The Banner
In this issue:
1. Wow! Wow! And once again, WOW!
2. Our Next ‘Drive’ to Help Our Homeless
3. It’s Valentine Party Time
4. Annual Business Meeting – A New Approach for February 24
5. A Note from the VanSlykes
6. Church Staff Updates
7. Worship Services This Sunday, February 14
8. “Life Together” Sermon Series
9. Annual Report Booklets for 2020
10. Annual Business Meeting/Changes to the Constitution
11. The Sun-Lite Program
1. Wow! Wow! And once again, WOW!
Last Wednesday, our newsletter went out with the need for muffins and dollars to provide weekend breakfasts for the Phoenix Learning Center. By late Friday afternoon, more than 90 dozen muffins and $450 had come into the church office! Wow. Wow! And once again, WOW!
Church family, on behalf of your Social Action Team and our partners at the Phoenix Learning Center, thank you for such loving and proactive service. So, we have all the muffins we need and are close to our $600 goal needed to purchase the other items required.
And, on that note, Pastor Steve made arrangements with Victory Meat Market for our weekly order — buy local! — and was asked by management there if they could partner with us to partner with Phoenix. So, any costs over our budgeted amount (and there have been changes in what is needed – adding, for instance, yoghurt cups) will be covered by Victory.
So, you did that. How else can you help…well, we’ve got the answer…please read on to the next article from Pastor Steve.
God bless you, dear brothers and sisters!
Pastor Greg
2. Our Next 'Drive' to Help the Homeless
Dear church,
As you are aware, we've recently engaged in practical ways to help our homeless friends with the weekend breakfast program which is a combination of purchasing breakfast items in partnership with the Victory Meat Market and making homemade muffins for delivery to the Phoenix Learning Center. Thank you for your tremendous response!!
Sadly, there are still some homeless people sleeping rough outside, and so we continue to seek other ways to serve and be helpful.
More ways we can help and serve
I have been in contact with Radical Edge who sell hand warmers and re-usable emergency blankets that use and contain natural body heat to help people stay warm. The cost for one box of 80 warmers is $51 and one thermal blanket is less than $7. We would like to purchase approximately 10 boxes of warmers to start and 15-20 blankets to provide to our street level friends. This would amount to just under $750.
Pastor Charles and I are in the process of gathering some volunteers from the Just Church young adults and from our church to deliver these helpful provisions. We have welcomed the help of Shelby McIntyre, from the John Howard Society, who is aware of the usual locations of where to find the 15-20 who are enduring the cold at night.
How you can help
With your help we hope to continue to show that we care in practical ways. To that end, would you:
Consider giving toward this project by marking your donation “Warmers”; and
Consider purchasing your own hand warmers and/or these emergency blankets (available at Radical Edge) and delivering your gifts to the church office.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at steve@bsbc.nb.ca or 458-8348. May the Lord bless your continued giving so that together we may serve with compassion.
In His service,
Pastor Steve
3. It's (Almost) Party Time: You're Invited!
It’s time for our children to party together, a party to celebrate God’s love!
When
THIS Saturday, Feb. 13 at 2 p.m., we’ll have a celebration of all things Valentine.
Where
This party will take place on FACEBOOK Live so everyone can join.
How
All you need to do is to go to Facebook and look up Brunswick Street Baptist Church – you can pick up our live stream and enjoy the event (NO MATTER how old you are!!!!).
Register today
Each child who is registered for the party will have a valentine treat bag delivered to their home complete with a craft, party favours, and treats.
Even if we can’t be physically together, we can be together virtually and party under the “umbrella” of God’s love. Click on the link below to register your child(ren). Plan for some fun with your Pastors!
4. Annual Business Meeting: A New Approach for Feb. 24
Dear Church Family,
I’m sure you’re familiar with the term The Covid Pivot. That means, you’ve planned one thing and then the implications of safely navigating a global pandemic require a change of plan. Well, when it comes to our Annual Business Meeting, we’re asking you to consider The Covid Pivot.
When we set the date for the meeting, the Moderator and I agreed that if we weren’t at the yellow level of operation, we would postpone the meeting until that was the case. Well, we both confess that we were thinking in terms of another week or two. But, our provincial leadership have signalled that the orange level will be with us for many weeks. Current wisdom seems to think that yellow may return post-Easter.
Because the Annual Business Meeting is required to approve leadership changes and financial directions, among other things, the chairpersons of our Boards, Kellie Brown and Paul Milburn, our Moderator, Dennis Taylor, and I have reconsidered the situation in light of provincial guidelines.
And speaking of those guidelines, while in orange, churches are allowed gatherings of up to 50 people IF the space allows for social distancing between bubbles. In our case, that would allow us to have three locations (sanctuary, gym, third floor) with 25 people in each — making provision for 75 people. YET, we recognize that not everyone will be comfortable with such mutual convening and so, we would make provision for people to attend and engage in the meeting through Zoom, allowing us the possibility of reaching a quorum of 75 between in-person and online attendees.
Therefore, we are asking for you to weigh-in on the possibility of keeping the Annual Business Meeting date of Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 6:30 p.m. The following note from our Moderator will give more explanation and seek your help in weighing this option by having you pre-register ASAP so we can determine IF this combined online/in-person approach will work.
Thank you for considering this particular Covid Pivot at BSBC. Your prayerful engagement is requested.
Every blessing,
Pastor Greg
From Our Moderator, Dennis Taylor:
Our constitution requires 75 members participating to constitute a quorum for the Annual Business Meeting. With socially distant seating, 25 members within their family bubbles should be able to be seated in the sanctuary, gym and third floor. A live feed to the gymnasium and third floor will be established and opportunity will be provided for those in the gym and third floor to pose questions to presenters in the sanctuary. Therefore, to ensure we know how many members will be attending in-person and so we can assign seating, please pre-register by clicking on the link below.
Because some members may be hesitant to attend in-person out of COVID-19 concerns, members are also invited to attend via Zoom. These members will also count towards the quorum, as the constitution is silent on this option, given the constitution was written never contemplating a COVID-19 environment. Zoom participants will also be able to vote on motions. To register your intent to participate by Zoom, also click on the Registration link below.
I look forward to the possibility of us all participating in this unique Annual Business Meeting. To make that decision, we need your engagement through pre-registration. Thank you.
5. A Personal Note From the VanSlykes
On behalf of Deborah VanSlyke and the family, I want to thank you for your prayers. Deborah is recovering from a benign brain tumour discovered in mid-December and a stroke during surgery. She has been engaged in rehab at the DECH since early January and is making wonderful progress. She is working hard to return home in March. Her spirits are good. We appreciate continued prayer and seek a full recovery.
Stephen VanSlyke
6. Church Staff Updates
Wellington Franca
We’ve a new team member and we’re grateful for his ministry! Wellington Franca has joined our church staff team as our Facility Assistant. Wellington’s role is to provide, on a part time basis, things like ministry set up, odd jobs like light bulb replacement, overall building organization, especially in our many storage areas.
Wellington doesn’t have regular hours but comes in as needed and as requested by the Board of Management or pastoral/administrative staff. Wellington has already proven to be a great addition to our team. Wellington is married to Tina Franca, our Elementary Coordinator, and dad to Ruth. We are so blessed to have had the Francas join our BSBC after their move to Canada from Brazil.
Janet Mitchell
We encourage you to continue to pray for Janet Mitchell who is at home recovering from knee-replacement surgery. As mentioned before, if you would like to get a card to Janet, you can drop it off at the church office and we’ll deliver them, weekly, to her home. Estimated recovery time is 6-8 weeks.
Sarah Millette
In Janet’s absence, we’re grateful that Sarah Millette has agreed to join our administrative team on a part-time basis. Sarah is married to Pastor Charles and mom to Lucie, Victoria, and Joseph. So, if you contact the church office, Sarah may be the cheery voice you hear.
Otherwise, you’ll hear the cheery voice of Naomi Phillips. Please pray for Naomi and Sarah as they provide administrative ministry in these days.
7. This Sunday's Worship Livestream
Happy Valentine’s Day! What a great thing to do — join together in celebration of the Author of Love on Valentine’s Day 2021. Join us for our live ONLINE services (not in-person) from both the gym and sanctuary this Sunday, Feb. 14. Tune in by 10:25 a.m. and you’ll be set for all we have to share. Thanks to our innovative tech team, both services are live each Sunday morning (or you can watch the recording of either service for the rest of the week).
Worship leaders
In the gym, Sarah Hoyt and friends will be your worship leaders. In the sanctuary, David Steeves and Gloria Tranquilla are joined in musical worship leadership by Scott and Tara Kennedy (violin/piano). Please tell your kids that their friends, Caleb and Cassidy Hoyt, will be providing this week’s children’s time with a very loving message for all.
His Name is Power
In addition, this Sunday in both service we’ll be launching our “His Name is Power” segment. This week, Denise Mersereau will be interviewing Bolpar Vinh-Doyle, who will share a moment in her life when she came to know the power of Jesus’ name. Denise will be offering these interviews on the second Sunday of each month, while Pastor Charles will be preparing a testimony video of one of our church family for the fourth Sunday of each month. We’re sure that you will find rich blessing through “His Name is Power.”
Sermon notes
Dr. Bodner is taking us back to the book of Acts, leading us further into chapter 20. He writes:
In the city of Troas there is an incredible event in Acts 20:7-12: a young man named Eutychus is sitting in a window listening to the apostle Paul, but then falls three stories to his death, although the story is not over. Back in chapter 16, we noticed that Paul and his team depart from the port city of Troas to commence their European missionary tour.
Now in chapter 20, they return to this city and celebrate communion with the other believers. But an exciting evening with the apostle turns catastrophic when young Eutychus suffers that mortal fall. However, his resurrection is a memorable illustration of the power of God to change our lives and bring us back from spiritual death.
There are several practical applications for contemporary believers at BSBC in this short episode, including our identity as a community that has a radically new perspective on resurrection (much like the careers of Elijah and Elisha emphasize), and the understated value of fellowship in a frenzied world.
8. Life Together Sermon Series
For three Sundays (Feb. 21, 28, and March 7) we’ll be engaging in a short sermon series called “Life Together.”
It’s time for us to continue considering our life together as the congregation of BSBC. A first step was the pre-2021 SWOT analysis, a presentation of which will be offered at the Annual Business Meeting. This provides a slice of our reality. But I’m sure we all know that our corporate life has to adapt in order to effectively engage a society with changing norms and values, as well as the impact of the pandemic.
“Life Together” will invite us to take “first steps” in considering “next steps” toward a new or reaffirmed understanding of who we are as the people of God in this time and place.
What to expect
On Sunday, Feb. 21, we’ll welcome Dr. Greg Jones to our pulpit. Greg serves our denomination of Canadian Baptist of Atlantic Canada as the ‘Associate Executive Minister for Congregational Renewal’. Greg will be introducing us to the concept of “Mission Edge Churches” and the characteristics which define theme. Our denomination deems Mission Edge Churches to be on the cutting edge of effectiveness in gospel ministry and engagement with society. Please be sure to ‘tune in’ for Feb. 21.
The following Sunday, I’ll pick up that theme and introduce a journey that will lead you to engage with the concept of Mission Edge Churches within the context of BSBC. Then, the following Sunday, March 7, Pastor Charles will be inviting you to engage in our Easter Outreach Offering, a way for you to prayerfully consider touching a life or lives with a practical expression of your testimony.
One day the pandemic will be over. By that time, the BSBC family needs to have already coalesced around a defined mission and to have already dreamed and planned and continued to act from a resolve to “make disciples of all nations” with loving, thoughtful, and Spirit-led ministries. It’s a tall order. My prayer is that it continues with earnestness and purpose starting Sunday, Feb. 21. Please pray to that end.
Pastor Greg
9. Annual Reports
As many of you know, each year, we produce a collection of reports covering a reflection of what has gone on in all aspects of our ministry life as a church family. This “annual report” booklet also includes the proposed budget for 2021 and the 2021 nominations to Teams, Committees, and Boards. Finally, the booklet also includes the names and addresses of resident and non-resident members and adherents.
These are available now. You can have one mailed to you OR we can email you an e-copy OR you can pick one up from the office foyer during regular office hours (8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or when you are in the church building for another reason. No need to reserve a copy in advance.
Please use the link below if you would like your copy mailed or emailed. Thanks!
Thank you to all who submitted reports and a very special thanks to Janet Mitchell, Naomi Phillips, Dale Bray, and Shirley Graves, for their collaborative work to make this report a reality.
10. Changes To Our Constitution
The Annual Business Meeting will be held Feb. 24, 2021 in the sanctuary beginning at 6:30 p.m.
75 members attending are required for a quorum. The agenda will be available in the 2020 Annual Report which will be available prior to the meeting (see item above). Two agenda items, proposed changes to the Constitution, require prior notice.
Article 6.8.3.2 is to be changed by dropping the phrase “by cheque only” regarding payment of bills. E-transfers are a new, safe, and more efficient process which can also be used.
Articles 2.1, 4.1, 5.2.1, 5.3.1, and 7.2.8.15 are to be changed to update the “Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches" to its proper "Canadian Baptists of Atlantic Canada" name.
Moderator, Dennis Taylor
11. The Sun-Lite Program
The Social Action Team (SAT) are pleased to let you know that we as a church will be partnering with Smythe Street Church, and Grace Memorial Baptist church in the Sun-Lite program, where together we will serve to transition three homeless people from living on the street into safe and stable housing. The churches will be working with community partners such as the Downtown Community Health Clinic, John Howard, Capital Region Mental Health and Addictions, and the Sun-Lite committee.
About the project
This project was piloted in 2019 by Smythe Street Church and saw wonderful results as two of the three individuals have maintained a job and all have continued to see improvement in their lives. Each church will contribute six volunteers who will work as inter-church teams to come along side each client during a one-year commitment period. The responsibility of each client will be shared by the six team members and will require approximately 6 to 8 total hours per week, which translates to 1 to 2 hours per week per team member. Some examples of the kind of support needed include relationship-building, grocery shopping, banking, and keeping track of bills, etc. Life skills.
Are you interested?
The SAT has received support and affirmation from our Board of Deacons and financial support through our Benevolent Committee to seek and find six people from our congregation willing to surround these individuals with caring hands and loving hearts, which will help guide them successfully to stable, sustainable living.
We will provide more detailed information for those who express a willingness or interest in finding out more. The 2021 Sun-Lite initiative is expected to begin in late March or early April. This is a call to any who might prayerfully consider this endeavour.
Please reach out to Pastor Steve at steve@bsbc.nb.ca or 458-8348 if this is an area you see yourself serving in. Our own Doug McAllister and Heather Topple-McAllister were a part of the pilot project in 2020 and had a great experience!
In His Grace,
Pastor Steve
