Today in our world...

Afghan Shia Muslims flail themselves in a procession during the 10 day mourning period of Ashura in Kabul, Afghanistan. (www.bbc.com)

When you look at this picture how do you feel? Do you feel sorry? Confused? Angry? Excited? When I saw this picture I was shocked and then Mark 5 immediately came to mind. Also this verse:

And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.(1 Kings 18:28)

There is a lot to think about here, especially from our western culture and our 21st Century. Whatever we think or feel, we should take the time to find out what Christ said and did. Read carefully the following:

They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones. And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. And crying out with a loud voice, he said, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me." For he was saying to him, "Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!" And Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He replied, "My name is Legion, for we are many." And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him, saying, "Send us to the pigs; let us enter them." So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out, and entered the pigs, and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and were drowned in the sea. The herdsmen fled and told it in the city and in the country. And people came to see what it was that had happened. And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, "Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you."(Mark 5:1-19)

Your Passport

As far as travelling in our world today, a passport is a must. Our son Jeremy is planning to accompany me on our next mission to Belize, so it was time to get him his very own passport. Because of new laws in the US requiring Canadians to have a passport to enter by air, there is a mad rush and long lineups. Today we went to an office in Brampton and were in and out in 45 minutes!

By the way, have you got your passport to heaven? How can you get a passport to heaven? Just read this...

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
(John 14:6)That's right; the passport to heaven is Christ. Recieve Him today! And, oh, did you notice? There are no lineups or waiting!

CE = Christianity Explored

On Sunday Eric Kalmback and his wife shared their experienc of running the CE course at Markham Bible Chapel. Two other ladies, one of which was saved through the studies, also were with us at Northside. According to the CE website "Christianity Explored is an informal course for people who'd like to investigate Christianity, or just brush up on the basics. It explores who Jesus was, what his aims were, and what it means to follow him."
Northside is planning on running this course here in Barrie in the Fall. We will try and keep you posted right here on our blog. Please pray!

CONFLICT!!!

Conflict...we see it everyday, we have it all the time; how do we deal with it?
Last Saturday George Butcher from Orillia shared a session on conflict resolution with the Joint Elder's meeting held at Northside Bible Chapel. George explained that we have many ways of dealing with conflict, many of which do not really help. Some of the bad strategies we use: withdraw, win, yield, and comprimise. The goal in conflict is RESOLVE, working together with respect and responsibility to find a solution. Read Romans 12:9-12

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Iraq War Cost

She shoots....SHE SCORES!!!

It was a great time piling into the car with our dog and snowboard to visit Northern Ontario for the Christmas break. Here are some highlights: "The good ol' hockey game", there was not enough snow to skidoo, but the ice was great on the lake. You can see Rachel streaking down centre to pot the wining goal! And there's old gramps sqeaking out a tune on his fiddle. You can see "Opa" Tom and grandaughter Elisabeth accompanying with the guitar. Our trip included a few preaching stops too, including Iriquois Falls Bible Chepel and Matheson Gospel Chapel where we enjoyed a great New Year's Eve getogether. Praise the Lord for family and friends!

Apple seeds...

Happy New Year to all our prayer partners in blogland. I think there should be a law against neglecting blogs, but now it's 2007 and we have another year ahead of us. Let's begin this year by reminding ourselves that this could be the year that our Lord Jesus Christ returns! With that thought I will post this first entry of the year with a quote. I don't particularily like the source, but hey, a sign of getting older is the wisdom to listen more to others and talk less (just look at your head; two ears, one mouth!)

Any fool can count the seeds in an apple. Only God can count all the apples in one seed. ~Robert H. Schuller