Bye Bye Blog

My apologies to those of you who tell me you regularly check this post. My schedule and pace have been so frantic that I just haven't had time to post. As you can see from the date on the last post, it's been well over a month.

Tomorrow I leave for a week in Newfoundland, return for three days, then I am gone for another 8 days. All this involves exciting things that God is doing. However, this blog is a casualty.

Therefore, I'm giving notice that I'm going to shut this down. I appreciate those who are interested in our ministry. It has also been six months since I last sent out a newsletter, but I am determined to do that again very soon. If you have not been on my newsletter list in the past and would like to continue to know what God is doing in Atlantic Canada, send me your name and email address at kingsway@pei.sympatico.ca.

Thanks to you all for your encouragement and prayers.
Mark

Living in a blur

Since my last post, life has been non-stop. Here's a brief summary:

From March 20 to 31, I was in four states.
In Tennessee I was able to see family and meet with some of our church supporters.
In Georgia I attended a conference for Church Planting Missionaries at the North American Mission Board. It was encouraging, challenging, refreshing, and helped me focus on much work that lies ahead.
In Alabama I met with two churches: one is coming to PEI this summer to work with us and the other wanted to talk to me about helping plant a new church in Toronto. (Remember my new position, coordinating partnerships?)
Finally, in North Carolina, I met with the Baptist General Convention of North Carolina. They want to partner with the Eastern half of Canada (Ontario and everything to the east) for the next three years (beginning January '07). This partnership is why the CCSB created the new partnership position for me.

Since my return, I've been in a flurry catching up from being away two weeks and working on the full plate of projects that lie ahead. My most pressing focus this week has been working on a tour of Newfoundland coming up in May for churches interested in partnering with us there. I'm also working on a tour of Eastern Canada for the folks from North Carolina.

It is amazing to see how God is at work.

Taking off again

Tomorrow morning (Monday) I leave at sunrise to drive to Halifax to catch a plane to the states. I'll be in four states during the next two weeks.

The initial reason for the trip is to attend a "Church Planting Missionary" conference at the North American Mission Board in Atlanta. That will be four days next week.

While I'm "in the neighborhood", I'm also going to Tennessee, Alabama, and North Carolina. I'm meeting with a mission team from Decatur, Alabama which is coming this summer to PEI. I'm also meeting with another potential partner church in Northern Alabama. In Tennessee I'll be visiting some of our partner churches, speaking on March 26th at Hermitage Hills Baptist in Nashville, and seeing my family. Then I go to North Carolina to meet with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina.

The final day of my trip, March 31st, will be back in Nova Scotia, doing some legwork in the town of Pictou where a mission team will be working this summer planting seed for a possible future church plant.

I doubt that I post while I'm in the states, so I'll update you after I return.

Passionate about Partnerships

Partnership missions is what knit my heart to our church at King's Way and I'm passionate about building mission partnerships with churches and church bodies in the states on behalf of all of Atlantic and Eastern Canada.

The Canadian Convention of Southern Baptists has asked me to take a position helping connect, build, and coordinate partnerships with state conventions, associations and churches in the states with all of Eastern Canada, from Ontario to Newfoundland.

This is an exciting opportunity and we're already seeing God do some amazing things. I'll have more details later as those developments get cemented.

This is in addition to my work in church planting in Newfoundland and pastoring at King's Way. I feel like the guy in the circus juggling plates on top of sticks...

March Madness

No, not the basketball tournament. It's the travel schedule.

Tomorrow, as soon as I say "Amen" at the end of my sermon, I boogie for the airport to fly to Calgary, Alberta. I'm going to a conference at our denominational headquarters in Cochrane, just outside Calgary. I'll be home next Thursday evening.

Just over a week later, I fly to the states on March 20th. I'm going to a conference at the North American Mission Board in Atlanta. Along the way I'm making stops in Tennessee, Alabama and North Carolina to meet with various churches and church bodies about the needs in Canada. I'll return home March 31st.

That last day will be spent in the town of Pictou, Nova Scotia, doing some scouting and planning for a mission team coming there this summer. They'll be planting seeds for a possible future church start.

All together, I'll be gone 17 days this month. Please pray for my travel safety, strength (especially my back), favor with those I meet with about partnering "on mission" in Canada, and a favorable reception in the town of Pictou.

Linda's busy too!

Linda keeps a busy schedule here:
1) She tutors 3 hours each day at the local elementary school.
2) She tutors a student two afternoons after school in our home.
3) She is a VBS consultant for LifeWay Christian Resources.
4) She leads our weekly women's Bible study at King's Way.
5) She teaches the preschool Sunday School class and oversees all our children's ministry at King's Way.
6) She has to "mop up" after the many details that fall to a pastor's wife
7) She's a devoted wife and mother.

I think I'll keep her.

What do I do with my day?

Today, I…
a) worked on information for a mission team that will be working with us this summer.
b) went over information to give to several candidates for baptism.
c) talked with a person in Pictou, Nova Scotia who is willing to help us with a possible new church plant there.
d) counseled with a couple about joining the church.
e) helped Linda coordinate transportation for a woman to tonight’s women’s Bible study.
f) communicated some information to our elders.
g) went to a member’s house to get them to sign a legal document for the church.
h) communicated with a professor at Southern Seminary about the upcoming mission trip his students are taking to Newfoundland.
i) studied for Wednesday night Bible study.
j) prepared materials to be submitted at our associational meeting next week in Halifax.

Typical? In terms of variety? Yes. In terms of a lot on my plate? Yes.

Good Reading

I've just read 3 really good books that I got over the holidays. I wanted to pass along these recommendations:

Dinner with a Perfect Stranger
by David Gregory

A very secular young businessman gets a mysterious invitation to have dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant with Jesus Christ. Thinking some friends are playing a joke on him, he decides to play along and show up. To his surprise, it really is Jesus. What transpires is an evening of enlightening conversation as he gives Jesus all his best questions, doubts and objections...and Jesus answers them all.

This is a quick, easy read and would be great to pass along to a skeptic you know. I have already done so with my copy.

The Best Question Ever
by Andy Stanley

What a pretentious title! It was arrogant enough to get my attention and I'm glad it did. I won't tell you the question (you'll have to read it and find out), but it is from Scripture, though not likely one you would guess.

This is a good book for getting your life on track financially, in relationships, or in any area of decision-making.

Blue Like Jazz
by Donald Miller

This is one of the most unusual Christian books I've ever read. It's the real-life musings of a struggling Christian. He does things and says things that "good" Christians aren't supposed to say and do. But there's lots of good insights as he seeks to walk with God.

VERY FUNNY BOOK. Many times I was laughing out loud uncontrolably. I've read a lot of enjoyable books in my life, but I don't remember when I was sad that I had finished a book and had no more of it to read. Good stuff.

Blown Away

Growing up in Tennessee I never knew what wind truly was until I moved to Texas. It's windy year-round in Texas. But Texas is NOTHING compared to Atlantic Canada!

A windy day in Tennessee is 20 mph. In Texas 20 is common, 30 is windy. On PEI, winds of 50-60 mph are common here in winter. Not all the time, but we get ocean storms on a regular basis that bring howling winds that literally rock the house.

This winter has really been quite amazing. Just as those of you in the south have experienced unusually warm weather, so have we. In fact, the entire nation of Canada had a record warm January. PEI was 16 F above normal for the month. And while the snow is still more than anything you'd see in the south, it's been nothing like normal for here. Last Wednesday we had about 8 inches and that's been the largest snowfall this winter.

Back by Popular Demand

Wow! I can't believe it's been so long since I posted. Thanks to the many folks we saw in Tennessee over the holidays who told me you regularly check in here. My apologies for not having posted in so long. I knew I wouldn't post during our three week trip to the states. I didn't know it would take me so long to get caught up and out of the whirlwind when we got back.

We had a great trip to the states over the holidays. It's always good to see family and so many friends. We spoke at 3 churches and met with several others. Now it's back to work in the fields...

Right now, during the dead of winter, I have three primary areas of focus:
a) being the pastor of our church,
b) working with mission teams on their plans and preparations to come minister with us this summer, and
c) working on short and long range plans for new church starts in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

(a) above is a fulltime job by itself. Adding (b) and (c) really keep me hopping.

We had a meeting today in Charlottetown of three guys (including me) who wear the title "Regional Church Starting Coordinator" in Atlantic Canada. Our supervisor from Montreal was here to help us get some things underway in this new position. On my part, we're working on two projects in Newfoundland for May and making plans for a mission team that will lay some groundwork this summer for a possible church start in Pictou, Nova Scotia.

As always, we covet your prayers.