Monday Again

New Pastor Orientation (NPO) convened on Wednesday & Thursday at Beulah Camp & Conference Center. This group of 16 pastors includes new lead pastors, new or returning pastors to the district, and newly credentialed staff pastors. Special thanks to Karrilee (and hubby Dale) for rolling out red carpet treatment for this high octane cadre of Kingdom leaders. Thanks Martin Stehouwer (SJ1) for recommending the Marina Restaurant for our final meal.

And speaking of high octane leaders, it was inspirational to attend my first official DS event on  Monday & Tuesday at Crossroads with 20 District Superintendents at the generous invitation of Wesleyan Investment Foundation. In 1995, eleven people with $15,000 in the bank invited Brian Tome to come and start a church in Cincinatti. The 3,500 seat auditorium pictured here hosts the main campus ministry of 11 sites with a weekly attendance of 30,000 as one of the fastest growing churches in America. Brian Tome’s gritty leadership insights and passion for the lost highlighted the priority of maintaining an entrepreneurial spirit to embrace risk for the sake of the Cause. The IMA thots below reveal his heart and are a poignant reminder to keep the main thing the main thing. So thankful for Craig Dunn and the quality leadership investment we experience because of our denominational leadership as Wesleyans.

• Presque Isle Wesleyan (Bud Fancy) 2017 Men’s Summit this weekend included 71 men worshiping God,12 heart revealing small groups in three sessions of prayer and The Word… and of course an ample supply of firearms & explosives – all enjoyed in the incredible facilities of Moose River Outpost. A first time attender celebrates, “I’ve never experienced this many men sharing their deepest hurts and receiving healing, prayer and a depth of relationship that is transformational.”
• We always love celebrating baptisms in the Atlantic Tribe! Here is an excellent idea worthy of adaptation for your context from Mark Brewer (Crosspoint) in how to leverage online engagement for your church family as you invite people to experience this sacrament – Baptism Promo.
• Ryan Ferrall reports yesterday Nackawic Wesleyan held its 15th Annual Well Walk. There were 106 present and $4,090 was received to dig wells overseas. Incredible impact with long-term commitment in ministry to the least of these.
• Mission Pastors – save the date: November 8th for a special affinity group at the Edgett Boardroom (District Office) from 10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.  More detail next IMA. To register email our District Director of Global Partners Denn Guptill (Cornerstone) – at denn@cornerstonehfx.ca.
• Thanks be to God for the turn around week Shawn Craven (Havelock, NS) has had in the hospital. By all reports the Cravens should be home early this week. Thank you all for your prayers and support as Shawn continues his healing journey.
• Aaron Reimer was officially installed yesterday (pictured below) as the new Lead Pastor at Island Wesleyan. Our church family there has strong local leadership and healthy multigenerational representation. This new chapter holds great promise for the years ahead. Welcome to the Atlantic Tribe, Aaron & Vanessa (with sons Dune & Tal)!

Brian Tome Thots…
Thot: I think big is inconsequential to whether you are reaching people or not.
On 2nd thot: The central goal of Kingdom work is calling people into freedom. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. Not rules. Not bigger numbers. Not cooler services. The church needs to be all about leading people into freedom.
Bonus thot: Never stop running after the lost. Choose to be about the people who aren’t here yet.

It will take time for life to return to normal again for people living in many areas in Cuba. At this point, they are in survival mode.
Fortunately, we are continuing to receive information from our Wesleyan network about how we can best help. Infrastructures – health, education, power, and communication – have all been heavily impacted.
Your support of the CERF helps provide medications, water filtration systems and food to meet the immediate needs of those who are suffering.
Just to give you an idea of the costs, please refer to the list included. It is a guideline only and does not include shipping to Cuba or the cost of distribution in country.
There are many needs in the world today. It is easy to get overwhelmed but Canada is in a unique position to provide assistance to this little island paradise that Canadians enjoy so much!
Let’s stand in solidarity with Cuba and reduce the needless suffering. Thank you for donating to CERF today!
Assit Cuba Now

Kingswood University’s dynamic youth event ENCOUNTER is happening October 13-14. ENCOUNTER is designed to engage youth (grades 8-12) in worship, through music and the Word, and to challenge them to explore the call God has placed on their lives.
Only $60 per student. Early-bird rate deadline September 19th. For more details and to register: https://kingswood.edu/encounter

Harvest Women’s Conference
Worship – Guest Speakers – Food – Friends – Fun – Annual Women’s Conference located in Quispamsis, New Brunswick. October 27 – 28, 2017. harvestconference.ca

Awakening youth rally is geared towards both Junior/Senior High students and will occur on November 17-18 at Hillside’s Parkway Campus of Hillside. Check out awakeningrally.com  for more info on speaker, band, and registration.

Have you heard of CMASH? CMASH stands for Canadian Medical and Surgical Healthcare. As part of Global Partners Health Network (GPHN) we send teams of medical professionals who offer their expertise to Wesleyan mission fields internationally. For the last 7 years we have been focusing our efforts on Haiti and the Wesleyan hospital in La Gonave. We are now looking at other countries like Zambia. Not only are our teams helping the poor and the sick but the experiences are touching team members lives as well. You can find out more about CMASH on our website www.cmash.ca.