New Life News
Abide March 28, 2021
Sunday, March 28, 2021 we are hosting a live streamed worship night. This will be an intentional time of prayer, worship & reflection. The live stream link will be on our website and youtube channel.
Easter Weekend
Good Friday
On Friday April 2, 2021 we are joining with area Christian Reformed Churches for a joint worship service that will be pre-recorded.The link will become available in the usual way on April 2 at 10:00am (and thereafter) for your participation in the service. Let us come together, virtually, to worship our God and Saviour.
Easter Sunday
We are excited to offer a very special New Life Easter service on Sunday April 4. If you know someone who could use a encouraging message of hope, invite them to join us virtually on Easter morning. We have so many different elements included in this service and so many familiar faces.
Both services will be available on our website & Youtube Channel.
Cyrus Centre Meal Train – Serve 2021
For the month of March our Serve 2021 focus is going to be supporting the residents of the Delair Court apartment fire and providing meals for the Cyrus Center. The Cyrus Centre strives to help meet the basic needs of at-risk, homeless youth, and their families. Youth who are homeless or at-risk of being homeless can access supports 24 hrs. a day 365 days of the year. One big way of supporting them is by providing meals!
Both Chilliwack and Abbotsford Cyrus Centre’s are scheduling meals through the meal train website. If you would like to sign up to bring a meal, click on the corresponding link at the end of the post. Once you’ve created an account, click on the date you’d like to bring a meal.
Fill in your name (or initials), email, and the meal you’ll be cooking. You’ll receive a reminder email the day before you are scheduled. Then just drop the meal off before dinner time at 6pm! The Abbotsford Location is filling up quick so please consider signing up for the Chilliwack Location.
Abbotsford Meal Train: https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/6wzv4q
Address: 2616 Ware Street Abbotsford.
Chilliwack Meal Train: https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/w1r7v1
Address: 45845 Wellington Ave, Chilliwack
We are also offering the opporuntity that if you would like to drop off frozen meals we can deliver them to Cyrus Centre. The GEMS are also having a virutal baking night to supply baking and that is open to anyone who wants to supply a special treat.
Thanks so much for serving!
New Life Live March 10 at 7pm
Dear New Life Family,
New Life Live will be on Wednesday, March 10 at 7:00pm.
This will be an online event and we will send out a computer link so you can participate in the event online.
We encourage the congregation to participate in the event and to submit any questions. You can submit questions by email prior to March 10 by emailing the office or you can watch the event online and ask questions during the presentations through the chat function.
The voting will take place electronically and the motions will be open to vote starting after the meeting on March 10, 2021.
The New Life Live package can be download here.
Zoom link:
Topic: New Life Live
Time: Mar 10, 2021 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/97056654418
Meeting ID: 970 5665 4418
Delair Apartment Fire
Dear New Life Family,
We appreciate the prayers that you have given for our neighbours involved in the Delair Fire.
Here is an update on the situation:
Delair Court Apartments has two buildings. The East Building caught fire and is completely destroyed. All of the residents of the East building are permanently displaced and have lost all their belongs – over 40 families. The West Building did not burn and the families in that building are slowly moving back into their homes. All the families are devastated and are just beginning to realize the scope of their loss. They have been provided places to stay by Emergency Social Services for four days at which time, they need to find their own way of living again.
New Life’s Involvement:
God’s love is shining through so brightly! We are so grateful for the overwhelming response to help with the DeLair Road fire victims. The families affected by this fire will be adding a new chapter of hope and compassion to their stories! A few weeks ago we had to opportunity to serve these victims by taking everything that was donated by the community and organzing it for the victims to look through. We had about 15 families come through and take anything they needed. It was such a awesome use of our big somewhat empty building. Thank you to everyone who used their weekend to sort all the donations.
2 Ways You Can Help:
1. If you know of a basement suite or apartment that is available for rent, please contact Yolanda Apperloo at apperloohouse@gmail.com. She will forward your information to the point person organizing and matching accommodations to families. Then he will connect with you for further details.
2. Donate Money to the Delair Fire fund at New Life Church. You can do this by writing a check to New Life, e-transfer New Life (giving@newlifecrc.ca) or drop off cash. Make sure you specify that it goes to the Delair Fire Fund. From here, New Life Deacon’s will use those funds to support the families and their needs.
Each family who has been hurt through this event has their own unique story of loss and grief to tell. Let’s give them a new story of hope and compassion to rebuild their lives. We thank you for you love and care for our neighbors who covet your prayers during this time.
We are so humbled by all the response we have received. Many people offered rental suites and apartments, so many large items donations were received that MCC is packed full, the Salvation Army is filled to capacity with smaller household items and clothing, and so far between E.S.S., MCC, the Salvation Army, New Life Church and other donators, the families have received enough funding to be able to prepare the way to start their new journey, setting up their new homes, and picking up food hampers. Organizers for the food hampers also called to express deep appreciation for the volunteers they had.
Yolanda Apperloo
Delair Fire Deacon Co-Ordinator
Abide Worship Night : February 28, 2021
Sunday, February 28, at 7pm we are going to have a live streamed worship night. It’s called Abide. This will be a time to worship in song and prayer together, led by the worship team and the Monday Night prayer team of New Life Church. This is another opportunity to connect with each other and with God through reflection, prayer, and worship. To join the Abide event look for the live-stream link on the main page of the New Life website.
New Life Live: March 10, 2021
Save the Date: New Life Live our bi-annual congregational meeting is happening March 10. This event will be live streamed and available on our website starting at 7pm. Check back here in two weeks for the New Life Live package and more details!
COVID Update – February 5, 2021
Dear New Life Family,
Who would have thought a year ago that we would be in these pandemic circumstances? We’re sending this letter out to you to inform you of how we see things, ministry-wise. We also want to encourage you to press on in your own spiritual journey in order to stay faithful to God.
Restrictions
Given the announcement of February 5 by health official Dr. Bonnie Henry, the church remains closed for ministry events of greater than 10 people until further notice. The exception remains for youth programming which is allowed with a maximum of 50 people. Our youth program, Switchlife, continues to meet at the church on alternateThursday evenings, with Covid proticols. Weekly worship gatherings will continue virtually with pre-recorded services until further notice. We are hopeful, based on the February 5 announcement,that if cases continue to decline we can return to in-person gatherings soon.
Life Groups
Meeting together in small groups at home or at church remains restricted as well. This makes it difficult to sustain Life Groups at New Life, especially as using video conferencing platforms (Zoom, Skype, etc.) becomes more tiresome. We acknowledge that this is a difficult time to continue with meetings. However, we encourage Life Groups to continue to keep connection. Let us press on and “fight the good fight (I Tim.6:12),” and “spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not give up meeting together…but encouraging one another (Hebrews 10:23ff).” If your Life Group is “taking a break” —
- we encourage you to pick it up virtually (even as second-best, it’s still a blessing to connect!),
- connect briefly, read a Scripture passage together, see how everyone is doing, close in prayer,
- meet for one-on-one walks,
- extend an invitation to friends who do not have community to connect in your Life Group.
Serve Opportunity
Thank you to everyone who responded to our January call to service! Throughout the month we offered the opportunity to sign up for grocery delivery with the Archway Food Bank. We had more volunteers than the Food Bank could handle at this time. Thanks to the drivers for your willingness to serve. For the month of February we are moving on to a new opportunity with “Best for Babies” (click here). Since the start of 2021, while we are still in this pandemic, we’ve been shifting our focus into serving the community. We are still all about gathering to worship, still all about being community, but now is a time to serve. And because of your response, New Life is being an agent for a radical impact!
In Christ,
Nathan Elgersma (Lead Pastor)
Justin Dudney (Life Groups Pastor)
Best for Babies – Serve 2021
Best for Babies Program
Best for Babies is the “serve” focus for the month of February at New Life Church. Best for Babies is a pregnancy outreach program hosted by Archway Community Services that offers pregnancy support to expectant parents, including education and assistance for essential supplies. Click here to learn more about the program or to get involved further.
Care Packages
We hope to put together 60 care packages that the Family Centre at Archway will distribute to new moms in Abbotsford. We’ll need your help in collecting and compiling NEW items for the care packages. The items on the list are items that the moms can’t typically afford. For that reason we ask that you do not shop for items at a discount store (e.g. Dollar Store). The care packages are meant to be a special gift to bless the moms beyond the usual high need supplies. For example, while diapers and unscented wipes are always needed, they are not included in the care package list below. If you wish to donate diapers and unscented wipes, you may drop them off with your care package items. Best for Babies serves women of all religious backgrounds, please include only non-religious items.
- Click here to view the list of items. We still need lots of items, especially special items for the moms.
- Reserve the items you are going to pick up for these moms and babies using the linked form (so we can track what items are collected)
- Shop for the items you have chosen.
- Follow the drop off instructions, below. The items will be gathered in care packages at the church by additional volunteers.
- If your items come in a package we will most likely open the package and disperse the item.
- If you are not able to go shopping before February 22, you can also send in a monetary gift and we will use that to buy anything we still need. Just etransfer giving@newlifecrc.ca or stop by the church with cash or cheque, make sure you specify that it is for the Best for Babies Care Packages.
Drop Off
All items must be dropped off by February 22, so we can prepare the care packages. Items can be dropped off Monday-Thursday 9am-4pm or Friday 9am-12pm. If this drop off time does not work for you please contact Taylor Cheese to arrange an alternative drop off time.
Thank you for your generosity! We are excited to bless these women. Please contact the church office if you have any questions.
Church-Wide Zoom Bingo Night
On Sunday, January 31 from 7:00-8:00PM New Life Church will be hosting a virtual BINGO night. We look forward to seeing everyone on Zoom for a time of connection and BINGO. We have capacity for 100 devices so please limit your household to one device. Within your household, multiple people can participate in BINGO.
To get your BINGO card click here and print off 4 BINGO cards per individual for 4 games. If you are unable to print at home you can pick up your BINGO card at church.
Zoom Link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82741723118?pwd=cUFIckttZHlLbjBNdnoyS29SSXRRZz09
Meeting ID: 827 4172 3118
Passcode: 264941