MB Herald Winter 2018

THIS COULD BE YOUR LAST ISSUE

Winter 2018

MBHERALD.COM

Volume 57, No. 1 Publications mail registration number: 09648; Agreement number: 40009297 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Circ. Dept., MB Herald, 1310 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg, Man. R3M 3Z6

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God always extends an invitation to a deeper relationship, and through this we hear the call of transformation: “Come, follow me, and I’ll show you how to fish for people” (Mark 1:17, CEB).

We know God is there, but we often don’t know what we are listening to or for. On Outtatown, we learn to open our ears to hear God’s voice through circumstances, other people, Scripture, reflection, and little “coincidences” that happen throughout our daily lives.

Steve Klassen of the Mark Centre led us through a five-minute silent prayer of meditating on a phrase or a Bible passage. I was skeptical because there was only five minutes – it would take time for God to speak to me. Yet, I closed my eyes and tried anyway.

“King of my heart” and “He is my song” immediately came to mind. I repeated those over and over in my head.

Suddenly an image came to mind: I was in a small sailboat in the middle of a calm ocean with no land. I noticed a big drain open up below. All the water began to flow out.

I was confused; what would happen to a sailboat if there was no water?

The boat would become purposeless.

Then large hands came and just held me.

What was I supposed to make of this? What was God trying to communicate to me through these images?

I focused once again on the calm water. Despite the fact that I’m not going through a rough time now, I’m still not relying completely on God; there’s something that I’m holding onto in which I find security instead in God. I think the drain symbolizes that I have to let go, and when I do God will be right there for me to lean on, take refuge in, and find my strength through.

When I let go, God will become the king of my heart. He will be my song.

[ Sarah Martens is a participant in the South Africa cohort of Outtatown,

an eight-month discipleship school connected to Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg. Sarah is a member at King Road Mennonite Brethren Church, Abbotsford, B.C. This article originally appeared on the Outtatown blog where participants regularly reflect on the experiences learning and serving.

outtatownsa17.wordpress.com

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PHOTO BY YANNICK PULVER

[CONTENTS

Winter 2018 January/February/March

In this issue

8 10 4 12 13 14 15 20

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

How to pray like Jesus

5 Letters

Stories and lessons from a Brazilian MB

6 Homepage

[ Paul Duck

21 News

Bolstered by the prayers of the people

22 Transitions

[ Mvwala Katshinga

22 Births, weddings, anniversary 26 Finish lines [Obituaries] 30 Books

COLUMNS Editorial God with us in the waiting

[ Karla Braun While we witness Confession of Faith Article 6: The Nature of the Church

[ Elton Da Silva OUTfront ONE in capital letters

[ Steve Berg MB Seminary How to strengthen prayer in your church

[ Randy Wollf ICOMB - Wiebe’s Witness Bowling for COBIM

[ David Wiebe Testimony What’s a miracle?

[ Justin Dueck

CONNECT WITH US ONLINE DIGITAL EDITION issuu.com FACEBOOK facebook.com/MBHerald TWITTER twitter.com/MB_Herald WEBSITE mbherald.com JOBS jobs.mbherald.com PDF SUBSCRIPTION Contact karla.braun@mbchurches.ca to subscribe via email DONATE mennonitebrethren.ca/donations SUBMIT OBITUARY obituaries@mbchurches.ca

CONFERENCE NEWS

16 18 18 19

EQUIP Study Conference

Cover: MB Mission Back Cover: photo by Tony Schellenberg

Board report L2L report Legacy report

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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[EDITORIAL

God with us in the waiting Waiting.

The season of Christmas newly behind us is a season of waiting. Children wait to receive their Christmas gifts.

Parents wait in line to purchase them. The people of God wait for the coming of the Saviour.

But that revelation of God in Jesus doesn’t end the waiting.

We continue to wait on God. We wait for answers to questions and for guidance. We wait for the fulfillment of promises. We wait for transformation from bad habits to better practices that form us in the imitation of Christ.

As the writers in the enclosed week of prayer guide demonstrate, this waiting is active but trusting, patient yet passionate.

One of the ways we wait actively is by praying. By acknowledging our humility before God and allowing him to teach us his desires.

Paul Duck, from the Mennonite Brethren conference in Brazil, writes in this issue about his church’s experience in learning to wait for God in prayer (pages 8–9). This is not bringing a list of desires to God and waiting for them to be fulfilled, but giving time for God to speak to us and teach us what to ask.

Waiting on God may in time reveal that we need to act to become the answers to our prayers.

In the churches of the MB family across Canada, there may be a sense of waiting. Waiting for budgets to be discussed, for votes to be taken, for surveys to report what we think. It is a season of change on the religious landscape in Canada in general and for MBs in particular. Church growth seems to have plateaued and giving with it – at a moment when the need for leaders and programs seems greater than ever.

In the midst of this, your MB Herald staff continue to produce the “old” magazine while exploring new ways to communicate. As we face change in church structures, we want to talk to each other more, not less, and we encourage you to see MB Herald – in print and online – as a place to do so.

We invite your participation through letters to the editor, comments on web articles and Facebook posts, replies on Twitter. Remember as you do so that we are brothers

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Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

and sisters despite differences, and that one can disagree without disparaging.

This year sees a shift to quarterly publication in print – with a promise you will find more news and commentary electronically: on our website, in e-newsletters, on social media, and through the podcast Multiply, a collaboration with the Mennonite Brethren Church of Manitoba and MB Mission Central Canada, recorded at Square One World Media’s studio in Winnipeg.

Throughout this issue, you will find reminders about this change: all subscribers – even longstanding recipients – must use the enclosed form or visit mbherald.com/subscribe

by Feb. 15 to request the continuation of their print subscription. If you appreciate receiving the news in the old medium, we ask that you consider making a donation to help defray the costs of printing and mailing.

We’ll be on your coffee tables less frequently but communicating more on our website. For some columns – including Stories from the Harvest Fields and the BFL Confession of Faith exploration – we will continue to feature fresh articles on the website during “off months.” Extended transition announcements and church anniversary stories can be found online. We’ll post testimonies about the application of lessons and tools from the workshops and presentations at the EQUIP Study Conference.

To keep in touch with all this fresh content, you can subscribe directly to our website (mbherald.com) to receive an email of every article posted.

The Herald is still a place to share the life and story of the Mennonite Brethren church. We rely on you to share your news with us: send us your announcements, testimonies, story leads, and opinion pieces to spread to the wider MB family.

We are waiting to discern what the future of our denomination structure may look like, to be explored more fully at Gathering in Saskatoon in July (see pages 7, 18).

In the meantime, may we fill our waiting with prayer and action, believing in the God who guides us and our family of churches who speak wisdom to each other.

[ Karla Braun

[Reader response God’s treasured collection Re “Broken things and a bottle of tears” (Editorial November/December 2017) I’m sure you wrote this editorial just for me – at least that’s how the Lord used your writing.

There has been a conflict brewing in my life since springtime that came to a head recently. I feel misunderstood and lied about. It’s maybe the first time I’ve truly experienced an injustice. Hence the feeling of brokenness and many tears. The two Bible verses you referenced (Psalm 56:8 and 1 Peter 5:7) are very meaningful for me right now.

God has spoken into my life in marvellous ways over the past while and has enabled me to maintain a Christlike attitude in response to this difficult situation. That's why I was so taken aback when everything was forced back into my life suddenly again.

The picture of God tracking my sorrows, collecting my tears in a bottle, and recording them in his book is both soothing and healing. My desire is not to keep rehashing my hurts but to “cast them on Christ who cares for me” (1 Peter 5:7).

The church of today I really enjoyed Janessa Giesbrecht’s article “Who is missing?” (Intersection November/ December 2017) because she highlights the importance of visibility.

I strongly relate; I cannot picture myself in a role until I see someone who shares my gender and my age serving.

I recently discovered that I want to work with kids. I wasn’t able to envision myself serving others by being a camp counsellor until I had the opportunity to watch other young women in this role, showing me the way.

I often hear adults say that Millennials are the future of the church. (I am a Grade 11 student at Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute.) I believe that we are the church now. But how are we to be the church, if we cannot relate to any of the roles of the church?

Churches need to look for a way to include more young people in the work and service of the church because we have the ability and the gifts to do great things now; not just 10 years from now.

Yes, we will make mistakes from time to time, but so did everyone else while they were learning.

Thank you for the timely reminder that, until Christ returns “we will remain a place of broken things and tears, but we are his: a treasured collection.”

Millennials are creative and think differently from other generations. We can bring much more to the table if given a chance.

Grace Klassen Winnipeg

Anna Rogalsky Winnipeg

Letters to the editor Mennonite Brethren Herald welcomes your letters of 150–200 words on issues relevant to the Mennonite Brethren church, especially in response to material published in the Herald. Please include name, address, and phone number, and keep your letters courteous and about one subject only. We will edit letters for length and clarity. We will not publish letters sent anonymously, although we may withhold names from publication at the request of the letter writer and at our discretion. Publication is subject to space limitations. Letters also appear online. Because the Letters column is a free forum for discussion, it should be understood that letters represent the position of the letter writer, not necessarily the position of the Herald or the Mennonite Brethren church. Send letters to: Letters, MB Herald, 1310 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg, Man. R3M 3Z6, or by email to mbherald@mbchurches.ca.

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January/February/March 2018 Mennonite Brethren Herald is published quarterly by the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches, primarily for the use of its members, to build a Canadian MB community of faith. We seek to 1) share the life and story of the church by nurturing relationships among members and engaging in dialogue and reflection; 2) teach and equip for ministry by reflecting MB theology, values and heritage, and by sharing the good news; 3) enable communication by serving conference ministries and informing our members about the church and the world. However, the opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of the church as a whole. Advertising and inserts should not be considered to carry editorial endorsement.

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Copyright The articles printed in the Herald are owned by the Herald or by the author and may not be reprinted without permission. Unless noted, Scriptural quotations are from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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MENNONITE BRETHREN HERALD

HOMEPAGE Stories from the harvest fields – C2C Network update –

A church in the city Calgary needs Jesus. The people of Urban Grace see the dense and diverse city as a place that Jesus loves deeply because of the people who live there: “We want to bring the grace of Jesus to Calgary,” says pastor Trevor Rysavy.

This will only be done as the church unites together to minister and proclaim the gospel.

Brad & Shauna Huebert

Elroy & Lynn Senneker

Trevor, his wife Lesley, and their community of faith are burdened with a deep love for their city as a strategic place of ministry and are believing God for a movement of churches across the city. Strategically located in the heart of Calgary is their expression of faith, community, and ministry; Urban Grace Church.

A dream that began to form in 2007 took root in 2010 when Urban Grace was birthed. Urban Grace is all about lifting high the name of Jesus in the intersection of faith, life, and the transformation of people.

“Jesus has been good and kind to show favour as we continue to preach about him and live out the effects of his grace in our lives,” Trevor says. “[We believe] more than ever that Jesus will continue to use Urban Grace to be a church-planting church. That’s our dream!”

Trevor & Lesley Rysavy

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Already, that dream has taken hold.

Community Grace Church in Calgary under the leadership of Elroy and Lynn

Senneker is the first church that Urban Grace helped start.

In addition to the Sennekers, Urban Grace served as “incubator” for two other church planting apprentices preparing to launch new ministries: Brad and Shauna Huebert (Manifest) and Vinh and Laura Doan (Village Church Calgary). Apprenticeship allows a planting couple to clarify their vision, discern their target neighbourhood, develop the leadership skills needed to plant, and begin to gather a launch team.

As part of the C2C Network, Trevor serves as a facilitator for C2C’s “Church Planter’s Incubator” in Alberta. At C2C’s recent annual summit in Quebec City, Trevor and Lesley shared their heart and burden for church planting couples and the challenges planters face in starting new missional outposts across Canada.

Meeting at the Kerby Centre in downtown Calgary, Urban Grace focuses on sharing the gospel, teaching the Bible, and equipping people to live as missionaries in an urban context. Everything Urban Grace does is about lifting high the name of Jesus, making much of him and his work of salvation on the cross.

[ Mark Burch is the Canadian director of the C2C Network.

He lives in B.C.

PHOTOS COURTESY C2C NETWORK

[HOMEPAGE

[coming events 2018

Jan. 16: Pastors‘ theology seminar: Philippians, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Jan. 21: Mennonite World Conference World Fellowship Sunday.

Feb. 5: Sola Scriptura: An Ecumenical

Gathering 2018 I want you to consider my warm welcome to come to Saskatoon in July for Gathering 2018, hosted by the wonderful people of Forest Grove Community Church.

As Mennonite Brethren, we get together every year (either for Equip Study Conference or Gathering) because we have core things in common. We are committed to Jesus Christ, the head of the Kingdom to which we belong, and we are inspired by worshipping him together. We have been completely changed by the central message of God’s love and forgiveness through the death and resurrection of Jesus. And we are dedicated to telling other people this good news, as we move forward on mission together to see Canada transformed by the good news of Jesus Christ.

So, we have planned Gathering 2018 to worship, focus, connect and make decisions as the Canadian MB family. I would love you to accept my invitation to Saskatoon, July 11–14, 2018.

Conversation at Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Feb. 6–7: Renew: Resourcing Pastors for Ministry, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Feb. 7–8: Multiply, Vancouver.

Feb 17: Renovated parenting, Ministry Lift seminar.

Feb. 23–24: ONMB convention, Behta Darya Community Church, Mississagua, Ont.

Mar. 2–3: MBCM Assembly, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Mar. 9–10: SKMB Assembly, Hope Fellowship Church, Saskatoon.

Mar. 22–31: SOAR Heartland, MB Mission, Winnipeg.

Apr. 7: AEFMQ convention, ETEQ, Montreal.

Apr. 13–14: ABMB convention, Bethel Eritrean Evangelical Church, Edmonton.

Apr. 21: Commencement, Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, B.C.

Apr. 21: Graduation, MB Seminary,

Steve Berg CCMBC Interim Executive Director

Langley, B.C.

Apr. 22: Graduation, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Apr. 27–28: BCMB convention, North Langley Community Church, Langley, B.C.

Apr. 29–May 1: BCMB pastor & spouse As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God

retreat, Whistler, B.C.

May 22–24: PCO, Columbia Bible, College, Abbotsford, B.C.

July 11–14: Gathering 2018, Saskatoon.

Sept. 28–29: CMU fall festival

and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. | Ephesians 4:1-6

July 11-14, 2018

Forest Grove Community Church, Saskatoon, SK

View more events from churches and agencies at mbherald.com/calendar.

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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Brazilian MB leaders Paul Duck, Emerson Cardoso, and Reginaldo Valim (clockwise from left) pray together at the ICOMB summit on prayer and mission in Thailand, March 2017.

Stories and lessons from a Brazilian MB Do you believe that God can do more in the next years than he has done in the past years? Three years ago, we asked this of our Mennonite Brethren church in Curitiba, Brazil.

Only 10 percent of the congregation believed it could happen. So, the leaders called the church to pray and ask God for revival.

One year later, a group of Haitian immigrants have become a part of the church. Despite the considerable differences in culture and colour, God moved the traditionally German members of the church to welcome these new people. Through prayer, God transforms hearts when we are willing.

When we study the practice of prayer, we must go back to Jesus. Even though he is God, Jesus was a person of prayer.

He prayed regularly; he prayed very often.

The busier Jesus became, the more he talked with God. Why? Because he knew God! Jesus knew God as Abba, his Daddy, his loving Father, whose main interest is to love, teach, and heal.

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Jesus also shared his fears and his anguish with God. He experienced God not only as a source of compassion but also of strength. In the Garden, Jesus turned to God to find the strength he needed to complete his task (Mark 14:36).

Jesus’s actions are a model that we can imitate.

Jesus assumes we will pray.

My impression is that many of us don’t really pray, not only because we don’t sense the need, but because we believe God will accomplish his will whether we pray or not. And we don’t pray because we do not know how.

Often we distort the conversation with him, merely “saying prayers” without hearing what comes out of the heart of God. In Brazil, we say that we should remain in prayer long enough that our internal voices quiet down so we can hear his voice. That is when praying truly begins.

The disciples saw Jesus praying often, so they asked him: Lord, teach us to pray. And he does.

Similarly, the apostle Paul commands us to pray, showing us that the Christian life depends on prayer.

So, prayer is something we work at doing until we do it well.

PHOTO COURTESY MB MISSION

I worked for more than 30 years in a multinational company. When the boss called for a conversation, I never dared to say: I do not have time for you now. The consequence could be instant firing. More than we obey an employer, we should obey our Lord and Saviour, Jesus.

Jesus calls us to have regular conversations, a real relationship with him. How sad that we do not hear the call.

Most likely we also should be fired, for Jesus is an authority more important than any employer.

We should not consider praying as a “must,” however.

As W. Bingham Hunter suggests in The God Who Hears, God gives us the privilege of cooperating with him in the outworking of his will. Through God’s Spirit, he moves us to pray; in response to prayer, he accomplishes his will. Whoever enters into the presence of the Lord never returns the same.

For many year, the Brazilian MB conference had no growth.

As leaders, we got down on our knees and asked God what the reason was. He spoke very clearly to us: if you will not repent from the sins that have been swept under the rug for so many years, there will be no growth. So for several weekends we met in a cabin for prayer and planning. At these meetings, we opened our hearts, confessed sin, and asked God to transform our lives. We decided to willingly obey and follow the orientation of the Holy Spirit.

Since then, a group of more than 25 churches who had left the conference returned and are becoming reintegrated into our church family.

Some leaders protested: we cannot take them back, they are too charismatic. To discern an answer, we went on our knees. God showed us that the Core (Jesus Christ) should be in the centre and the rest would be solved.

This difference in the key role emotion plays for those in the Southern Hemisphere compared to the role of the intellect in the Northern Hemisphere is a challenge for the Mennonite Brethren in Brazil, who have members oriented both ways. Emotional people cry and pray; rational folks think it through.

So, what does Scripture teach? “Fervent prayer avails much” (James 5:16, NKJV). Henry Blackaby explains: “Fervent prayer means we purposefully spend sufficient time in intercession. Fervent prayer means we cry out to the Father, sometimes in tears, with our heart and soul. Fervent prayer comes as the Holy Spirit assists us in praying with groanings too deep for words (Rom. 8:26)” (Experiencing God).

With my German background, I had to learn this from my Brazilian colleagues. One of our “comeback” churches in São Paulo rented a mountain for prayer, not only for their own church, but for all those who would want to pray. An average of 50,000 people go to the mountain to pray every month. Of course, our prayers depend on our hearts, not our location, yet this mountain experience is special not only for us, but very important for the expansion of God’s Kingdom.

I have learned to move from a mathematical prayer to a relational prayer that connects me a lot closer to the Lord.

Prayer does not give us spiritual power. Instead, prayer aligns our life with God so that God demonstrates his power through us.

My church in Brazil started 2017 with a 40-day prayer movement for revival. As the year wore on, people shared testimonies of transformation. Until then, several participants said, they had never heard God speaking personally to them.

Eight months later, God began a revival in our church through the teenagers. The participating group increased from 60 to 140. Before Christmas, we celebrated the baptism of 24 teenagers.

Now we needed leaders who would help disciple these young people. As we prayed to the Lord of the harvest, he showed us that we already had the workers, they just had to be trained.

We never imagined that God would be starting the revival through this young group.

Finally, we are learning that prayer is not dumping my stuff before Jesus and racing away. The purpose of prayer is not to convince God to change our circumstances, but to prepare us to be involved in God’s activity.

Christians who are growing in spiritual maturity change their prayer attitude. They communicate with the Lord, then intentionally move into a period of silence (solitude).

They wait for the Lord to speak.

We have been challenging people to make a commitment for one year to take 15 minutes of silence before the Lord each day. My period of silence shall define my agenda for the day.

I believe God is speaking and transforming, able to do more this year than in the last. What will I learn as I follow Jesus in prayer in 2018?

[ Paul Duck is pastor of Boqueirão MB Church in Curitiba, Brazil.

Read more about the revival of the Brazilian MB church on page 15.

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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On April 12, 2017, I was completely overwhelmed by the political situation that had taken on alarming proportions in Kinshasa and other cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo at the end of March.

It was the third day of the week that I, along with all of Kinshasa, was trapped at home by the political protests.

Called “dead city,” the protests took place on Monday, followed by repercussions on Tuesday and Wednesday. We stayed barricaded at home, without going to school or to the market.

The political situation was very volatile in Kinshasa; we were on the edge of a confrontation between political forces. Bullets crackled here and there to disperse youth who dared go out to loot – for food. The verbal threats from the politicians on TV and the radio were perceptible even in the streets.

We were each cloistered in our own houses, sometimes without food. (We usually go out to collect something to eat every day – few people have the means to stock up provisions for several days.) During this same period, a violent situation was rekindling in the Kasai region in the centre of the country, where our brother Michael Sharp was assassinated. (See bit.ly/MJSharp.)

That evening, like a miracle, I received a call from David Wiebe of ICOMB, phoning to learn about our situation.

Frankly, for me, it was like a comforting visit in person – as though David Wiebe were right there in Kinshasa in my house.

It was a demonstration of comfort and hope – and above all, the warmth of family. I noted the importance of calling a brother or a sister to ask how they are doing and to provide spiritual support when they are in difficulty. Our pastor, David Wiebe, surely did that well at this moment.

I responded to David with desperation: I was afraid for tomorrow. I could sense urban warfare. Only the Lord who watches over us brings comfort and security (Psalm 121).

I launched a call to prayer to David Wiebe, who broadcast it to Mennonite Brethren prayers across the world. (Visit icomb.org to sign up to receive monthly news and prayers.)

PHOTO COURTESY MB MISSION

Today, I can testify boldly: God heard your prayers for Kinshasa and the DRC. Even though political solutions are slow to emerge, God has reduced the tension since April. In October, as I write, the “dead city” days with barricades and burning tires on public streets have become a thing of the past, thanks to the prayers of our brothers and sisters in the Mennonite Brethren community. God answers the prayers of his people.

It’s true: prayer is a powerful weapon that God has placed in the hand of the righteous (James 5:16–18). Like the Anabaptists who started our Mennonite movement in 1525, we believe in God’s action in response to the prayer addressed to him. Through prayer, we act without limitations and accomplish the mission of God. In DRC, we truly believe that without the intervention of God, our lives would much worse. Prayer is our last protection. Through prayer, we enter into dialogue with God and we present our grievances. We regularly see God answering our prayers.

What the UN has not been able to do in Congo in nearly 20 years with 20,000 people and billions of dollars, why not ask God to accomplish? What democracy and military technology cannot give the so-called developed countries, why not ask of the God of armies, the Prince of Peace? Only peace from God matters to us; it is through the prayer of faith that it will shine on us to guide our feet into the path of peace (Luke 1:78–79).

May God bless you to pray for our country. You make a great contribution to peace in DR Congo. Thank you to all of you!

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

[ Mvwala C. Katshinga is a missiologist, linguist, and Bible

translation consultant (CEFMC). He is in charge of the mission department of the Communauté des Eglises des Frères Mennonites au Congo (CEFMC – Mennonite Brethren church in DR Congo). He is also associate pastor of a local francophone church in Kinshasa, DRC. Article translated from French by Karla Braun.

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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[CONFESSION OF FAITH

While we witness

Board of Faith and Life | Read all the articles at mbherald.com/bfl

AR T I CL

6 E

What does Mennonite Brethren theology have in common with that of other Christian denominations? And what are the distinctive emphases of Mennonite Brethren theology? Our Confession of Faith is a short document, informed by Scripture, that names the perspectives through which we read God’s Word in order to live as Christ’s followers. This is the sixth article in a series by the Board of Faith and Life exploring the 18 articles of this formative document.

Article 6: The Nature of the Church

“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:15–16).

Have you ever heard the fable of the scorpion and the frog? The tiny creatures find themselves at the riverbank, both waiting to cross over.

behaviour of the church should mirror what is prescribed in God’s Word.

External influences are also at work: some so powerful that they can change the behaviours of an individual or organization. The church suffers the influence of outside forces trying to change its nature. The question for us is: what of the church is inherited behaviours, representing our heavenly Father’s DNA, and what has been distorted by other forces?

5. Witness: It is in and through the church that we learn how to best present God’s story to the world.

6. Empowerment: We the church act through the resourcing and empowering of God. Both nature and nurture are present here, an internal response enhanced by an outside power, the Holy Spirit.

7. Gathered: In coming together, we are both blessed and a blessing. Gathering is the most visible expression of the Body of Christ.

8. Worship: We place ourselves in a posture of humility and revere God as the head of the church. For the church, the only person worthy of worship is the triune God.

The scorpion argues that such an action would drown them both and coaxes the frog to comply. However, midway across, the scorpion stings his amphibious helper causing both to slip below the river’s current.

Article 6 of the Mennonite Brethren Confession of Faith describes the elements that make up the nature of the church: “We believe the church is the covenant community called by God through Jesus Christ to live a life of discipleship and witness as empowered by the Holy Spirit. The local church gathers regularly for worship, fellowship, and accountability and to discern, develop, and exercise gifts for ministry.”

Gasping for air, the frog asks why.

Let’s examine several of these elements:

“I’m sorry,” the scorpion replies. “It is simply in my nature to do so.”

1. Covenant: We do more than choose to be part of the church; we firmly agree to a way of living and to be accountable to each other.

11. Ministry: We give of our time, effort, and money so that others may experience healing, comfort, and growth.

The scorpion – who cannot swim – asks the frog to carry him across.

The frog, fearful of the scorpion’s deadly sting, declines the request.

There is a common belief that some behaviours are deeply embedded: innate behaviours define an individual’s character or nature. Outsiders perceive the purpose and disposition of individuals and organizations based on observed actions.

The church (both as the body of Christ and as a people set apart) is not immune to this scrutiny: the nature of the church is constantly under observation.

Inherited from Christ (our head), the 12

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2. Community: As an individual, I am the temple of Holy Spirit, but it is only in community that the church is revealed.

3. Calling: This occurs not of our volition, but through a sanctification (separation) process. This is important because we ought not to make the church about the called but always about the One who calls.

4. Discipleship: It is in and through the church that we learn how to become more like Christ.

9. Fellowship: This profound word means a lot more than just getting along with each other. It is also responsibility for one another’s well-being.

10. Accountability: An act of surrendering free choice in order to experience true freedom in Christ.

Are these elements alive in our churches today? Are we responding with behaviours that express our Father’s DNA? Or have we allowed other influences to distort the nature of the church?

[ Elton Da Silva

is executive director of the Mennonite Brethren Church of Manitoba.

[

ONE in capital letters Happy New Year for 2018! As I look forward to this year, there is a word in capital letters in my mind: ONE. For me, ONE defines who we are as the church, describes what God is doing among us, and determines how we act with each other.

Jesus prayed: “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:22–23, emphasis mine). Jesus connects the perfect reality of ONE in the Trinity and God’s will of ONE in the church.

Body of Christ ONE defines who we are as the church, specifically, the Mennonite Brethren family of churches in Canada.

The apostle Paul had a favourite metaphor for the church: the body of Christ. He defined this body like the physical body that brings together all the unique cells – nerve, blood, tissue, muscle, and others, each having a distinct function – under the head. The body of Christ works as the cells function – by doing what they individually and particularly were designed to do, directed by Christ himself in complete unity.

Individually, we are a microscopic part of a massive reality, ONE body of Christ.

his defense, and both jumped on me. I thought their behaviour toward each other represented a deep disunity between them, but they did not feel that at all. Within them there was an abiding unity unaffected by momentary disagreements.

This internal unity brought about through the identity and work of God is the ONE reality of the church.

Mutually shared life ONE determines how we act with each other. A body consists of thousands of cells with one mutually shared life. It is the sharing of life that makes a body different than an organization. The core, underlying unity of a body exists despite visible divisions.

Thank God, there is no group in the world so magnificently heterogeneous as the church transformed by God’s work among us. The wonder is that we are made up of different kinds of people. In the body of Christ, the rich and poor gather on the same basis, slaves and free, Jews and Gentiles, women and men, all languages, all nations – it makes no difference. The church crosses all the boundaries that humanity might erect and gathers all kinds of people, without exception, into one body. There is no other community in the world that attempts to unite people from such widely varying sources.

This internal unity brought about through the identity and work of God is the ONE reality of the church

A complete unity ONE describes what God is doing among us. Jesus prayed that we would be “brought to complete unity.” This is an acknowledgement that then among the disciples, even as now among us, there is a great deal of difference. But Jesus knew that God was working to bring his unity to his people.

I would point out that there two kinds of unity.

One is an external unity without core internal agreement.

We can agree on some things, so for the sake of progress we negotiate a working agreement by setting aside our deeper disagreements. This unity is sometimes won in church through the control of a small number of leaders who can temporarily persuade the majority to follow their unifying plan.

The other unity is an internal unity which manifests occasional external disagreement. I learned about this while mediating between quarrelling family members. When I challenged the behaviour of one brother, I was surprised when the sister came to

OUTFRONT

So, for this New Year, I’m thinking about the word ONE in capital letters. I am leading the One Mission Partnership Task Force to discern how God is bringing all components of the MB body together on one mission. I am meeting with the provincial conference ministers to explore how the national and provincial conferences could function as one team. I am working with the Gathering 2018 planning team as we prepare the Gathering 2018 theme of “ONE” in Saskatoon July 11–14, 2018.

I encourage you to think about, pray about, talk about Ephesians 4:1–6. “There is ONE body and ONE Spirit, just as you were called to ONE hope when you were called; ONE Lord, ONE faith, ONE baptism, ONE God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:4–6, emphasis mine).

I call on us to be ONE as the church, as people in whom God works, and as we interact with each other. Join me in praying that the Canadian MB family of churches would be ONE in 2018.

[ Steve Berg is executive director of the

Canadian Conference of MB Churches. He lives in Abbotsford, B.C. Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

13

[MB SEMINARY

MB Seminary Lifelong Learning for Lifelong Mission

How to strengthen prayer in your church It is five years from now. Amazingly, your church has grown incredibly in prayer. People are setting aside time each day to pray. They are worshipping God throughout the day. You see small groups and ministry groups making prayer a central part of their group life. You see a church where God is doing amazing things as he responds to prayer.

weeks earlier during the post-service prayer time. After our prayer team prayed for her, the woman felt that God had healed her. Her doctor was not so sure. He tried to convince her that the first test was conclusive. But after she pleaded with him, the doctor authorized another test. The new test result revealed the woman was cancer-free!

You can imagine how our congregation responded to this obvious answer to prayer.

Here are several ways to strengthen prayer in your church.

When your prayer ministry is evident during corporate worship times, it reveals how God moves in people’s lives. As we see God work, we will be more likely to believe that God can do immeasurably more that we could ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20).

Equip people to pray

Incorporate rallying prayer initiatives

Most Christians know how to petition God. But do we also practise thankfulness, confession, and adoration of God? Do we realize deep down that the goal is not just to pray for a set period each day (as good as that is), but to develop a lifestyle of prayer?

Capitalize on people’s willingness to make short-term commitments by calling your church to a day or week of prayer.

My church has rallied behind 40 days of prayer during Lent where people are encouraged to pray for specific aspects of our church each day. Over the years, I have often challenged groups to pray for five unbelievers for five minutes a day for five days a week for five weeks.

Sound exciting? How do we realize this kind of vision?

Teaching about prayer through sermons and workshops is helpful. Yet, combining training with practice can often help people go further in their habits of prayer. I recall being part of a church leadership team that went on a two-day prayer retreat.

We read a book on prayer before the retreat and then used our time together for training sessions and praying together. It was powerful way to experience God and develop our skills.

Affirm what is already happening We sometimes think that we must create something new to stimulate more prayer in our churches. This may be helpful, but we should probably start with what is already in place. For example, when I was serving as co-chair of our church board, we extended our dedicated prayer times and incorporated prayer throughout our business discussions. It was a small change that had considerable impact.

Small group studies and ministry groups provide excellent forums for strengthening prayer in your church. Inspire your leaders with a big vision for prayer. Train them and give them solid prayer resources. When leaders learn to pray, others will follow their example.

Grow a visible prayer ministry At South Langley Church, we often have an open sharing time during our worship services. One Sunday, a woman recounted how she had requested prayer about her recent cancer diagnosis 14

Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

These kinds of short prayer initiatives motivate people to pray and help them develop stronger habits of prayer.

Encourage the prayer warriors It is likely you already have people in your church who are extraordinary intercessors. Thank and appreciate them in appropriate ways. Supply them with prayer requests and put them in positions to use their gift. If they are willing, let them share about their prayer practices and how God has worked through them. Your people will be inspired!

For more ideas on how to strengthen prayer and other key disciple-making elements in your church, check out Randy’s new book, Maximum Discipleship in the Church and the discipleship resources on the MinistryLift website (ministrylift.ca/discipleship).

[ Randy Wollf is associate professor of

leadership and practical theology and director of MinistryLift at MB Seminary. He is the author of Maximum Discipleship in the Church and Navigating Church Politics. Randy and his wife, Lore, along with their four children, attend South Langley (B.C.) MB Church.

[WIEBE’S WITNESS

Wiebe’s Witness Drawing from his travels to visit MB churches around the world, ICOMB executive director David Wiebe offers insights on faith.

Bowling for COBIM When’s the last time you went bowling in the church basement – in a real bowling alley? It was a first for me when I visited pastor Emerson Cardoso’s church.

The congregation had grown significantly. God led them to rent a sportsplex complete with indoor soccer pitch, gym, snack bar area, and bowling alley. The church rented the place, but allowed a soccer school to maintain its program under reduced rent.

It fit completely within the entrepreneurial, visionary spirit of pastor Emerson. He was leading his church to find multiple ways to reach out to their community just outside Curitiba, Brazil.

Indeed, the day I visited, he showed me another major project of his church: a daycare and drop-in centre for children of single, working moms. The church also discerned a need for temporary housing for young women leaving an abusive relationship or otherwise without a place to stay.

Emerson, Paul, and Reginaldo all had different stories to tell of the work of God in COBIM. It didn’t start with a “trendy” idea like a bowling alley. It didn’t even start with determination to serve their community based on needs. Rather, it started in hearts that longed for God – deeply, persistently.

Renewal flowed when individual longing became corporate longing. They emphasize that corporate effort is critical. Certainly, this reflects the very nature of God, who exists in eternal triune love.

In the movie Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore explores the tragedy of a high school shooting in Littleton, Colorado, USA. What made the young men do this terrible thing to their classmates – destroying lives and the peace of a community?

Flip that around: what makes church leaders build up the spirit of a community, both outside and inside the church?

Since then, Emerson has become the president of COBIM, the Mennonite Brethren conference of Brazil. He has brought that visionary spirit into leadership of the national church.

What a difference it can make when we seek God with all our hearts (Isaiah 55:6).

I asked Emerson if he would tell their story to our regular ICOMB summit in 2016, and again to the Mission and Prayer Consultation in Thailand in 2017.

International Community of Mennonite Brethren. He loves to assemble people of God, opening space for all to listen to God as a community for inspiration and direction.

Leading up to his election, he and several others embarked on a years-long process of renewal. They felt that their conference needed a new encounter with God. Emerson joined with pastors Paul Duck and Reginaldo Valim, and they urged other pastors to join them. They deliberately humbled themselves before God, confessing their faults and failures; fasting; praying, and holding many prayer gatherings. (Read more about Paul Duck’s process of prayer on pages 8–10.)

These pastors publicly supported the people then in leadership.

They recognized the great contribution those leaders had made to strengthening the conference in organization and stable finances.

Renewal efforts sometimes produce difficulties with incumbent leaders, but everyone worked to maintain unity throughout.

Upon election, the new COBIM leaders have continued to seek God earnestly. The prayer and fasting events continue.

When I visited them, they showed a map of the country marked with their church locations. I saw that all the COBIM congregations were in the south where the European Mennonite immigrants and missionaries had started the work. I challenged them to look up north.

Now, God is providing wonderful opportunities for COBIM to plant new churches in regions of Brazil beyond their base.

Moreover, a group of churches that left the conference some years ago recently sought to reunite. This is now in progress.

[ David Wiebe is director of ICOMB, the

Sign up for the monthly ICOMB prayer newsletter

icomb.org

did you know?

In the last seven years, COBIM (Convenção Brasileira das Igrejas Evangélicas Irmãos Menonitas) expanded from 48 churches to 86 churches + 35 smaller congregations and church planting projects: about 12,100 members.

Leaders are developing churches in the northeast, Amazon region, and in Uruguay in cooperation with the Uruguay MB conference.

Some churches in the south, settled by Mennonite refugees from Germany and Ukraine, still worship in German. All have added Portuguese language services in recent years.

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

15

“This is not a dysfunctional church,” organizational consultant Les Stahlke encouraged MBs at the breakouts.

“This is a healthy group of men and women trying to give glory to God.”

EQUIP Study Conference Rebranded “EQUIP,” the 2017 study conference on Transforming Discipleship Nov 1–3, 2017, at Northview Community Church was a hit if its 384 registered guests were any indication. The location in Abbotsford, B.C., a province that is home to 40 percent of Canadian Mennonite Brethren churches, nearly guaranteed a good turnout, but MBs also came from Quebec, across the border in the U.S., from Germany, and Thailand to learn together about how to follow Jesus better.

Heather Neufeld

Plenary speaker Darrell Johnson, a Presbyterian minister and former Regent college professor, brought Scripture alive, opening the key Anabaptist text – the Sermon on the Mount – in new ways for many listeners.

Trever Godard

MB ministry leaders led workshops on singing as discipleship, discipling like Jesus, discipleship in the family, and more.

Read session reflections from volunteer bloggers and watch videos from the sessions at

equipstudyconference.mennonitebrethren.ca.

The conference was prefaced by a special general meeting in which delegates approved a markedly reduced budget for CCMBC, a separate budget for CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc., now a separate entity, a Legacy board member, and the merger of MB Mission and the C2C Network. See mbherald.com/special-general-meeting-2017.

Steve Klassen

Johnny Markin

“Being a discipler doesn’t mean you have to be an expert,” says Darrell Johnson.

16

Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

[CONFERENCE NEWS

“C2C and MB Mission both do similar work,” says Bruce Enns at an informational breakout session before the SGM. “Both are about creating missionaries, raising up leaders, doing church planting, doing missionary work.”

We are called to be “detectives of divinity,” paying attention to the work that God’s Spirit is already doing in people’s lives, says Rob Loane of VantagePoint3, one of the TED-style talk presenters.

In the zero-based budget process taken to develop the 2018 budget for CCMBC, “we looked at priorities in ministry rather than historical spending,” says CFO Jim Davidson.

Try this at home!

Watch sessions online at bit.ly/EQUIPvideos or search "equip2017" on

PHOTOS BY CARSON SAMSON & KRISTI LEE

GMMiTV

Global Mission Media

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

17

[CONFERENCE NEWS

Boards listen and discern The executive and faith and life boards of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches met in October before the Special General Meeting and biennial study conference, and again by phone in early December.

In the lead-up to the SGM, the executive board was finalizing the operations of CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc. (see over) to begin January 2018, preparing for delegate vote on a reduced 2018 operating budget for CCMBC and the merger of the C2C Network and MB Mission, working with consultant Les Stahlke to discover and place organizations who are part of the extended MB family, and affirming the work of the One Mission Partnership Task Force.

Additionally, the provincial conference ministers brought a “blue sky” proposal for a regional-based structure for CCMBC’s future.

With meetings shoehorned before the convention, the board was under pressure to discern well, says interim executive director Steve Berg, but the highlight was becoming prayerfully ready for the SGM. “We were getting our hearts right about what posture we wanted to have,” says Berg.

Consultant Stahlke’s work stalled in November with a serious health complication. In December, the executive board released a small survey to be completed by all members of MB churches across Canada, a scaled-back effort to collect information to present at provincial conventions in spring, with Stahlke’s more comprehensive survey deferred until later in 2018.

Complementary to but distinct from Stahlke’s exploration of the state of the MB church in Canada today is the One Mission Partnership Task Force (OMPTF) whose mandate is to “describe what we hear from agencies about our common mission that we’re leaning into together,” says Berg. “It’s about defining our longings and desires.”

The Board of Faith and Life is also involved with the OMPTF and Stahlke’s work on the future shape of CCMBC. “What I am most encouraged with is the high level of engagement by provincial representatives,” says Ingrid Reichard, who replaced David Miller as BFL chair after a two-year hiatus.

In addition to being instrumental in planning the study conference, the BFL does the ongoing work of publishing.

Current projects include an MB Herald column, the ordination booklet (also French and Chinese), teaching brochures, and the re-release of Family Matters.

The BFL also reviewed the annual transformation survey results. “While we are improving or staying the same in most areas, markers of resilient pastoral leadership show consistent decrease. This is of concern to the BFL and will be on the agenda in the future,” says Reichard.

L2L shaped churches and leaders “I’m a leader, therefore I need to learn how to be a better one.” A young pastor taking on a senior pastor role, Jason Dyck turned to L2L and found the resources and training he needed to take his leadership to another level.

L2L, the leadership development arm of the Canadian Conference of MB Churches, closed at the end of 2017, a casualty of a $1.3 million budget reduction. Interim director Daniel Beutler and ministry associates Dave Jackson, Teresa Born, and Alain Després were released.

Leadership development ministry now rests with provincial conferences and schools.

In 2012, Ron Toews was appointed to oversee church ministries and create a responsive process to develop healthy and effective leaders in churches of all sizes. First called Resourcing Churches, Developing Leaders, L2L rolled out coaching for individual leaders and churches. A website launched in 2014 served as a portal to text resources, peer discussion groups, and coaching relationships.

L2L also offered ReFocusing ministry and developed expertise in transitional pastoral leadership. “We had the joy of engaging with smaller churches in little known places and found Jesus there,” says Jackson.

“Dave was deeply insightful of what was really going on,” says pastor Marvin Dyck. Jackson’s advice was gentle, direct, and tailored to the needs of Crossroads MB Church, Winnipeg. The small congregation undertook ReFocusing in 2006 and followed through with subsequent consultations in 2011, 2013 and 2016.

“Dave Jackson did an excellent job of outlining the history and issues,” says transitional pastor and consultant Brian Reynolds on beginning transitional ministry at Fairview MB Church, St. Catharines, Ont. “I’ve never received a briefing of that quality.”

“What I really loved was how they invested in me in a tangible way,” says Jason Dyck. Taking advantage of denominational training opportunities, he landed in an L2L workshop where he was encouraged to develop further.

L2L gave him the opportunity to be intensively trained in the COACH model and to become a trainer himself.

Dyck’s board and congregation, Elm Creek (Man.) MB Church also benefitted from Daniel Beutler’s guidance and expert facilitation of critical conversations.

“That investment L2L made in me is paying forward with MB Mission,” says Dyck, who now facilitates training events for MB Mission.

“The boards do deeply and profoundly discerning work, not just pragmatic work,” says Berg. “The boards are listening, wanting to understand what God is saying.”

He hopes to see the coaching culture L2L fostered in Canadian MB churches grow. “The Holy Spirit is alive and at work in every Christian; our job is to help that person see how.”

[ Karla Braun

[ Karla Braun

18

Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

[CONFERENCE NEWS

CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc.

mortgage ministry, facilities, and investment properties. The staff formerly attached to Stewardship Ministries now operate under Legacy.

Jim Davidson, formerly chief financial officer of CCMBC, now chief executive officer of Legacy, answered a few questions about CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc. (Legacy).

What is the CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc.?

“The functionality does not change,” says Davidson. “Legacy will take care of bookkeeping, receipting, tax returns, payroll, accounting (for churches); administer benefits and pensions; and manage mortgages.”

On Jan. 1, 2018, CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc. commences the full operation of CCMBC resourcing ministry. Incorporated since 2015, with CRA registered charitable status since 2017, Legacy will continue serving MB churches and conferences as under Stewardship Ministries, but organized under a separate legal and financial structure, to comply with government regulations.

“We’re working on a management agreement between Legacy and CCMBC to pay for services (audit fees, insurance, accounting fees),” says Davidson. “This will demonstrate what is required to make CCMBC sustainable, capable of operating independently without relying on additional funding from Legacy.”

Legacy is owned 100% by CCMBC, managed by a board of directors appointed by CCMBC.

Investment earnings

“At the user end, the most significant change will be the letterhead,” says Davidson.

Who is on the board?

Legacy has to operate on a sustainable basis based on net revenue from its registered funds (RRSPs, RRIFs, TFSAs), mortgages, recoveries for payroll and accounting, and some supplemental investments.

Nov. 1, 2017, CCMBC delegates exercised responsibilities concerning Legacy by voting on motions to approve the auditor, Legacy budget, and an independent director.

Revenue and expenditures generated by unregistered funds (other deposit accounts) will be segregated, with net earnings going into Legacy’s investment reserve.

The board consists of three appointees from CCMBC Executive Board’s finance and audit committee (Howie Wall, Matt Dyck, Tony Martens) and two independent directors (Dan Guggenheimer, elected at the SGM; one appointed in 2018, to be ratified at Gathering 2018).

“This gives us the opportunity – if the executive board chooses – to direct money from investment reserves to ministries in 2019,” says Davidson.

Going forward, CCMBC’s direction to and representation of Legacy comes through CCMBC’s Executive Board secretary Marilyn Hiebert.

Mortgages are self-funding and contribute to general overhead.

Mortgages

Who are the staff?

“Legacy enables us to continue our critical, long-standing ministry of providing mortgages to MB churches, active MB pastors, and MB-sponsored Bible camps,” says Davidson. This service will remain the same.

The Legacy management team consists of Jim Davidson, Bertha Dyck as chief financial officer, JP Hayashida as director of transition support, and Norbert Bargen who manages the

“We want to continue to provide ministry to the conference, but we have to make sure we do it right, to be compliant with the government’s regulatory agencies,” says Davidson.

PCO 2018 Pastors Credentialing Orientation

May 22-24, 2018 Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, B.C. visit: pco.mennonitebrethren.ca email: events@mbchurches.ca

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

19

[TESTIMONY

What’s a miracle?

I’m a rocket scientist. Well, not quite, but I worked as an engineer making rockets for eight years. I enjoyed it. But four years ago, I went through a 10-month depression, which left me feeling aimless.

When I saw that MB Mission had a 10-month program called TREK, with an option to go to Thailand, I sent an email that started me down the path God had for me.

Everything began to fall into place. Work gave me a one-year leave of absence; I got rid of my apartment within a week. I felt peace – like I had jumped in a river and was going where the river took me.

Luckiest guy on the planet April 6, 2017, started out normally. But after washing my face, I couldn’t open my eye. Words came out garbled. Alarm bells went off in my head: “Slurred speech – that’s a sign of a stroke!”

I dialed 911.

Doctors determined I had a clot in my brain. Fortunately, my symptoms were minor. The doctors gave me meds and kept me for observation overnight. I was released the next day without restrictions.

For the next week, I felt like the luckiest guy on the planet. My symptoms went away in six days. The more I hear about strokes, the more I see how much God protected me.

A change of plans In May, TREK began. In the two months of orientation, learning to listen to God, pray, and share the gospel, my prayer life was rejuvenated. Now I feel God beside me. For a month, almost every night, God woke me up to speak in tongues through me.

Because of my stroke, my plans to go to Thailand went out the door. Living Word Temple was looking for someone to join their team reaching out to Indigenous people in Winnipeg’s North End and First Nations communities in the north.

My heart sank. The North End has a reputation as dangerous. I was uncomfortable around Indigenous people. Then one night, the Holy Spirit again woke me to pray in tongues. God was clear that he wanted me to be part of this ministry.

My sense of uneasiness did not go away completely. I felt like Jonah; I had been called to a ministry I did not want to do.

However, when I obeyed God and moved forward into this ministry, God wiped away all these doubts and fears. He replaced them with a new excitement and love for Indigenous people as I listened to their stories.

20

Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

Justin Dueck (l) & Cameron Asman (r) of Living Word Temple on a prayer walk in Winnipeg

Two healings At Living Word, I met Dorie*, a 62-year-old woman working hard to finish her high school diploma.

Doctors estimated she would be in a wheelchair by 65. Because of her back pain, Dorie couldn’t always make it to school. Every other Tuesday, she would go to the doctor to get a note excusing her. The pain was so great, she had to drop out.

I placed my hand on her lower spine, and prayed for God to send his Spirit into her, to fully restore her spine, and take away the pain.

I could see a look of great relief on her face. She told me that during the prayer, her whole body was tingling, and now, the pain was completely gone!

Later that week, I was outside the church when a middle-aged man named Dan* approached me. I asked if I could pray for him.

Sure; he was waiting for a knee replacement. As he walked away, his knee popped several times. The pain went away, and Dan stopped in his tracks. We started praising God together.

That morning, I had prayed for God to send someone who needed prayer, so that I could pray for a miracle. It gets me thinking about what we define as miracles: it is no harder for God to heal someone than it is for God to send me someone to pray for.

Earlier this year, someone prayed for God to give me the spiritual gift of healing. But it’s not my power healing these people. I see it as God just answering prayers.

My prayer life has been completely transformed this year, and instead of being given a gift of healing, God has given me the gift of prayer.

[ Justin Dueck is a TREK participant from Winnipeg * Names have been changed to protect the identity of the individuals.

[NEWS

Growing excitement: anglais at ETEQ Do you know of anyone who has dreamed of serving Jesus while studying in another culture?

We have all known those who travel beyond North America on mission. But did you know that the dream could be fulfilled right here in Canada?

A distinct society within Canada, Quebec continues to be the least-reached place in North America for Jesus Christ.

Montreal offers a culture rich in complexity and diversity.

Fraser Valley SeniorsRealEstateNews.com

In the heart of Montreal is the Quebec School of Evangelical Theology (ETEQ), a unique setting in which to pursue university-level programs. Co-owned by the Mennonite Brethren and the Christian and Missionary Alliance in partnership with Université Laval, ETEQ offers minors in biblical studies, pastoral studies, and theology; a BA in theology; and three different streams to obtain a master of theology.

Until now, ETEQ, formerly ETEM-IBVIE (and even earlier IBL), has been operating entirely in French, but as of fall 2018, the school will offer an additional program: a minor in pastoral studies in English.

City Church, where Garry and I attend, has about 300 people from many different ethnicities – and it’s only four years old. Last Sunday, after pastor Chris McGregor interviewed me to present the exciting news of our English courses in each of the two services, 12 people expressed enthusiasm and asked for more information! The week before when I preached in French at Église

Chrétienne de Saint-Jérôme, there was equal excitement.

With church plants starting up in many regions of Quebec, we believe that the demand for more workers is growing.

This is not only for pastors, but for anyone who would like to deepen their understanding of theology, perhaps while also practising their language skills in another course or two in French.

Starting in September 2018, students who have completed one year of postsecondary college or university studies (CEGEP equivalent) may study up to two courses per semester in English.

Thirteen English courses will be on the roster over two years, offering students the opportunity to either complete a minor combining English and French courses in one year, or to complete a minor entirely in English over two years. All credits are fully transferable.

[ Kristen Corrigan is president of ETEQ. She is a member of City Church, Montreal.

Your French School of Theology, ETEQ, will soon offer Theology courses in English in Montreal

FOR YOUR NEXT MOVE Re/Max

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Tedd Epp 306 221 1614

If you have ever dreamed of spending a semester or a year in Quebec, use your High School French and advance your understanding of Kingdom building in another culture, this is your opportunity.

Join us in Fall 2018 for up to 30 university credits, fully transferrable to all accredited universities.

Please contact Véronique Beaudin at 1-855-855-1924 or at veronique.beaudin@eteq.ca.

www.eteq.ca

In parternship with

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

21

[FAMILY NEWS TRANSITIONS Bertha Dyck was appointed Chief Financial Officer of CCMBC Legacy Fund Inc. (Legacy), effective Jan. 1, 2018. Bertha assumes all the financial responsibilities of Legacy including accounting and payroll services; internal and external reporting; audit coordination; CRA reporting and compliance; and general oversight of Legacy’s finances, information technology and human resources.

Jim Davidson remains with Legacy as CEO to ensure Bertha’s seamless transition into her new role.

Bertha has served with CCMBC for more than two decades during which she has developed strong relationships with CCMBC’s churches and pastors, provincial conferences and the banks, benefits managers, and other service providers.

Hellos Mark Hunt, Port Rowan (Ont.) MB Church, lead pastor, 2017 Steve Klassen, Abbotsford (B.C.) Community Church, lead pastor, 2017 Dave Seeley, Stillwood Bible Camp, executive director, 2018 Daniel Stobbe, Hillside Christian Fellowship, Beechy, Sask., lead pastor, 2017 Goodbyes Konrad Loewen, Westside Community Church, Morden, Man., 2007–2018 Wanna learn more? Who else is new? Go to mbherald.com/winter-2018

BIRTHS Bartel – to Gordon & Bethany of Lethbridge, Alta., a son, Tyler Isaac, Aug. 2, 2017.

Butlin – to Dan & Alana (Stewart) of Calgary, a son, Elliot George, Sept. 22, 2017.

Clark – to Justin & Jasmine of Coaldale, Alta., a son, Jeremy Andrew, July 29, 2017.

Dickie – to Tyler & Amanda (Unger) of Swift Current, Sask., a daughter, Tilia Lynn, May 6, 2017.

Doerksen – to Lorin & Katie of Gem, Alta., a daughter, Josie Therese, June 21, 2017.

Giesbrecht – to Ryan & Whitney (Loeppky) of Steinbach, Man., a son, Emery Gregory, Sept. 27, 2017.

Hildebrand – to Elliot & Nancy (Schroeder) of Main Centre, Sask., twin sons, Samuel Ryan & Levi Henry, Apr. 27, 2017.

Holzli – to Devon & Diana of Coaldale, Alta., a daughter, Layla Rae, Oct. 13, 2017.

Leusink – to Kevin & Lindsey of Coaldale, Alta., a son, Cole Jackson, June 5, 2017.

Rozall – to Jeremy & Tiffany (Marsch) of Winnipeg, a son, Avishai Hawk, Sept. 30, 2017.

WEDDING Mathew Fehr of Hepburn, Sask., & Christine McAvena of Saskatoon, May 5, 2017.

Justin Friesen of Steinbach, Man., & Jodie Goertzen of Kleefeld, Man., Oct. 1, 2017.

John Himes & Taya VanSchyndel, both of St. Catharines, Ont., Aug. 26, 2017.

Jason Klassen & Rachel Reimer, both of Fairmont, B.C., July 8, 2017.

Odai Naphouthai of Saskatoon & Kelsey Seipp of Humboldt, Sask., Oct. 7, 2017.

Blair Paul & Jayme-Lyn Romanski, both of Winnipeg, Sept. 16, 2017.

Joel Reimer & Kristen Unger, both of Steinbach, Man., Sept. 17, 2017.

Drew Unruh & Emily Thiessen, both of St. Catharines, Ont., Sept. 15, 2017.

Cody van Dijk of Carman, Man., & Melodie Janzen of Elm Creek, Man., Sept. 2, 2017.

Blair Sperling & Kirsty van Liere, both of Lethbridge, Alta., July 15, 2017.

Bryan Vellacott of Warman, Sask., & Leslie Friesen of Oak Lake, Man., July 8, 2017.

ANNIVERSARY Rudy & Eleonore (Dyck) Klassen celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary June 29, 2017, with family and friends in Williams Lake, B.C. They were married in Yarrow MB Church, June 29, 1957.

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Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

University CANADIAN MENNONITE UNIVERSITY

Mennonite Brethren Herald  | Winter 2018

23

Church Staff Lead pastor and associate pastor Winkler Bergthaler Mennonite Church located in Winkler, Manitoba, Canada. Seeking an experienced lead pastor and an associate pastor. Contact Search Committee at Winkler Bergthaler Mennonite Church Box 1207, Winkler, Manitoba, Canada R6W 4B2 or email WBMC@mts.net for a detailed job description.

WHERE ARE YOU INVESTING? Consider a legacy gift to global mission.

Associate pastor – youth and family ministry Lakeview Community Church (Killarney, Man.) is seeking applicants for the position of associate pastor with an emphasis in youth and family ministry. Lakeview Community Church is a multi-generational Mennonite Brethren church with a weekly attendance of 140. The successful candidate will work closely with the lead pastor to cover other areas of ministry such as pastoral counselling, pastoral care, missions and evangelism, preaching and administration. Our church is looking for an individual who is passionate about youth and family ministry, willing to build mentoring relationships, and excited about opportunities to engage both within the church and the community as a whole. To apply, please send cover letter, resume and a brief philosophy of ministry to apsearch.lvcc@gmail.com.

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Winter 2018 |  mbherald.com

Call us today to discuss estate planning and legacy giving. 1.888.866.6267 This service is provided through Abundance Canada.

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FINISH LINES Reuben Melvin Martens

Victor Hildebrand

Jacob Dueck

Sept. 1, 1925–May 8, 2017

Jan. 3, 1924–July 2, 2017

Jan. 15, 1924–July 12, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Main Centre, Sask.

PARENTS Peter S. & Maria (Wall) Martens MARRIAGE Alviena Violet Schroder, Oct. 18, 1952 BAPTISM Sept. 9, 1951 CHURCH Main Centre MB FAMILY Alviena; children Twila (Garth), Holly (Scott), Kimbal

(Tonia); 7 grandchildren; 3 great-grandchildren; 1 brother

Reuben was known for his sense of humour, love of sports, and dedication to the Lord. He spent his time farming, raising his family, gardening, driving school bus, and pitching for ball teams. Later he took up curling and bowling. He loved playing chess or crokinole with his grandchildren. Reuben served Main Centre MB Church as usher and deacon. He cared about others and was quick to make amends. Reuben instilled a love of God into his family through devotions and by example; he was frequently seen reading his Bible and writing encouraging notes.

Laura Heidi Sawatzky May 11, 1931–June 18, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Lucky Lake, Sask.

PARENTS Cornelius & Aganetha Sawatzky BAPTISM South End MB, Winnipeg, age 14 CHURCH Kelowna, B.C. FAMILY sisters Agnus (Bill) Lepp, Lydia Klassen;

nieces & nephews

Facing starvation, Laura’s family took refuge in her aunt’s home in Stillwater, Man. In 1934, they found caring community in the North Kildonan neighbourhood of Winnipeg. Laura graduated from MB Collegiate Institute. After normal school, she was assigned to practice-teach a oneroom school in Ninga, Man. Laura taught a missionary school in Kodaikanal, India, with MB Mission, an organization she supported throughout her life. On assignment with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), she taught at the Anglican Teacher’s College in Mandeville, Jamaica, where she started a reading program because the schools had no books. Laura received her BEd at University of Manitoba, became a member of the Manitoba Teacher’s Society, and worked for the Winnipeg School Division in inner-city schools. Laura sponsored children and families through World Vision. At 50, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Her sister Lydia cared for her for 20 years.

Laura’s joy, humour, and generosity gained her many friends.

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BIRTHPLACE Gnadenfeld, Russia PARENTS Gerhard & Maria Hildebrand MARRIAGE Anna Willms, 1954 [d.]

BAPTISM Grassy Lake (Alta.) MB, as a teen CHURCH Coaldale (Alta.) MB FAMILY children Marilyn, David (Hilda); 3 grandchildren; 1 great-granddaughter; 4 siblings

When Victor was 1, his family immigrated to Canada, settling in Reesor, Ont., for 5 years, then in Grassy Lake, Alta. He found school difficult at first because he knew no English. In 1935, his father died of acute appendicitis. Being the oldest, Victor had to take on more responsibilities than most 11-year-olds. Even during those hard times, his faith was important to him. He went to Coaldale (Alta.) Bible School. After he and Anna married, they farmed until retiring to Coaldale in 1989. Victor sang and played violin with the Chapel Singers for years until health wouldn’t allow it. Anna was admitted to Coaldale Health Centre in 2000; Victor faithfully visited her and did his own cooking and baking. After his health deteriorated, he moved to Sunny South Lodge in 2012. When he began needing dialysis in 2015, he moved to St. Therese Villa in Lethbridge, Alta.

Victor knew the God who holds the future.

He was ready to go to his eternal home.

Linda Renetta (Siemens) Froese Aug. 12, 1936–July 12, 2017 BIRTHPLACE Main Centre, Sask.

PARENTS Johann & Katherine (Klassen) Siemens MARRIAGE David Froese, Aug. 21, 1959 BAPTISM Main Centre MB, July 18, 1948 CHURCH Greendale MB, Chilliwack, B.C. FAMILY Dave; children Ken (Samantha), James (Rose), Gloria (Glen), Philip; 11 grandchildren including Ashlee Franz [d]; 2 great-grandchildren

Linda accepted Jesus as Saviour at an early age. She attended Herbert (Sask.) Bible School in 1956. Linda completed a BRE in 1960 at MB Bible College, Winnipeg, where she met Dave. After his grad in 1961, they moved to B.C. They had a dairy farm in Greendale and pastored 10 years at Greendale MB Church.

Linda sang in the choir and directed the Greendale Children’s Choir for 15 years.

Linda loved people. She enjoyed her children and loved her grandchildren.

During her last 5 weeks, Linda welcomed 2 great-grandchildren.

BIRTHPLACE Alexanderkrone, Russia PARENTS Nickolai & Lena Dueck MARRIAGE Anne Nickel, July 26, 1947 [d. Jan. 16, 2016] BAPTISM Virgil (Ont.) MB CHURCH Scott Street, St. Catharines, Ont. FAMILY children Samuel, Ruth (Peter) Maltese;

6 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren

Jacob’s family immigrated to Canada in 1926, living in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.

Due to drought, they moved to Ontario in 1937.

Jacob accepted Jesus at 14. He played guitar and mandolin. Jacob and Anne prayed many years for children. They adopted in 1947 and 1960.

In his youth, Jacob worked at the hydro and GM plants. Most of his life, Jacob was a grape grower alongside Anne. He loved delivering fruit for others to enjoy. He gave up farming at 82. He had a keen sense of business and a strong work ethic. He was always willing to help any way he could. Jacob wanted his family to know Jesus in a personal way. He struggled with health, but always got to church, Scott Street’s Wednesday Chat ’N Chew, and Tabor’s Thursday chapels.

Samuel John Buhler May 23, 1927–July 19, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Mennon, Sask.

PARENTS Abram & Tina Buhler MARRIAGE Grace Fehdrau, 1949 [d. 2006] BAPTISM Ebenezer MB, Dalmeny, Sask., 1941 CHURCH Dalmeny, Sask.

FAMILY son Murray [stillborn]; 2 sisters; nieces & nephews

Sam attended Mountain Lake school and Tabor Bible School, Dalmeny. He accepted Jesus as Saviour at the July 1941 Hooge Revival Meetings. Sam and Grace lived 2 years in Mennon, buying grain for National Grain. In 1952, they moved back to a little house on the family farm, and worked with his dad. Sam and Grace moved to Dalmeny in 1955 to farm on their own. Sam also drove truck 7 years for Mandtler’s Transport and Palm Dairies. In 1970, they purchased the home farm. Sam loved farming. They retired in 1991 and bought a townhouse in 1995. Here they remained until Grace’s death in 2006. Sam served on church committees and the Spruce Manor board. One of his favourite things was singing, both solo and with choirs and quartets. He had great concern for his family and prayed for them often. His wish was that all his family would accept Christ as Saviour and live for him. Sam’s motto was Proverbs 3:5–6.

[FINISH LINES

Madison Rose Doerksen

Henry Warkentin

July 19, 2017–July 19, 2017

Apr. 6, 1923–July 22, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Red Deer, Alta.

PARENTS Barry & Karla Doerksen CHURCH Gem (Alta.) MB FAMILY parents; 4 grandparents; 5 great-grandparents

Madison Rose, beautiful daughter of Barry and Karla Doerksen, was born at 9:23 am, July 19, 2017, at Red Deer Hospital. Her blue eyes, thick black hair, and strong cries brought her parents much joy before she passed away unexpectedly a few minutes after her birth. Her parents will miss her dearly, but find comfort in the hope of heaven that they will see her again one day. She is also survived by her grandparents Oswaldo and Jacqueline Benavides of Three Hills, Alta.; Arno and Wanda Doerksen of Gem, Alta.; as well as 5 great-grandparents, uncles and aunts, and other family and friends, who would have loved the privilege of meeting her. Her parents thank the staff of Piper Creek Medical Clinic and Red Deer Hospital for the care they received before and after Madison’s birth.

Abram Wiens Mar. 25, 1926–July 20, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Shumanovka, Siberia, Russia PARENTS Isaak & Liese Wiens MARRIAGE Elizabeth, May 27, 1948 CHURCH King Road MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Elizabeth; children Vic (Esther), Ed (Sharon), Werner

(Ester), Betty (Arnold) Poettcker, Esther (Greg) Andrukow, Harold (Shelly), Albert (Jolaine); 16 grandchildren; 25 greatgrandchildren including Samuel [d.]

In December 1930, Abe’s entire village fled at night over the Amur River into China.

In 1932, his family immigrated to Chaco, Paraguay, to become part of a new Mennonite community. They survived harsh conditions and prospered. Abe remembered fondly the horses, cattle, wide open spaces, choirs, and youth meetings. He made a faith commitment as a teen and remained steadfast. In 1948, the family immigrated to Canada. Abe would only go if Elizabeth would come along. At 17, she didn’t qualify to emigrate on her own, so they married. In Coaldale, Alta., Abe worked in construction, obtained his journeyman ticket, and enjoyed building houses. In 1959, they returned to Paraguay. They farmed in Tofield, Alta., 1961–1991. Abe was a strong bass and played mouth organ in a band. Abe and Elizabeth moved to Abbotsford, B.C., in 2002.

They sewed blankets together and spent hours drinking maté and playing games with family and friends.

BIRTHPLACE Gortschakovo, Ufa, Russia PARENTS Peter & Tina Warkentin MARRIAGE Helen Neufeld, July 10, 1947 [d.]; Nettie Tiessen,

Oct. 24, 1992 BAPTISM South Abbotsford (B.C.) MB, 1939 CHURCH Broadway MB, Chilliwack, B.C. FAMILY children Ruth Schulz [d.] (Dave), Carl (Ruth), Doris (Oly) Eichstadt; Paul (Elaine); Kerri (Allan) Toews; 12 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren

When Henry was 3, while leaving Russia, his mother and sister died. His father remarried and, after a year in Mexico, the family settled in Abbotsford, B.C. Henry accepted Jesus as Saviour at 11. After finishing high school by correspondence, he became a conscientious objector, serving in forestry camps and the army medical corps. Sent overseas in 1944, he had many opportunities to preach the gospel in several European countries. Upon his return, he married Helen Neufeld in 1947. He completed a bachelor of divinity degree in Ontario while working part-time, doing ministry with West Coast Children’s Mission and helping to raise his children. He taught Bible school in Yarrow, B.C., and pastored more than 30 years in Leamington, Ont.; Chilliwack, B.C.; Watrous, Sask.; and Starnberg, Germany. After Helen died, he married Nettie in 1992. They continued serving God together until his death. Henry was a man of strong faith, a prayer warrior, peacemaker, and passionate preacher of the gospel.

Dietrich (Dick) Thiessen

Marion were managers and hosts of a missionary guesthouse 1978–1980. He entered wholeheartedly into the challenges. Dick also worked as truck driver, bookkeeper, property manager, and tile setter. In his 20-year retirement, he volunteered with too many organizations to list. Dick lived a life of integrity and service to God and others.

He always valued people before possessions. Using his spiritual gifts of hospitality, generosity, and encouragement, Dick loved others freely and deeply.

Frieda Martens Dec. 22, 1926–Aug. 4, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Laird, Sask.

PARENTS Jacob Martens & Elizabeth Wiebe MARRIAGE Henry Martens BAPTISM Coaldale (Alta.) MB, age 16 CHURCH Clearbrook MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Henry; children Walter (Judy), Victor (Janice), Dan

(Doris), David (Debbie), Ruth (Bob Kwak); 13 grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; 1 sister

Frieda’s family immigrated to Canada and homesteaded in Mullingar, Sask., for 9 years before moving to Gem, then Coaldale, Alta.

She was orphaned at 12. At 14, she worked as housemaid and nanny in Lethbridge, Alta.

Frieda attended 1 year at Coaldale Bible School.

At 17, she worked for Del Monte General Store, Coaldale, and at 20, married the boss’s son Henry. Frieda and Henry operated Del Monte Photo Studio in Yarrow and Abbotsford. They were ordained as deacons at Clearbrook MB Church in 1962. She helped in Sunday school and led the ladies aid society. Frieda enjoyed camping with her children and grandchildren and weekend fishing trips.

Oct. 14, 1923–July 31, 2017

John W. Regier BIRTHPLACE Neu Kana, Ukraine PARENTS Peter & Anna (Rempel) Thiessen MARRIAGE Marion Riesen, June 19, 1949 BAPTISM Yarrow (B.C.) MB, September 1943 CHURCH Black Creek (B.C.) MB; Bakerview MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Marion; children Allen (Herta), Eric (Vange),

Valerie (David) Ritter; 12 grandchildren; 8 greatgrandchildren; 4 siblings

Dick’s family immigrated to Canada in 1926, settling first in Manitoba, then in Yarrow, B.C. Dick worked hard with his father on the farm and in hop yards to support the family. At an evangelistic meeting, Dick committed his life to Christ in his early teens. He attended 2 terms at MB Bible College, Winnipeg. He was a conscientious objector during WWII. Dick met Marion at church. They began married life in Vancouver until 1956, then moved to Black Creek for 10 years, followed by time in Kamloops and Clearbrook, B.C. At 54, Dick felt God’s call to Indonesia for a 2-year mission term. He and

Apr. 23, 1935–Aug. 19, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Herbert, Sask.

PARENTS John & Susie Regier MARRIAGE Tiena Funk, Aug. 8, 1958 BAPTISM Herbert, 1977 CHURCH Bridgeway, Swift Current, Sask.

FAMILY Tiena; children Trevor [d. 2009] (Brenda Cartman),

Robert, Kelly (Lyle) Zacharias; 8 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren;

John attended Herbert Bible School. He farmed with this father and found time whenever he could to see his high school sweetheart Tiena.

For 2 winters, John worked for Campbell Motors Car Dealership in Vancouver, always returning to Herbert and to Tiena. In 1957, he bought a farm south of Herbert. In 1965, John and Tiena moved to another farm near Herbert, where they raised cattle, hogs, and chickens.

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Haying season was a memory-making time for John and his children. John served the church as committee member and head usher.

He played softball with the Herbert Wheat Kings. He umpired and coached when his boys played softball. He also loved curling.

John and Tiena made memories travelling with friends and family to Toronto, Florida, Nevada, and Cypress Hills. They retired in 1999 to Swift Current, Sask. John did hail adjusting with Henderson Hail. John and Tiena served Bridgeway Community Church’s food committee and delivered Meals on Wheels. They bowled twice a week. In the hospital, John would open his eyes, look at the clock, and tell his children and grandchildren, “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”

Frieda Martens Jan. 5, 1915–Aug. 27, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Borden, Sask.

PARENTS Wm. W. & Katherine (Toews) Martens MARRIAGE Herbert P. Martens, Oct. 12, 1939 [d. June 29, 1961] BAPTISM Neville, Sask., June 21, 1930 CHURCH Bakerview MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY children Peggy (Al) Hiebert, Jim (Bev); 4

family. After her death, Jacob moved into an assisted living home in Niverville, Man. He died following a short illness.

Alfrieda Grace Peters Dec. 16, 1936–Sept. 10, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Rabbit Lake, Sask.

PARENTS Abram & Eleanor Loewen MARRIAGE Frank Peters, Nov. 9, 1956 CHURCH Northview, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Frank; children Charlie (Connie), Len (Tami), Clifford,

Les, Cheryl (Mark) Siemens; 11 grandchildren; 12 greatgrandchildren; 8 siblings

Alfrieda’s family moved to B.C. when she was almost 1. As the oldest of 10, she had many responsibilities, including farm work. In Matsqui, B.C., she met Frank. After a brief courtship, they married. She became a busy mom. Her days were full of meal preparation, laundry, gardening, and canning, but she found time to express her creativity. As the children grew, Alfrieda’s hardworking spirit lent itself to volunteering. Her passion for quilting led her to MCC, where she served more than 20 years. Time with family and friends was her greatest joy.

granddaughters; 6 great-grandchildren

Frieda faced many challenges with tenacity and courage during her 102 years of life. At 1, she lost her mother. Her formal education ended during Grade 8. She lived through the Depression along with 15 siblings. Her most profound loss was the sudden death of her beloved Herb, husband of only 22 years.

Widowed at 46, she turned to her faith in God, her church, her family, and friends.

Her strength and independence grew over the years as she lived a life of gratitude and service; baking, canning, cooking, sewing, and volunteering for MCC for more than 60 years.

She moved from Abbotsford to Vernon, B.C., after her 100th birthday.

Jacob B. Penner Sept. 9, 1928–Aug. 20, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Kronsgart, Man. PARENTS Peter J. & Katherina Penner MARRIAGE Selma Amalia Kroeker, 1957 [d. 2012] BAPTISM 1942 by H.S. Voth CHURCH Richmond Park, Brandon, Man. FAMILY children Esther (Art) Heier, George, Peter (Alvina); 11

grandchildren; 8 great-grandchildren; 4 siblings

Jacob came from a family of pastors. He married Selma in Winnipeg. Here, they raised 3 children and Jacob worked 34 years for Eaton’s downtown until retiring. Jacob and Selma relocated to Brandon, Man., to be closer to

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MARRIAGE Ella Kliewer, Mar. 9, 1944 [d. 1982]; Miriam Penner, June 25, 1983 CHURCH Clearbrook MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Miriam; children Ewald [d.], Trudi (Dan) Willms, Hilda (Bill) Berg; a son [stillborn]; stepdaughter Alene (Dennis) Martin; grandchildren; 3 sisters

Abram’s family caught the last train to Germany through the Red Gate in 1929, praising God for deliverance. They boarded the Sierra Cordoba for South America, settling in Paraguay where military service was not required. MCC helped them get establish with food and livestock. Abram was proud of his occupation as cowboy. He met Ella; shortly thereafter, they were married. They grieved a 7-year-old son and another who was stillborn. In 1956, Abram, Ella, and their girls came to Ontario. Their second day, they picked strawberries for their first Canadian pennies.

Abram thanked God for leading them to Canada.

He worked in construction, then at Port Weller Dry Docks for 21 years. Ella died in 1982. At church, Abram and Miriam felt God leading them together. They married and moved to B.C. in 1986, travelling often in their motorhome. Abram was hospitalized many times. His faith grew through the ups and downs. He prayed daily for his family. His motto was Proverbs 3:5–6.

Eva Penner Oct. 6, 1935–Sept. 16, 2017

Walter Harder Dec. 16, 1928–Sept. 10, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Slavgorod, Siberia, Russia PARENTS Jacob & Katie (Klassen) Harder MARRIAGE Betty Neufeld, June 9, 1956 BAPTISM : Greendale MB, Chilliwack, B.C., July 15, 1951 FAMILY Betty; children Shirley (Owen), Michael, Douglas

(Jennifer); 6 grandchildren; great-grandchildren; 4 siblings

Walter’s family escaped Russia in 1929. With the Canadian government’s welcome, they settled in B.C. Walter and Betty raised their family in Greendale, B.C. His work ethic and frugality were forged by the poverty of the 1930s. He worked in the hops fields, whitewashed dairy barns, grew raspberries, raised livestock. He was a shipper for the Medical Equipment Depot at CFB Chilliwack. Walter’s sense of humour and love for music affected everyone he knew.

An independent thinker, Walter set an example of self-discipline and dedication to the church and the Christian life.

Abram Martens Nov. 9, 1922–Sept. 11, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Alexanderfeld, Ukraine PARENTS Daniel D. & Margaretha (Regehr) Martens

BIRTHPLACE Baden, Ukraine PARENTS Phillip & Dorothea (Meier) Muller MARRIAGE Otto Penner [d. 1999] CHURCH King Road MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY children Laura (Brian) Gaudet, Art (Inge), Adeline (Erv)

Wiens; 9 grandchildren; 4 great-grandchildren

When Eva was 2, the Communists took her father. During WWII, her family fled to Germany. They were put on a train to Siberia, where, at 10, Eva had to knit gloves and socks to sell instead of attending school. In 1949, her father returned. That year, her mother took ill.

After her mother died of cancer, 13-year-old Eva became a nanny for an abusive Russian general.

Returning home 1 year later, she placed her ailing father in a home. At 16, Eva lived with her sister in a barn in summer and a Russian home in winter in exchange for work. They often had to beg for food. After marrying Otto, Eva visited relatives in Tajikistan. When her second was a baby, Eva worked full-time at a silk factory.

Eva and Otto applied 10 times from 1956–1972, before being permitted to leave for Canada.

Finding fellow German-speakers at King Road MB Church, Abbotsford, B.C., helped the family feel at home. There, they heard for the first time about a relationship with Jesus and accepted him into their hearts. Eva worked at Tabor Home, Menno Home, and Menno Hospital, doing cooking, care, cleaning, and laundry. After Otto died, Eva went on Disciple Making International trips. Her grandchildren loved to visit her. After

[FINISH LINES a stroke in 2014, daily tasks grew challenging. In 2015, she went to Tabor Home, and her decline was quick. Eva was selfless and giving.

Wilmer Kenneth Kornelson May 11, 1928–Sept. 24, 2017 BIRTHPLACE Gravelbourg, Sask.

PARENTS Fred & Lena (Butz) Kornelson MARRIAGE Evangeline Willms, Aug. 29, 1952 [d. 2008] CHURCH Woodrow (Sask.); Lindal MB Mission, Morden, Man.;

Fraserview, Richmond, B.C.; Bakerview, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY children Lois (Dave) Goertzen, Ken (Barb), John; 9 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; 1 sister

In a Woodrow house church, Wilmer sensed his need for forgiveness, and at 10, committed his life to Jesus. He never wavered. Early in life, Wilmer sensed God’s call, which was affirmed at Briercrest Bible College, Caronport, Sask. After graduating in 1948, he pastored near Bromhead, Sask. Wilmer worked in construction in Regina to raise money to study at MB Bible College, Winnipeg. There, he met Evangeline. After their honeymoon, he pastored Lindal MB Mission for 3 years. Intending to serve in Africa, Wilmer attended Tabor College and Wichita University, Kansas. When health issues changed their plans, Wilmer taught at Herbert (Sask.) Bible School, 1956–57. He directed a weekly radio program of the South Saskatchewan MB Conference. Wilmer was principal and teacher at the MB Bible school in Kitchener, Ont., 1957–1964. He pastored Fraserview until his heart attacks at 37 and 38.

As MB Board of Christian Education executive secretary (1967–74), Wilmer started the triennial national youth conference in Banff, which gave him great joy. He was on faculty at Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, 19 years. Wilmer and Evangeline visited nearly 30 countries, led tours to Eastern Europe and the Middle East, and served on ministry ventures in the Soviet Union, Philippines, and Peru. Wilmer was moderator of Bakerview MB Church for 10 years and president of the Fraser Valley Recovery Association board for 8. Seeing others follow Jesus was his passion.

Harry Neufeld Jan. 10, 1936–Oct. 12, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Nikopol, Ukraine PARENTS David & Katharina Neufeld MARRIAGE Edith Schroeder, Nov. 15, 1958 BAPTISM Chaco, Paraguay, 1950 CHURCH Vancouver MB; Culloden, Vancouver; King Road MB,

Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Edith; children Richard, Harold, Lillian, Martin, Marlene; 11 grandchildren; 1 great-grandchild

When Harry’s father refused to join the Communist party, he was arrested in 1937 and never seen again. Harry’s mother struggled

to provide. Life improved after the Germans took Nikopol in 1941. When the Germans retreated in 1943, Harry’s family travelled with other German-speakers to Litzmannstadt and Warthegau, Poland. As the Soviets advanced, the family went to Mittweide, Germany, where they lived in a basement with 9 other families. In the British Zone of Feldbergen, Harry attended school and worked on a farm. The family sailed to Paraguay on the Charlton Monarch in 1948.

In 1955, Harry, his twin Ed, and their mother immigrated to Canada. Harry framed houses in Vancouver. He became interested in his friend Walter’s sister Edith in 1957. Harry and Edith began married life in Vancouver. When their son Martin was in a serious car accident, they moved to North Delta, B.C., to help with the grandchildren. Fishing with family at Mahood Lake, B.C., was special to Harry. He led singing at Culloden Church, Vancouver. His favourite activity was singing with his brothers. Harry had a hip replacement and a stroke in 2013. During an Oct. 2 surgery on a ruptured abdominal aneurysm, a lack of blood flow damaged his organs. Days later, he miraculously regained consciousness to see his family.

Peter Ewert July 24, 1942–Apr. 26, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Rosenort, Zagradovka, Ukraine PARENTS Heinrich & Katharina Ewert MARRIAGE Maria Dyck, July 20, 1968 BAPTISM North Kildonan MB, Winnipeg, Bird’s Hill, July 21, 1957 FAMILY Maria; daughters Ramona (Chris), Tanya (Hans),

Nanette (Matthew); 11 grandchildren

Peter’s family immigrated to Canada when he was 6. He met the love of his life, Maria, in 1967. Peter loved his work as property manager at W.R.E. Development for 37 years. He enjoyed reading his Bible, serving as church treasurer and council member, attending grandchildren’s events, and cheering for the Bombers and Jets.

He debated sports and politics with whomever would listen. Peter treasured time with siblings.

His grandchildren were the light of his life.

Faith and family were his focus. Peter’s last days were in Concordia Hospital for an illness related to his lungs. His family read him Scripture and sang him into God’s Kingdom.

Peter Jacob Thielmann Feb. 11, 1935–Oct. 24, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Russia PARENTS Jacob & Helena (Hamm) Tielmann MARRIAGE Elsa, Jan. 1, 1959 CHURCH King Road MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Elsa; children Vic (Denise), Walera (Patti), Henry

(Belle), Agnes (Elmer), Linda (Wil), Anita (Dean), Danny (Sherri), Eduard [d. in infancy]; 28 grandchildren; 1 great-grandchild

After Peter, Elsa, and 8 children immigrated to Canada in 1974, their family continued to grow.

They had 13 children, grieving one in infancy.

Peter is now reunited with his mother and siblings in the presence of their Saviour Jesus.

Edward (Ed) Boldt Oct. 20, 1929–Oct. 25, 2017

BIRTHPLACE Plum Coulee, Man. PARENTS Bernard B. & Margaret (Giesbrecht) Boldt MARRIAGE Margaret Mathies, 1953 CHURCH Kitchener (Ont.) MB FAMILY Margaret; children Wendy (Ed) Deines, Bryan [d.], Bernie [d.] (Edith); 3 grandchildren 3 great-grandchildren; 3 sisters

Edward’s family moved to Kitchener in 1934 during the Depression. He earned a BA and MA from Waterloo College, and a teaching certificate from Ontario College of Education.

His teaching career in history took him to Welland, Cambridge (Galt), and KitchenerWaterloo Collegiate, where he spent the last 17 years as head of history. He organized conferences throughout the Waterloo Region and travelled with his wife to teach English in universities in China (1989) and Russia (1992).

Edward was deeply committed to the faith as exercised in the Mennonite Brethren church.

Ed sang in Kitchener MB’s choir for 53 years, in the Sacred Song Quartet (which toured North America and Europe) for 41, and in the Jubilation Male Choir since its inception in 1992. For the Ontario MB Conference, Edward volunteered for the Eden Christian College board, the Home Mission/Church Extension board, the constitution committee, as parliamentarian, and on the Board of Faith and Life. Edward was a mission advocate in Eastern Canada for MB Mission, 1997–2000. He served on CCMBC’s Christian education and resource ministries boards, and as parliamentarian.

Obituaries have long been a valued part of the MB Herald. From the funeral bulletins, eulogies, and newspaper obituaries you send, our editors craft life stories of our members to inspire and encourage our readers, creating a memorial of MB saints.

Beginning with the Spring 2018 issue, MB Herald will now charge for this service.

For a flat rate of $65 for up to 300 words and a photograph, MB Herald staff will prepare an obituary compliant with our in-house style. We take care to include historical and genealogical information as available and to highlight aspects of the decedent’s faith walk.

Contact obituaries@mbchurches.ca for more information or to submit a life story.

(Leanne), Jake (Lesa), Helen (Eldon), Walter, Irene (Chris), Eddie

Mennonite Brethren Herald | Winter 2018

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BOOKS Reviews go up at mbherald.com Monday mornings. Sample some recent offerings.

New from HERALD PRESS The Upside-Down Kingdom Anniversary Edition

The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile InterVarsity Press Review by Nathan McCorkindale

by Donald B. Krabill

What would happen if Christians replaced force with service, violence with love, and nationalism with allegiance to Jesus? This award-winning best-seller is updated and revised with new interpretations of parables, added cultural context, and connections to current events.

John Calvin famously declared: “without knowledge of self there is no knowledge of God.” I have sensed the Holy Spirit speaking to me through the Enneagram to move me into greater holiness and personal health. The Road Back to You is a great read for anyone who wants to grow in their knowledge of themselves and how it affects all their relationships.

God’s Country: Faith, Hope, and the Future of the Rural Church Brad Roth Herald Press Review by Rick Schellenberg Anyone wanting to understand why city and country churches see things differently would be wise to read the book. Without taking sides, Brad affirms the joy and significance of ministry in the country and its potential to contribute to the Kingdom of God locally and globally. Rural pastors will find it deeply encouraging.

The Year Of Small Things: Radical Faith For The Rest of Us Sarah Arthur and Erin F. Wasinger Brazos Press Review by Penny Johnston

ortion-tvwww.aei.org/publication/on-ab shows-its-conservative-side/

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us/ www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/ r-gets-life-term kermit-gosnell-abortion-docto

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er/343460/ www.nationalreview.com/corn unmourned-mark-steyn

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all biblical Unless otherwise noted, in the New passages referenced are International Version (2011).

4

What Next? iew The Transformation of a Worldv William Wilberforce When Member of Parliament the end of the slave championed a bill that led to Empire in 1807, he trade throughout the British simple passage of a law. accomplished more than the Metaxas, Wilberforce According to biographer Eric transformed an entire worldview.

of that society’s No less than the transformation an age-old evil. Until worldview could put an end to normal institution, then, slavery was viewed as a as marriage and as intrinsic to human existence will be necessary to commerce. A similar change of the unborn child. revolutionize our perception

always starts with The road to cultural redemption the individual. Just the radical transformation of t its history, the like it has always done throughou can make is to offer greatest contribution the church . generation our to Christ in forgiveness must also learn to But that is not enough. Christians need to learn from reoccupy the public sphere. We Carey, William missionary such people as Baptist Luther King, Jr., William Wilberforce and Martin of their time who addressed the seminal issues and racism) with (respectively, the rite of sati, slavery clarity, courage and passion.

a woman has the intercourse between a man and be engaged in with great potential to create life, it should to act responsibly in care and forethought. It is far better e the termination of a the first place than to contemplat situation. difficult a escape to life human speak on behalf of the Feminists should vigorously both girls and boys. unborn, for abortion victimizes abortion is common, In China, where sex-selective a war on females. become virtually has procedure the and biologists, should Scientists, especially physicians for they know best affirm the dignity of the unborn, the womb. If in sheltered is what the real nature of lity, they will one day be knowledge creates accountabi

by God himself. held to the highest standards others what you to do Jesus once said, “So in everything, (Matthew 7:12). When would have them do to you…”

Jesus demands we are considering an ethical decision, es on ourselves. that we imagine its consequenc

ed and approved by Written by Pierre Gilbert. Commission the Board of Faith and Life.

©2017 Board of Faith and Life. of MB Churches.

Published by the Canadian Conference Canadian Conference of MB For additional copies, contact: Winnipeg, MB R3M 3Z6.

Churches, 1310 Taylor Ave., Call toll free: 1.888.669.6575.

30

the profound Men and women need to rediscover Because sexual significance of human sexuality.

New BFL Resources Life before Birth

ORDINATION:

PRINCIPLES & PRACTICE

am immensely thankful I deeply value my life. And I to value it as that my mother and father chose deserve the same well. Doesn’t the unborn child would advocate an consideration? Who among us ones targeted by the abortion if in fact we were the concerned by the procedure? We would be little conception and our circumstances surrounding our want to live. birth. We would desperately

As a mom of young children, it can be easy to simply survive, looking ahead to the future: “When the children are older…

When the house is cleaner… When the finances are more stable…”. This book is a timely reminder that God calls us to live in the here and now.

Christians should Pastors, theologians and ordinary to live and promote affirm the unborn child’s right This could life-affirming alternatives to abortion. with older women include pairing expectant mothers access diapers, for support; helping single mothers g or fundraising for carseats and cribs; or volunteerin centre. care pregnancy a local as the Mennonites and The historic peace churches such concerned Brethren in Christ should be particularly ing of a child simply about this issue. The dismember to have been misfortune the had she or he because ces represents conceived in less than ideal circumstan and brutality. Abortion an unqualified act of injustice a death sentence represents the ultimate act of violence: human being. imposed on a perfectly innocent

Order today at 1-877-846-1593, CommonWord.ca, and your favorite bookseller.

Recommended Resources

to ProChoice Randy Alcorn, ProLife Answers CO, 2000).

Arguments (Colorado Springs, store.org Available at www.colsoncenter and Set Free: A Linda Cochran, Forgiven (Grand Women for Study Post-Abortion Bible 1996). Available at Rapids, MI: Baker Books, www.colsoncenterstore.org n of associatio Canadian (a a LifeCanad www.lifecollective.io educational pro-life groups) centre for Care Net (an American resource www.care-net.org people facing pregnancy) news agency) LifeNews (an American pro-life www.lifenews.com

Read more: mbherald.com/ category arts-culture/books Winter 2018 | mbherald.com

Board of Faith and Life 2017

Faith and Life

The newest BFL Pamphlet, “Life Before Birth”, and a revised document on Ordination are now available at bit.ly/bflpamphlets

Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches

COMING EVENTS

National Conference Events Multiply 2018

February 7–8, 2018 Westside Church, Vancouver, B.C. multiplyconference.ca

Pastor Credentialing Orientation

Provincial Events OCMBC Pastors & Leaders Day • February 23, 2018 Location TBD

OCMBC Convention • February 23–24, 2018 Behta Darya Community Church, Mississauga, Ontario MBCM Assembly • March 2–3, 2018 Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg, Manitoba

May 22-24, 2018 Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, B.C.

SKMB Assembly • March 9–10, 2018 Hope Fellowship Church, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

pco.mennonitebrethren.ca

AEFMQ Convention • April 7, 2018 ETEQ, Montreal, Quebec

Gathering 2018

July 11-14, 2018 Forest Grove Community Church, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan gathering.mennonitebrethren.ca

ABMB Convention • April 13–14, 2018 Bethel Eritrean Evangelical Church, Edmonton, Alberta BCMB Convention • April 27–28, 2018 North Langley Community Church, Langley B.C.

BCMB Pastor & Spouse Retreat • April 29–May 1, 2018 Whistler, B.C.

MBCM Pastor & Spouse Retreat •

mbchurches.ca

May 27-29, 2018 Hecla, Manitoba

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