Fall Sermon Series: Life In The Kingdom Part III – Kingdom Devotion

This Fall we’ll continue our exploration of the Sermon on the Mount – the foundational bedrock of Jesus’ teaching. We will be picking up in chapter 6, Part 3 of our outline which we’ve called “Kingdom Devotion”.

Jesus shifts gears in this portion of the Sermon. He begins to focus more on application – putting into practice what he’s just taught in previous sections. In this section he covers three key areas in the lives of his followers: giving, prayer and fasting. He expects his followers to be tending to their relationships with others (giving), their relationship with God (prayer), and the state of their inner lives (fasting). Jesus assumes his followers are active in these three areas. He says, “when you give” (6:1), “when you prayer” (6:5) and “when you fast” (6:16). He cautions his followers against publicity and doing these things to be seen. He cautions us to not babble on and on searching for the right prayer formula or combination of words that will produce the desired results. Jesus says to his disciples, “pray like this”, and then proceeds to teach them the prayer that has come be known as “The Lord’s Prayer” or the “Our Father”. As we will see, this is a prayer we must learn to live. It is a prayer that has power to form us.

Worship, Waiting & Weighing – Updated

Here’s some updated info on the Worship, Waiting & Weighing event happening Thursday, May 12, 7pm (note date change). In addition to this, David and Anita will be hosting an evening devoted to teaching on the topic of Discernment. This will be Wednesday, May 11, 7pm.

All are welcome!

Delving into Discernment: Wednesday, May 11, 7pm

Worship, Waiting & Weighing: Thursday, May 12, 7pm

782 Main St. Winnipeg

Here’s what they’ve written regarding the Worship, Waiting & Weighing event tour:

As we’ve been engaging with people across the country in contexts where we are “waiting on the Lord” and inviting the Spirit’s prophetic activity in community, we have noticed that there is a significant diversity of opinion and thought, even theology, around how we facilitate this in a healthy, biblical and safe way. Seeing how central these practices are to who we are in Vineyard and how vital it is to our ability in navigating our future together in Canada, we felt that it was prudent to create space across the country to come together to experience together who we are as a people of presence and how we engage with the prophetic nature of our worship and prayer, in community.

As we’ve been working on shaping what this all could look like, we kept referring to  it as the “Worship, Waiting and Weighing” Tour. The name’s stuck. We love how Acts 13:2 captures the essence of what we are reaching for together, “while they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Spirit spoke.”  A key element that we want to explore together is the posture and practice of waiting. Hosea, in Hosea 12:6, seems to capture our sentiment here beautifully, weaving posture, the call to justice and the need to wait for the Lord in a three-stranded cord, “Therefore, return to your God, observe kindness and justice, and wait for your God continually.” And then there’s the weighing bit. Something of a lost art in much of the charismatic culture and celebrity driven models within the mega-church and non-denominational world. As 1 Corinthians 14:29-33 lays it out. “Two or three prophets speak and the others should weigh carefully what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorderbut of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.”

The end game in it all is to equip us to be a people who discern well. Those who do not despise prophecy and its place in community, and yet have learned to keep it unclutured and anchored to the wisdom of the Father, the character of Jesus and the fruit of the Spirit.

A final thought taken from Hebrews 5:11-14. The key to maturity as followers of Jesus and building healthy communities that are able to discern truth, is that we need to be students of the way of righteousness, the path of justice, that is core to the entire biblical narrative. God setting things right. The work of the Father, the Son and the Spirit in “making all things new.” As we commit ourselves to being lifelong learners of this Way, that we will in turn foster mature communities that can tell the difference between good and evil and discern well.

Our desire is to carve out some space during the day together in order to facilitate dialogue and teaching around these practices. In the evening, we will gather together for worship and prayer as we lean into the posture of listening together that we may discern how the Spirit may be speaking to us and empowering us for ministry.

Looking forward to worshiping, waiting and weighing with you all! Let the kingdom come.

David & Anita

Call to Prayer & Fasting: Jan 13 – 23

Reposted from Vineyard.ca:

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and His ear attentive to their cries
Psalm 34:15  

“When we join as a family across the country to fast and pray, we collectively turn our hearts and minds towards His Spirit. It’s like a vast array of solar panels moving in unison as the sun arcs across the sky.  We soak up His light, His warmth and in turn receive the power to keep moving forward during uncertain and fearful times”.
Cathy Graham VC Spiritual Life Coordinator

Prayer allows us to be ready to cooperate with what the Spirit of God is initiating and where God is moving.  It helps to align us with His way, with His heart, with His purpose. It enables us to stay in sync with the wind of His Spirit, helping us navigate the winds of life, of culture, of change, even when we’ve hit the doldrums where our own sails can feel so empty. It’s in this place of prayer that we gain perspective and catch a fresh glimpse of the One who has called us His own, something which we so need now!

It is critical for us in the Vineyard that our engagement in prayer is from this deep place of rest. Hebrews 4 makes it clear that from this place we approach the Throne of Grace confident that we will receive all that we need. Charis Rousu, who with her husband Nathan are our National Catalysts in the area of prayer, which we lovingly call PULSE, reminds us as we enter this time that as we do this together, “we practice surrender and devotion to the One who fully knows and fully loves.”  This is so critical in shaping our perspective. Our prayers are not transactional, designed to get guaranteed results.  Neither are they formulaic.

Though prayer touches a variety of expressions, “petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving” as noted by Paul, it is born and sustained in the exchange of unabashed love and devotion. As Jesus told us, we are not engaged in empty repetition, nor are we to be hypocritical – as the Greek illumines, “play acting” – as we pray, but to be deeply authentic. Real. Relational.

As we all lean into this time of waiting and listening beginning the morning of the January 13th-23 contact your local Vineyard Canada church to find out how you can participate.

Grace & Peace
David & Anita Ruis

 

What are we doing at WCV?

There are two invitations:

1. Engage personally. We are inviting everyone to 10 days of personal prayer and fasting. Here are some resources to help you engage in fasting and prayer:

  • Fasting Basics
  • Here is a sermon entitled “Why We Fast: an invitation to fasting & feasting” which provides more insight into the spiritual discipline of fasting.

2. Engage together. We will be meeting together for corporate times of prayer and worship both online and in person at 782 Main St. (25 people max).

  • Thursday, Jan 13, 7pm
  • Sunday, Jan 16, 7pm
  • Thursday, Jan 20, 7pm

The Zoom link to participate online will be sent in the Here@ newsletter on Thursday Jan 13.

What are we praying for?

This season of prayer is primarily dedicated to bringing ourselves before the Lord to ask for a fresh and renewed sense of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives and community. We pray, “Come, Holy Spirit!” in every area of our lives.

Tools for Transformation: resources for prayer

We are developing a “tools for transformation” tool kit.

Here are the first three. You may want to give one or three a try in your own devotional times.

Enjoy and let us know how it goes. We’d love to hear about it.

>>Prayer Resource – Gospel Contemplation

>>Prayer Resource – Lectio Divina

>>Prayer Resource – Silence

 

 

Lent: Mondays of Prayer + Fasting

This year we are inviting the whole community to set aside every Monday in Lent (starting Feb 22) for Prayer and Fasting.

 

“Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.”

Hosea 10:12

 

Fasting is a form of prayer. When we fast we voluntarily set aside something for a time in order to intensify our attention to and awareness of God – this attention and awareness is prayer. The things we are most reluctant to set aside are the very things that probably get in the way of our life with God. It is a practical discipline that helps us realize that God – not food, Facebook friends, (fill in the blank) – is the real source of all pleasure, goodness and life.

The invitation during this season of prayer and fasting is to prepare for the new growth that God has planted in us. This means creating a welcoming space for the work of God amongst us and in our own hearts. We cannot do the work ourselves – this is the task of God’s Spirit. However, we do have a part to play by readying ourselves and welcoming the growth God wants to bring.

At the beginning of each week, we will be emailing the reflection and invitation for that Monday. You can follow along as you are led. If you’d prefer to see it all at once you can download all the weekly reflections in the link below. Also, there is a booklet entitled “Fasting Basics” which offers a thorough overview of everything fasting related.

Resources:

Here is a sermon entitled “Why We Fast: an invitation to fasting & feasting” which provides more insight into the spiritual discipline of fasting.

 

NOTE: portions of this post were previously published on our website here.

 

 

Prayer Ministry

Exciting news, WCV!

We’ve set up a way for Prayer Ministry to happen while you’re at home or in our Sunday Gatherings while maintaining all relevant protocols. Below are all the details regarding Personal Prayer Ministry and our Prayer Line:

Personal Prayer Ministry

This is for those who have a specific request and you want someone to pray with you directly. Think of it like what happens during Prayer Ministry time on our Sunday Gatherings when one or two people pray for someone. These are shorter (10 mins max) times of prayer.

  • If you request prayer on a Sunday morning, someone from the Prayer ministry team will respond that same Sunday morning via a phone call. 
  • If you request prayer any other time during the week (other than Sunday mornings), someone from the Prayer Ministry Team will respond within two days to set up a time for a phone call.
  • Click on the button above or email PersonalPrayer@WCVchurch.ca to request personal prayer ministry.
  • Make sure to provide a phone number so the Prayer Ministry team can reach you. 

Prayer Line

The Prayer Line is for those requests which need a lot of people praying quickly for a given need. It is a moderated email subscription list that goes out to over 50 people who pray for whatever requests are sent. The Prayer Line is moderated by a Prayer Oversight Team member.  

Please keep in mind that highly personal or inappropriate details may be edited or deleted. Also, please note that the Prayer Line is meant to be primarily for the WCV community or those connected in some way. 

If you want to be added to the Prayer Line in order to be part of the team who prays for request as they come in, sign up here.

  • Click on the button above or email PrayerLine@WCVchurch.ca to submit a prayer request.

Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash

Summer Prayer Meetings

Hey folks!

Thank you to those of you who have been so faithfully praying with us every week! We are going to take a bit of a break for the summer months meeting every other week instead. (Still on Wednesdays, and at 7pm). We hope this will give you time to refresh yourself and enjoy the summer (which can sometimes feel so short)!

Here are the dates we will be meeting:

  • July 8
  • July 22
  • August 5
  • August 19

We will continue to be meeting via Zoom. The link, password, and time slot remain the same. If you are wanting to join our prayer meetings this summer, please email the office for the Zoom link and password!

Have a great summer folks!

Indigenous People’s Day Prayer

For those who are curious, here is the prayer I prayed on Sunday:

Indegenous Peoples Day Prayer

And today, on this National Indigenous Peoples Day, we give thanks for the First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples of our community and country. We acknowledge the Anishinabe, Cree, Oji-cree, Dakota, Dene and Metis peoples as the original stewards of this land. We acknowledge that we are on Treaty one territory. This treaty allowed settler people to live here and was signed in your name, God. We acknowledge this because we want to honour you, Jesus.

We say today that Indigenous Lives matter – and that all lives do not matter until all lives matter. Lord, we hold up to you the injustices that have been done and continue to be done against our Indigenous brothers and sisters. We look at the disproportionate representation of access to education, health care, clean water and opportunity in our province. We see the misrepresentation in the criminal justice system and Child and Family Welfare agencies. We see the missing and murdered girls and women. We see the child taken and the parent left behind. We see the generational trauma. God would you heal us and heal our society and heal our land? Would you free us from racism in our own hearts and in our institutions that shape us? May we be shaped by you, and by the values of your Kingdom. Let us deeply hear the voices that for too long have not been heard and may we find your Spirit’s whispers amidst the cries of the wounded, the hurting, the traumatized. 

Creator, may our worship and prayers rise like smoke to mingle with your heart and may you breathe on us and fill us with your Spirit. May you walk with us as we navigate these peculiar and perilous times in which you are shaking the heavens and the earth. Guide us as we seek to be reconcilers. Give us eyes to see your hand moving amidst many who claim to be your agents, and ears to hear the whisper of your voice amidst the shouting throngs who claim to speak for you. We ask for discernment, patience and fortitude to walk in the way you have for us.

Photo by Tim Foster on Unsplash

Spiritual Direction Offerings

If you’ve been around WCV for the past five or so years, you’ll probably have heard talk about Spiritual Direction, the Schools of Spiritual Direction, and perhaps have had a conversation or two with one of the number of people who have either participated in receiving Spiritual Direction or have taken the training to become a Spiritual Director (via Sustainable Faith’s School of Spiritual Direction). Pete Scazzero also mentioned Spiritual Direction in the The Emotionally Healthy Spirituality course we did last Fall. I believe this is all part of a slow transformative work of the Spirit which continues to bubble just beneath the surface.

I first experienced Spiritual Direction in the context of my studies over 15 years ago and have had a Spiritual Director for the past six years. These monthly meetings have become a major part of my spiritual development. I can’t imagine life without them. Despite the name, the process of sitting with a Spiritual Director has nothing to do with them directing you to do certain activities or assigning various exercises. It is simply and solely the process of sitting with you in order to help you notice what God is doing in your life. It is to direct your attention to God’s presence and activity through thoughtful and gentle questions and observations.

I know there are many who are struggling during this unprecedented time. Perhaps you are discovering that you need something else to anchor you. Maybe the practices that have worked for you in the past just aren’t making the cut anymore. Maybe your rhythms have been thrown off by this virus and you’re not sure what to do. This time of quarantine may be a good opportunity to explore what sitting with a Spiritual Director (online these days) could do for your spiritual life.

There are a number of trained Spiritual Directors in WCV who are willing to consider sitting with people in WCV. They are at all different places in their practice (some may charge a fee, others may not – some have space for just one person, others have more flexible schedules), but each on the list below is willing to explore what sitting with you could look like. If you’re interested, please email the office for their contact information, or if you already know how to contact them, go ahead and do so. If you are interested but would prefer to engage someone outside of WCV, please contact me (Andy) and I’d be happy to forward you some options.

Available Spiritual Directors in WCV:

  • Cliff Heide
  • Luanne Hill
  • Rick Hill
  • Barb Johns
  • Daile Unruh-Peters
  • Beckie Wood
  • Andy Wood

Image Credit: Photo by JOHN TOWNER on Unsplash

Vineyard Prayer Summit

It’s that time of the year again… when folks from all across our country gather in Edmonton for the annual Vineyard Prayer Summit.

Here’s the purpose:

Since 2003 the Canadian Vineyard family has gathered together every year to simply seek the face of the Lord and worship Him. Come join us this year and take the opportunity to devote two days for this very purpose. 

Summit: February 28 & 29
Symposiums: February 27
(Suhail is speaking at one of the Symposiums)

Check out the website for more information including registration, location, schedule, etc.

Who wants to go? If you are planning on going we’d like to know about it – please let Ang Falk know.

Last Encounter God Night – Invitation

Encounter God Night is coming to a close, at least for this season. We’re not sure what the next season will look like, but we invite you to participate in the possible last one! Encounter God Nights are an opportunity to meet God through worship and prayer.

Our WCV youth have so faithfully led these evenings over the months, so we as a community thank you! Thank you for your heart to serve our community and minister to the Lord in worship and prayer!

The details: Thursday, June 27, 2019 @ 7 pm, 782 Main Street.

We hope to see you there!