Posts from 2025
March 6, 2025 – Minister’s Message
Are you ready for a journey? In the Christian tradition, the season of Lent is a journey over forty days (not including Sundays) towards the pivotal events of Jesus’ final days of his earthly ministry we call Holy Week. It is a time of thoughtful reflection and practice for those who seek to love and follow Jesus in the world today. The exciting thing is this Lenten journey is not one we make alone. Rather, we do so in the…
March 5, 2025 – Weekly News
Download the PDF Mar. 5, 2025 In putting together this week’s Weekly News I cannot help but weigh in on the insanity occurring south of our border. So, please forgive me from being a bit “editorial” but I feel so strongly about what is happening in our world. I have read the articles on Facebook. I have watched the news; I have prayed that saner heads will prevail but am still experiencing that sinking feeling that the world as I…
March / April 2025
What a winter it has been! With the multiple snowstorms we’ve been gifted with lately, it’s hard not to marvel at the beauty and power of God’s creation.
Tortellini with Mushroom and Garlic Sauce
1 pkg. fresh or frozen tortellini 1 tbsp butter or margarine 1 small green pepper, cut into short strips 1 small red pepper, cut into short strips 1 can Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom and Garlic soup (This is getting hard to find. If you can’t find it, use regular Cream of Mushroom and add a tsp of minced garlic to the peppers in the frying pan.) 1/2 cup milk Grated parmesan cheese That is the basic recipe. Easy and delicious.…
If it Doesn’t Give you Joy, Out it Goes!
I look around my house these days, and it’s easy to get discouraged at so much clutter! It’s not a big house, as houses go. It’s a fairly basic three-bedroom bungalow of about 1800 square feet, built in 1955, and it’s pretty dated. In 1994 we moved in, and in 1998 gutted and replaced the original kitchen. In 2002 we did the same to the main floor bathroom. The updated version of both is now outdated. The kitchen is large,…
Going To Church
Adapted from an article by Theodore Roosevelt, Ladies Home Journal, 1917. Theodore Roosevelt (1858 – 1919) was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. 1. In this … world, a churchless community, a community where men have abandoned and scoffed at their religious needs, is a community on the rapid downgrade. 2. Church work and church attendance mean the cultivation of the habit of feeling some responsibility for others… 3. There are enough holidays for most of…
Hymn Stories: The Old Rugged Cross
Adapted from 101 Hymn Stories – Kenneth W. Osbeck Author and Composer – George Bennard, 1873-1958 On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, The emblem of suff’ring and shame; And I love that old cross where the dearest and best For a world of lost sinners was slain. This gospel hymn, a sentimental favourite of Christians and non-believers alike, was written by George Bennard in 1913. It is generally thought to be the most popular of all…
Money Talks
So far in my life, which has included service not only to our church but to other organizations in which I have served as an executive member, such as the now defunct Home and School Association, my long-ago bowling league, and Let There be Music Choir, I have always managed to steer very clear of anything to do with looking after other people’s money. Taking care of money and making financial decisions just wasn’t happening, no matter in what other…
St. Patrick – Patron Saint of Ireland
St. Patrick is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland and was probably responsible in part for the Christianization of the Picts and Anglo-Saxons. The available body of evidence about him is contradictory. It appears that Patrick was born in Roman Britain in the early part of the fifth century, but as a teenager was captured by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland. While in captivity, he prayed daily, his faith grew, and after six years he heard…
Minister’s Message- March / April
What a winter it has been! With the multiple snowstorms we’ve been gifted with lately, it’s hard not to marvel at the beauty and power of God’s creation. As we take in the wonder of nature, let us also turn our hearts to something even more wonderful – the Holy Scripture. Just as the snow blankets the earth, may God’s Word cover our lives with wisdom and truth. I want to share with you an epiphany I received from the…
Earl Nixon turns 90!
On February 3, 2025, a very special person celebrated a very special birthday. Earl Nixon turned 90! I’d like to tell you a bit about this remarkable man and what he has meant to our church for so many years. Earl has been a fixture at Grace and Graceview church for a very long time. He is an elder and at one time was active on session. However, he didn’t like what he viewed as “the politics”, so he retired…
PCC Renewal: My Story – Rachel Chen
God draws people to Himself in many ways; for me, He used YouTube, among many other things. My parents immigrated to Canada from China in 1999, and I was born the year after. Being new immigrants with the desire to integrate better into Canadian society and seeing the United Church helping the poor, they decided to join. We moved frequently as my dad sought better employment, and we shifted to attending Chinese Baptist churches. I could tell church people were…