Category: BCY News

BCY Regional Newsletter June 2018

A note from Larry

A greeting from Norm Sowden

Potential Impact 2018

BCY Events

North Shore School of Mission

Settlement Report

We are family 

By grace alone we have been drawn together by the Holy Spirit, saved by Jesus Christ, loved by God the Father and placed into a family of faith. The New Testament uses many metaphors to convey this thought and one of the most repeated and my personal favourite, is the image of family. Because of Jesus Christ, our primary identity is no longer found in cultural terms like ethnicity, socio economic status, or gender*. Instead, as Paul reminds us, our interconnectedness in Jesus has changed everything. By grace alone, we are one in Christ; a family of faith.

Erna and I have experienced this in wonderful ways over these last months. We have been blessed to travel around our province and visit many of our church families. In small gatherings and large, we have seen our family of faith gather to pray, worship, serve, discern and respond to the leading of Jesus. As a result, I am more convinced than ever that we are indeed a family. Not only because of our salvation uniting us in Christ but also because we share a common set of values and presuppositions, which I call our Baptist identity markers. Our local church families, governance structures, worship styles, ministry foci and preaching preferences vary greatly but we are still all interconnected through a common set of assumptions that make us Canadian Baptist. We are indeed a family.

Let’s remember that and strengthen the family relationship. When we gather this July as the Convention of Baptist Churches of B.C. in Victoria, let’s gather as a family and deliberately and personally connect with one another. When we hear that one of our churches has called, ordained or commissioned a new leader or started a new ministry let’s intentionally rejoice with them and join them in the celebration. When we discuss some hard things, experience hard seasons and disagree with one another—Baptists do this well—let’s do so in love as a family. Let’s recognize that our family is larger than our local region and that together we are called to faithfully follow Jesus into the future he has for us in Canada.

We are family and I am glad to be a part of the BCY region of the Canadian Baptists.

Larry Schram

* See Galatians 3:28

Ward and Jane Cowie being recognized by the Berea Baptist Church as Ward officially retired.
Co-pastors, Les Clarke and Clark Taylor being commissioned to lead at First Baptist Penticton
Pastor Axel Schroeber’s commissioning at West Vancouver Baptist Church

Potential Impact 2018

“Speak, Lord, for your servants are listening.” This prayer echoed throughout the weekend of April 26-29 as young adults from across the CBWC gathered at Keats Camps to explore the call of Jesus in their life.

Potential Impact, a three-night retreat, was hosted by the BCY region for young people from the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, Yukon, as well as from CBWC’s regions further east.

A well-rounded team facilitated the retreat, diving into the theme of hearing God’s voice as found in the book of 1 Samuel. Speakers included Colin Godwin of Carey, CBWC Director of Church Planting, Shannon Youell and Church Planting Associate, Cailey Morgan, author and teacher Linda Smith, youth pastor Eric West, and CBWC Youth Director, Tammy Klassen.

Beyond studying stories of God’s voice in the past, and beyond even considering the exact life choices these young adults would make, the retreat pushed participants to make listening for God’s voice an everyday rhythm by choosing postures of open-handedness and attentiveness.

CBWC Administrator Sue Hunter, who also serves as a chaplain, took participants through a series of multi-sensory spiritual formation exercises throughout the weekend, such as a silent hike, lectio divina and praying through colour. Local pastor Phil Wambua led worship.

Tianna, a receptionist from Victoria, said that Potential Impact helped her grow in her ability to be vulnerable with others, and with God. “It helped me deepen my connection with God in a way I never really knew I needed,” she said.

Stay tuned for next year’s dates!

Ministry Feature:

North Shore School of Mission

Last September, with help from a CBWC Opportunity Grant, a new school of mission and ministry opened at Hillside Baptist Church in North Vancouver. In partnership with Columbia Bible College, the North Shore School of Mission offers a one-year ministry apprenticeship program, where students earn a full year of credit courses (at a fraction of the cost), and have concurrent ministry learning opportunities at their local church. The credits can be applied to any C.B.C. degree; many credits are also transferable to Trinity Western University.

The ministry placement involves real responsibility for a specific ministry within the church, determined in discussion with the student. Students can serve at Hillside or another nearby church.

The program ends with a one-month short-term missions trip with one of our partner missions: Reachout to Africa (working with orphans in South Africa), Bulembu (holistic community ministry in Swaziland), Himalayan Life (work with street children in Nepal), or Keats Camp.

The School’s hope is to identify and nurture leadership gifts, and to empower, encourage and equip younger leaders to be great servants to their churches, whether or not they take up vocational ministry.

In the first year, there were three full time students who served as ministry apprentices at Hillside Church. They’re going on a short-term missions trip to South Africa this Fall, where they will conduct research work.

The school isn’t just for full-time students; it’s designed to benefit the community as well. Monday evening classes were open for anyone to audit. At times there were up to 90 participants from nine different churches. The school also has a theological library with over 6,000 selected volumes, which has been made available for local church leaders. Recently a local pastor spent a week at the library studying church renewal.

Several CBWC pastors have taught classes, plus four pastors from other churches, as well as John Hall, Director of Missions Fest and Mission Central. Even more great teachers are scheduled for next year.

The three full timers who served as ministry apprentices at Hillside ran evening programs for pre-teens, Sunday programs for middle schoolers, served as youth leaders and in participated in worship ministry. They’ve been a huge blessing to the church as they served and grew in their ministry and teaching capabilities.

The North Shore School of Mission is accepting applications for September 2018. If you know someone who would be a great candidate for a year of post-secondary, ministry-focused schooling, and your church has space for a ministry apprentice, then we invite you to explore this opportunity with us.

Find more details on our website: schoolofmission.org or send us an email: admin@schoolofmission.org.

Greetings from Norm Sowden at

Mill Bay Baptist Fellowship

Dear CBWC Family,

The key word echoing in my soul just now is gratitude:

  • To the Lord for causing Mill Bay Baptist Fellowship to germinate and come to life in March 2011 under the leadership of Pastor Chris & Lois Naylor with a dedicated core group.
  • To Pastor Chris and the MBBF Church Family for the opportunity to share some of the early services and eventually a call to be their pastor.
  • To Pastor Tom Lavigne for guiding this visionary church family into affiliation with CBWC.
  • To Pastor Tammy Klassen and Rick who, when suddenly without a church home, were willing to trust our vision for a Pastor of Family Ministries and jumped into the deep end without any guarantees or assurances, but faith that the Lord has a BIG plan for this church family.
  • To our BCY Region and the CBWC for support and acceptance in so many ways.
  • To the Baptist Foundation for having faith in our vision and especially in developing 4.97 acres alongside the Trans-Canada Highway… our cross and church home will soon be the first human structure that greets people as they cross the famous Malahat Pass and enter the even more famous Cowichan Valley.
  • To the small group of loving sacrificial Christians who have raised over $400,000 to purchase the land and begin building, and to finance the mortgage the first five years.
  • To those coming out in fair and foul weather to supervise and work and clean so that we can keep the cost of building as low as possible.
  • To our dear Nora Walker and the amazing prayer team she inspires to back up all that we do.
  • To Shannon Youell, Dawn Johannesson and Larry Schram who are always there in a time of need.

Our desire as a church family is to love the Lord, one another, our community and our world. We seek to worship, fellowship and play inter-generationally as much as we can. Our garden has been a real spark plug for that until this year when construction de-railed gardening for a year. It has given an opportunity for seniors to share their gardening knowledge and skills with our children and teens. We also use those times for wiener and marshmallow roasts! We have several music teams who take turns leading worship, so every Sunday in a month can be different from each of the others.

Mill Bay is a very rapidly expanding area north of Victoria as housing prices in Victoria keep driving people north over the Malahat. The Lord has planted us in a very strategic location, right on the edge of several new building developments. As well, we are the only church south of Mill Bay, where most of the residential population is. Outreach is a great opportunity for us. On our eastern edge we are fortunate to be in close proximity to the Malahat Nation. SERVE have twice blessed us by providing teams to work with the Malahat people assisting in some of the needs they have.

Personally, I am blessed to be invited by Pastor Joey Cho to attend and share in weekly services Sunday afternoons with Malahat Grace Church.

QUESTION… Are there any people out there who would like to come and camp on our property for a few days or weeks and help us with siding, suspended ceilings, flooring or finishing carpentry? We would love to have your fellowship and building expertise… If you shoot me an email or text, I will put you in touch with Gord Gonske, our Project Manager.

TONS of thanks to all. Love, hugs, prayers and thanks for all the support you have blessed our MBBF Church Family with.

In Christ,

Norm Sowden

BCY Events

Our regional Assembly and Pastors, Chaplain & Spouse Retreat (conveniently scheduled back to back) are coming up in early July.
Download the ASSEMBLY brochure
Download the RETREAT brochure

Settlement Report

To see open positions, visit our Careers page: https://cbwc.ca/careers/

New Hires
  • Larry Boss, Provisional Pastor, Southwest Community Baptist Church, Kamloops, BC
  • Gordon Patterson, Interim Associate, First Baptist Church, Nanaimo, BC
  • Aaron Cranton, Street Ministry, Strathcona Baptist Church, AB
  • Rob Priestly, Associate Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church, Saskatoon, SK
Moving On
  • Eric West, Associate (Youth, Children, Young Adults), Gateway Baptist Church, Victoria, BC
  • Eric Scramstad, Family, Children, and Youth Minister, FBC Kelowna, BC
  • Stephen Carleton, Youth and Young Adults Minister, Westview Baptist Church, Calgary, AB
  • Kevin Haugan, Youth Pastor, Trinity Baptist Church, Sherwood Park, AB
Retiring
  • Greg Anderson, Lead Pastor, Riverdale Baptist Church, Whitehorse, YK
  • Marcel Leffelaar, CBWC Chaplain, Alberta Children’s Hospital, Calgary, AB
  • Paul Matheson, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Saskatoon, SK
  • Dave Bonney, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Neepawa, MB

This regional newsletter is published quarterly within the CBWC’s monthly newsletter, Making Connections. Have a story idea? Want to tell us how great we’re doing? Or how terribly? Email our editor Zoë: zducklow@cbwc.ca or the BCY office: bcarea@cbwc.ca

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Brian Stelck

crocusflowersAugust 20, 2016 — It is with great sadness that we share the news of the death of our dear friend and Past President Rev. Dr. Brian Stelck.

Carey Theological College, Institute and Centre was led by Brian’s vision and care from 1994 – 2013.

There will be two memorial services. The first will be held in Edmonton, Alberta at First Baptist Church on Friday August 26th at 12 noon. The Vancouver memorial service will be held at Olivet Baptist Church 613 Queens Ave, New Westminster, BC on Wednesday, September 7th, 2016 at 10 a.m..

Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Olivet Baptist Church information:

http://www.olivet.bc.ca

http://www.carey-edu.ca

Please remember Brian’s wife Caryn, his family and his friends in prayer during this time of loss.

Valerie Milne

bigstock-Lily-flower-14463593August 10, 2016 — We mourn the death of Valerie Milne, who went home to her Lord on the morning of Tuesday, August 9 after a long journey with cancer.

Valerie was known to many in the CBWC as a generous, warm and friendly woman who served God faithfully and well throughout her life.  She was always gracious, courageous and kind.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, August 14 at 6:30 pm at Trinity Baptist Church in Vancouver at 40th Ave and Granville St.  All who wish are welcome to attend.

Valerie leaves  her beloved husband Bruce, former pastor at First Baptist Vancouver, her family in Canada and Scotland as well as a wide circle of many friends.

We are deeply saddened by Valerie’s passing but rejoice that she now sees her Saviour face to face.  Please pray for her family and friends during this time of loss.

Rob Des Cotes

crocusflowersApril 8 — The CBWC was deeply saddened by the passing of Rob Des Cotes on Wednesday, April 6 after a long journey with cancer.

Rob was a spiritual director, retreat leader and pastor of Imago Dei, an ecumenical network of Christian faith communities based in Vancouver, BC with sister groups across Canada, the US, UK and Asia.  He had also been the pastor of Fairview Baptist in Vancouver until moving to the A Rocha Brooksdale environmental farm in South Surrey, BC.  He was the author of three books of meditations for spiritual direction, Fan the Flame, Higher Than I and Ultreia! (Go Higher).   He had taught Contemplative Traditions at Trinity Western University as well as courses on spirituality and the arts at Carey Theological College and Columbia Bible College.  He was an active member of Baptist Peacemakers International and directed Imago Dei’s Vancouver Arts Network, a community of writers, musicians, actors, dancers and visual artists who are in creative dialogue with spiritual issues in the arts, especially as they relate to postmodern culture.  He was well known as a flautist and liturgist.

Rob will be much missed for his gentle commitment to encouraging others to deepen their practice of prayer and life of faith that recognizes and welcome God’s transforming work. 

Rob leaves his wife Ruth, three adult children and several grandchildren, as well as many other family and friends who deeply mourn his passing. 

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 16 at Fairview Baptist Church in Vancouver (corner of Pine and 16th Ave) at 11 am.

Please remember Rob’s family and friends in your prayers during this difficult time.  He will be much missed but we also rejoice that Rob is now with his beloved Jesus, forever.

Petition on Euthanasia and Paliative Care

January 11, 2016 — As a member of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, the CBWC has received the following letter from EFC President Bruce Clemenger concerning the proposed federal legislation on the legalization of euthanasia.  The CBWC is posting this letter on our website to share our concern about an issue that affects all Canadians and to make available a link to a petition concerning euthanasia which has a goal of 10,000 signatures by February 6, 2016. 

Dear Denominational Leader,

We look forward this year to working effectively with you and other denominational leaders.

We are in the midst of a significant national conversation about the duty of care we owe one another at the end of life, the legalization of euthanasia and the protection of religious freedom and conscience.

Last fall you signed a Declaration on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide as the leader of your denomination. Thus far close to 2,000 other church leaders and lay people have signed the Declaration, a document drafted by the EFC and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. .

We want to encourage more to sign, from all walks of life. Our goal is to have 10,000 sign by February 6th, the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that opened the door to physician-assisted suicide. 

As the issue moves to Parliament Hill, we want to use the Declaration publically and in meetings with Parliamentarians as a statement of support for the protection of life, the promotion of palliative care and the defense of conscience.

Please consider helping us by encouraging your pastors and church members to consider signing the Declaration by going to www.euthanasiadeclaration.ca. Below is a paragraph you may find helpful in encouraging other to participate. 

Looking forward to your response,

Bruce J. Clemenger

President, The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada

Join the call to protect vulnerable Canadians and improve palliative care by signing the Declaration on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide, at www.euthanasiadeclaration.ca. Reaching a target of 10,000 signatories by February 6 will demonstrate to federal and provincial legislators that there is cross-Canada support for limits to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. This declaration was developed by The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Engage — Together!

IMG_2639Once again, the CBWC is planning a series of Celebration Dinners so worshippers from local and regional CBWC congregations can build relationships with each other and discover together how God is calling us to serve Him together.

Four Celebration Dinners are being planned for the spring, while more will be scheduled in other locations in the fall. The spring Celebration Dinners are:

· May 19th in Winnipeg @ The Maples Evangelical Church, 1575 Inkster Blvd.

· May 20th in Neepawa @ First Baptist Church, 219 Hwy 5N, Neepawa.

· May 25th in Victoria @ Emmanuel Baptist Church, 2121 Cedar Hill Cross Road, Victoria

· May 26th in Vancouver @ Royal Oak Ministry Centre, 7175 Royal Oak Avenue, Burnaby

Regional Minister Mark Doerksen will be the keynote speaker at the Winnipeg and Neepawa Celebration Dinners. Shannon Youell, the CBWC’s Director of Church Planting will speak at the Victoria and Vancouver Celebration Dinners.

More events will be planned in other centres for the fall.

Celebration Dinners are complimentary but a freewill offering will be taken to cover costs and to support the work of the CBWC. Prior registration is essential so we have enough space, seating — and food.

Register Today!

George Munchinsky

flower #5September 24, 2014 — We were saddened to learn of the passing of George Munchinsky, a man of God who had pastored several CBWC churches.

George died on September 18 at the age of 79 in Olds, AB of complications due to cancer.  George had served as pastor of three CBWC churches:  Grace-Kildonan Church in Winnipeg MB, First Baptist Church in  Prince Albert SK and First Baptist Church in Olds AB.

George leaves to mourn him his wife Darlene and many friends and family.  His memorial service will take place on Friday, September 26 at 2 pm at First Baptist Church in Olds AB.

Please keep George’s family and friends in your prayers.

 

Warren Hale

bigstock-Single-Red-Rose-Flower-44599210September 18, 2014 — The CBWC mourns the death of Warren Hale who went home to glory on September 15 at the age of 95.

Warren Clifford Hale was born in Eureka, Kansas on December 20, 1918 to John and Ruth Hale. He was the oldest of four children.  When Warren was a teenager, his family moved to Seattle where he finished high school.  At this time he also received Christ as his personal Lord and Saviour. After high school, and being called by God to become a pastor, he enrolled in Multnomah School of the Bible in Portland, Oregon (now Multnomah University).  Upon graduation, he moved to Salem, OR where he became a pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church.  At this time, on March 20, 1942, he married Susanne Esau.  They had their first daughter, Sharon, before moving to Seattle to further Warren’s education at Seattle Pacific College. Their second daughter, Charlotte, was born during this time.

Warren was then pastor to three churches in Washington:  Honeydew Community Church, Shelton First Baptist and Winlock First Baptist.  In 1968, he and Susanne moved to Nanaimo BC where he served as pastor for nine years. After their ministry in Nanaimo, they moved to Naples, Italy, where Warren was pastor at the Service Men’s Centre for one year. Ministry continued as they moved back to Canada where  Warren became pastor at High River Baptist in Alberta before becoming the Minister to Seniors at White Rock Baptist Church. He held this position until retiring from the ministry.

Warren was preceded in death by his wife Susanne, his brother Harold Hale and Lynn Marie and Scottie DeBoer.

Warren leaves a lifetime legacy of faithful service to the Lord.  A memorial service will be held at White Rock Baptist Church at 2 pm on September 18, 2014.  Please remember Warren’s family and many friends in your prayers.

Kathy Janzen

bigstock-Beautiful-Lily-flower-over-whi-12572015September 9, 2014 — The CBWC was saddened to learn that Kathleen Marie Janzen (nee Hilde) passed away peacefully at home into the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ on Sunday morning, September 7, 2014 at the age of 77 years, following a year’s battle with colon cancer.

She was born on March 25, 1937 in Loos, B.C., and after graduating from high school in Prince George at the age of 16 years, attended Prairie Bible Institute in Three Hills, Alberta.  This was followed by 3 years of Registered Nurse’s training at the Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops, B.C., where she continued after graduation for another 3 years as a nursing instructor in pediatrics.

In 1963 she married Karl Janzen and moved to Three Hills, Alberta, where she served as a nurse, piano teacher, and mother to their three children who were born there.  In 1971 the Janzen family moved to Victoria, B.C., where Kathleen worked as a nurse and Karl served as Lay Minister at Emmanuel Baptist Church.  From there, the Janzen family was accepted in 1975 for cross-cultural missionary service overseas by the Canadian Baptist Overseas Mission Board for ministry in South America and Africa.

Kathleen taught sacred music at two seminaries in Brazil from 1977 to 2003, having earned her ARCT (piano teacher), BRE (religious education); BCM (church music), and MA in Ethnomusicology degrees.  Frequent, temporary trips to Angola, Africa, endeared Kathleen and her musical talent to the people there.

The Janzens retired from missionary service in 2003 in Vernon, B.C., where Kathleen continued to serve actively at First Baptist Church and in other community endeavours.

Kathleen leaves to mourn her passing: Karl Janzen, her husband of 51 years; her 3 children: Diane (Gerson) Betman of Vernon, B.C., Douglas (Jill) Janzen of Ft. St. John, B.C., and Sandra (David James) Janzen of Campbellville, Ontario; her brother Ken (Julie) Hilde of Grand Forks and her sister Sharon (Ed) Davis of Williams Lake, B.C.  She has 7 grandchildren who will dearly miss their vovó.  She was predeceased by her parents and her brother, Raynor (Judy) Hilde.

An interment service, for family and close friends, will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, September 12, at the Pleasant Valley Cemetery, and a Celebration of Life memorial service will be commemorated at First Baptist Church, 1406 – 32nd Avenue in Vernon, B.C., on Saturday, September 13, at 2:00 p.m., with Rev. Dan Watt officiating, followed by a reception and refreshments in the church hall.

Please keep the Janzen family and their friends in your prayers.

New Heartland Regional Minister

May 14, 2014 —  On behalf of the Board of the Canadian Baptists of Western Canada, we are very pleased to announce the appointment of a Heartland Regional Minister.  After an excellent search process with a deep field of candidates thoughtful interviews, and careful deliberation, the Search Committee unanimously recommended to the CBWC Board Reverend Mark Doerksen.  The Board has wholeheartedly endorsed that recommendation and Mark has accepted the appointment.  Mark Doerksen has been associated with the CBWC for the past twenty-two years; seventeen of those years at Willowlake Baptist Church in Winnipeg; the past ten years as the congregation’s Lead Pastor.  Mark is married to Mary Stuber Doerksen, who has served on the Heartland Regional Advisory Team as Moderator and the CBWC Board.  Mark and Mary have two children: Micah (16) and Aby (14).   Mark earned a B.Th. from Providence College, Otterburne, MB, his M.Div. (Honours) from Providence Theological Seminary, and is currently engaged in a D.Min. program at Carey Theological College.  Mark has served in a wide variety of capacities within the Winnipeg Ministerial and the denomination over the years and brings some excellent gifts and complementary skills to the CBWC Staff Team – all of whom are looking forward to working with him.

Mark is expected to begin employment with the CBWC in August, 2014, final details to be confirmed.