The Lord truly blessed us the past several weeks with a number of good things happening at VBC.

First, Blair Cassidy and David Kapauan preached passionate sermons where the altar was well attended; we had over 200 out for Friend Day; there were 19 men who attended a BBQ at Pastor Hird’s; and 23 of our ladies attended a luncheon at the church.

On Sunday mornings, I am continuing the expository preaching series through 1 Peter.  I am in the midst of a 3 part series on marriage from 1 Peter 3:1-7.  On Sunday evenings, I am preaching topical messages.

There is Sunday school each Sunday at 10am.  My adult class is in the midst of an expository study through the book of Acts; the teens and children’s classes also meet at 10am.  A supervised nursery is provided for each and every service at VBC.

This Tuesday evening, our regularly scheduled soul winning, visitation, and John & Romans distribution continues.

On Wednesday evenings, I am continuing the expository teaching series on the Garden of Eden from Genesis two and three; prayer groups follow.

On Friday evening, August 6th, there is a work night at the church.

On Sunday, August 8th, the church Officers are meeting at 5pm in my office.

On Sunday, August 15th, we are having our final Friend Day of the summer with a BBQ to follow.
There is no evening service that evening.

On Sunday, August 22nd, Missionary Pastor Boyd Stansford and his family will be here from Newfoundland.  He will teach Sunday School and preach the morning service.

On Friday, August 27th, there is another men’s BBQ at Pastor Hird’s home.

On Sunday, August 29th, there is a child dedication service.

On Friday evening, September 10th, there is another work night at the church.

On Saturday morning, September 11th, there is a ladies walk.

On Sunday, September 12th, we will have our monthly Officer’s meeting.  The Lord’s Supper will be observed to begin the evening service.

From Monday, September 13th through Saturday, September 18th, there is a week-long John & Romans blitz throughout our communities.

Then, on Sunday, September 19th, we will hold our 19th Anniversary services.  Pastor Dennis Seely and his wife from Cornerstone Baptist Church, in Carbonear, Newfoundland will be with us for this special day.  He will preach at 10am and I will preach at 11am.  We are pre-ordering 85 pizzas to be delivered by the close of the morning service.  There is no evening service this week.  With last year’s turnout of 285, we are working and praying for over 300.  Our theme: “To God Be The Glory!”

This Sunday, July 4th, Missionary to the Muslims, Pastor Monthir Abdullatif will be teaching Sunday school at 10am and preaching at 11am.  He is an exceptional missionary.  With his national background, he is able to reach into countries that are closed and antagonistic to the gospel.  Through his TV, radio, and internet ministries and with his evangelistic meetings both in Muslim countries and in North America, many Muslims are being saved, baptized, discipled, and added to the church.  This will be his third visit with us.  Come and hear how you can take the love of Christ to these for whom Christ died.

On Sunday night, Blair Cassidy is preaching.  We begin our service at 6pm with the Lord’s Supper.

Tuesday evening is our primary, church-wide soul winning and visitation night.  John and Romans booklets are also distributed to the community by some of our teams.

Wednesday evening, I am continuing my expository teaching series from Genesis on: “Gleanings From The Garden Of Eden.”  Prayer groups will follow.

On Sunday, July 11th, we are having our first Friend Day of the summer.  There is a BBQ following the morning service.  There is no evening service this week.

On Friday evening, July 16th, the men are meeting at Pastor Hird’s for another BBQ.

On Sunday, July 18th, David Kapauan is preaching in the evening service.  There is also an Officer’s meeting at 5pm.

On Saturday, July 24th, there is a Ladies Luncheon at the church.

O Canada - God keep our land, glorious and free!

On Saturday, there is another Bible Blitz as we have many teams saturating Vaughan with John and Romans booklets.

This Sunday is Picture Day at VBC.  Every few years we take a group photograph at the back of our property.  It is also our first BBQ of the summer.  Sunday school for all ages is at 10am and the morning service is at 11am.  There is no evening service this week.  Come, bring a friend and an appetite.  We’ll fill you physically and trust the Lord to fill you spiritually!

Tuesday evening is soul winning night.  We’re continuing our efforts to saturate Vaughan with the gospel of Christ through visitation and door-to-door evangelism.

This Wednesday, my expository teaching series on “Gleanings From The Garden Of Eden” continues as we are studying from Genesis 2.

Sunday, June 20th, is Father’s Day.  Services will be held at 10am, 11am, and 6pm.

This Lord’s Day, Sunday School for all ages (nursery, children’s classes, teens, adults) begins at 10am.  At the morning worship service, my expository preaching series through 1 Peter continues as we are in 1 Peter 2:4-10.  This 2 part sermon that I will complete this week is entitled: “The Christian Contrast.”   The church Officers are gathering in my office at 5pm for our monthly meeting.  On Sunday night’s I’m preaching topically, with last week’s sermon entitled: “Don’t Let Our Church Disappear,” examining 3 dangers facing our church. Following the evening service, there is an important business meeting for all of our members.

Tuesday’s soul winning endeavours continue with teams of men and women going out into our community.

My series on “Spiritual Gifts” continues this Wednesday with prayer groups to follow.  Coming soon is a series I will teach entitled: “Gleanings From The Garden Of Eden,” an expository study through the early chapters of Genesis.

Sunday, May 9th is Mother’s Day!  We have a special gift for each mother present.  Abraham Lincoln said, “No man is poor who has had a godly mother.”  Amen!

Then on Saturday, June 12th, we are having another John and Romans blitz.

Sunday, June 13th is Picture Day with our first BBQ of the season to follow the morning service.  This is a special day for our church family as we take a group picture on the back stairs of the property.  With a great emphasis on fellowship that day, there is no evening service as we strive to spend the time getting to know each other better.

This Sunday is Easter!  There are no bones in Jesus’ grave!  We celebrate His resurrection with worship services at 11am and 6pm.  Sunday school for the children, teens, and adults is at 10am.  The nursery is open for all services.  The choir is singing three specials and, in the morning, I will be preaching on “Living The Resurrected Life.”  Sunday night’s sermon is entitled: “The Upper Room.”

Tuesdays are set aside for soul winning, visitation, and distribution of John and Romans booklets.  I thank the Lord for the faithful teams that go out each week seeking to save lost souls and encourage saved ones.

My Wednesday night series on “Spiritual Gifts” is continuing, followed by prayer groups.

On Sunday, April 11th “our own” Missionary Pastor Dennis Seely from Newfoundland will be teaching our teen class and preaching the morning service.  I will be preaching the evening service.

On Monday evening and Tuesday, a good group of us will be heading to FaithWay Baptist Church in Ajax for their annual Spring Bible Conference.

On Sunday, April 18th, Missionary Phil Smith out of FaithWay Baptist Church, will be showing a DVD during Sunday School and then preaching for us at 11am.  I will be preaching the evening service.

On Sunday, April 25th, we are having a special S.M.A.C. (Sunday Morning After Church) honouring the ministry of Mary Adams.  My expository sermon series through 1 Peter continues that day.

May our later years be our greater years for Him!

On Saturday, February 20th, with a great number of couples out, including some first-timers, we had a wonderful time refreshing and reigniting our marriages.  Our fellowship hall was decked out just like a fancy, high-end restaurant!  With the Scriptural teaching on marriage, the skits, the games, the fellowship, a delicious Italian dinner catered, and a dessert table to tempt even the strongest, it all added up to a romantic evening for every Christian couple. Praise the Lord!

This Wednesday at 7pm, my teaching series on “Spiritual Gifts” continues, followed by prayer groups.

The Sunday morning preaching series on 1 Peter continues this week with a study of 1 Peter 2:1. Don’t forget to set your clocks ahead one hour - sadly, we lose an hour of precious sleep!

Sunday, at 5pm, the Officers are meeting in my office for our monthly meeting.

Sunday night at 6pm, veteran missionary Richard Bitun in The Philippines will be our speaker.  He has been supported by our church for a number of years and this will be the third time he’s been back with us.  He will be preaching and showing a DVD of the Lord’s work there.

On Saturday, March 27th, we are celebrating the Johnston wedding.

On Sunday evening, March 28th, there is a dessert S.N.A.C. (Sunday Night After Church).

Then on Sunday, April 4th, we celebrate Resurrection Sunday with Easter worship services at 11am and 6pm.  As usual, Sunday school for the nursery, children, teens, and adults, is at 10am.  We are praying and working hard to see many visitors out and a great number saved!  The choir is singing two specials and I will be preaching special Easter sermons.  Praise the Lord - we serve a living Saviour!!

Finally, we covet your prayers for one of our own soldiers, Frank, who just found out he has cancer.  He is undergoing radiation at the present time.  He is one of God’s choice servants and we greatly need him here healthy for the ministry.  He is a faithful man to the Scriptures and to our Saviour.  We know the Lord’s grace will be sufficient to sustain him.  We are all praying for God to be glorified through this trial of his faith.  We believe in a God of miracles and ask that you join churches and Christians all over this globe who are interceding for Frank.

Last evening at church, with many witnesses rejoicing, we observed the baptism of two adults, Jose and Tammi.  We thank the Lord for their salvation and are excited about what God is doing in each of their lives for His glory.

Tuesday night our single men are meeting for coffee and fellowship.

This Wednesday at 7pm, my series on “Spiritual Gifts” continues.  Last week, I introduced this study.  Following the lesson, as we always do, we will break into small prayer groups.  There is a supervised nursery and children’s class available.  Come and be a part of this much-needed mid-week power boost.  You’ll find a special, spiritually committed group of Christians who truly believe in the overwhelming gracious presence of God and the power of prayer.

Saturday is our Marriage Enrichment Fellowship.  We have a great number of couples signed up, paid up, and ready for a romantic evening of spiritual marital renewal.  Besides our speaker, there will be skits, games, and a delicious meal delivered.

On Sunday morning, my expository preaching series through 1 Peter continues.  In the evening, Blair Cassidy will preach for us again.

We’re looking forward to veteran Filipino missionary Richard Bitun being with us on Sunday evening March 14th.  We have supported his missionary endeavours in The Philippines for many years.  This will be the third time he is with us.

Love life and see good days! (1 Peter 3:10)

This Sunday night at 6pm is our annual church business meeting. There will be no preaching service inasmuch as the entire evening will be devoted to electing the church officers, reading of the Pastoral and Treasurer reports, and presenting the ministry vision for 2010.  All members are urged to be present and visitors are welcomed to sit in and observe how we conduct our church business and to hear of our goals and plans for 2010 and beyond.

The last two Sunday nights Blair Cassidy and David Kapauan have preached powerful messages,  speaking to our hearts and wills.  On Sunday night, February 7th, Pastor Hird will be our preacher.

Baptisms are planned again for Sunday night,  February 14th.

Then, on Saturday, February 20th, we have scheduled another Marriage Enrichment Fellowship.  We are inviting all of our own church family couples to join us in a time of marital refreshment and reinvigoration.  We have planned skits, games, and are having a special meal delivered.  Couples should sign up on the hallway bulletin board with their meal money, and read about the babysitting, and wedding/dating days pictures to bring.

One of the outreach ministries of our church is the Famine Relief Fund.  This is based on Acts 11:27-30, where monies were sacrificially given by the church at Antioch to help relieve the financial needs of the brethren in Judaea during a famine.  For years our congregation has sent monies every six months to famine-stricken areas of the world.  Like in Acts 11, these monies are sent to a church of like precious faith to help with the needs of their own church people in their crisis.  The last two weeks, we have taken up free-will offerings to help with the crisis in Haiti.  $2120 was raised and will be sent to a veteran BIMI missionary there who, in coordination with national pastors, will distribute these funds to their brethren in greatest need.  We trust the Lord that through this horrific crisis, many will come to know Him and that the brethren there will again experience the sustaining grace of God in trials of their faith!

It’s my hope and prayer that, unlike any other year, this year you and I will strive to know Him better and allow Him the freedom and access in our lives to stretch our faith to greater limits.  With God’s grace and through His enablement, may we strive to make spiritual advancements in those difficult and challenging personal sinful strongholds that exist in each of our lives and ministries.  May we begin this year with good and godly goals that are high and holy.  May these resolutions keep us disciplined, focused and on-track for a God-honouring year.

We’ve had a wonderful start to 2010 with visitors out for every service so far.  With our annual church business meeting coming up on Sunday evening, January 31st (no preaching that evening), I am busy finalizing my presentation for that evening that will include our yearly goals, activities, and events.

My preaching series through 1 Peter continued this past Sunday from 1 Peter 1:6-9 with the sermon title: “Figuring Out The Trials Of My Faith.”  I will preach Part 2 of this sermon on Sunday morning.

This Sunday night, Missionary Pastor Alex Boamah from Ghana, West Africa, is back with us and preaching again.  We are collecting any and all clothing for him to take back for the orphanage which he oversees under his church’s ministry.

On consecutive Sunday nights in January and early February, the men of our church are preaching: Blair Cassidy, David Kapauan, and Pastor James Hird.  These men can really preach and this annual preaching series is a favourite of our people.

Plans are being made to have another of our Marriage Enrichment Fellowships on Saturday, February 20th.  These are always well attended by our couples and serves as a refresher course for a couple, no matter how long they’ve been married.

On Sunday, December 6th, we held our annual Christmas Cantata.  With almost 40 young people participating in the play and with nearly 200 in attendance, our choir led us in a worshipful celebration of our Saviour’s birth.

Yesterday we were blessed to have Missionary to Malta Anson Van de Kemp with us.  After  presenting a very moving video of the spiritual needs of this Bible island, he preached about our precious Stone from 1 Peter.  We are excited for the unsaved people of Malta - a messenger of love with a message of Love is coming.

Our Wednesday evening Bible study through Hosea continues this week.  But what makes Wednesdays so crucial for us is our time of intimate intercession with our Lord in our prayer groups.

On Thursday, December 24th, at 6pm, we will gather on Christmas Eve endeavouring to keep Christ preeminent in our Christmas festivities.

For our own people, our annual Church business meeting is scheduled for Sunday evening, January 31st.  There will be no preaching inasmuch as we utilize the entire evening to focus on the Lord’s business for 2010.  It is an extremely important meeting for our church membership as we discuss our failures and shortcomings as a church and how we can address these.  I also will be presenting my goals for our church in 2010 and beyond.  I ask all our members to mark this date down and do everything you can to be here as we need your insight and counsel.

I wish you all a very spiritual and Spirit-filled Christmas.