A Message from Pastor Steve
Greetings Dear Church!
How strange these days have been, complete with a snowstorm in May, which is not totally uncommon for us, I suppose! Many of us had already switched to our summer treads, so the practice of isolation became more isolating, because taking to the roads would have been ill advised!
This week began with a beautiful sunny day with new rays of hope, especially for our beautiful province of New Brunswick.
We can be proud that we have done a wonderful job of “flattening the curve”. Now we carefully look ahead to gradual openings while remaining committed to the advice of our medical professionals and government leadership.
In my conversations with folks, the Scripture verse Philippians 4:4-7 has come up often.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
As we march forward in our days and weeks ahead, it would be nice to have some control of our personal situations and the circumstances we face. However, in many cases, that’s not possible. But what we can do is take the advise of the apostle Paul from the above passage with prayer and supplication, trusting that God hears our prayers and is always in control.
On a personal note, the Covid virus has changed all the plans surrounding our daughter Lauren’s wedding, but her and fiancé Benji have decided to move forward with a very intimate ceremony that will adhere to the gathering laws. A larger celebration will happen at some time in the future when family and friends are able to join them to celebrate! We shall rejoice and praise God that they can still join in holy matrimony before our awesome God!
Cindy’s travel nursing position has been placed on hold with new stipulations preventing her from making a travel commitment to 1st Nations communities in northern Manitoba, reducing her employment to part-time here at home. Praise God! She will be home with us for the next two to three months! This in itself brings peace to our family.
We don’t have control over these circumstances, and so the apostle Paul urges us to first rejoice, and then to pray while expecting a peace that only God can provide.
I have enjoyed meeting with some of you during the weekly zoom calls on Tuesday evenings at 7pm and Friday mornings at 10am. We have plenty of room for anyone wishing to join in! Please send me a personal email if you would like to receive an invite with simple instruction of how to join in! steve@bsbc.nb.ca
Finally, I am beginning a weekly Wednesday evening zoom bible study on May 20th at 6:30pm. We will be going through the entire book of Philippians over the course of 6 weeks. All you need to join is a bible! Please send me an email if you wish to join this study to the address above. I will be sure to send you an invite!
I pray a blessing on your week, in the name of Jesus!
With warm regards,
Pastor Steve
