New Life News
NEW LIFE WOMEN’S RETREAT
New Life Women’s Retreat 2017 – October 20-22
Our New Life Women’s retreat is fast approaching. Space is limited for the overnight stay at Camp Alexander and the cut off for registration is Wednesday, October 18th. We have heard a lot of comments from women planning to attend, but some of you have not yet registered, so if you are considering attending, please contact Cyndi Broersma at [email protected] and we will get your name on the list right away. The retreat is a combination of the camp stay as well as the Gather Rise conference.
Gather Rise is being held in Surrey this year. Women from coast to coast will gather for a day of bible teaching, worship, and to listen together for what God desires to do in our nation at this time in history. Gather Rise will feature the voices of Ann Voskamp, Stephanie Reader, Helen Burns, Cathie Ostapchuk, Anne Miranda, and other amazing Christian women from across Canada! If you are planning on attending just the conference, you can get tickets here.
WOMEN’S CONNECTION AT NEW LIFE
A few short weeks ago, the women of New Life church came together for the start of a brand new season of “Women’s Connections.” This ministry consists of two gatherings during the week. The first meeting is on Tuesday morning at 9:00 AM and it has two parts – a gathering for women, and an accompanying Story Hour for pre-school & nursery age children, allowing mothers with small children to attend. Time is spent in fellowship, worship and study. There is also time to connect over coffee and snacks, there is laughter, and sometimes there are even tears! It doesn’t matter if you have been coming for the last 20 years, or if you are thinking of attending for the first time, you are always welcome!
There is a second Women’s Connection meeting on Wednesday evening here at the church from 7:15 – 9:00 PM hosted by Gertie Fictorie. During the month of October, this group will be meeting on the 11th and the 25th. Please contact Gertie at [email protected] for more information.
Here are the study topic choices for the Tuesday morning sessions this season:
- Hebrews – Jenny Klein will facilitate a study on the book of Hebrews, one of the richest books in the New Testament. Come learn about a better Covenant founded on better promises, a better law written in our hearts, a better sacrifice and mediator between God and man, and a better remedy for sin! Experience the new Covenant and the fullness that is ours to enjoy in Christ Jesus!”
- Draw Near – Nicole Dudney and Nicole Sutherland will facilitate this exciting group, one that goes as the Spirit leads! There may be times to listen for the Holy Spirit, times to pray for one another, times to delve into scripture, times to support individuals in the group searching for help, or opportunity to follow the unique directions of the Spirit.
- James – Karitas Townsend will facilitate a study on the book of James. The book of James speaks to the realities of a living faith in Jesus—the kind of roll-up-your-sleeves and get-your-hands-dirty discipleship that is borne out of an authentic relationship with the risen Lord. This study is based on a 12 session model developed by Francis Chan, working through the book of James verse by verse. There will be weekly conversation points, questions, personal journaling topics, memorization challenges, and prayer focus.
- The Weekly Prayer Project – Nicole Maza and Melissa Westwood will facilitate this group. Challenge yourself to journal, pray, reflect, and connect with God. There are fifty-two scriptures broken down over the course of the study exploring different types of prayers found in the Bible. Each week’s journaling prompts will guide you to reflect on God’s work in your life and to pray with intention.
A LOOK AT CHANGES IN CADETS AND GEMS
Why the new Schedule? We are glad you asked!
The purpose of this newsletter is to explain to the congregation and participants of our GEMS and Cadets program the new changes ahead for the 2017-2018 ministry year. Essentially the big change is that Cadets and GEMS will now take place every other week on a rotating basis. The reasons for the change is three fold.
Firstly, we want to create a culture of sustainable volunteerism. The culture of volunteerism is changing as the culture around us places different demands on our schedules and available time as individuals and families. With life being the way it is, often ebbing and flowing in family schedules etc, fewer adults have time to serve in sustainable rhythms in the often multiple areas they are asked to volunteer. For example, roles like head counsellors 10-15 years ago were commonly filled by one “super volunteer”. We have had those kinds of amazing volunteers lead our ministries sustainably and well over the years and we are blessed by them. However, these kinds of leaders are not as common as they once were. Now different parts of those roles are divided up among a cluster of leaders with various skills and passions who lead in a team dynamic. These leaders are often also involved in multiple areas of ministry in the life of the church and outside of the church. We believe that rotating Gems and Cadets every other week allows for those interested in serving to thrive in ministry and in life.
Secondly, it gives each ministry maximum use of the facility. On any given night when GEMS and Cadets are both in the facility, space is at a premium. ALL rooms are being used and even routes for moving groups around the building have to be planned out. Rotating ministries every other week gives both GEMS and Cadets the full use of the facility. This also provides us some new opportunities. For example, GEMS can now use the Cadets shop for craft space and Cadets can use the different classrooms that are now being used by GEMS ministry.
Thirdly ministry sustainability is a goal we want to strive for. Ministry sustainability considers the goals, values and sustainability of each ministry. The reality is both GEMS and Cadets are five year ministries. Unfortunately, in church ministry we sometime treat them as annual ones, believing we only have Oct-April to achieve certain program or annual event outcomes. We do not feel that offering families a jam packed ministry calendar of events that “just need to happen each year” is always in the best interest of families who are themselves struggling to come to grips with what sustainable rhythms of work (ministry) and rest look like in their world. Our hope is that the rotating schedule provides our leaders opportunities to be discerning about what our key priorities are each ministry year.
Our key value for GEMS and Cadets going forward is building strong positive relationships between GEMS/Cadets and their adult leaders who loves Jesus Christ. In our GEMS and Cadets programs these adult leaders are able to mentor these young girls and boys through the study of God’s word, the development of unique sets of skills and talents and the beauty of structured and unstructured play. Being able to bring those values forward in a sustainable way for our church ministry schedule is a goal for this next year.
If you have any further questions or comments please email either:
Koenraad Beugelink [email protected]
Cyndi Broersma [email protected]
NEW LIFE PROFILES – SHANNON VEENEMAN
Ever since I started working at New Life, something has been puzzling me. I have heard much talk of our “Life Group Elders,” but I had no idea who they were or what their role was. For this reason, since September is “Life Group” month at our church, I determined to search out a Life Group Elder, sit down with them, and learn what they do. My search led me to Shannon Veeneman. As it turned out, her answers to my questions were filled with great wisdom and some of them even surprised me. Here are the highlights from our conversation:
So Shannon, could you give us a brief overview of your life – you and Geoff, and your family?
Well, Geoff and I have been married for 22 years now, and we have 3 grown children. They are aged 17, 18, and 21. I grew up right here in Abbotsford but Geoff comes from Ontario. When Geoff’s family moved here from Ontario, his dad became the pastor at Trinity CRC for a period of time.
What do you do for work?
I am an insurance agent. I have been in this career for 4 years and I do insurance mostly for cars, houses, and boats. Before that, I was a stay at home mom and we also did a lot of cleaning for different businesses. In fact, we still clean here at the church.
Help us understand the heart behind what motivates you?
I am motivated by community. I feel like we are much better and stronger together than separated and isolated. There is something almost mystical about the body of Christ working together. In fact, one of the most important aspects of the body of Christ is the community that we share.
What is the greatest joy in your personal life?
Without doubt my greatest joy is Geoff and my and kids. My kids have grown into people who love the church and they volunteer in many different ministry areas. This is a blessing for which I am most grateful and it brings me great joy. Jobs also give joy. Our family is a hard working family. Working hard brings satisfaction and fulfillment.
What are your greatest struggles, things that make you sad when you see them?
I struggle when I see a problem that doesn’t seem to have a solution. Sometimes, for instance, I look at the homeless situation and it makes me feel so sad inside. When situations seem hopeless I am grieved.
Tell us about your relationship with God, what is it like?
I love coming to church and I am also passionate about prayer. I believe prayer is like a conversation. It is a relationship of talking and listening. We pray – that is the talking part, and then we also incorporate scripture reading – that is the listening part.
From your personal experience, if you could suggest one thing to another person when it comes to the pursuit of God, what would it be?
Learn to be still, clear your mind, and listen. Despite what you might think, you can hear God. Learn to listen, find out what He has to say, and know His heart.
You are a Life group elder here at New Life. What does that mean?
As Life group elders, we are the liaison between the life group leaders and the church. We help with the communication process. For instance, if something comes up beyond what a particular leader can handle, we facilitate the process. These issues could be financial, pastoral, or care related. Each Life group elder cares for a certain number of Life groups and we help with organization and sign-up’s. Apart from that, we are also community builders. From time to time you will see us hosting certain events such as our recent fall kickoff “Welcome Back Tacky Tourist party!”
What is your heart for NL Life groups?
For everybody who desires to be a part of a Life group, my desire would be that they could find a great fit, a really good group to be part of. I don’t believe in forcing people into Life groups but if people have the desire, they should be given every chance to experience this aspect of our community. I believe in organic Life group connections, where people learn and grow together, have each other’s back, care for one another, and invest in each other. This type of connection is what motivates me and it is the backbone of our community of faith.