O
give thanks unto the Lord for His mercies endures forever. Amen
What
a year 2020 has been, one that will be remembered for a very long time for a
lot of reasons that I would like to forget. It’s hard this year to find reasons
to be thankful.Ever wonder how the
Apostle Paul, in the midst of great adversity, sang words of praise and
thanksgiving?
One
of my favorite songs, “Dear younger me”, by Mercy Me talks about what advice
you would give to your younger self after going through life's difficult times.
In particular, there is a line that resonates as my family looks back and
reflects on this year:“The choices that
you'll make cuz they're choices that made me.” Granted, we didn’t choose 2020,
and maybe some of our choices did lead to a learning experience.
I
have learned that I miss standing in line next to people and having those
casual conversations in passing or not having to make reservations in order to
eat out. I miss having people over to my house without worrying about group
size or if they are family. Most of all, I have learned that I miss spending
time with people and the face-to-face conversations with contacts in my
northern B.C. communities. Like a lot of lessons learned in life, I hope what
we missed during the pandemic will never be taken for granted, that I will be a
better person for it, and be reminded to be thankful to the Lord for
everything.
As
you may recall from my last newsletter, I was offering my first puppet making
workshop. It was held on November 21st.It was a great opportunity to connect virtually with a few of my
volunteers and have fun showing them how to make an interactive tool that can
be used for Bible lessons and skits at VBS. The kids always enjoy the puppets
and the adults do too!
Since
I am unable to physically go to churches and schools to present on LAMP, I made
a short video. My uncle’s church in Florida plans to share the video and give
the children a chance to ask me questions through a live virtual platform such
as Zoom.I am looking forward to being
able to share some stories about my ministry.
It
is so easy to take people for granted, especially our family.I am still learning how to be flexible, given
our eldest son (who got married this fall) and his bride are living with us,
and Tina has had to adjust from teaching at school and then from home as Covid
restrictions change. Both Tina & I felt a sense of joy and sorrow when we
dropped our daughter off at Western Oregon University.Please pray for understanding, guidance, safety, and even more
flexibility for our family during these times.
This
Thanksgiving and holiday season will be special. As I look around, I see how
God has blessed me. I have many things to be thankful for. Job lost his family,
his property and all that he owned and yet, despite his sufferings, Job still
had faith in God. As this world seems to be spiralling out of control, I am
thankful for the faith I have in Jesus and the unfailing way that He loves me.
I have a hope that only comes from Christ and that hope spurs me on to love the
people around me.
My
prayer these last few weeks is to be Christ’s light and joy in this world of so
much uncertainty. I am very thankful for you, yes you -- the person reading my
blog. Without your prayers, encouragement, and support I would not be able to
do the ministry of LAMP. Please continue to pray for God to open doors for His
message to be shared.
Despite
COVID challenges, God has been using the gifts and talents of all those working
and volunteering at LAMP to minister to the First Nations people of northern
Canada. While there is still uncertainty regarding the ministry plans for the
upcoming winter, I am confident that God is leading where He’d have us
serve. Thank you and may you be a light
of Christ this holiday season.
