Merry Christmas from Rob, Karen and the LPD Family
Here is a 2.3 minute video Christmas Greeting that we would be thankful for you sharing with your congregation this Sunday
A short video greeting from Rob Stewart, LPD District Superintendent
Here is a Christmas Letter to you from Karen, me and our Lower Pacific District
Rob_and_Karen_Christmas_letter_2020
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Leading Without a Chart
One the essential items aboard our sailboat is our set of nautical charts. These assist us to navigate safely through the Gulf Islands, and provide bearings for our compass. They also mark hazardous reefs and rocks to avoid and sheltered bays where we can seek safe anchorage.
Early explorers would rely upon their own skill to safely navigate the waters of the Salish Sea, find hazards below and draw charts for those who would follow.. I am thankful for those who have provided us with these guides to safe passage. Our waters are riddled with wrecks of ships that have either not known of the hazards below or those who failed to consult their charts.
Sometimes, however, one must sail into uncharted waters. There are no markers, lighthouses or other aids to navigation. There is no “old salt,” from whom one can seek counsel on how to navigate. One must rely upon one’s self, and trust God for guidance and watchcare.
Similarly, many of us have felt like we have been sailing uncharted waters these days as we lead churches. There is no “manual” as to how to safely navigate churches through a pandemic. We have had to learn new skills and trust for God’s guidance and watchcare.
When I reflect on the first Christmas, I believe that both Mary and Joseph learned something about “sailing” uncharted waters. A young girl is told that she will carry, bear and raise the child of God. Her husband-to-be, Joseph, is told by an angel that his fiance’s child is not the result of her unfaithfulness to him, but of God’s faithfulness to His promise. This child is to be named “Jesus,” because He will save his people from their sins.
There was no “chart” or “manual” for them to follow. How would they tell their family and friends? What would people say? How do you parent the child God? Mary and Joseph had to simply trust God and to walk by faith and not sight. Aren’t we all glad that they did!
As they traveled to Bethlehem, it was not with some grand hopes of fulfilling biblical prophecies. Rather, it was in obedience to the decree of the Roman Emperor, Caesar Augustus that a census was to be taken. Joseph was obliged to return to the city of Bethlehem, due to him being a descendant of David. In obeying the decree of this occupying/foreign Emperor, Mary and Joseph were actually aligning themselves with God’s sovereign purposes. (Perhaps applicable to us this Christmas).
The popular contemporary Christmas song, “Mary, Did You Know?,” captures this faithful, yet uncalculated mission of Mary and Joseph so well: Mary, Did You Know?
As I have walked alongside (sometimes at social distance) your church over these months of COVID, it has been a joy to see God at work in district churches. There has been a renewal in prayer. We have all learned new skills. People have come to faith. Others, many of whom might not ever attend a church (i.e.our neighbours), will “attend” virtually on Christmas Eve and hear the Gospel.
In recent years, churches have tended to rely upon “charts” drawn up by large, innovative and “successful” churches. Those on the “cutting edge” do something “new,” and others flock to seminars to learn their formulas and purchase the “charts” and books that they write. We tend to trust “methods.” Today, under COVID, we are free to innovate, to rethink and to trust God to use us in the midst of pandemic. Perhaps we will learn more of what it means to walk by faith rather than sight, and this can only be a good thing – if our faith is placed in our God – the one who loved us enough to send His Son to be our rescuer and redeemer.
When Karen and I celebrated our 40th anniversary in 2019, we gave to each of our children an etched glass sailboat, on which the following Bible verse is inscribed, “For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end. ” (Psalm 48:14).
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Dan Reiland offers some good advice to this end in his article, “Three Principles to Guide You When Nuance Overtakes Strategy.”
3-principles-to-guide-you-when-nuance-overtakes-strategy/
Merry Christmas to you and to your church family! May God bless you and others through you in 2021!
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CHRISTMAS EVENTS FOR ALL
Johnston Heights Drive-In Christmas Eve Service
1:30, 3PM, 4:30PM and 6PM
Register online at:
https://hopetoyou.com/christmas-eve
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Northside Community Church Christmas Eve Service – 6PM – online
