PRBI Fall Trumpet 2020

Trumpet Fa l l

PEACE RIVER BIBLE INSTITUTE

2 0 2 0

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21

1

College Update What a joyous day September 7, 2020 was when we were able to welcome back a new crop of freshmen and our upperclassmen to campus. I remember wondering during the spring and summer if that day would ever arrive.

Praise God that it has!

Welcome Day for students looked very different than in the past. Friendly smiles were masked, embracing hugs were replaced with waves, and welcoming handshakes were awkwardly avoided; I am sure you understand the feeling.

Yet, there was a calmness when perhaps we expected some chaos.

As I reflected on this calmness, I couldn’t help but sense that these students are here, perhaps more than ever before, because they really want to be here.

The students were aware prior to their arrival that things would look different, and yet they came during a pandemic to be a part of a faith community that is like-minded, having the same love, one in spirit and of one mind (Ph. 2:2). Praise God for that too.

Our staff believe that we are in for a great year, a year like none other. Our prayer is that God will do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine in our students’ lives this year. He is able to do it, and when He does, we will give Him glory. Please continue to pray with us to that end.

Jeremy Johnston Director of Operations 2

Expecting More Considering COVID-19, what can we expect this year? It is a relevant question for students and staff.

During the summer months, staff addressed potential concerns arising from COVID-19 protocols. We adjusted the campus to meet the guidelines established by Alberta Health, hoping to provide a safe environment for our students. A unique experience is awaiting all of us!

Surviving COVID-19 is not our sole expectation for the year, though. We want a physically safe campus, but we expect more.

During the spring, the leadership team established six outcomes for our students, that represent the outworking of our vision, which is every student encountering Christ in ways that transform their life, energize their church and impact their world. As students encounter Christ in the context of PRBI’s learning community, we are inviting them to experience the following outcomes in their lives this year: To nurture a healthy and ongoing relationship with Christ We want our students to encounter 3

Kim Cairns President Christ in fresh ways that challenge them to grow in character, faith and intimacy with Him. Encounters with Christ will happen through staffstudent relationships, classes, and student interactions on campus. In the spirit of the apostle Paul we will invite the students to “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Co 11:1). Our aim is that the students will develop a vibrant relationship not only while at school but also for the rest of their lives.

To pursue wholeness and holiness Students come with suitcases filled not only with their clothing and possessions, but sometimes with hurts and wounds. We support our students’ pursuit of wholeness in every aspect of their lives (1 Th 5:23-24). Our campus life staff offer basic counsel, and occasionally we refer students to professional Christian counsellors to assist them in their search for emotional wellbeing.

The call to holiness completes the picture of wholeness, and our discipling relationships provide opportunities to teach and model principles of sanctification (1 Pe 1:1315).

To develop a Biblically informed worldview One of our primary tasks in the classroom is to offer a clear and persuasive approach to view the world through the lens of Scripture.

The longer a student journeys with us, the stronger the foundation they can build for withstanding the confusing non-biblical worldviews that persist. We expect not just to equip our students to withstand the prevailing ideas of society but also to impart the competences to persuade people that there is a better choice in Christ (1 Pe 3:15).

To acquire practical, relational and ministry skills Imparting knowledge is important, but it is of little value without opportunities for practice. Our students take part in practical work experiences to help keep their costs down while assisting them to develop skills that they can take into future employment. Practical work situations also provide ready-made times for sharing Christ and modelling character through example. Living together in the community provides many instances to work on relational skill development. As well all students find service opportunities in area churches and other ministries so they can be better prepared to serve in the church and Christ’s kingdom.

To enhance their ability to love the church and neighbour We believe that God is actively working through His church to

bring the message of salvation to the entire world. It is critical to help our students see that they are a vital part of God’s plan to make disciples of all nations. We want our students to be a positive influence in the church and community. We can assist them in becoming influencers through sound biblical teaching and modelling servant leadership in the church and community.

To discover a sense of their place in the church and world Our partnership with many churches and mission agencies offers students opportunities to find their place in God’s plan for the world. We expose students to a balance of needs and opportunities that exist here at home and abroad. Christ is still calling our students to serve in His harvest field whether that is local or global, and we will encourage them to hear His call and respond.

We expect more than to just survive this year. It will be different and our normal routines will be curtailed because of protocols. However, we are trusting the Lord for these outcomes in our students’ lives. And how about you? How are you feeling about the year ahead? Are you just trying to get through it or can you focus on some growth outcomes in your own relationship with the Lord?

We all can expect more because the Lord “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Ep 3:20a).

4

2020-2021 Team Members

Jane Butler

Part-time Cook

Katrina Finke

Admissions Manager

Jill Gayoway

Business Associate

Scott Butler

Kim Cairns President

Academic Dean

Shanda Fuller

Alex Gao

Jason Gayoway

Dave Groff

Jeremy Johnston

Faculty

Registrar/Librarian Business Office Manager

Cornie Giesbrecht

Maintenance Manager

Anne Laursen

Jesse Raugust

Shaelyn Wiebe Custodian

Faculty

Executive Assistant Director of Operations

Women’s Campus Pastor Men’s Campus Pastor

5

Brad Cowie

Vanessa Retzlaff

Kitchen Manager

Halla Wilson

Communications Manager

Financial Update Peace River Bible Institute Statement of Operations and Budget July 2020 - August 2020 Revenue

tudent Revenue Student

General Income Sales

Fees & Other Programs

& Non-Program Fees & Services

esidence Rental Rental

Income

onation - Undesignated Donations

- Undesignated - Designated Total Donations

onation - Designated Donations

Total Revenue

Expenses

Income To Date

Annual Budget

% of Budget To Date

114,664

665,600

17%

85,331

154,550

55%

38,165

151,985

25%

52,450 50 52,500

775,000 196,200 971,200

7% 0% 5%

290,660

1,943,335

15%

Expenses To Date

Annual Budget

% of Budget To Date

cademics

Academics

43,463

303,221

14%

tudent Life

Campus Life

18,806

314,226

6%

25,645

219,018

12%

41,861

297,257

14%

8,355

123,736

7%

99,504

704,780

14%

50,527

154,192

33%

4,762

6,000

79% 0%

ood Services Food

Services

evelopment

Promotion & Development

dmissions

Admissions

dministrationAdministration

Maintenance

Facilities & Maintenance

tudent Aid

Special Project

tudent Aid

Student Aid

-

15,000

thers

Others

-

-

Total Expenses Net Income (Loss)

292,923 (2,263)

2,137,430

14%

(194,095)

Excludes Amortization Expense

6

7

College Update in Pictures

8

Apologetics from Silence I dread the day my young son picks up the phrase, “That’s not fair!” I have observed many kids lock onto this plea at some early age and then proceed to use it boldly and incorrectly at every turn. It does not take long to determine that what they really mean by “not fair” is “not what I want right now!”

Based on how often my two-yearold already declares, “I’m bored,” I know he will surely be among those for whom fairness is all about himself.

This common phrase and experience illustrates the unfortunate truth that, by and large, humans evaluate what they observe on the basis of their own understanding and 9

Scott Butler Faculty preference. Each of us is the centre of the universe. The author of Judges captures this well in his pithy conclusion, “… everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Jg 21:25).

So what do you see when you look at Jesus Christ? What do your senses reveal to you about the one we call God the Son? One of the charges Christians face is that Jesus never claimed to be God. By many he is admired as a man of outstanding and enviable moral character, he is lauded as one of history’s most influential teachers, and even championed as a countercultural revolutionary. Yet nowhere,

they say, does he stand up and state literally and unambiguously, “I am God.” Many Christians, as I am, are convinced that Scripture makes this very claim in subtle and clever ways.

Perhaps not so subtly, John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn 1:1). Jesus himself brings matters into present tense by turning a clever phrase from the Old Testament: “… before Abraham was born, I am.” Perhaps the provocation to stone him right then and there for blasphemy is evidence enough of Jesus making a divine claim (Jn 8:58-59; see Mt 26:64-65).

While a host of other passages, and arguments built upon them, suggest strongly that Jesus claimed to be God, just enough ambiguity exists to fuel doubt. In the early centuries of the Church the question of Christ’s divinity was the headline of theological debate. Much of this debate is rehearsed on doorsteps around the world today when Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses spar over all the same passages, debating once again whether being one with the Father (Jn 10:30) means unity of divine essence or merely unity of purpose. Interestingly, as tempers sometimes boil on those

doorsteps, so was the temper of the Jewish leadership again boiling over Jesus making himself “out to be God” (Jn 10:33).

These texts and others are absolutely essential points on which to mount an apologetic for Christ’s divinity. In an effort to mount another line of defence, however, I want to return to my question above. I will word it differently this time: does Jesus look like God to you?

As Isaiah looked forward to the coming of the Christ, his poetry depicted a figure about as far from the divine ideal as possible. His suffering servant had “no stately form or majesty… no appearance that we should be attracted to him.

He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He was despised, and we did not esteem him” (Is 53:2-3).

This is the very figure and future for which Peter rebuked his Lord – moments, even, after declaring him to be “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16, 21-22). If I could paraphrase, I might place those dreaded words on Peter’s lips: “It’s not fair!” Gods do not suffer, gods triumph over those they inflict suffering upon! Sons of God command legions of angels 10

to strike down their enemies while foiling enemy plans in a show of power! (See Mt 26:53, 27:40-42.) It is no small wonder that when God the Son actually came to the world he made, it “did not know him” and even his own “did not receive him” (Jn 1:10, 11).

mouth[,] like a lamb that is led to slaughter...” (Is 53:7).

Jesus did not announce that he is God precisely because that is not what God would do – it is what I would do and, if I can be so bold, what you would do.

To ask that question “the best from the late ‘90s, Paul’s words to the evidence for what would Jesus do?

Philippians offer a Jesus’ divinity Exactly what he did: helpful perspective is that he never considering others as shif t, suggesting claimed it.” more important than to me that the best himself (Ph 2:3b), evidence for Jesus’ divinity is that he never claimed it. I he was obedient (Ph 2:8b; see Lk call this an apologetic from silence. 22:42), waiting for God to exalt him Perhaps drawing from the words and bestow upon him the name of of a common hymn, Paul writes Lord that everyone will confess (Ph in Philippians 2:6-9 that Christ, 2:9-11). Simply put, God would do “although he existed in the form of things exactly the opposite of what God, did not regard equality with human beings would do.

God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself…” and, as Peter Imagine defining God the Son on and the others were shocked to find the basis of our own understanding out, “humbled himself by becoming and preference. Imagine holding obedient to the point of death, even the God of the universe to the dark and sinful standard of our own death on a cross.” selfish impulses. To him, we must Paul’s words about Jesus here are sound like so many schoolyard unequivocal: he is God by form children chattering on about and nature. Yet what draws my fairness. Instead, let us stand firm interest is how he describes Jesus’ in Scripture’s robust affirmations actions based on his nature. The about God the Son as well as its first thing God does when he lives ambiguity and silence. If Jesus did among us is to not grasp – prey after, not claim outright to be God, it is hunt down, or seize – divinity. He because when you really are, it is not possessed all the being and rights necessary. of God, “yet he did not open his 11

News & Updates WEDDINGS BERGEN, Bradley (g ‘20) & Cristyn (Hogue, g ’20) were married June 6, 2020 and are currently living in Prince George, BC. Brad is pastoring a rural church and Cristyn is an Education Assistant at a Christian School while looking into joining the InterVaristy team. There has never been a dull moment for Brad and Cristyn as God has been guiding them through their first few months of marriage.

FINKE, Justin (g ‘16) & Katrina (Friesen, ug ‘15) were joyfully married on May 23, 2020 with a drive-in wedding!

Katrina has completed her Bachelor of Music in Voice and is now working as the Admissions Manager at PRBI, and Justin is nearing completion of his Carpenter’s Red Seal training and is working in Grande Prairie. They are so thankful they got to get married even in the midst of COVID-19, and are loving the adventure of married life.

KLASSEN, Sam (g ‘19) & Kate (Peters, g ‘19) were married on June 20, 2020 and are living in Sexsmith, AB. Sam is employed at Parlee Sheds and Shelters, while Kate is currently homemaking. They are enjoying being able to see each other every day and are finding new ways to encourage one another.

MCCOLMAN Sam (ug ‘17, staff ‘18-’20) & Chloe (Boulianne, ug ‘20) were married September 5, 2020 and are residing in Grande Prairie, AB. Chloe is working from home as a crisis responder and plans to attend GPRC in January. Sam just finished spraying for the summer and is tackling home projects before moving on to his next job. They are loving married life and are learning more about each other every day!

12

STRYDHORST, Colin (g ‘19) & Jeannette (Wicker, g ‘19) married one another on July 11, 2020, and are living in Grande Prairie, AB. Colin is waiting on work as an apprentice electrician and Jeannette is in her second year of elementary education. They are so happy to be able to see each other every day and are really enjoying the first few months of being husband and wife.

WOODEN, Austin (student) & Shamayah (Layoun) were married on May 23, 2020. Currently residing in Sexsmith, AB, Austin is a BRE student at PRBI and Shamayah is hair dressing. Their lives together have proved to be a joyful learning experience.

BIRTHS RAUGUST, Jesse (g ‘16, staff ‘18-present) & Andrea (g’ 15) are thrilled to announce the birth of Isaiah David, born June 27, 2020. Jesse has been working as the Men’s Campus Pastor at PRBI for two years and Andrea is enjoying staying at home with their little one.

They have felt so blessed to have Isaiah in their lives and have loved watching him grow and learn new things.

GET INVOLVED

13

MONTHLY GIVING

BE A PRAYER PARTNER

SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

REFER A STUDENT

LEGACY GIVING

WWW.PRBI.EDU/GIVE

COMING EVENTS

ABOUT PRBI Peace River Bible Institute is a Canadian Degree Granting Bible College in Sexsmith, Alberta, founded in 1933.

PRBI is known for quality academics and its highly relational culture that purposefully fosters an atmosphere of spiritual growth. PRBI has a distinct commitment to train students in a thorough knowledge of the Word of God and to train students to become disciple-makers whether at home or abroad. PRBI’s educational model purposefully integrates the academic learning experience with an experiential learning component making us a Bible College for Life.

Our vision is that every student encounters Christ in ways that transform their life, energize their church and impact their world.

November 7 Graduation November 2 - 6 Reading Break November 9 - 13 Impact Week February 5 Circle of Friends March 5 - 7 Youth Alert

Contact Us www.prbi.edu

prbi@prbi.edu

Like Us On Facebook! www.facebook.com/acollegeforlife

PRBI - Peace River Bible Institute

780-568-3962

If you know of an alumnus who has passed away, please let us know.

The TRUMPET is the magazine of Peace River Bible Institute that is comprised of contributions from faculty, staff, alumni, and students who are passionate about making disciples in their churches and communities. If you would have any comments please email us at development@prbi.edu. Printed in Canada.

14

Additional Webinar: “Do I really need a Will now? It isn’t too early to start.”

November 23, 2020 at 9pm EST Register by emailing register@advisorswithpurpose.ca