HPC NEWSLETTER
Be Strong and Courageous
(Please take a moment to read Joshua 1:1-9 before you read further)
A fair amount of anxiety has been noticeable in conversa-
tions and meetings lately, and along with that, difference of
opinion, and tension. People are anxious about the times;
about the impact that the current economic climate will
have on church finances; about what is happening to the
church; about a lack of unity in the congregation… We feel
as if we’ve been thrown overboard and we are swimming
for dear life, but we don’t know for sure where the shore is.
Things have been going well; we’ve experienced growth;
we’ve put all kinds of groups and programs in place; the way
we have been doing things served us well for a long time;
everyone knew where they fit in and what was expected of
them; we’ve been comfortable and enjoyed a great sense of
security and belonging. But things are changing. Anyone
observing the life of the congregation would notice that
there is less unity and much more diversity of opinions
about what to do and where to go from here; would notice
some uncertainty about the future; would feel the underly-
ing tension between different interest groups. Why are
things changing like this?
We are undeniably in a transition period where things are
delicately balanced. We’ve been thrown into it partly be-
cause of outside events, but it is also a sign that the seasons
are changing. Just as we experience different seasons in our
individual lives (some of which require significant adjust-
ment), there are also seasons in the life of a congregation.
The good news is this is a sign that we are alive; that we are
alive with Christ. The question is how do we navigate these
changing times?
This made me think of the story of Joshua. If you’ve ever
seen a time of transition, this is it. After forty years of wil-
derness wandering, the people of Israel have been brought
to the edge of the Promised Land. They are camping in the
plains of Moab where Moses gives his final sermon. Across
the river lies the Promised Land. Ahead of them are some of
the biggest challenges they would ever face. Everything
about them, their whole way of living is about to change.
And then their trusted leader Moses dies. They are thrown
in the deep end. What now?
God speaks and Joshua is called to lead them through this
time, and through the River Jordan to inherit the land that
God is about to give them. We can learn much from this
story about navigating times of transition. So let me point
Easter 2009
out two refrains in this story that give direction.
The first is this: Be strong and courageous. It is said no
less than three times. I don’t know about you, but my
church vocabulary did not always include these words. I
am realizing more and more however that these words
really belong in the life of someone who follows Christ.
We need strength and courage in obeying God, as the
story points out. Obedience takes guts as it involves the
willingness to be different, to make tough choices, and
the faith to step into the raging waters of the River Jor-
dan in following God’s call. So is there anything that can
help us be obedient? Two sentences describe what obe-
dience to God is all about (verse 8): “Do not let this book
of the Law depart from your mouth” and “Meditate on it
day and night”. In times of transition we need to be
strong and courageous in paying attention to the Word
of God. Speaking the Word and meditating on it prepare
us to walk straight, to act faithfully and to live lives of
calling with integrity in the presence of God. These are
core activities that pull us back on track when we stray to
the left or right. Paying attention to the Word of God
defines who we are as the people of God.
To be strong and courageous in paying attention to God
is our basic calling. Richard Foster therefore writes, “If we
hope to move beyond the superficialities of our culture,
including our religious culture, we must be willing to go
down in the recreating silence, into the inner world of
contemplation.” And Henri Nouwen writes about our
listening to God: “It keeps us pilgrims and prevents us
from becoming entangled in the cares of this age. It
guards the fire of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. It
allows us to speak a word that participates in the creative
and recreative power of God’s own Word.”
There are few securities in times of transition. We live by
faith. But let me point out the other refrain in the Joshua
text (verses 5 & 9): “As I was with Moses, so I will be
with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you,” the
Lord says. Sayings about the presence of God frame the
imperatives “to be strong and courageous”. God is larger
than our fears. His presence brackets our circumstances.
He keeps us in his hands. God’s presence opens the fu-
ture. Nothing on earth can make more of a difference.
God’s presence gives courage and strength.
Gerard
 Page 2 HPC NEWSLETTER

Stewardship
Stewardship, what is it? During this time of economic downturn I have been giving some thought to the matter
of stewardship. Usually, the first thing we think about when we hear that word is “money”. Of course we know
it is really comprised of the three “T’s”, Time, Talents and Tithes. But today I want to address only one “T”,
that being the Tithe. Knowing the aversion to talking about such a mundane thing as “money” it can be a some-
what delicate subject, something we don’t like to talk about, sort of in the same category as politics and relig-
ion (my faith is personal and private!).
But whether we like it or not Jesus, as well as the bible, had no compunction about talking about money. He
warned against putting too much stock in amassing wealth in earthly treasures for “where your treasure is, there
will your heart be also.” Matt.6:21 And then there is that dire warning: “No one can serve two masters; for a slave
will eihter hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and
money.” Matt. 6:24 One of the charges against the Pharisees was that they were “lovers of money” Luke 16:14a
And then there is that rather disturbing passage in the first letter to Timothy: “…the love of money is a root of all
kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with
many pains.” 6:10
Way back when I was a student (actually I’ve never outgrown that student designation), I
was engaged one summer to do a survey for the church in Campbell River. One of my
“ No one can questions was whether or not it was important for there to be a church in the commu-
serve two nity. I well remember one lady saying how important it was for her to be able to look out
her window and see the church building only a block and half away. Although she wasn’t a
masters...You member and didn’t attend, it nevertheless was a comfort to her for if the time ever came
cannot serve when she needed the church she certainly knew where to go. “Well”, I replied, “ I cer-
tainly hope, if and when that time comes, the church is still there.” To which she replied,
God and “O, it will be there, the church is always there!”
money.” Of course she had no concept that the “church” might need her if it was to survive and
Matthew 6:24 carry out its mission in her community and the world. It was that need, along with the
economic downturn of the day, that prompted my thoughts on the matter of stewardship.
The simple fact of the matter is the church cannot survive and carry out its mission to be
the hands and feet of our Risen Lord in a world desperately in need of reconciliation and healing without
money. (There, I’ve said it!)
Our budget has modestly increased this year. We have also had some unexpected and unavoidable expenses to
start the year off. Add to that the financial pinch some folk are feeling and….well, you get the picture.
While some have felt the crunch, have perhaps been laid off or seen their retirement investment returns dimin-
ish and have had to scale back on their tithe, others have not been affected at all and are in a position to pick
up some of the slack. Of course it may require some sacrifice (then again maybe not), but at least it will be vol-
untary, as opposed to those who have been caught in the financial crunch and have little or no choice in the
matter.
That is the reality we find ourselves in. You might call it a time of testing, a challenge to our faith. You see, in
the final analysis it is not about money at all, but rather how we respond to the call of God on our lives to be
the church, the living breathing body of Jesus the Christ in this place and in this time.

Yours in Christ’s service,

Dorne
 EASTER 2009
From Your Treasurer
Financial Report January 1, 2009 – February 28, 2009
INCOME
Congregational Givings & Enve-
lopes
Term Deposit Cashed
Use of Church
Christian Education Etc
Miscellaneous
Donation re Church Loan
Bank Interest & GST Rebate
EXPENSES
Salaries
Maintenance of Church
Christian Education
Outreach
Loan Repayment (Donation)
Miscellaneous (Coffee, WCB, etc)
Balance (decifit)
Page 3
NOTE
Additional donations for designate pro-
jects not included in above.
19,995.85 (Budget $32,023.00)
Cariboo Church, WomanCare, Salva-
5,390.00 tion Army Dinners, Nicaragua, Swazi-
land & Memorial Fund - $520.23
2,532.00
As you can see from the above state-
444.63 ment, we have had a few financial
190.55 problems in the first two months of
this year. Despite having cashed in a
10,000.00 Term Deposit from the contingency
16.76 fund, our expenses were still $4,467.78
more than our income. Part of this was
38,569.79 due to unexpected problems such as
clearing snow from the parking lot at
$330 each time and various repairs to
15,257.14 the building. Also the death of several
15,667.11 of our church family has had an effect
on our congregational givings. I realize
713.83 that the economic situation is not good
880.00 at this time, but we, the congregation,
did agree at the Annual Congregational
10,000.00 Meeting to uphold the budget for 2009.
519.49 I thank you for your support.
43,037.57
Jean Grundmann
(4,467.08)
Everything comes to us as
a gift from God. Sunshine
and Rain. Fruitfulness
and fertility. Strength and
health. They are all from
God. Our offering is an
acknowledgement of that.
It’s a way of honouring
Him and giving thanks to
Him.
Eugene Peterson’s
Commentary on
2 Corinthians 8
 Page 4 HPC NEWSLETTER

Senior Version of Jesus Loves Me

Many years ago, while watching a little TV on Sunday Here is a new version just for us who have white hair,
instead of going to church, I watched a Church in At- or no hair at all.
lanta vetting one of it's senior pastors who had been
For us over 40 (or even those almost there) and all you
retired many years....
others… Check out this newest version of 'Jesus Loves
He was 92 at that time and I wondered why the Church Me'. It is quite cute, so read, sing and enjoy:
even bothered to ask the old gentleman to preach at that
age. After a warm welcome, introduction of this
speaker, as the applause quieted down, he rose from his
Senior version of Jesus Loves Me
Jesus loves me, this I know,
high back chair and walked slowly, with great effort
Though my hair is white as snow.
and a sliding gate to the podium.... Without a note or
Though my sight is growing dim,
written paper of any kind, he placed both hands on the
Still He bids me trust in Him.
pulpit to steady himself and then quietly and slowly he
began to speak… CHORUS:
YES, JESUS LOVES ME
'When I was asked to come here today and talk to you,
YES, JESUS LOVES ME
your pastor asked me to tell you what was the greatest
YES, JESUS LOVES ME
lesson ever learned in my 50 odd years of preaching.....
THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.
I thought about it for a few days and boiled it down to
just one thing that made the most difference in my life Though my steps are oh, so slow,
and sustained me through all my trials. The one thing With my hand in His I'll go.
that I could always rely on when tears and heart break On through life, let come what may,
and pain and fear and sorrow paralyzed me… The only He'll be there to lead the way.
thing that would comfort was this verse…
CHORUS
“Jesus loves me this I know. For the Bible tells me so.
Though I am no longer young,
Little ones to him belong, we are weak but he is strong.
I have much which He's begun.
Yes, Jesus loves me… The Bible tells me so”. When he
Let me serve Christ with a smile,
finished, the church was quiet.
Go with others the extra mile.
You actually could hear his foot steps as he shuffled
CHORUS
back to his chair. I don't believe I will ever forget it.
When the nights are dark and long,
A pastor once stated, “I always noticed that it was the
In my heart He puts a song.
adults who chose the children's hymn 'Jesus Loves
Telling me in words so clear,
Me' (for the children of course) during a hymn sing,
'Have no fear, for I am near.'
and it was the adults who sang the loudest because I
could see they knew it the best.”. CHORUS
When my work on earth is done,
And life's victories have been won.
He will take me home above,
Then I'll understand His love.
CHORUS
I love Jesus, does He know?
Have I ever told Him so?
Jesus loves to hear me say,
That I love Him every day.
 EASTER 2009
Holy Week and Easter Program
Please note the following opportu-
nities for worship at Haney church
for Holy Week and Easter. Several
special services have been sched-
uled:
Holy Week services
Services of prayer and
quiet reflection will
take place Sunday
through Wednesday
(April 5 - 8) at 7 pm.
Maundy Thursday
On April 9 at 7 pm we’ll
share a light meal, have a
service of readings and
share communion.
At the beginning of February, a small
prayer group began to meet every Tues-
day morning from 9:00 to about 9:40 to
pray for our church, our church family,
our communities, our province, country
and any area of concern. There is no
membership requirement, only a desire
to pray—silently or out loud.
Many of us, if we are truly honest do not
really know what prayer is all about and
therefore we shy away from prayer
groups. Bingham Hunter in “The God
Who Hears” (1989) writes “…although an
astoundingly large number of Americans
claim to have religion, the clergy report
that prayer and prayer groups are
„especially successful‟ in only 1% of their
churches.” (p10)
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
And pray that God may open a door for our message. (Col. 4:2)
Good Friday
We remember the death of
Christ at our Service on April
10 at 10 am.
Easter Sunday
We celebrate the resur-
rection of Christ on
April 12 at 10 am.
There is enough reason
in this world to be utterly hopeless.
Sin is wreaking havoc in our lives and
communities, devastating everything
that is good and every relationship
that we are part of. “All have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God,”
WELCOME TO PRAY
Perhaps we worry about the words; per-
haps we have prayed over the years and
have seen few prayers answered; per-
haps we believe that prayer is something
that is private between me and God. Too
often we grow up believing that prayer is
the way that we get God to do what we
want. This belief is underscored when
writers or preachers tell us to “stand on
the promises” of God without continuing
to speak about the context of those
promises. We are left wondering what is
wrong with me. Is my faith too weak?
Over time our prayer life becomes a way
of life rather than a meaningful communi-
cation with our Lord. We pray because
that is what we have been taught, but it
neither helps us grow nor does it change
anything in our lives. At the same time
we long for the example in our own life
that we read about in the lives of other
Christians who seem to have all their
prayers answered.
Page 5
Paul writes. But that is not all he has
to say in his letter to the Romans.
Drawing the implications of the life,
death and resurrection of Jesus, he
shows that through faith in Christ we
have reason to live hopeful; that we
can indeed rejoice.
During this year’s Holy Week services
we’ll take a closer look at chapters 5
and 6 of Romans to reflect on this
message of hope:
 We have peace with God through
Christ;
 We are alive through Christ;
 We are dead to sin;
 We are slaves to righteousness.
And so with all the baggage surrounding
prayer that I bring from my past and my
present, I come to pray on Tuesday morn-
ings with whoever comes. I come with the
trust that God will be in our midst and that
the Holy Spirit will shape our words—both
those spoken out loud and those we speak
silently. I come trusting that relationship is
based on genuine communication and that
prayer is communicating from my heart to
the heart of God. I come believing that our
God is still very much alive and engaged in
the events of this world. I come knowing
that Jesus called us to pray and to sit at
His feet so that He might teach me to pray.
You are welcome to come and join us.
Karin Breuer
 Page 6 HPC NEWSLETTER

HPC MISSIONS UPDATE

Ezulwini Valley Primary School (Swaziland)

The Kingdom of Swaziland is a small, South Africa which employed a large

landlocked country in Southern Af-
rica (one of the smallest on the conti-
nent), situated between South Africa
in the west and Mozambique in the
east. Due in part to a high rate of HIV
infection of 42.6%, Swaziland has the
world's lowest life expectancy of
32.62 years. The current polulation is
only about 1,1 million, 60% under the
age of 18. As in the rest of the world,
the Global slowdown has severely
affected life in Swaziland.
Swaziland's economy is dominated by
services industry, agriculture and
subsistence farming. This has been
impacted by the closure of urban
manufacturing as well as mines in
number of Swazi’s. Swaziland cur-
rently also has the highest unemploy-
ment rate in the world of 40%.
Our feeding program at the Ezulwini
School is a lifeline for 850 children.
Two to three meals per week is pre-
pared for the children in the basic
kitchen HPC built in 2007. The
meals consist of a basic porridge,
beans and soup. Depending on avail-
ability, fresh vegetables are added
from their school garden. Fortu-
nately, the summer has had good
rains and helped break the drought of
previous years.
We transferred another $830 to the
Metro Cash and Carry Supermarket
in February for food to be delivered
to the school. Please do not hesitate
to speak with any of the committee
members if you would like any more
information.
Please accept an open invitation to
anyone interested to join the Mis-
sions meetings. Any input or help is
welcomed.
Thank you for your continued sup-
port. Without your help, we would
not have been able to make a differ-
ence in other peoples lives.
Missions Committee

God’s Gifts
The other day I was chatting to a friend
when he told me he was an Agnostic. Not
sure of the full meaning of the word I
looked it up in my trusty Oxford Dictionary
and discovered that an Agnostic is “One
who finds it impossible to believe whether
God exists.”
That set me back on my heels for a bit
and got me thinking. What kind of world
was this man living in? He is cheerful, a
loving man good to his family and hard
working. He loves music and the out-
doors, how could he not know God ex-
ists?
As I pondered this an e-mail came in from
another pal in California. I have known
Patricia for 20 years and we can carry on
a conversation as if we have just left the
table together and as we chatted of our
lives, she started to talk of „God Gifts‟
small mercies that happen out of the blue.
Often these gifts are so obvious we can‟t
miss them and sometimes so subtle we
never realize they have been given.
When Geoff first started his business way when there has been none, these are
back in the 1990s we started with nothing. He just a few examples.
had just been made redundant and we had
I thought again about my Agnostic
only been back in Canada 18 months. All our
friend and his view on life. How can
hopes were dashed and we did not know
God not exist when we are given con-
what to do. Finally he decided he would go it
stant reminders of his love through our
alone and a contract came up, but he had to
lives. It can be as strange as the $10
drive into Vancouver to sign it and we had no
bill or as simple as a hug from a friend.
gas in the car.
Some time ago this little verse ap-
We had recently bought an old second hand
peared in our Church leaflets and I
chair and as we talked he sat down, slipping
have it stuck to my computer screen:
his hand down between the seat and the
back. Suddenly he stopped speaking and The road we walk may seem long
withdrew his hand. Clutched between his God will grant us persistence.
fingers was an old $10 bill. Enough at that The vision may seem dim
time to get him in and out of Vancouver to God will grant us wisdom
sign his contract.
The companions may seem few
What made him put his hand down the back God will grant us courage
of the chair? Intuition, fate. This is what The task may seem impossible
Patricia calls a „God Gift‟ We have had many God will grant us faith. Amen.
of these wonderful gifts since then. Friends
who have thrown us a lifeline when we have Yes Virginia, there is a God!
been fighting a stormy sea. Our lives saved
when we crashed the car. Food on the table LIZ HANCOCK
 EASTER 2009 Page 7

Coming Soon to your HPC Library !!!!

I love new books. I love the way they sit on the shelf, all stacked neatly. But what I like
even better is to see the books checked out by our enthusiastic readers here at HPC.
I am starting a new category of books that I’m sure will appeal to many of you. I am call-
ing the category “Journeys” and the new books are on their way.
The first author I have chosen for this series is a famous Canadian named Alberto Manguel. He is “acclaimed for
several award-winning works, including the triumphant A History of Reading (a Maclean’s Best Book of the Year
and winner of France’s Prix Medicis). His writing is easy to read and it is wonderful, jubilant, entertaining and
instructive.
So let’s take a look at the book called “Reading Pictures, a history of Love and Hate” by Alberto Manguel. This
book is definitely a journey; it is filled with explorations into many historic and contemporary works of ART.
Hang on now, don’t worry, this is not a dreary text book, because the most fascinating parts of this book are
the revealing histories of the Early Christian Church, and best of all ideas flow about what those past devout fellow
Christians wanted to say and how they said it without words. Our Christian ancestors taught their fellows how to
read the PICTURES. There are chapters that highlight pictures, paintings, architecture and sculpture done by a
variety of Artists and one highlight is the story of “Aleijadino –The Image as Subversion”. This true story of a boy
born to a Portuguese father and an African Slave woman is about his brilliant art and how he dedicated his whole
life to carve statues and figures out of wood, especially those in the Sanctuary of Congohas in Brazil. He produced
76 sculptures for the Sanctuary and these are “among the most powerful and dramatic of his time”. But most inter-
esting of all, Aleijadino produced this great body of work for the Christian Church in spite of his horrendous
handicap of Leprosy. To help you along the way this book is filled with reference pictures and illustrations.
The Next Book in the Series is also written by Alberto Manguel and it is an unbelievable journey through the
“History of Reading”. Wow! This book blew me away with some of the most intriguing facts about how people
invented the writing of words and then read what they had written. Of course one of the most interesting aspects of
this book entails the writing and reading of the Bible as we know it today. Remember though this book is no dry
read, it is exciting and full of the many aspects of daily life in the long ago world and it is also filled with illustra-
tions. This book is all about communication and how it has been preserved through out history. You will find some
interesting facts about how western civilization got to have this most precious Word of God handed down to us in
tact?
God Bless you all, Enjoy!!!!!!!
From your librarian Gayle Howard, …………oh don’t hesitate to give me your reviews on these books, I would
love to hear what you think……Thank you all so much. I might even print excerpts of your reviews in the next
newsletter.

Interesting Article in Times Online

Do yourself a favour and read the article written by Matthew Parris
and published on 27 December 2008.
It is currently available on the internet on the Times Online website,
with the title and subtitle:
As an atheist, I truly believe Africa needs God
Missionaries, not aid money, are the solution to Africa's biggest problem -
the crushing passivity of the people's mindset
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/matthew_parris/article5400568.ece
 HPC Newsletter Page 8

What do we remember on Palm Sunday?

What do we remember on Good Friday?

What do we remember on Easter Sunday?

What did God create on the first 6 days of each of Creation?

And what did God do on the 7th Day?

Oberammergau Passion Play Tour

Only once every ten years is the Oberammergau Passion Play performed,
and 2010 is the year!
Rev. Robin Ross, Editor of the Presbyterian PCCWeb Daily Devotional, is lead-
ing a tour of central Europe for 16 days, from June 21 to July 6 next year.
We'll visit, for example, Frankfurt, Prague, Vienna, and Lucerne, taking in the
Passion Play on July 1. This first class coach tour is truly all-inclusive, for worry-
free travelling, including the cost of all side tours and events, breakfast and dinner each day, luggage han-
dling, a professional tour guide, even tips for ALL included services, and more. Early booking discount ap-
plies until March 31.
For more information, e-mail Robin Ross at rross@telus.net .