It’s Monday Again

Moncton (Joel Gorveatte) held a spectacular “All Nations Sunday” on July 22nd. The service included five Scripture readings about God’s vision for all nations, interspersed with worship, each read by an immigrant in their own language. Outreach Pastor, Nathan Adams, adds, “We had immigrant worship team members and did segments of songs in different languages. The welcome was in French, English, and Patwa (St. Lucia Creole). The final prayer was a blessing in Swahili over the ministry and church by a refuge pastor from Congo, Samuel Isumbo. Six additional participants were presented as examples of what God is doing worldwide and how we can now join together in Moncton to help accomplish the Great Commission.” And to top it all off, the core Sunday food prep team tag-teamed with immigrant guests to pull off an amazing international potluck. On earth as it is in heaven, indeed (Revelation 7:9)!
This amazing Sunday was followed up this weekend with their annual Summer Spectacular in Victoria Park.

• On behalf of parents Mike & Kate Agrell (Maple Ridge), thank you for continuing to lift up baby Nathaniel in prayer. His surgery last week was successful, and he is in recovery at the IWK in Halifax.
• It was a joy to be in Sussex yesterday morning for the first Pastoral Installation of the year – Rev. Jim Agrell. An excellent spirit of anticipation is evident for the Kingdom chapter about to be written through this wonderful church family. Several part-time staff roles have been announced for the season ahead with Rose Degenhardt as Pastor of Spiritual Care, Devon McAllister as Pastor of Youth, Rod Guptill as Pastor Spiritual Formation and Frontline Ministry, and Joy Guptill as Director of Events and Women’s Ministry.
• A Wesleyan pastor is conducting research to help smaller churches engage in an effective online presence that will inform one of our Exploration Essentials – Contextual Effectiveness. Please consider participating if you pastor a church that has averaged less than 200 in average primary worship attendance for any of the past 5 years. It is a simple 15 question survey.

• And speaking of our Atlantic District Core Values, I received a rather unusual package in the mail this week from one of our pastors – a pair of professional boxing gloves! The note inside was so encouraging, “I see you fighting passionately for the values of the district and the denomination, but most importantly the cause of Christ. Keep fighting. When it’s with me, know that there’s no bare knuckles. Philippians 1:27-28 #strongertogether“

• The new cohort in Kingswood University’s Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology program just completed a very full and rich week with Dr. Abson Joseph, The Bible as Christian Scripture, and are eagerly looking forward to the second class with Dr. Aaron Perry, A Theology of Pastoral Leadership. For information or to register for the Kingswood’s Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology program, please contact Dr. Kenneth Gavel at MAPT@kingswood.edu or visit www.kingswood.edu/MAPT.

• Connection (Ken Banks) has hired the Hartlens. David is joining Ken’s team as Pastor of Connections and Sonja as the Pastor of Children and Family Life.
• Executive Director of Camp Ministry, Andrea Gunter, is kicking things up several notches for those who enjoy making use of their cottages and RV sites at Beulah Camp and Conference Center. Post Beulah Family Camp (BFC) launched “This Summer @ Beulah” last week as an initiative to create opportunities for connection and community throughout the weekends during the summer months. Thanks to the help of many volunteers who are enthusiastically serving. In the past two weeks, “This Summer @ Beulah” has engaged campers and cottage dwellers through movie nights, Saturday morning breakfasts, Sunday dinners, a Fishing Derby, and a Coffee House with Trevor Dick as our guest musician. It is great to see our beautiful campground alive with people enjoying activities and each other!
• Please note the new announcements below in Upcoming Events:  1) Best Year’s Fellowship Retreat (JOY Ministries) on September 28-30 @ Beulah Camp, & 2) Derek Ross Zoominar on October 4 (A Christian Leadership Response to the Shifting Landscape of Canadian Religious Freedoms). 3) Nov 1 & 2 Believability Tour with the Buckingham Leadership Institute (Kingswood University).
• Congratulations to AJ & Kelly Thomas (Deep Water) on the legal adoption this month of their new 14-year-old son Brett. Brett is pictured below with his new family standing in the front row next to Grandma Janet!

Thot: It’s ironic that we feel we will lose the ear of the world if we stand up to it, when the truth is that we will lose the ear of the world if we mirror it. So, say “yes” to people relationally and to culture aesthetically in ways that build bridges of identification. But then walk across that bridge with a clear sense of what you must say “no” to. Because it is precisely in offering that “no” that you make it clear to the world what Jesus is asking it to say “yes” to. (James Emery White)

BYF RETREAT 2018 
September 28 – 30
Dr. Stephen Lennox, President of Kingswood University is our guest speaker. Dr. Lennox is a Christian statesman and prolific writer. He has authored several books on the Old Testament. We are so excited to have him with us for this weekend!
Our worship leader for the weekend will be Rob & Marti Tafton.
PDF Brochure and Registration Form

A Christian Leadership Response to the Shifting
Landscape of Canadian Religious Freedoms
What: High order Christian-based legal insights and recommendations for the shifting landscape of Canadian religious freedoms
When: October 4 @ 10:30 a.m. Atlantic Time
Where: Zoom-inar
Who: Derek Ross, Executive Director & General Counsel for Christian Legal Fellowship
How: Pastors and lay leaders may register by email with the Atlantic District (office@www.atlanticdistrict.com) All AD credentialed pastors who register AND attend the Zoominar will receive a complimentary copy of the June 2018 publication, Hope for Nations: Standing Strong in a Post-Trust, Post Christian World (John Dickerson).
“Times of great social upheaval are times of great spiritual opportunity,” writes Dickerson. “You can live the adventure of this era with great purpose. You can know with confidence that the Creator of the universe appointed you to bring light and life to this moment in human history.”
Check out this recent radio interview with Derek Ross and Barry Bussey (Director for Legal Affairs of the Canadian Council of Christian Charities since 2011) on The Drew Marshall Show (begins at 1:40 in the MP3 file) for a sneak peek on some of the insights you will learn in this Oct 4th Zoominar.

YARMOUTH WESLEYAN CHURCH 
Thursday, November 1st, 9:30-4:30
Keynote Speakers Including : AJ Thomas, Kevin Vincent, Brent Ingersoll, Mike Miller & L.D. Buckingham
THE ROCK CHURCH HALIFAX
Friday, November 2nd, 9:30-4:30
Keynote Speakers: Jerry Reddy, Father James Mallon, AJ Thomas, Kevin Vincent & L.D. Buckingham
For more information and to register pease visit the BLI website.

January 9-12, 2019
Orlando, Florida at The Caribe Royale
More than a minister’s conference. The Gathering is a reunion of ministry family and friends. A sabbath for our souls. Coming together to stop, rest, pray, play and thrive.  A chance to celebrate what God is doing in our lives and ministry through meals, stories, inspiration and worship.  We know this will be a gathering you won’t want to miss!
Wesleyan clergy & spouses are invited to register this summer. Registration opens June 1, 2018.

What an opportunity we have to partner with Craig Groeschel, John Maxwell, Erwin McManus, Danielle Strickland along with a truly impressive and diverse faculty of 15 speakers on what’s shaping up to be another amazing GLS. We believe that, as in the past, God is going to powerfully anoint and inspire through this event once again this year. So, if you’re looking for some fresh inspiration and highly actionable learning for you and your team this summer, I’d love to have you join us!

• Moncton (Hillside Baptist) on Aug. 9-10th
• Lower Sackville (Rock Church) on October 18-19

Click here for more info, to register.

Kingswood Extended launched on May 1, 2018 as the newest initiative for ministry education from Kingswood University. Aimed at providing quality online ministry education at the certificate, undergraduate, and graduate levels, with the flexibility to accommodate the unique demands of work, life, and ministry, the program is proving to resonate with churches and districts across the Wesleyan denomination.  In the first six weeks, over fifty students have enrolled in the certificate-level Flame and Correspondence Courses, which are ideal for those looking to further their ministry training or are pursuing ordination through The Wesleyan Church.