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Canada West District Church of the
Thanks
IN THE
Note of Thanks
April 2015
Thank you, Thank you, Thank
you to all on Canada
West. Your prayers have a wonderful gift to us. You have uplifted us so many times over
the past 2 years. We are very
grateful. God is so good and
we continue to praise Him. We
praise Him for who He is, for
His blessings, and for you.
We are now home in High River
and making great progress. The
surgery was successful.
At
least that is what the doctor
said. I was awake during the
procedure of having the pacemaker placed in my chest and
heard all of the conversations! I cannot drive yet, but
soon . . .
Someone has said, "Time together, like grace, is a
gift." Thank you for the time
we have spent together as you
have prayed for Ed and myself.
Evelyn and Edgar Craig
For a more detailed
please click here.
OOP
letter
UPCOMING EVENTS
April 26th, 2015 Camp Harmattan is hosting a
Camp Sunday, stay tuned to hear updates from
Harmattan in your local churches.
April 26th 4:00 - 5:30 Camp Harmattan Annual
General Meeting will be held at Red Deer First
Church of the Nazarene from 4:00-5:30. You are
invited to join us as we share about the ministry of
Harmattan throughout this past year and as we
look forward to the ministry taking place in the
year ahead of us.
Upcoming Ambrose Courses: Three courses are
being
offered
this
spring through Ambrose University. This
opportunity is especially pertinent to Pastors,
and will qualify for LLL
credit. For further information please check
out their website here,
the courses offered are
as follows;
April 27 - May 1, 2015 Preaching in a Shifting
Culture, Instructor: Mark Buchanan, Terry Young
and Bill McAlpine
April 27 - May 1, 2015 Old Testament, Exodus, Instructor: Tremper Longman
May 11 - 15, 2015 Incarceration, Grace and Justice, Instructor: Donald Stoesz
Canada West District Church of the
Thanks
Note of Thanks
Leon Teal, a Nazarene Pastor ministering on the East
Coast would like to extend
his thanks for those of you
who have already ordered a
copy of his e-book Unlikely
through Amazon. Up until
recently the book was only
available in limited numbers in hardcopy. In late
March after it was released
electronically it was #4 on
Amazon Canada’s list of
bestselling Religious Biographic ebooks! So thank
you to all who ordered and
in particular if you wrote a
review. If you would like to
order a copy of this book
please just follow this link.
For a more detailed description of the book please
click here.
IN THE
OOP
Upcoming Events
May 12, 2015 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Risking
For Jesus: When 'Playing it Safe' is Wrong. Many
people are puzzled by lagging church numbers
and a seeming unresponsiveness to the gospel.
Others feel that Canadian society in uninterested in Christianity. Jesus would challenge these
notions. This course is a hands on, experiential
focus on starting new missional communities
and churches. Doug Balzer and Dave Skidmore
will lead students into an outer exploration of
Canadian mission and an inner journey of
God's indwelling Presence. This course will
qualify for Life Long Learning Credit. Cost is
$40.00, for further information or to register,
please check out this website.
May 15, 2015 Deadline for Assembly
Documents
June 19-20, 2015: Conventions &
Assembly at Ambrose University
May 26-28, 2015 55+ Retreat! Deep and
Wide: How Grace Changes Everything. Keynote speakers are Rev. Mark Buchanan and
Rev. Matt Boda. For more information please
visit www.ambrose.edu/55plus or phone 403
-410-2931. If you would like brochures to
promote this event at your church please
contact the district office.
Canada West District Church of the
IN THE
Harmattan…
Camp Harmattan will host
‘Celebrating Camp Harmattan The Old Fashioned Way’ 60th
Anniversary. For more information please email Val for promotional bulletin inserts, or further information please email the
district office.
If anyone has a tent trailer that
they would be willing to lend to a
family for Camp Harmattan,
please contact Rose Graham.
If you would like to work or volunteer at Harmattan this summer or know someone who
would, please have them contact
Rebecca
at
rebecca@campharmattan.com. We are
trusting God to provide all our
needs this summer and volunteers are a big part!
In addition, we would ask that
you be in prayer for Harmattan
even now. Please join us in praying that God would arrange His
Ministry Team for the summer,
for all the students who will
come to camp this summer, and
that he would be central in all we
are doing and receive all the glory.
We at Harmattan understand
that this ministry is a result of
your support. Please know we
deeply appreciate all those who
believe in Harmattan and know
that your support makes a difference in the lives of not just a
few, but many!
- The Harmattan Team
OOP
June 19, 9:00SDMI/NMI Convention at Ambrose University. Featuring guest speakers Todd
& Connie Aebisher, missionaries
from Asia Pacific. Please click on this link for a
teaser video which can be shared with your
churches. A full biography and details about
their ministry can be found on the Global Ministry Center website
June 19 7:00 pm Assembly convenes at
Ambrose University.
June 20 8:30 am Assembly business session
for delegates begins, our District Superintendents message will begin at 9:15 am. If you
would like to attend please register here. The
afternoon ordination service begins at 1:30 pm,
there are three candidates this year, and we will
also recognize three elders retiring this year.
July 1, 2015 Harmattan deadline to request
landscape and Children’s special needs request.
Apply here.
July 9th, 2015 10:00 am - 1:30 pm Camp Harmattan will be hosting a Senior’s Day, brunch
will be served.
August 1 - 9, 2015 Family Camp at Camp
Harmattan. Register for all or a portion of
Family Camp this year. Featured speakers
are Dr. Deirdre Brower Latz and Dr. Jim
Diehl. For full biography information please
click here.
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
Prayer Requests
IN THE
OOP
Prayer Requests
August 11 - 13, 2015 PALCON @ Ambrose: be-
Please keep Dale Strebchuk (son
of Colleen Strebchuk, High Prairie) in your prayers as he suffered a heart attack on Sunday
March 15th. He has had three
stents put in, but continues to be
in recovery. Prayer for healing
and for Dale’s family.
ginning with registration at 2 pm on Aug. 11 and
ending with the evening service on Aug. 13. Registration cost is $179.00 and you can register by
clicking on this link www.PALCON.ORG Pastoral
spouses are welcome to attend, registration cost is
also $179.00.
Update….
So this particular doctor says
somet hing to the extent
of...."what your body did by creating its own bypass is nothing
short of a miracle. It happens...but not often. This is
God's work and who would I be
to mess with it. And it has been
proven that when it happens
these new arteries often never
form blockages like the old ones
do"....
The second surgery for Dale
went well, but Dale is more sore
after the second time. Dale is
currently at home with his wife
Michelle, but your prayers for his
continued recovery are coveted.
We thank God for the way He has
worked already and pray for continued healing.
Room Request
I have a dear friend named Marc
Rajotte that is going to be coming to Calgary to take his practicum at the Calgary Counselling
Center, but was just informed
that his housing situation is not
available at this time. He is needing a place to stay while he finds
part time work and waits to
begin his program in September.
He has very limited funds and is
a mature student (early 60's). If
you know or are able to assist,
please call me immediately at
(306) 313-9512. He is driving out
to Calgary from Caronport on
Monday April 20th.
Evening Worship speakers will be Dr. Jerry Porter,
General Superintendent; Dr. Deirdre Brower-Latz,
Principal and Senior Lecturer in Pastoral and Social
Theology at Nazarene Theological College, Manchester; and Dr. Gordon T. Smith, President and Professor of Systematic and Spiritual Theology at Ambrose University.
Keynote daytime speakers will be Dr. Gary Nelson,
President of Tyndale University College & Seminary
and Rev. Mark Buchanan, Associate Professor at
Ambrose Seminary. A number of workshops will
also be presented during Wednesday and Thursday.
Please pray for God’s blessing and His Spirit’s outpouring during this significant event for our Canadian leadership team.
CHURCH NEWS
Caroline: Caroline Church of the Nazarene is sending a team of 6 to Malawi Africa, Aug 15th-28th! 4
youth and 3 adults are now in process of getting
immunizations: Stephanie Harriman, Eryn McCarthy
Ouimet, Ethan and Ryan Bystrom and their father
Jim Bystrom, Donna Schultz and Pastor Shelly Norris. We have been praying about and planning this
big adventure for over a year now and after our
March 21st fundraiser and God providing a flight
seat sale we had enough money to book flights and
register our trip with Work and Witness! We will be
assisting and spending time with Pastors Chippi
and Wellington at 6 different child development
centers in Malawi. Please pray for our team as a few
of us have NEVER EVEN BEEN ON A PLANE BEFORE!
We are extremely excited about this opportunity...with a healthy dose of FEAR as well :) We pray
that God will allow us to be a blessing - to be His
hands, feet, and arms of love and hope to all we
meet. Shelly Norris (a.k.a. "The Rev"), Associate and
Youth Pastor
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
Prayer Request
Prayer Request and update…
Thank you Canada West District for your prayers and concern for Lavon Tattries
(Lacombe) mother Bernice who
was rushed to hospital and immediately put into ICU in Boise,
Idaho. Initially it appeared that
there was a blockage in her
lower abdomen that would require tricky surgery with a very
long and arduous recovery
time. The prognosis was between 2-4 days to live. Family
flew or drove in and 100’s of
people were in prayer for healing and recovery. As of Thursday April 9th, this is the note
from
Rev.
Bob
Ta t t r ie
(Lacombe) on his mother-inlaws progress…
"We have experienced a
miracle!.......................
One day the doctors were saying
'it's
a
matter
of
hours.' People gathered near
and far to lift Lavon’s mom
(Bernice Wolstenholm) and our
family to the strong arms of
Jesus. Literally overnight God
int ervened
and
t ou ched
her. She became conscious, sat
up, took nourishment, talked
and laughed! The doctors have
no explanation. She is very
weak and is now in rehab to
regain her strength and recover
a little more before returning to
her home. God apparently has
more on her 'to-do list' !
THANK YOU for your prayers,
encouragement and love. "
The Tattrie Family
IN THE
OOP
Drumheller "Exciting services of unity are happening in Drumheller among the local ministerial
and congregations. In January we celebrated the
Service for Christian Unity as 250 met to worship
together under the leadership of Brian Doerksen. In March the Alliance and Nazarene congregations held joint services at the Drumheller Alliance church as David Chotka, author of Power Praying, led both congregations in Discerning the Spirit
in prayer. The services included the Sunday morning service of March 1st as the Alliance Church hosted the services. The Pentecostal and Community
Baptist congregations also participated in the serv
i
c
e
s
.
On Good Friday over 250 remembered the Cross and
Jesus' death at the Elim Pentecostal Tabernacle under the leadership of 10 clergy from Drumheller and
area congregations as well as the Drumheller Institution Chaplains. Many were moved to tears as they
remembered how Jesus was Stained and Crushed by
our sin. On April 11-13 the Alliance and Nazarene
congregations joined together once again for a series
of services on prayer. Mark and Cheryl Buchanan of
Ambrose University were the guest speakers and
over 170 attended the joint Sunday morning service
hosted by the Nazarene congregation. Pastors from
the Pentecostal and United Churches attended the
services. The Chaplains from the Drumheller Correctional Institution also participated in the all the
services. Many are praying that these times of worshipping together will make an impact on Drumheller for God's Kingdom. God is doing a new work in
these congregations. And the prayer is that this new
work will spill into the community that surrounds
our congregations."
High River Thanks for praying for our community gospel sing recently. It was a great success. From Accapella to country gospel, traditional hymns and chorus both contemporary
and traditional. About 70+ people from Roman
Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Pentecostal, Baptist and Nazarene churches to name a few. An
outreach to the community based on the unity
of those saved by grace through faith in Jesus
Christ alone.
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
NMI Resources
Important notice about
NMI resource materials for
2015
This year the Nazarene Publishing House is not sending
NMI resources to our convention. They have agreed to do
a bulk order for Canada West
and the district council will
cover the shipping costs. If
you as a local president, pastor or church would like to
pick up your resources at
Convention they must be preordered this year. The order
must be in to Richard Bahan
by April 30 for us to order the
materials as a bulk order. We
have to allow for freight time
to get the materials to us in
time for our District Convention. If you need assistance in
placing your order, or wonder
what you ordered in the past,
please contact your local NMI
Zone rep as they have this information:
Barb Friesen – Manitoba
Bernice McNair – Saskatchewan
Trent McDowell & Richard Bahan Alberta South
Charlene Neufeld & Penny Ure
Alberta Central
Richard DeBock Alberta North
The order form is available
online here. The completed
form can be forwarded to
Richard Bahan by email or by
fax 403-278-6144
IN THE
OOP
Lacombe Nazarene Church continues to "get
ready for company" with the recent installation of new window coverings for their
sanctuary. They were installed by two former Canada West teens: Randy Friesen
from Calgary North Hill and Kim (Parkins)
Friesen from Red Deer First. They did a
great job. There are still a few more renovations that are needed to "Spruce up" the
facility but it is taking shape. All renovations to date have been paid by cash as the
funds were raised." Thank the Lord for His
provision and the generous people of the
Lacombe Church.
Rising Above Ministry held their Hope Lives
Gala Banquet on Saturday, March
14th, 2015, The event was sold out with
390 people attending. The highlight of the
evening was the powerful testimonies of
the 5 participants who shared their journey through abuse and pain to a hope
filled life. A silent and live auction was
part of the evening. An original painting
was donated by one of our former participants who now lives in Ontario, it sold for
$4,000.
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
Prayer Request
The following prayer requests
come from Arnie & Gail Wyllie
Our grandson, Chris Wyllie, had
a jobsite accident that has put
him in the hospital. A 6 ton
crane hit his head and caused
blood clots. Also his wife, Rachel,
is due to have their first child (a
boy) on Canada Day.
My friend's daughter is depressed and having suicidal
thoughts.
I just received a phone call from
the sister of one of the students
who rides my school bus. Their
Dad just died. The fellow who
rides my bus is Dallas. All the
students who ride my bus are
"special needs". So, with my limited knowledge of these students, I imagine that this is going
to be very hard for Dallas to deal
with.
Lindsay is the director of the
Children's Resource Centre in
High Prairie. I was on their board
for 10 years. Lindsay is at the
Stollery Children’s Hospital with
her daughter Cassidy. Lindsay
just found out on Thursday that
Cassidy has a brain tumor. So
far they have done a MRI and
surgery to relieve the pressure
and also a biopsy on the tumor. The little one is only in
grade 1, Lindsay said that she
should know more on Friday. I
will keep you updated on how
she is doing.
Say a Big Prayer for her!!
IN THE
OOP
After expenses, about $82,000 was raised
that night. God is continuing to bless and
use this ministry.
We currently have
housing for 8 male and 8 female in our
residential program. We have several others that come regularly for life-skills and
inner healing (dealing with deep emotional
wounds). Presently we operate out of 4
locations, all leased. It is our desire to be
in our own facility where we could have
our residential space, social enterprises’,
classrooms, and office space all under one
roof. Rising Above is a Compassionate
Ministry of Canada West District. Go to
Risingabovegp.com for more information.
Winnipeg Churches hold Joint Service: On Good Friday the Winnipeg
Churches joined together at New Hope
Community Church for a joint Good Friday
service. River of Life Community Church,
South Asian Fellowship, The Spanish Fellowship, New Hope Community Church
and also a local Methodist congregation,
Christ the Rock International, worshiped
together and remembered the price that
paid on the cross and celebrate the hope
we have in Christ. There were prayers in
Spanish, Hindi, Tagalog and English as well
as singing in three different languages.
Pastor Ed Ramos, from Christ the Rock
brought the Good Friday message and Pastor Alfredo brought us to the communion
table. Many came away saying was a wonderful and meaningful joint service.
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
IN THE
OOP
Please pray for the students from Canada West
District that will be attending NYC 2015
Jarrett Meilicke
Matthew Cox
Austin Bitzer
Jessica Bitzer
Dixon Wood
Carson Wood
Payton Unger
Chelsea Hoffer
Charlie Titterington
Cody McLean
Tommy Titterington
Brandon Stewart
Sarah Robertson
Autumn WIlliams
Shane Stewart
Janelle Weslowski
Rachel Burick
Olivia Burick
Jake Ashton
Sarah Ashton
Zakk Halverson
Zak Scheerschmidt
Kaylee Scheerschmidt
Elya Ewing
Adam Schwartz
Lauren Schwartz
Paul Zapote
Katherine Kvellestad
Please pray for the sponsors from Canada
West District that will be attending NYC 2015
Clayton Meilicke, Treena Cox, Ryan Wood, Ginger
Bitzer, Nathan Nichols, Alanna Wycoco, Srimal Ranasinghe, Mitch Brower, Sheri Lynne Martin, Carly Herbert, Ryan Herbert, Rick Ewing, Matthew Prendergast
Jenn Tattrie
HELP GET OUR TEENS TO NYC!
Maybe you don’t know any teens going to Nazarene Youth Conference-that doesn’t mean you
can’t help! We all know the Canadian dollar hasn’t been doing great. You can help alleviate some
of the pressure that puts on our budget by sending in a donation. No donation is too small or
too big!! Make cheques out to ‘Canada West
NYC” and send them to: Jenn Tattrie, 215 18 Ave
NE, Calgary AB T2E 1N3
Keep your eyes open at District Assembly for an
awesome prayer initiative that you can participate in to support our group while we’re down
in Kentucky!
Canada West District Church of the Nazarene
Travel
IN THE
OOP
Please find below a note from
friends on the Canada Central
District.
NMI Mission Trip Update from
Richard Bahan
I am Ernie Hall and my wife
Jacqueline Hall, are members
of Rosewood Church of the
Nazarene, 657 Milner Ave,
Scarborough, Ontario. We
have organized through christian-journeys.com, another
amazing journey to Egypt,
Jordan, and Israel, from the
15th - 31st October, 2015.
We have been in the Philippines for four days now
have almost completed the first of two buildings. I've
attached a photo of the Quonset building that we
have built. Today some of us started on the second
building. This one is a lot bigger and more complicated so it take a lot longer to put together. There
really like a large mechano set. Thousands of bolts
holding it together. The project has been going great,
which I believe has been a result of so many people
praying. Please continue to pray as the second building is far more complicated.
For the full story (and pictures) click here.
We are inviting all members
and friends of Canada West
District, to join members and
friends of Rosewood Church
of the Nazarene, and Solid
Rock Community Church of
the Nazarene, on this, our second pilgrimage to the biblical
lands.
If you are interested in joining
with members of the Canada
Central District in going on
this trip, please click here for
further information.
Please note that there will not be a May edition of the
Loop because it will be too close to Conventions &
Assembly. I will however try to keep our website updated with pertinent news.