February 2015

Contents of the MB Herald February issue 2015

“I didn’t expect to meet God at [an annual general] meeting,” said worship leader Matt Unruh at the 84th annual convention of the Ontario Conference of MB Churches (ONMB). Some 130 people worshipped and listened to inspiring stories at Waterloo Mennonite Brethren (Ont.) Church Feb. 21. Guests and partners joined the 95 delegates from 21 of 27 member churches in the Ontario Conference who returned Saturday to make decisions.

What difference can three weeks make? For Ken Martens, member of Northview Community Church, Abbotsford, B.C., and his brother-in-law Jake Janzen of Willow Park Church, Kelowna, B.C., participating in a DMI (Disciple Making International) door-to-door evangelism campaign in Africa changed their lives – and the lives of almost 60 African orphans.

Rebecca Standen wears a headlamp to light the way and checks a pot of chima bubbling over the fire outside her tiny house. The porridge-like mixture will be supper – as she ends another day in the village where she lives most of the week.

A church plant celebrating its sixth anniversary has moved from its school gym meeting place and into a traditional sanctuary. The 200-plus congregation of Reality Vancouver Church is the new tenant in a Lutheran-built church currently owned by the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster.

Ordinary Miracles: Awakening to the Holy Work of Parenting
Author: Rachel S. Gerber
How can a miracle be ordinary? Miracles are…miracles, not regular, everyday occurrences. However, when we place God at the centre of our lives, everything becomes a miracle. This is what Rachel Gerber demonstrates in Ordinary Miracles: Awakening to the Holy Work of Parenting.

This is a tale about how two MB churches became one – on opposite sides of the Fraser River. Northview Community Church, Abbotsford, B.C., and Northside Community Church, Mission, B.C., minister in their respective communities. Northview’s current weekly attendance usually runs around 3,000, while Northside’s was as high as 400, but recently dipped to about 200.

The Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches exists “to multiply Christ-centred churches to see Canada transformed by the good news of Jesus Christ.” The CCMBC executive board officially approved this…

Mandated with the broad and ongoing task of upholding ethical and biblical integrity, the board of faith and life meetings never lack a full agenda. At the winter meetings, Jan.…

Islam scholar Gordon Nickel, an adjunct professor at the University of Calgary, is not afraid to stand up for the truth claims of the Bible, especially in the arena of interfaith dialogue.

There were certain traditions in my Mennonite Brethren upbringing; Lent wasn’t one of them. So why Lent, and why now? I’ve wrestled with this. Here’s my answer: my main motivation…