One of my favorite parts of ministry is celebrating with Internationals. I love the cultural differences that each of us brought to the table.

Our church is about 30% other-than-Canadian born, so many nations give flavor and color to all that we do. Here's a few pictures from an International dinner we had in February to celebrate Lunar New Year!

The Foursquare Church Continues to Assist Myanmar

2008-06-30T11:14:00.000-07:00

The Foursquare Church Continues to Assist Myanmar
June 30, 2008Foursquare News Service #338

The Foursquare Church continues to raise funds and provide hands-on, practical assistance to those severely impacted by Cyclone Nargis in southern Myanmar.

At Foursquare's International convention in Houston last month, an offering was taken to aid in the relief efforts in China and Myanmar. The contribution totaled $31,000 in cash and $154,000 in pledged gifts. Although local contacts in China are limited, Foursquare Missions International (FMI) staff have been able to assist with the relief work thanks to local contacts. As churches follow through with their commitment to ongoing relief assistance in Myanmar, their offerings will be used in the following ways:

Four-hundred-foot deep wells are being dug to provide clean water to locals, which is critical for health.
Twelve churches have been rebuilt.
Toilets are being provided.
Food, water and hygiene products are being delivered.
Community health education classes are being taught.
The first staging area in the Irawaddy division has been established.

Recent reports from leadership in this country indicate that courageous efforts are being made in response to Cyclone Nargis relief efforts. The current numbers circulating estimate that more than 147,000 have died and more than 2.5 million have been left homeless in the Irawaddy division of Myanmar.

People and churches have given and are continuing to assist financially as we carry out a long-term project in Myanmar, said George Butron, FMI regional representative to Asia. We are so grateful for their partnership.

Prophetic Message

While many lives were lost through this disaster, locals have still seen God work. Days prior to the destruction of Cyclone Nargis in southern Myanmar, the national leader of Foursquare Myanmar prayed on a rooftop in Yangon.

God spoke to him clearly and said: There is going to be a famine. It will be like the time of Joseph. You need to prepare.

The following Sunday, he went to his congregation and brought them the word he had received. He also told the people to withdraw all of their money out of their banks. The congregation initially treated the word as suspect, but many ultimately complied and retrieved their assets from the bank. Four days later all of the banks in the country closed due to the cyclone.
The people also responded to the prophecy by stocking their homes with rice, canned foods, cooking oil and other staple supplies. Immediately after the storm, everyone understood how God had prepared them for this disaster and they immediately began to help those in need in the city of Yangon and beyond.

Relief efforts are continuing in many ways. According to Tom Hinton, Global Connect coordinator for FMI, there is also an ongoing discussion for the purchase of land for rice development, a training center and an orphanage. Continued prayers and financial gifts from the Foursquare family are needed to assist those in Myanmar.

If you would like to give financially to assist in this Foursquare relief effort, please send contributions to Foursquare Missions International. Make your check out to ICFG, and write "Relief Fund" on the memo line.

Mail checks to:

Foursquare Missions
ATTN: Paulette McCammon
P.O. Box 26902 Los Angeles, CA 90026

10 Reasons Why We Go To Church...

2008-03-12T15:17:00.000-07:00

To conclude my 10 top reasons for our faithfully attending church, here are the last five:

· Because we are given an opportunity to give at church and we have to give to live. The Sea of Galilee in Israel is apparently a gorgeous turquoise lake of fresh water, teeming with all kinds of fish. It flows into the Jordan River, which descends hundreds of feet and ends in the lowest body of water on Earth, called the Dead Sea. Because the Dead Sea is so low, it has no outlet, there is nowhere for its water to flow—it flows in, but not out. As a result, the Dead Sea is so full of salt and other minerals that it cannot support life. It’s literally a Dead Sea.

That’s what happens to the person who does not give—he dies. There are dozens of outlets for our gifts at any healthy church. We help the poor, give counsel to people in need, provide a place for activities for the whole family, give to help missions in underprivileged countries, support orphans, provide worship, teaching and encouragement, etc. I can’t think of a better venue to support than the work of the church, which meets needs of the spirit, soul and body.

· Because everybody needs to give and receive encouragement. It takes courage to live in our world and life has a way of sapping that courage from us. The stress of work, bills, sickness, traffic, relationships, grief over loss, failure, accidents and family—even good stresses such as moving to a new home or neighbourhood, starting a new job, getting married or having a baby—tend to sap our daily intake of courage. Then we add a negative comment from our spouse, a child who disappoints, a pointed quip from a fellow worker, a pushy driver behind us, a negative news report or an assignment bigger than we can handle, and the discouragement side of the scale outweighs the encouragement side.

We all need to be encouraged regularly, to be around others who are encouragers and to give back our own words of encouragement. Someone once said, and I’ve found it to be true, that it takes seven words of encouragement to balance one word of discouragement.

· To pray with like-minded believers. Yes, we can pray by ourselves but praying in harmony with one or more others multiplies our enthusiasm and the weight of our words. There is power in agreement, Jesus said churches should primarily be houses of prayer or all nations. There are many venues for praying in church; whether corporate prayers, private prayers, pastoral prayers or small group prayers. God has promised He will respond to believing prayer that lines up with His will for us.

· Because we need to be accountable for our words and actions. No man is an island; we live in partnership with our circles of influence and are interconnected to the rest of the world around us. It does matter what we say because our words carry the power of life and death in them. It does matter how we behave, even in private, because every action affects someone else. Like it or not, we are all interdependent on our little planet.

Whether we are a small child or the Queen of England, we must be held accountable for what we say and do in our worlds. Ultimately, all of us will give an account of how we have used our time, talents, energy, money and words before God.

The Biblical mandate of believers is for each of us to be subject to one another while on earth. For pastor, leader, adult or child, accountability is necessary.

More Reasons Why We Go To Church...

2008-03-12T15:01:00.000-07:00

Christianity is not a solo activity, rather it can only be lived out interdependently. I have a friend who was working at a lumber mill up in central British Columbia when he had a serious accident. His hand was severed by a very large circular saw. I didn’t know him before the accident happened, only after, and so was shocked to hear him tell the story. I’d always seen two hands on him and witnessed him writing, picking up things and talking with his hands. When I seemed to show some disbelief, he showed me his scars and explained that the supervisor at the mill had called the medic team and had him flown down to Vancouver carrying his hand in a plastic bag. An amazing team of surgeons was able to sew his hand back onto his wrist so that it worked almost perfectly!

The reason that I tell that story is because the Bible compares the participants in a church to the various parts of our body. As our various organs and appendages need each other, so do we. My fingers are writing these words on the paper, but my eyes, heart, blood nerves, brain and muscles are all working in harmony to make that possible. Just as my friends’ severed hand needed to be reattached to his wrist, we as people need each other to accomplish the work we’ve been assigned by our Creator.

The church is a perfect vehicle for doing the work of God. Whether it is feeding or clothing the needy, teaching values to children, providing care and activities for our teens, giving prayer or counsel to a person in distress or a host of other community needs, each of us has been given a gift for the purpose of serving others. A healthy church provides us with a variety of opportunities to serve.

It also enables us to help others find peace with God. Someone once said of the church that we are merely “one beggar telling another beggar how to find bread.” I like that. It’s not that we are “in the know” or deserving in any way; it is simply that we have been told where the bread and water are. Now we have a responsibility to pass the good news along.

10 Reasons Why We Go To Church...

2008-03-12T11:52:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine spoke with me the other day about his 11 year old daughter. He’d apparently had a very serious discussion with her about going to church. Although their family faithfully attends a church in their city, Sara, their youngest, decided that she’d had enough. "After all", she argued, “going to church doesn’t make a person a Christian and besides that, there are a lot of people who do go to church who live worse lives than those who don’t go!” My friend asked for a bit of advice from me, not as a pastor, but as a dad whose kids both faithfully serve in our church along with their husbands and children.

I thought about my answer carefully, because I’ve asked the same questions as Sara a few times myself. I’ll write here on the 10 reasons I believe that everyone should faithfully be part of a local church, but before I do, let me say up front that I agree with my friend’s daughter. Going to church doesn’t make me a believer or get me points with God, and conversely, not going to church does not mark me as an infidel! Someone once said, “Going to church doesn’t make anyone Christian any more than putting a wheelbarrow into a garage makes it a car!”

Here are the first two of my 10 reasons why I believe we should all be active participants in a church.

We should faithfully attend church:

· to receive teaching from the textbook on our Christian life, the Bible. Just as every plant needs nurturing to grow, so does every living believer. The Word of God compares itself to water, milk, bread and meat because it nourishes us and keeps us healthy. Whether it is in a Sunday school class, celebration service or small group Bible Study, we need to learn and practice the principles of God’s Word. Attending church regularly is a discipline which leads us to spiritual nutrition, every bit as much as eating right provides us with physical nutrition.

· to worship our Creator and Lord. Worship (which literally means giving worth to) is fundamental to the Christian faith. It lies at the heart of the first three of the Ten Commandments because it has a significant effect on our lives. God does not have a big ego that says, “I must be told I’m great every day.” Worship doesn’t even change God; (He is unchangeable and all sufficient in Himself) rather worship aligns us with God and therefore, changes us! For that reason God commands us to honour Him always and set aside one day especially for Him. We call it a Sabbath day because Sabbath means to desist or stop. We stop our running for one day to be recharged, re-centered and re-aligned with our Creator. We were made to function that way. Without worship, we would tend toward self-centeredness, causing us to shrivel and eventually die spiritually. We need to worship and move toward God-centeredness.

Isn't this fascinating?

2008-02-27T14:25:00.000-08:00

February 9, 2008

2008-02-18T10:20:00.000-08:00

HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR!

One of the primary goals that I have for both Northside Church and the Foursquare Church of Canada is to promote International multi-cultural growth and fruitfulness. The theme was central to our founder, Aimee Semple McPherson's vision, "Dedicated unto the cause of Interdenominational and World-wide Evangelism" and is still firmly etched into the foundation stones of Angeles Temple.

Sister Aimee was a leader in the integration and equalization of those who had been persecuted in the USA, Blacks, Mexican, Gypsies, Jews and any other excluded minorities were lifted up and honored by her in a day when most churches had become frighteningly exclusive.

Canada has done a good work of equalizing immigrants from the nations of the world, and making our nation a model of multi-culteralism. (We have not done well by equalizing all faiths. In a nation where the large majority are "Christian" in belief, we have elevated all religions to sit side-by-side and slightly above Christianity).

But when it comes to traditions, customs, celebrations, languages and cuisine, we've learned so much from other nations. The rainbow of cultures has made Canada a very attractive nation. We have some of the most multi-cultural cities in the world here. Toronto leads the planet in multi-ethnicity!

So it's time the church caught up. We, whom Jesus said should provide a "house of prayer for all nations" have been strangely exclusive for the past years.

At Northside Church, we celebrated our International Ministries on Saturday. We had representation from 32 nations at the banquet. 370 of us crowded into our colorfully decorated Coquitlam sanctuary to celebrate our many cultures and food. Several languages were used in the entertainment, testimonies from many ethnic believers, celebration of our missionary work and great food from different nations was devoured.

Pastor Sam & Lily Ong (and their large team) planned and executed a very fun and successful evening.

In our Canadian Church too, we've expanded multiculturally. Of all the many church births and adoptions currently in process at least 12 of them are largely other nationalities with ethnic pastors. And there are many more in our expanding womb.

February 3, 2008

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CHERYL BEAR

My dear friends Randy & Cheryl Barnetson visited us today - Cheryl Bear sang a nature Doxology at all three services. They have not only served as Unit Supervisors of our Canadian First Nations Unit, but Cheryl has also earned her Doctorate in California. She graduates in May of this year - Congratulations Cheryl!

January 27-29, 2008

2008-02-14T10:40:00.000-08:00

BLIZZARDS

I flew to Saskatoon on Sunday and landed in -30c weather. I'd never experienced such cold before and was shocked. But what I didn't know was that a blizzard with wind chill of -50c was on its way during my visit.

It was such a pleasure to sit down with the leadership of our Saskatoon Church (Courts of Praise) and help them discover God's plan for a pastor. I'll write in a while about the decision we made together.

After Saskatoon I flew to Winnipeg to tape 3 more programs for "It's a New Day" with my dear friend Willard Thiessen. The 3 programs on "Sitting with the King" will air in mid-March. I also visited with our newest Filipino pastors Marcelo and Irene Rufon. I'm very excited about what God's doing among our Filipino population.

Despite the freezing temperatures I had a very warm and happy visit to two of our prairie provinces.

When I returned from the frozen prairies, I was surprised that we'd had 18 inches of snow at our place. Susan had to shovel our driveway, (It always seems to storm when I'm away) so my complaints about the -50c degree weather were not really heard.

January 27, 2008

2008-02-14T10:37:00.000-08:00

GRACE COMMUNITY CHURCH

Today Susan and I were invited to speak at one of our sister Churches in the Tri-Cities. Grace Community Church, pastored by Doug Fortune, has had a strong influence in our city for about 60 years. We've had a tight relationship for all the 30 years we've pastored in the Tri-Cities.

In the weeks to come, I'll write more on the impending partnership between our two churches. The future is bright!

January 26, 2008

2008-02-14T10:32:00.001-08:00

ALEX'S SPELLING BEE

Today Susan and I joined the rest of our family at our eldest grandson's spelling bee contest. Schools across the city of Port Moody had their brightest and best Grade 4 spellers compete in a bee. Out of the 30 students, Alex came out champion. He now goes to the Tri-City Competition.

Congratulations, Alexander - you're the product of good genes. Nana Susan was (and still is) a champion speller!

January 24, 2008

2008-02-12T16:46:00.000-08:00

PREGNANCY CONCERN BREAKFAST

I am on the Board of Advisors for Pregnancy Concern in our Tri-City Area. Do you know there are 34 abortions for every 100 live births in BC? That's one of the highest rates in our very liberal nation. I was so impressed with the work that Musu Taylor-Lewis and her team are doing that I invited her to talk to our church this Spring about how we can be involved and help the 403 women who will choose to abort their baby this year in the Tri-Cities.

January 23, 2008

2008-02-12T16:18:00.000-08:00

UNION GOSPEL MISSION

I wrote an article for our Tri-City Newspaper about my visit to the Union Gospel Mission:

February 10, 2008: Planting Trees

A couple of weeks ago I accepted an invitation to speak to a strong group of men who’d come off the streets, and agreed to be nurtured and taught by the Union Gospel Mission. The class of men ranged from early 20’s through to their 70’s but cumulatively had lived out the gamut of human experiences. They’d seen it all from the heights of exhilaration to the lowest depths of pain.

My assignment was to take an hour to widen their world by showing pictures and talking about my recent trip to Israel. I and a friend came armed with souvenirs, Jewish artifacts and a CD of pictures from the Holy Land. I told them about the history, geography, diverse cultures and significance of Israel.

In my conversations with the men, before the class began, I saw a keen sense of both, regret over their lost years but also hope for their future. As my session began, I knew that my assignment with them was more than just being a geography teacher—I was there to encourage and to stimulate the men. But I wasn’t sure how my travel log would serve to fulfill the mandate I felt.

After studying a map for a few minutes and quickly overviewing Israel’s 4000 years of history. I led the men on a pictorial tour of the Holy Land. We started in Jerusalem, went south to Masada and the Dead Sea, and then turned north to the fertility of the Galilean region.

As we were traversing the barren hills of Judea, an applicable insight dawned on me. As I shared it, I could see many of the men’s’ eyes begin to light up.

About 3500 years ago a General, named Joshua, led the children of Israel across the Jordan River to the most lush and fertile land in all of the Middle East. Pomegranates and grape clusters so big it took two men to carry them. Olives, figs, dates and every other fruit imaginable proliferated. After the Israelites settled in the land, kings from hundreds of miles around fought and killed to take ownership of the verdant garden land. That was then.

But over the years of conflict and poor environmental management that followed Israel’s defeat, trees were cut, land was cleared, crops were uncared for, and as a result weather patterns and ecology dramatically changed. What was once a Garden of Eden became a vast, dry wasteland. Rocks and sand were the only produce of Palestine.

Since Israel returned as a nation in 1948, there has been a restoration of many miles of the land. I showed the men the millions of trees that have been replanted in what had become a desert. Weather patterns are once again changing. The barren wasteland is becoming a garden. Even around the Dead Sea, there is hope and promise of a living future.

That’s the story I told to these men. They listened intently as I described what could once again transpire in a life that has been too often misspent and abused. It was happening in the souls of those very men—new trees; the possibility of delicious and nourishing fruit was being planted. It would take some diligence (they’d already been working on it for several weeks before I came). But their dreams and hopes for the future are within the realm of possibility.

Not only my class of men caught a glimpse of hope that day. I felt encouraged and stimulated by their enthusiastic response!

January 20, 2008

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BIBLE FELLOWSHIP

Susan and I were honored to visit and speak at our Bible Fellowship Foursquare Church in Surrey today. Pastors Steve and Becky Witmer (also Unit Supervisor of our North Country Unit & Executive Council member) lead one of the fastest growing congregations in our Foursquare family. We loved getting to know our friends "across the river" a little better.

January 15, 2008

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SOUTHSIDE SENIORS

It's hard for me to resist invitations like the one I had today to speak to the seniors at Southside Baptist Church. I talked about my book "Dying Well". The guests ranged from their 50's to their 90's, but it's never too early to think about our life purpose & finishing well.

I always am treated like an honored senior myself by Roy Yeo & his hearty group.

Old Men (Elders)

2008-02-07T15:37:00.000-08:00

I’ve been asked from time to time to comment on my interpretation of biblical Elders, and how we apply it in our own church life—so here’s a brief overview of my thoughts.

1. In Old Testament times older men (and women) of a community were known as elders. They governed the family-centered communities and made all major decisions.

Moses would often call the elders together to keep them informed of news from God.

Exodus 4:29&39 Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the sons of Israel; and Aaron spoke all the words which the LORD had spoken to Moses He then performed the signs in the sight of the people. Or to give directions from God,

Exodus 12:21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go and take for yourselves lambs according to your families, and slay the Passover lamb.

At Mount Sinai, he had seventy elders with him. Moses did not record how the seventy were chosen. Later, his journal says that, “He gathered seventy men of the elders of the people. (Numbers 11:25) He stationed them around the Tabernacle and they prophesied.

2. Under the rule of the Israelite kings, elders still functioned, along with tribal heads, and patriarchal leaders, for spiritual leadership.

I Kings 8:1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers' households of the sons of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the city of David, which is Zion.

Each town had their own group of elders.

I Samuel 16:4 So Samuel did what the LORD said, and came to Bethlehem And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, "Do you come in peace?”

Ezra 10:14 "Let our leaders represent the whole assembly and let all those in our cities who have married foreign wives come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each city, until the fierce anger of our God on account of this matter is turned away from us."

3. After Israel’s return from exile in Babylon, the elders made up a ruling group called the Sanhedrin. They were the governing council of Jews.

4. In Jesus’ time the elders were still respected as community leaders. They joined with the priests and scribes in opposition to Jesus’ ministry.

Matthew 27:12 And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer.

5. After Jesus’ resurrection, in the churches elders were appointed from each congregation. Acts 14:23 When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. Paul the Apostle and his team seemed to do the appointing.

6. The Greek term presbuteros, from where we get the word presbytery, simply means an old man. It was also used of older women. Presbuterion was an assembly of older men. (Interestingly, the NAS Bible translators, who seem to have a bias against women elders, translated the feminine word as old women rather than women elders (I Timothy 5:2).) Church history tells us that anyone over forty years old was considered to be an elder, and was therefore given special recognition and respect.

7. The terms bishop (overseer – episcope) and elder were used interchangeably in the New Testament church. See Acts 20:17 with Acts 20:28, and also Titus 1:5 with Titus 1:7.

A high bar was set for spiritual leaders in both I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:6-9 by the Apostle Paul. Their duties involved spiritual oversight of the congregation and teaching of the Word.

8. God used the word elders to describe the spiritual heads of heaven. Twenty-four elders sit around the throne of God. They seem to be leaders of worship.

Revelation 5:8 When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

APPLICATION:
Because the cultures of Moses’ and Jesus’ days were so different from our own, applying eldership in our North American culture is difficult. The picture of eldership in the New Testament is also vague. Perhaps the reason for the little explanation is two-fold:

Everyone, Christian and pagan alike, understood the respected place of elders in community life and so explanation would have been redundant.

Perhaps eldership was never intended by God to have a legalistic application. We should use elders within our own context and traditions as they can serve us best.

There are three main styles of government in churches today:

1. Most common is a democratic system. (The word democratic means rule of the people or mob-rule.) Because our Canadian and American governmental systems are designed as democracies, Christians have adapted political democracies to the Church. We call this a Congregational system of government.

Congregation

Representative Board

Pastor

They work like this: Any major issues must be agreed upon by a majority of members. To make governing easier, the congregation of members vote for men (usually men only qualify in Congregational churches) or women whom they feel qualify to represent them and their ideas.

The Board of Representatives carries the weight of rulership in the church. They (or a specially appointed search committee) hire a pastor, and the pastor-leaders work under the covering at the discretion of the Board.

The Board are elected for a term of office by the membership and are accountable to the membership.

2. Many churches operate by Eldership in leadership. These are called Presbyterian styled churches.

Although systems vary from church to church, typically the Elders, who are considered spiritual leaders, usually older men, are elected (or appointed) by the membership. Terms may be limited or perpetual. They operate somewhat like the Senate of our countries.

Elders (Presbytery)

Pastor

Congregation

The lead pastor may be one of the board of elders. He will meet with them regularly, perhaps weekly, to discuss all the business and ministry of the church.

Often different elders will carry unique assignments e.g., finance, facilities, worship and music, youth, children, etc. The elders will make most decisions and are trusted by the congregation.

3. Other churches use an Episcopal model (Bishop-led) which runs top-down, rather than bottom-up. The Roman Catholic and Anglican churches use this system. Roman Catholics, for example fall under the leadership of the Pope, his Cardinals, Archbishops, bishops, priests, etc. Decisions are made at the top levels and the congregation does not have much say.

President (Archbishop, Pope)

Bishops (Cardinals, Supervisors)

Pastor/Priest

Elders/Council/Board/Deacons

Congregation

4. In Foursquare churches, we use what we call a modified Episcopal style of government. In a diagram it would look like this:

National Board (voted in by the membership)

President (chosen by the National Board)

Unit Supervisors

Elders

Council or Board

Senior Pastor

Congregation

Note well that each of the four systems I’ve mentioned can work well or poorly. The reason is that each system is composed of flawed people. Each would consider their system a theocracy (God-ruled). God rules through the congregation, a Board, Eldership, or pastor. Each has positives and strengths but also has weaknesses.

Pastors are chosen by the Unit Supervisors. Church councils are chosen however the individual church decides, by election or by selection. The Council serves at the pleasure of the pastor as counselors to him or her. They serve in a limited term (4 – 6 years) and help make decisions on finance, facilities and business. They are not a ruling board, but should nevertheless be highly respected.

In our church (Northside Church) we select council members of various ages (20’s to 60’s), occupations, both men and women. They have a two-year term and may serve three terms. As Lead Pastor, I submit to their counsel, just as I, as a husband, submit to my wife’s counsel. Nevertheless, I carry the final voice in our congregation and therefore set the vision and direction of our church.

Elders in our church are also submissive and supportive of the pastoral office. In our church I call anyone, over forty, who has a good reputation and is a maturing believer, an elder. We have perhaps two hundred elders whom I can call together to give counsel on future plans and vision. We may meet three or four times a year and they are the first to be informed about any major change. They do not vote, but all have freedom to express their thoughts and ideas. We would pray together for God’s mind on new direction.

Associate Pastors, in our congregation, are chosen by the Lead Pastor or Executive Pastor. They are then hired by the Church Council, their salary is set by the Church Council and they can be dismissed only by the Church Council. Dismissal for any pastor could come because of immorality, heresy or inability to perform their duties.

In addition to the larger eldership of Northside Church, each pastor is expected to choose four to six elders who know him or her personally, and who can watch over their spiritual, emotional, mental and physical health and well-being. The relationship between elders and pastors must be open, frank, loving and godly.

The term Pastor is also unclear in our New Testaments. We use the term to describe the spiritual leaders of a congregation, but perhaps that is not accurate. Pastors (used interchangeably with elders and bishops) in the Bible seem to be caretakers of small home churches. They likely all had other jobs.

Pastors in Ephesians 4:11 are gifted caregivers, like shepherds are of sheep, of a group of people. Our home group leaders and counselors serve more as pastors than some of the men and women we call Pastors.

My point is that the Bible model of Church structure is unclear. It was a home-church structure in a family-centered society. We live in a much different world today, and must find a system that works for us. We should be very careful not to be judgmental of other systems.

Acts 17:24-28 "The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.'

Ultimately, we would all agree that Church should be a Theocracy (God-ruled).

Psalm 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He is our Shepherd (pastor), the Guardian of our souls.

I Peter 2:25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls. (Jesus)
We, (pastors, bishops, elders, leaders) serve at his pleasure and bidding to do his will. Our call and our gifting from God will determine what his will is.

What NOT to give her for Valentines Day

2008-02-07T14:05:00.000-08:00

1. A box of chocolates, clumsily rearranged in an attempt to hide the fact
you ate all the caramel ones.
2. Lingerie that you think will look almost as good on her as on the
Victoria's Secret model.
3. Any clothing item with the words "push-up" or "slim-down" on the label.
4. Any food item with the words "diet", "light", or "high fiber" on the
label.
5. Any video starring Sylvester Stallone, Jim Carrey, or Angelina Jolie.
6. Flowers from a hospital's gift shop--or worse, a mortuary's.
7. Poetry, no matter how heartfelt, that starts out "There was once a girl
from Nantucket..."
8. Anything you ever gave another woman, including your mother.
9. Any household appliance, power tool or other item from the harder side
of Sears.
10. A gift certificate.
11. Cash.
12. Anything you could have bought at the gas station mini-mart on the way
over, even if you didn't.
13. An apologetic look and the words "That was today?"

January 13, 2008

2008-01-14T16:32:00.000-08:00

This week after our 3 morning services I was privileged to speak to our Northside Korean congregation. Pastor Changhun Suk gives leadership to this growing group of believers. By Spring, we'll have simultaneous translations in our 10am service to both Chinese & Korean.

Praise Le Balintaculo

2008-01-14T16:27:00.000-08:00

While I was in Toronto, I took a half-hour to drop in on one of my Filipino "daughters". Praise Le moved from the Ilo Ilo area to serve as a care-giver for a dear Jewish family. It was such a warm delight to have tea with her and her kids.

Praise Le is representative of the 100's of thousands of Filipinos who've moved to Canada over the last years. I'm asking the 2200 Foursquare Churches of the Philippines to advise us of any Foursquare members who've moved to Canadian cities. We already have several Filipino congregations either going now or ready to begin across our nation.

January 9, 2008 Toronto the Good

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Today I left for a quick trip to the Greater Toronto Area where fully one-third of our Canadian population live. I spent one day with Pastor Ron Morin visiting pastors & church facilities he has been influential in bringing into the Foursquare fold.

It was inspiring to see the enthusiasm of a range of multi-ethnic leaders God has raised up in Toronto. Caribbean, Brazilian, African, Filipino, Bulgarian, Spanish churches are representative of the most multi-cultural city in Canada.

I met with Marion Raymond who serves as the "bishop" of Ontario churches. As a mom and spiritual overseer, Marion enjoys wide respect and honor.

January 8, 2008 National Board

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The Foursquare Church of Canada is overseen by a Board from across the Nation. 5 or 6 times a year we meet to pray and discuss the business of the church. Topics such as church properties being sold or purchased, finances, insurance, pastoral changes and national growth strategies provide major points of discussion.

The National Board is elected by the Membership of our National church and they hold the highest authority in the Foursquare denomination. I as the president, serve the church under the appointment of the Board.

Alongside of me are also two other significant groups of leaders. An Executive Council of 5 work with me to give me counsel concerning all the daily matters of church life. In meetings, such as we had all day yesterday, we pray about and discuss pastoral care and health, leadership development and enrichment, church growth and expansion and overseas missions.

Then there are Unit Supervisors of our 8 regions across Canada who provide for me a hands-on touch with our pastors and churches. These invaluable men and women represent me in the day to day oversight of our churches and pastors.

I thank God for these 3 groups of spiritual elders in our Canadian Church. They, along with Rebecca, Rhonda and Tina on our National Staff are gifts of God to the Foursquare Gospel Church and to me. They are also my dearly loved friends! I pray that each of them will be generously rewarded for their generous gifts of service, with God's power, peace and prosperity.

January 4-7, 2008

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Rather than buy gifts this year, Susan and I decided to treat our kids and grandkids to three nights and four days up the mountain. We chose a large home up at Big White to rent for the 12 of us.

What a gorgeous setting. The snow was deep and lush – the trees, as Madeline said were like brides dressed in white lace for their weddings.

The grandkids all took ski lessons and had a ball skiing, snowboarding and tubing. But best of all was sitting around the table as a family. Kelly took breakfast, Kristy, lunch, and Susan and I prepared dinner each evening. It was a restful, exhausting, refreshing and fun week together.

On Sunday afternoon we got in our cars and headed home – back to reality. Monday morning work waits!

December 26, 2007

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On Boxing Day, Susan and I joined with my brothers Dave and Rob, and their wives, for a ferry ride to Parksville. Usually all of our Buzza family (6 siblings, our spouses, plus 50+ kids and grandkids) get together; but this year we joined my 2 sisters, Linda & Heather (and husbands) at Linda’s and Al’s home in Parksville. We had a ball walking on the beach, eating and playing games – boys against the girls (boys won!).

I haven’t spent much time at the office other than to do what was necessary, but God’s doing some very big things in both our church and the National Church. I’ll write about both as events unfold.

After spending New Year’s with family, doing some painting of our home, and keeping up with work necessities, our immediate family took a mini-vacation together up at Big White near Kelowna.

December 25, 2007

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Christmas morning was quiet for Susan and me. We sat, had coffee and watched the twinkling Christmas tree lights; while our kids spent time with their in-laws.
After lunch, I picked up Susan’s mom and we all got together to open our presents and visit before turkey dinner. Thank God for the family he’s given us!

December 24, 2007

2008-01-12T13:47:00.001-08:00

I love our Christmas Eve Services as much as any all year. I lead the one at 6pm and Terry officiates at 11pm. We squeeze more people into that service than any all year. There’s something about the single Nativity story and Christmas carols that draws people. It’s fun to watch as neighbors and family fill the streets walking to the service.

After we go home, Christmas Eve is one of the times our family gets together to eat, laugh and watch our grandkids open their stockings. This year several friends joined in the fun.

December 21, 2007

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It’s been a long, but refreshing Winter break for our family. Our Christmas season began with Susan’s birthday on December 21. We all (Our daughters Kelly and Kristy, their husbands and their six kids) went out to dinner to Montana’s – the moose horns are to honor Susan for her birthday.

Then we headed to Capilano Suspension Bridge to take the decorated walk over the deep and dark valley. We spent about an hour enjoying the lights and scenery and then returned to have cake and open presents. For Susan, being with our grandkids is the happiest way to celebrate.

Another orphanage in India

2007-12-12T13:51:00.001-08:00

It seems I’m constantly hearing about other projects happening through our members. One of our ladies groups has been active for several years knitting, sewing and creating. They’ve sent 140 afghans (knitted quilts) to the Premanando Orphanage in Ongole, India. They’ve also sent 255 colourful afghans plus baby quilts, pajamas and hand-made greeting cards to shut-ins and orphans in Ukraine and Romania.

The women have also sent afghans to Nicaragua and Cost Rica with Ginny Sperling. The work goes on, and the fulfillment and joy keeps circling back to all of us.

Giving is in this Christmas

2007-12-12T13:49:00.000-08:00

I talk a lot about “giving” in our church. I believe it is the key to our health and growth—people keep on responding, we keep on expanding and the cycle goes round and round.

The Mat Program in our Tri-Cities is about inviting the homeless street people into our Poco church building during the cold winter months. We, and a few other giving churches in our community, have each offered our buildings as overnight homes for one month. We provide a warm, safe place for them to sleep, plus dinner and breakfast.

December has been our month to participate, and with temperatures dipping below zero, it’s been very well received. Our guests have been gracious and thankful

On Sunday, I simply asked the church if they’d be willing to volunteer their help. We need people to serve and clean-up, but we also need warm clothes, casseroles, fruit, drinks, etc. Before the three services were done, we had enough volunteers to fill every need, plus multiple offers for food.

Today there was parade of people bringing the things we asked for. One man received a bonus from his boss; he went out and purchased a whole bag of underwear. Another lady had knit a big bunch of scarves and toques which she gave. The gift goes on……

Pastor Ingrid mentioned the project our kids are giving towards to buy gifts for Romanian orphans connected to our church. A couple of kids stood at the door with boots in hand to collect spare change. Our church gave another $1,500+ as they were leaving the services. Thank you Lord for your grace and generosity!

December 5

2007-12-04T15:34:00.000-08:00

Next Tuesday is going to be one of my favorite days this year. I've asked several of our visionary entrepreneur pastors from across Canada to meet with our Executive Council and National Board to talk about their visions for church health and reproduction over the next few years
I've been hearing such inspiring dreams and plans from several of our pastors lately. from almost every unit across Canada. We're using terms that relate human reproduction. Rather than using agricultural metaphors such as planting, we're thinking about birthing, adopting and fostering churches.
I've been hearing some encouraging stories that run parallel to my own vision for the Canadian church. They include multiple campuses, video churches, house churches, multiple births (birthing 2 or 3 churches at a time), adopting established ethnic churches and fostering (that word means they are not family, but they are in relationship) independent churches.
I'll write again after our day of listening next Tuesday. I think you will feel the rising enthusiasm and maybe hear something from the Father of the Church yourself.