I remember watching Sunday storm cancellations in the winter of 2015, specifically on Grand Manan. Sunday after Sunday, services were cancelled. It was a storm experience that should give you all bragging rights for the next 40 years or so. You’ll talk about that winter to your grand and great grandchildren.
You survived it. Well done.
In the event that we have to cancel this year, we will do the following:
Notify you by talk mail. If you are not on our list, see Carolyn Cook.
Post the cancelation on the front page of the website and Facebook
A separate post on the website … there is a spot on the site for you to subscribe to church posts so that they will come directly to your email inbox.
Drum roll please … I’ll provide a link on Facebook and the website posts so that you can watch church from your home. I’ll broadcast a service of sorts from my own home in the hood and you can join in. You are anxious to see that aren’t you? We might tomorrow. I’ll begin the broadcast at 11:00am and it will last for 30-45 minutes. You can watch for as long or as little as you wish and make your toast while I am preaching or singing. If you don’t have the internet find out who your closest neighbour is, who does have a connection and join them there. (I just added a page on our site (Ustream)
It will be a fun experiment that we will become more proficient at the more we use this utility. Thanks in advance for your patience as we try this stormy approach.
I was on my way to the Roundtable this evening when I received a call from the hospital. My mother had been involved in a two-car collision near Immanuel Family Church. She was okay and asked if I could come there to be with her. Carl Cheney turned the lights on at the church and informed those gathering that I was not likely to be there. I would have to thank God for protecting my mother and the other driver. Things could have been much different. After she was thoroughly checked, Dr. Webb her and I took her home. Many thanks to all who helped her. She was very well cared for. I left her around 8:45p and headed home.
I have a need that I would like to make known. Loreena Wilcox’s daughter, Aubee (3 yrs old), is in need of transportation for therapy from January 9-13. Her Mom is having surgery and will be unable to drive her during this time. She lives in Grand Harbor and needs to be at Immanuel for 8:45am and picked up to go home at 12:15pm.
Perhaps you could be available for a drive or two. If you are willing to help, could you email me at karl.ingersoll@gmail.com or call my cell phone, 222-0410. This is a wonderful opportunity to bless a family in need.
It is a beautiful wet January morning on Grand Manan. Today is the day when Carolyn and Company will “un-decorate” the church. They plan to meet at 1:00pm and need as many hands on deck as possible. If you have a free hour or two, your help would be so much appreciated.
As far as details go, contact Carolyn and she can give you any further information. Thanks in advance for your help.
Last summer, Jim & Marion Harris visited our church. They are two of the most godly, inspiring people that I have ever met. They have self-funded missions trips to Ethiopia and Thailand for several years now without any denominational sanction or support. On those trips they have lived in tents and shanties among the nationals, in some very rustic and primitive conditions rather than in missionary quarters or compounds.
Much of the opposition they have encountered has come from the church.
Yesterday, they were involved in a car accident on PEI. Jim had several broken ribs and may be out of the hospital by the time you read this. Marion had a broken collar bone, split diaphragm and some organ displacement. She is now in Halifax for surgery.
While their injuries don’t seem to be life threatening, I would ask you to join me in prayer for this wonderful couple and their families. Pray with all the heart you have, as though you were praying for your flesh and blood relatives. This will bring them great encouragement and speed their healing.
Like most of us, I think, Christmas becomes increasingly more about family as we age. It is a time where every demographic is celebrated around the table. We don’t have a special serving for children, Seniors or youth. There is something sacred about the generations that assemble and irreplaceable memories are made at those times.
I think church is at its best when we are more like family and less like an organization.
Our Christmas Eve Candlelight service will begin at 6:00pm. We are aiming for 45 minutes together to be grateful for heaven’s greatest gift of love, come to earth as a helpless baby … Immanuel, God still with us today. This will be in lieu of our normal Sunday morning gathering.
My heart is full in this season. For some it will mark the first Christmas with out a loved one. For others there may be memories that dampen the spirit rather than enliven it. We understand and honour whatever you bring on Christmas Eve with prayer that God would be most present in our midst and in each of our homes this holiday season.
Use a regular-sized shoe box or shoebox-sized plastic box. If wrapping your shoebox, please wrap the lid separately.
2. BOY OR GIRL?
Determine whether your gift will be for a boy or a girl, and the child’s age category: 2-4, 5-9, or 10-14.
3. FILL YOUR SHOEBOX
Fill your shoebox with a well-balanced variety of items from the following categories:
School Supplies – Items such as pens, pencils, pencil crayons, note pads, and picture books
Hygiene Items – Items such as: facecloth, toothbrush, comb, and soap. Please place soap in a sealable bag
Toys & Other Gifts – Items such as: stuffed animals, small musical instruments, hair clips, toy jewelry, t-shirts, and socks
Personal Note – Include a personal note and/or a photo in your shoebox (not inside the donation envelope)
DO NOT INCLUDE:
Decks of standard playing cards (other card games such as UNO are allowed)
Food or candy: Including gum (due to customs regulations)
Used items (due to customs regulations)
Toothpaste (due to customs regulations)
Liquids or items that could leak, melt, freeze, or break – Shampoo, creams, lip balm, bath gels, mirrors, or glass, etc. (these can damage other items in the shoebox).
Items that can scare or harm a child – War-related toys, knives, and toy guns, etc.
Note: We would prefer that you NOT use backpacks. Backpacks accommodate more gift items, which is nice for the child who receives it, but can seem unfair to other children nearby who must be given conventional shoe boxes. Backpacks are also more challenging than shoeboxes to insert into our standard cardboard shipping cartons, and they can raise concerns when they arrive at Customs.
WHY NO CANDY OR FOOD?
Customs and health officials in a growing number of the countries have either changed their food safety laws or decided to enforce the laws in place. In order to enforce these laws, they are taking more time to carefully inspect box after box, searching for candy or food. These inspections are delaying our distributions, and sometimes forcing us to re-direct shoeboxes to other countries, while we work through the issue with government officials.
Given these circumstances, rather than risk having deserving children not receive gift-filled shoeboxes, we’ve decided to stop allowing the boxes to depart Canada with any type of candy or food inside. Volunteers at our shoebox processing centers will be monitoring to ensure any food items in the boxes are donated to local charities.
Eliminating candy may be sad news for some Canadian shoebox donors. But it’s necessary so ALL the boxes you pack are cleared through every step of the receiving countries’ customs and health inspection processes and into the hands of hurting children in countries like Costa Rica, Senegal, and Haiti.
Rather than viewing this as bad news, please make it good news by ensuring the boxes you pack are filled to the brim with toys, school supplies, hygiene items, and other items needy children would love.
Bringing Good News and Great Joy to children who are hurting is what we all want, and we at Samaritan’s Purse thank you for caring enough to transform lives through Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. You are a blessing to children who may have never received a gift during their entire lives.
Shoebox Labels:
4. MAKE YOUR MINIMUM $7 DONATION
Please donate a minimum of $7 for each shoebox you prepare to help cover project costs–including shipping. Please make one combined donation for multiple shoeboxes.
Simply make your donation online or place your cheque or cash donation in an envelope inside your shoebox, on top of the items. If you make an online donation, you do not need to include the donation receipt in the shoebox. Tax-deductible receipts will be issued for donations of $15 or more.
5. DROP OFF YOUR SHOEBOXES
You may also call 1-800-303-1269
National Collection Week is November 14-20, 2016. Drop your box at Community Life Church or any other island church before or on Sunday morningNovember 13th.
