Church Services

I attended several church services this afternoon. There were 3 separate locations for church and the services would rotate between them. They didn't last very long--scarcely five minutes each. Getting set up for each new service was quite a process. Especially so in the smallest church. There was hardly seating space for the 3 people and 3 stuffed animals and dolls in the congregation. It seemed to matter a great deal who sat where, so there were always things to be worked out.

We each had a different version of the Bible. One was entitled, "The Magic School Bus Gets Baked in a Cake, " another, "What was That?" another, "Walk Two Moons," and the last, "What Do You Say When a Monkey Acts That Way?" While there was not unity in translation, it was loudly commanded, especially in the church where the 4 year old boy was in charge, "Open your Bible!"
It helped that he gave page numbers.

I wasn't able to follow all the sermons exactly. I did hear some things I'd never heard in church before. He told us, while he twisted the belt to some play armor, " Jesus beat up the soldiers! "
He also preached about angels healing something. When I asked for it to be clarified what they healed, he repeated it for me, but I still wasn't able to comprehend it. New teachings take a while to sink in I guess. I also heard references about Hockey in his sermons.

I was never in services before where washroom/bathroom facilities were such a dominant theme both for songleaders, preachers, and attending stuffed animals. [In fact one bear was lucky to even be in church. He'd just been taken off the washline due to needing to dry after a wet slip up on a commode yesterday. His owner was quite sad when I insisted he be rinsed and hung to dry, but cheered up when I gave her a replacement stuffed bunny to tend and sleep with.]

Some contentions in these services included Entering Into the Church Properly. Doors needed to be open and closed correctly. There was a reverse problem from what Solomon had to solve. Instead of two mothers fighting over a child, two children fought over the mother figure, both claiming her [ME] as their mother. Fortunately no one suggested cutting me in half. Instead I showed them I had two sides to sit by. At one point there was a threatening church split when there was disagreement over whose turn it was to have a service next. Two of us went to one service and two to the other.

Singing was accapella while services were in the basement. Several tunes were hard to follow since none of the rest of us had heard the words or music before. Later, when we moved up to the livingroom, there was a piano and whistle recital. The whistles were made from drinking straws chewed flat at one end, and were very piercing and dramatic!

I'm pleased to say a healing took place in the one service. A foot was injured from stepping on a sharp toy [probably while bringing a stuffed animal back into the service after yet another trip to the imaginery washroom]. The tears and pain were laid to rest with a blowing and kissing on the foot. As is needed in healing, FAITH in the powers of the one healing was a factor too.

After several services had already been completed, we were ready to begin another in the smallest facility again. However, the 4 year old boy was still not coming in. He was in plain view outside the church swinging his arm around. The two 3 year old girls were ready to begin, so I asked him if he was coming to church. He said, "Later...I have to finish playing ball first. " Some people just don't have their priorities right! Edith

Coming and Going

Elaine came back from the ACE Convention. The students had a good time travelling together and at the convention. It is nice to have her back home.

Yzerman left yesterday. He went to a new home until he gets to live with his extended family. We know the people who have him, so that made it easier to see him leave. He is a cute little guy and was fun to have.

We are caring for Jonathan Stoll's three foster children for a few days while they are on a trip. With three preschoolers in the house it is pretty much constant activity.

My garden got lots of rain and even a little snow since I planted it last Thursday. When I looked at it closely this morning, I saw that the radishes are coming up. I also noticed that a bear has walked through it and left his footprints in the dirt.

Here is Yzerman just before he left

Here are the three little ones throwing rocks into the water.

Kenora Jail Service

Yesterday I went with Walter Lyon to the Kenora Jail for the Sunday services. Walter spoke at the young offender service, and then at the first adult service. I spoke at the second adult service. Walter did a great job with his messages. One of the young offenders ask him for a copy of his notes.

The first adult service was men. The second service was the women. We had a good turnout for both services.

I enjoyed being back at the jail again. It has been a while since I was there. It was also good to be with Walter for the day. I really appreciate him and what he brings to our church.

Today Edith is helping at the school, so I am taking care of Yzerman. He has been doing very well so far.

Elaine comes home from her trip to the ACE Convention tomorrow. We are also taking care of Jonathan Stoll's three foster children for the rest of the week. We might have six children here for several days. It won't be boring, to say the least!

Gardening as a cultural event

Today I participated in a cultural event. I planted the early things in our garden. A few weeks ago I added more topsoil. Last week I rototilled the garden. I was going to plant at the end of last week, but then the weather forecast was predicting snow. It did snow Saturday, so I was glad I had waited. Then every day this week it rained when I had time to plant. So, it didn't happen until today.

Now, my garden probably would have been considered a large flower bed by my parents or grandparents. It is 16 by 32 feet. I know our strawberry patch alone, when I was a boy, was much bigger than that. I got my first sales experience selling strawberries by the road. My mother told me to tell people who stop, that they are 50 cents a box. She said if they say that is too much, I can tell them they may have them for a quarter. The first person who stopped asked me how much they were, and I told her, "They are fifty cents a box, but if you think that is too much you can have them for a quarter". And now you know why I never made it in sales as a career.

Anyway, I remember the garden being the bane of my Summer existence. When there were ponies to ride, and games to play, and so many fun things to do, we had to work in the garden. We weeded, picked things, and shelled peas. We did it by hand in those days. I actually developed some of my story telling skills by spinning fantastic imaginary tales while we were shelling peas. My siblings probably still have nightmares in which they want to say something but can't because I am telling a story that goes on and on and on.

I remember being in the garden and having bus loads of people, who had come to Lancaster County to see the Amish, stop and take our picture as we worked. I often wondered, as a little boy, what it would be like to ride around in a bus and take pictures of people working in their gardens. I didn't find it particularly amusing to be the subject of the pictures.

Anyway, now after all these years, I play at gardening. I don't do it to save money. I could probably buy food cheaper at the grocery store. I do it because I enjoy getting seeds into the ground, and watching the garden grow. I'll admit that I will never plant a garden as big as my parent's garden. But, I wonder if my Mom would feel a little bit rewarded by knowing that I still plant a little garden, and that I actually do it because I enjoy it?

Now, the question comes to my mind regarding my own children. What will they do as a cultural event? It might be something they hated to do as children. I know the bane of their Winter existence was firewood. I wonder if at age 50, they will have a tiny little wood pile. I wonder if they will cut and split a tiny amount of wood and stack it somewhere by their house and actually enjoy doing it.

ACE International Student Convention

Elaine left, with the older students from Cornerstone Christian School, on Monday to travel to Flagstaff, Arizona for the ACE International Student Convention. They arrived in Flagstaff yesterday and will be there until Friday morning.

From what we have been hearing, they have been having a grand time as they traveled toward Flagstaff.

Here are some pictures from their time in Colorado.

This is at the top of Pikes Peak.

Give unto Him that asketh of thee...

Sioux Lookout has many street people. I dread it inside when one of them approaches me. Sometimes they want money and it doesn't seem wise to give it. Yet we are told to give to those who ask. Perhaps not give exactly what is asked for, but something.

This past week I liked what happened. I was talking to Merle about wanting to know at least one street person by name and begin interacting with them as people, not askers. I've seen what happened when Ivan Ramer in Red Lake pursued a street person and didn't give up on him. John Paul Keejick told his story of their relationship on Unshackled, the radio drama.

Well a day or two after I'd made that comment to Merle, I was shopping for groceries. There were a group of street people in the store too. They acknowledged me and we exhanged helloes. Then the lady in the group came closer and I could see she wanted to talk privately. I expected her to ask for money. Instead she said, "Could you please pray for me? I want to get out of this trap I'm in. I'm an alcoholic and can't seem to stop drinking. I used to be a Christian, but now I just can't quit drinking. " I asked her for her name and where she was from and she told me. I assured her I WILL pray for her. Yes, sister, that's a request I can say yes to.

And Speaking of Mothers!

Here is Yzerman. He is six days old. We will probably have him for about a week. He weighs 5 lb. 13 oz. He is incredibly cute.

Mother's Day

Today we had a Mother's Day service. We had a tulip for each of the mothers that attended the morning service. After presenting each mother with a tulip the men stood around the outside of the auditorium and we prayed a blessing on the women and children.

After the service we had a fellowship meal that was prepared by the men. If the truth were known, I am sure that there was a lot of advice and even some help given by the ladies. The food was good and the fellowship even better.

I was thinking about my mother today. She was a unique woman. She did everything with a passion. She was a good storyteller. She helped us as children in so many ways. One of the things I remember her doing was reading through the New Testament with me. After I had committed my life to Christ she spent some time each morning as I read through the New Testament. Being a parent myself now, and knowing more about the morning rush to get everybody ready for school on time, I am impressed that she took the time to do that.

I often thought that I was more like my Dad. I tried to be like him and pattern my life after his. I thought I looked some like him. As I get older, I look in the mirror and see my mother looking back at me more and more. I think as I get older I look more like she did.

She went to be with the Lord in 1993. I miss her especially on days like today. I am thankful for her influence in my life.

Here are some pictures from our fellowship meal.

Here are some of the men preparing the food.

The women and children went through the food line first.

Four young ladies enjoying the lunch.

Hans Was Here

Hans came during the night Monday and stayed until the middle of the morning today. It was great to have him here for a visit. We enjoyed getting caught up on the things that he is involved in while living in Chattanooga.

He has two more years in his residency there. He is just at the stage of needing to start to think about what he will do in 2009 when he is finished there.

We moved a truckload of topsoil to our garden on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was nice to have his help. I only had to shovel half as much topsoil. Actually, maybe I shovelled less than half, since I am the old man now.

Thursday Hans had chapel at the school in the morning. He went with me to do visitation in the hospital. It gave him a chance to see Meno-Ya-Win Health Centre. In the afternoon we went for a canoe ride. We didn't see any moose. It was a lovely afternoon and it was great to be out on the water again.

Hans had helped me take our canoe down to the neighbour's dock. We have permission to leave it there. It might mean that we will use it more if we don't have to haul it to the lake every time we want to go. This was my first time out on the lake this year.

Here are the topsoil haulers.

This is the canoe ride.

Here is Hans and his mother with the flowers he gave her for Mother's Day.

Saving Up A Little Money

Last night while I was putting Dallas to bed, he was thanking me for buying something for him. Then he said, "But then you might have a thousand dollars in your bank account, or maybe even more".

After a pause he started saying that some people have over a million dollars in their bank account. Then he wondered if some people have over a billion dollars. I told him there were people who have more than a billion dollars. He correctly guessed that there are lots of people who have over a million dollars, but a limited number that have over a billion dollars.

Then he wondered if anybody has a trillion dollars. I told him that no individual has a net worth of a trillion dollars. He said, "Well, I guess even if you have over a billion dollars, you could buy whatever you wanted. You could even buy your own navy submarine if you wanted." I assured him that it was true.

He wondered who the richest people are, and how much money they have. I told him that Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are two of the world's richest men. I told them they are probably worth between 50 and 60 billion dollars each.

He thought a bit and then said that they were only 40 billion or so short of having a trillion dollars. I corrected his math and told him that they were about 940 billion short of having a trillion dollars. He realized then that it takes a thousand billion to make a trillion.

He reflected on that a bit and then said, "Maybe we should write to Bill and Warren and tell them they should start saving up a little money!".

I found this thought really amusing. I couldn't imagine writing Bill Gates and Warren Buffett and telling them to start saving up a little money. I also thought it showed the futility of trying to be richer than we are now. It becomes merely the pursuit of larger numbers. Even Bill and Warren have a long way to go to reach a trillion dollars. If they reached that, they would need to keep saving for the next bigger number. So, I will be happy with a thousand dollars (or less) in the bank that I can use to buy my son a little something that thrills his heart. That might be better than a trillion dollars anyway.

Home Alone

[I tried posting this yesterday, but needed instructions from Merle. By now this is a bit outdated, but I'll post it anyway.]

I have been here by myself for three nights. It seems so wierd! Sometimes I like it , sometimes I don't.

Elaine returns from the ACE Regional Convention in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, tonight. It seems not long ago my older three were going to convention. Now my second batch is beginning!
Merle and Dallas return home Sunday eve. I'll welcome them with open arms!

I read pairachopstix and of her longing for time away from 6 month old twins and 3 other younguns. I understand. But if she were actually given 3 nights alone, what would she do? With twin babies, probably sleep and sleep.

Me, I thought of several people I could spend time with. I thought of Spring chores around here that needed to be done. I decided to divide my time up between them.

So I did the Spring rituals of cleaning windows, raking under the trees, clearing out flowerbeds and clipping the dog. It really does look nicer around here. As Frieda B said about clean windows, "It gives one a new outlook on life!"

This week the White-Throated Sparrows are back singing their "Pure, Sweet, Canada, Canada, Canada " song. So are Chipping Sparrows with their staccato trill. I told them and the robins and some butterflies, "It's good to have you back!" Talking to the them made me feel like St Francis of Assissi! AHH Spring!

I had lunch with Sarah Johnson. We have a special connection, since her daughter married my nephew. She's such a lovely lady. Yesterday I took Jesse Lyon to a Dr. appointment and a few other errands. When I reach her age, I hope I'm like her-perky, witty and fun to be with. I also helped Cathy Yoder make meatballs in preparation for the memorial Ashawaabic Ministries is having this weekend. It's two years since Ruth Anne died.

I always like being with Cathy. We talked and talked about many things. She works at a women's shelter and told me of some of the situations she encounters there. I admire her gutsiness! We went out for Supper and talked some more.

It's been nice having a break from sibling rivalry and adolescent conflicts, but I'm ready for it again. Well, not so much the conflicts as the precious younguns involved!

It'll be great to have a husband in the house again too! And Monday Hans is coming for a visit. The alone time ending. Edith

IGo Board Meeting

Here is a picture of the IGo board. The back row from left to right is: Dave Hostetler, Dale Ropp, James Stutzman and Lester Weiler. The front row is Marvin Miller, Myself, Marvin Kauffman and Jim Weaver. This was taken outside the Sandy Ridge Church in Indiana.

I attended the board meeting for the Institute for Global Opportunities yesterday and today. We had a wonderful time of prayer and fellowship this morning. I was very encouraged. These brothers are all good men, who are committed wholeheartedly to God.

This was our first board meeting since the Institute opened in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Things seem to be going well over there. If you want to read a compilation of the student blogs, you can find that HERE.

Dallas and I are traveling home now. We are just North of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We plan to be home by tomorrow evening.

Anabaptist Foundation Business Seminar

Yesterday I spoke at the Anabaptist Foundation Business Seminar. It was held at Shady Maple near Blue Ball, PA. There were about 400 business people in attendance. The day went very well and I think both the organizers and the participants were pleased.

I spoke on "Wealth, Spirituality, and the Anabaptist Community". My basic idea was that wealth is a power. All power, in a fallen world has a bent toward evil. The counterweight to the bent toward evil is love in caring relationships.

God demonstrated his love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We are representatives of Christ and his love to the world. How we use our wealth is decided in the intimacy of our relationship with Christ.

We need to give the poor our presence as well as our wealth. If we give from the passion and calling of our heart, in the context of loving relationships, we counter balance the bent toward evil of wealth. The giver becomes more than a check writer and the recipient becomes more than a charity case.

It was a good day and I met a lot of people I haven't seen for a while.

Here is a picture of the meeting room. David Bohlander is speaking.

The hat rack give some indication of who attended the meeting.