“We praise God for 102 people, including pastors and leaders, who
participated in three 10-hour biblical expository workshops offered in 2024 in the Montreal and Toronto areas. We focused on preaching from the Old Testament. We are thankful for the prayers and financial
support received.”
Please join us in praying for the following
Upcoming Events:
January 18 Aomori Megumi (Grace) Baptist Church's Snow Camp at ACC
January 25 Igloo Making Event at ACC
February 22 Family Snow Camp at ACC
Also, for Aomori International Christian Fellowship's weekly Sunday evening worship services at ACC
Click photo for full update.
Thank you for all your prayers for my meeting with a student on Friday. I was grateful to be joined by others on the mission and also the local church plant's pastor. Unfortunately, it felt like a step backwards as instead of the student apologising or asking the mission for forgiveness, he still does not understand how his actions have consequences with his relationship to the mission. Please pray for Pastor Julius to be able to follow up with this student and further help him understand his attitude and error. Please pray for the student to live out the faith that he claims in a way that bears fruit.
Background: Please pray for one student that was formerly sponsored by the mission. He finally agreed to come talk to the mission this week about why he was kicked out of the programme. We were expecting to meet today before he returns to classes next week (he found another sponsor to study in a different programme), but we just found out that he already left. Now he is saying that he will come back to meet with us on Friday. The rift occurred a year and a half ago, so we are eager to try to understand his thoughts better and find a way to move forward. He has been attending our local church during his school break. Please pray for my heart because I do not believe a single word he says and don't trust him, but if he really does come and ask for forgiveness, I want to be open to hearing what he has to say. Please pray for me to trust that God is working in this student's heart, even though I don't see the fruit.
For several years we have tried to help Jacky open up and let us know how she really feels.
She has been moody, laying in bed for long periods of time...and other symptoms. She was hardly communicating with Daniel. So we have been very concerned. She always denies any feelings if unhappynes and/or anger.
Several times we have asked her to write down what is troubling her but she refused... This past weekend I finally received an email from her admitting that she wakes up angry, not knowing why and that she is having difficulties understanding herself. She also let me know that she is ready for getting help!
Pray for her as she will have to work out the pains in her past. She was so betrayed and damaged in that family that she hasn't been able to trust adults after that, including me. So sad!
I truly hope and pray that she will be able to work things out.
I just had a very sad Christina on de phone. The college where she studies has failed to make sure all students are registered with the government. They also failed to send in all the exam results.
The students also have not received their first year's certificate! Therefore all the students got together and are refusing to write another exam and it won't help them in getting to their diploma.
The administration started to scold these poor students for their protest.
I was able to calm her down. It looks like she will miss a whole year as she will have to start the diploma course in 2026.
I really feel for all these kids. There is a college for their studies in Morogoro which has an excellent reputation. I hope to get her into that one. I appreciate prayers for these students and their parents!
My colleague has put together a video where he interviewed young men in our village church plant. All these guys have been, or are currently, sponsored by the mission for their schooling.
Hello, friend. How I thank the Lord for the part you’ve played in my life. You have been God’s gift to me and my family. You have prayed, given or corresponded according to the Lord’s plan for your life and ours, and I want to thank you for your faithfulness. At this time of year when we celebrate God’s incarnation as the baby Jesus, I am reminded that the Lord holds all of us in His capable hands. He is the Alpha and the Omega. Yet He loved us so much that He offered His life—a brutal sacrifice—so that we might be with Him in Heaven eternally.
When I last wrote I had just learned that I have glaucoma and have had it for some time. It is the low-pressure variety which perhaps explains why it wasn’t diagnosed earlier. When I started having symptoms there were aspects to my life, like caregiving and sleep deprivation, which accounted for sore eyes. My cataracts are mature now, so my cataract surgery will be combined with glaucoma surgery that will hopefully reduce the pressure in my eyes to normal and protect my eyes from vision loss. I am to have two microscopic stents implanted in each eye. These stents are hardly visible, so wouldn’t you agree that what they look like under the microscope is mind-boggling?
I have had both my pre-op appointments and just need a surgery date. I had hoped my surgery would be in December, but then I came down with a lingering cold and pink eye. Hopefully the wait list for the New Year isn’t too long.
Library News
I officially retired from Wycliffe Canada at the end of August. That was also the date by which I hoped to have completed the transfer of CanIL Library’s books and journals to their new home at TWU’s Alloway Library. As it turned out, the last batch crossed campus in mid-August, two weeks ahead of schedule. Kudos to those who were heavy lifters all through the break between summer and fall terms, and especially to CanIL’s VP of Academic Affairs who was my go-to person when setting up a transfer.
Retirement thank you chapel with a couple of American colleagues leaving CanIL for reassignment to the Wycliffe U.S. Center in Dallas, Texas
By my official retirement date I very much wanted to deal with the mop up work that needed to be done following the merger. There were 1,600 books rejected by TWU to find new homes for, plus some journals, and library stacks to dispose of. Since TWU returned some very fine books to us, I ended up putting together office resources for each of our faculty and for the courses they teach. Because we wanted these resources to be accessible to all our staff and students, I had to recatalogue each of them (the original records had been weeded because these items had been considered giveaways up until then). This added considerably to my work, but I think the system I’ve come up with will do a good job of tracking the books CanIL still has and where they can be found.
Three weeks ago our library stacks were dismantled by one of CanIL’s partner organizations and have since been reassembled in its library in Vancouver. That was one very noisy, smelly day (sweat on enamelled steel)! What remains to be dealt with? 1,300 archived resources in storage that I expect will mostly be recycled, the sale of library equipment like book trolleys and step stools, some metal recycling, and working through 1,800 offprints, digitizing and archiving those that haven’t yet made it into SIL’s REAP archive.
Items for Prayer and Praise
Robby and Leanne catered a 75th birthday party for me in September which I very much enjoyed. I am thankful to God for the years He has given me.
Leanne and Bitsy are returning to a part-time work schedule following maternity leaves. Pray for a smooth transition for both families. Robby and Bitsy have just purchased a home in Chilliwack. As of moving day, Jan. 11, 2025, both families will be living on the eastern edge of Chilliwack, a 30-minute drive east of Abbotsford.
A good friend of mine here in Abbotsford died unexpectedly a month ago. Kathy and Heather and I, care group members for the last dozen years, have been getting together most Friday evenings for years now to hang out. Remember Kathy’s husband, Stan, and their three adult children and six grandchildren as they grieve their loss.
Pray for surgery dates in the Lord’s perfect timing, and successful procedures.
Continued good progress in my volunteer efforts at CanIL and ongoing good health.
CanIL’s Beyond Words capital campaign will launch in January to fund renovations repurposing available space at CanIL (especially the former library), plus technological updates to classrooms and conference rooms.
Praying courage and joy for you and yours as you step into 2025. Let’s reflect His glory, whatever we are up to.
Christmas 2024
??? Merry Christmas ???
How Merry can we be when bombs are dropping on Palestine and Ukraine, and people are living in tents in the snowy city where I live? The old song came to my mind this morning-- “Out of the Ivory Palaces, into this world of woe –only His great eternal love made my Saviour go.” It was a world of woe when Jesus was born, but we can rejoice because He came, showing His love for all people to the point of dying in the place of any sinner who trusts in Him! “Amazing Love, how can it be, that, Thou, my God, shouldst, die or me.” (Charles Wesley) He rose from the dead. And we have Hope because He said He would come again and rule with justice and mercy!
Some news from our corner of Indonesia----actually I have not heard much. I know that Pastor Simson has faithfully continued going out to preach and teach in the villages of the area because he wrote pleading for funds for fuel for his outboard engine. We would like to see the church people helping with this expense but most of them have very little or no income. The Ethnos couples who are committed to learning and translating the southern Asmat dialect continue that project. We have just heard that Sam and Kari Bruce are joining a different mission so will be delayed in returning to Papua. This time of year there are usually storms
with high winds and high water.
Last spring I realized I was short of breath with not much exertion so I visited my family doctor who sent me for an echocardiogram . While I was still on the table, a cardiologist came in and said I had a VERY BAD aortic heart valve. He ordered more tests and I met two other cardiologist who each informed me that I had a VERY BAD aortic valve. In May I had a TAVI procedure in which these very skilled doctors threaded catheters from my wrists up to the aortic valve in my heart. On one of the catheters was a folded up replacement valve which was left behind in my heart and after removing the catheters I was sent home to recover. The worst of the whole thing was that my brain didn’t work properly for a few weeks which had us worried for awhile. To add to my confusion, my laptop quit. Mark promptly got another and loaded it up with information from the old one. I still have difficulty making it do what I want it to. By July I was able to enjoy some swimming at the cottage though I now depend on my children to get me there.
I’m still working at the south coast history, though it has been slow going this past year. What was finished was sent to the seminary at Sowi and the staff there expressed interest in publishing it. I said to wait until it was finished.
Mark’s family – Joyce has had a difficult year, still suffering from Long Covid. She had a few periods of improvement, and they had a good vacation on Lake Huron with Daniel, Tim and Cassie, but later in the summer, Joyce lost strength again. Their exciting news is that Tim and Cassie are expecting their first baby in
February!
Jean continues to swim, cycle and run – she did another Ironman in Maryland this year and is at present in New Zealand where she did a Triathalon. She and Sandra get home this week. This has been a stressful year for Ayman, with war in Gaza and attacks in Lebanon where his father and sister live.
David and Jennifer – Jenny keeps busy looking after needy people at Indwell, her daughters and two grandchildren. David’s band, “The Sandpipers,” entertains frequently and they practice weekly. George is also
in the band. Oh, yes, David does still work as a financial planner. Most of his family were with me at the
cottage for a week – ten of us! It was quite lively!
Andrew has been doing fairly well on peritoneal dialysis and walked his daughter, Sara, down the aisle to marry Cal Smith in September. After many tests, Andrew was approved for another transplant. Unfortunately
he got peritonitis and has been on antibiotics to get it under control. To the surprise of the doctor who
predicted he would lose more of his sight, it has improved. He is able to drive and use his computer to continue working.)
George has had an eventful year both personally and professionally. He is Site Chief for the Department of Medicine at his hospital and for a short time had a role in Hospital operations. His role as an administrator has recently been downsized, but he has got the Leadership/Management Bug, so he is still taking some courses in Leadership.
On the personal front, his older two kids continue to finish their undergrad degrees at Western University (Christian in science/Computer Science, and Liam in Psychology/Sociology/Criminology), while Kieran, the youngest does a victory lap in High School. He hopes to enter an Engineering program at a Canadian University. Maddie has been informally adopted into the family and is busy working full time.
George and his ex-wife have been separated since 2021 and are looking at finally completing their divorce soon. Their home (which was my grandfather’s home) sold recently with a closing date of January 29th so lots of stuff must move in the next few weeks.
”May joy be yours in these days of remembering Christ’s first coming and also hope as we await His return!
We are giving thanks to the Lord for His immense grace and strength as we celebrate several huge milestones:
After two years of research, thinking, and writing day by day, Mary Anne has at last finished the memoir of her spiritual journey. (The details are in the attachment below.)
The two of us have just turned 90 and our whole family (children, grandchildren, great-grands and Jack's niece and nephews and their families as well as four close friends) are coming this week-end, November 8-10 to celebrate with us and give thanks for the life He has given us. Please join us in praying for a joyful, loving, meaningful week-end for everyone.
The Seminary in Medellin, Colombia is celebrating their 80th Anniversary and UCU, the student moment with whom we ministered is celebrating their 55th Anniversary. Jack will be traveling to Colombia on November 11th and speaking to both groups in Medellin. He covets your prayers for him during his two weeks in Colombia. (See details in the attachment below.)
Finally we give thanks for your friendship and support over so many years.
Your grateful friends,