Another Pulpit Exchange

 The link to this week's live-streamed service is here.

Sunday morning, Rev. Irwin was preaching at Trinity Presbyterian in Victoria. His term there as interim moderator is coming to an end, so he was there for a farewell service. 

In his place at SPPC, we welcomed the Rev. Mitch Coggin to the pulpit.

Rev. Mitch Coggin moved to Victoria at the invitation of the Presbytery of Vancouver Island in 2018 to serve as the Transitional Pastor at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, Victoria.  He held this position until March, 2025 when he officially retired from the Presbyterian Church in Canada (although he begins serving as Interim Moderator of Trinity Presbyterian, Victoria on August 1! 

 He holds dual membership as a Teaching Elder in the Presbyterian Church in Canada and The Presbyterian Church (USA).  Mitch is an experienced Interim Minister having served multiple interim roles in the States before beginning his work in Canada.  He has taught Transitional Ministry Education in 5 of the PC(USA) sites where The Art of Transitional Ministry is taught, at St. Andrew’s Hall, Vancouver and in Mississauga with 34 Interim Moderators in the Presbyterian Church in Canada.  

 Mitch is a certified coach through the International Coaching Federation and teaches coaching as a valuable understanding in guiding congregations through the transitional process.  To check out a paper he produced on transitions while working at St. Andrew's, Victoria, look here.

On a personal note, Mitch is a passionate woodworker, creating fountain pens on a lathe from the beautiful wood found in the Pacific northwest. He is also trying his best to be "retired," although, as mentioned above, he is taking on Rev. Irwin's previous post as interim moderator for Trinity, next week. 

He has added golf and a coffee club to his weekly schedule as a step on the road to living the life of a "retired" minister. He and Linda have been married 46 years and love the magnificent ocean living in beautiful Victoria.

While the choir is having a summer break, we are fortunate to have guest musicians filling in the anthem spot in our order of service. Last week, Mary Byrne graced us with her flute, her musicality, and her enthusiasm for sacred song. This week Barry Lowe, who usually sings at St. Mary's Anglican in Saanichton, sang for us. Thank you, Barry, and thank you St. Mary's for giving him a Sunday off.

The smooth running of our church building, our worship service, our fellowship time, our property, and many administrative tasks depend upon volunteers. As summer wears on, some of those volunteers think they need a vacation. Imagine! Fortunately a number of people have stepped up to learn how to work the audio/video equipment, to set the coffee pot on ready, to hand out bulletins and greet visitors with a warm welcome.

This willingness to lend a hand is an encouraging sign for congregational life. It is also a reassurance for those considering a volunteer position. You can take on a role and still get a break when needed.

And, speaking of faithful volunteers, don't forget that Friendship Coffee meets this Thursday at 10:00am at the church. Thanks to our regular hosts, Brian and Vivien, and Al and Irene. All are welcome. Bring a friend.

 

 

The Joy of Friendship

 The link for this week's live-streamed service is here.

Congratulations to Bill and Nancy Duke on their 64th wedding anniversary, as announced on CHEK TV.

Next Thursday, July 31, we will hold Friendship Coffee in hall at the church. Bring your best joke, bring a picture of your newest grandchild, bring a friend. Friend -- such a beautiful word.

    "Where there is friendship, there is our natural soil." Voltaire

    "Friends are the family we choose for ourselves." Unknown

    "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Anonymous

    "A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves              you." Ebert Hubbard.

    "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of             adversity. Proverbs 17:17

      "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their     labour: if either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But     pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."                Ecclesiastes  4; 9-10

    

I have hundreds of "friends" quotes but I'll stop with just these few. I'm thinking of friends today because we made music with a friend this week. I'm very lucky that my husband is a singer, so he can share that part of my life with joy. We're even more blessed to have a special friend who shares this passion. When we make music together, my heart overflows with happiness. The Sunday sermon this week referenced worship in Heaven, telling us it would be loud and excited and fervent and passionate. When I make music with my friends, we get a tiny foretaste of that heavenly scene.

    But notice the last part of that quote from Ecclesiastes -- pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. For the Old Testament writer, being friendless was a conceivable state. For we "followers of the way" there is always a Friend. "What a friend we have in Jesus"

Dr. Cecil Kirk, late of our congregation had some thoughts on this wonderful old hymn.

Happy is the person who has a friend with whom one can share their hopes and fears, their joys and sorrows, their innermost thoughts...Jesus is such a friend. During His life, He was known as the 'friend of sinners.' That is good news for us since we are all sinners and we feel ourselves drawn to Him by His love and compassion, His understanding and His grace. . . .Sometimes the comfort of friends is not available for us for one reason or another. . . Jesus is always available. We can approach Him at any time, wherever we may be, and know that we can speak to Him. Thus the repetition of the encouragement to "take it to the Lord in prayer.'. . We can take anything to Him. Nothing is too big nor is anything too trivial.  We can pray with confidence in the knowledge that Jesus knows all about us [and loves us anyway!] and He will remain our constant friend.

I can't resist one more quote. 

"Friends are one of the most important ingredients in the recipe of life." Unknown. 

May your week be blessed with time with friends, and conversations with our One Never-failing Friend.

 

Your Week in Revelations

 The link to this week's live-streamed service is here.

"Summertime and the livin' is easy." So, naturally, Rev. Irwin has embarked on a series of sermons on The Revelation to John!?!!😲

Not only that, on Sunday morning following the reading of parts of Revelation, he recommended that we go home and read the whole thing for ourselves.

So, here to help you with your summer homework, is a little quiz on the first three chapters of Revelation.

Revelation Quiz

 

1/ Who authored Revelations? 

• Paul,
• Peter, 
• Luke
• John the Apostle

 

2/ To which Island was the author exiled when he received the vision of Revelation  

• Cyprus, 
• Crete, 
• Malta, 
• Patmos

 

3/ The letter is addressed to seven churches in which Roman province? 

• Achaia, 
• Galatia, 
• Asia, 
• Pontus

 

4/ In the vision what do the 7 golden lampstands represent? 

• 7 spirits, 
• 7 virtues, 
• 7 angels, 
• 7 churches

5/ What does the title Alpha and Omega signify? 

• Law and Grace, 
• Heaven and Earth, 
• the beginning and the end, 
• Father and Son

6/ What form of literature is the Book of Revelation? 

• Apocalypse, 
• Gospel, 
• Epistle, 
• History

7/ How many churches are addressed? 

• 8
• 7 
• 6 
• 5

8/ Which church is reprimanded for allowing the teachings of Nicolaitans?

• Pergamum, 
• Ephesus, 
• Thyatira, 
• Sardis

9/ Which church is chastised for being luke-warm?

• Sardis
• Laodicea
• Philadelphia
• Thyatira

10/ How does the writer of Revelation react to the vision of Christ?

• Calls out to him
• Falls at his feet
• Becomes blind
• Is frozen in place

The answers are at the bottom of this page, but I encourage you to try the quiz for yourself before looking. 

Summer time 2025

 The link to this week's live streamed service is here.

Rev. Irwin is on medical leave this week. In his stead, we welcomed Rev. Wes Denyer to the pulpit. 

The Reverend Wes Denyer grew up in Etobicoke and attended St. Andrew’s Humber Heights Presbyterian Church. He received a B.A. in psychology from the University of Toronto and a Master of Divinity degree from Knox College.  

 
After graduation from Knox College, Wes served at St. Andrew’s (Kirkland Lake), Unionville, St. Andrew’s (Brampton) and Rosedale Presbyterian Church. 

Wes has served at various levels of church government within the Presbyterian Church in Canada, on the Knox College Board of Directors and Development Committee, and the Board of Evangel Hall.  

He retired at the end of 2021 after 38 years in ministry. 
 
Wes is married to the Reverend Canon Dr. Judy Rois. He has two children. His daughter, Laurie, is married and teaching Anthropology at the University of Edinburgh. His son, Paul, is a plumber in Calgary. Wes has four grandchildren, Arden, Jude, Emma and Jacob. 

On Sunday, Wes delivered a joyful sermon in time for summer holidays.

*************

Summertime equals playtime for many, especially children. 

At SPPC Miller and Owen, have started their summer playtime, using the "stove" in the lounge.

Miller has also made a start on his 
summer garden, with a few "tulips." 

I remember my brothers and I begging for an afternoon at "the lake" while my mother was trying to harvest the garden and preserve all the vegetables for the following winter, not to mention a stream of summer visitors and haying season on a dairy farm. Of course, she had time to spend a few hours watching us play in the water.😁

It was summer. No school. No homework. No worries. We had complete faith that our parents would take care of us,  see that dinner was on the table when we came home,  put clean clothes in our cupboards, and make provision for the winter. 

In Mark 10: 13, Jesus tells the disciples to let the children come to him for "to such belongs the Kingdom of God." In Matthew 18:3, Jesus tells the disciples to stop fussing about who is the greatest and to become like a little child if they want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. It's summertime. Let us give our worries to God and find refreshment in His glorious Creation. Let us trust Him.

Oh, and if you're looking for a new craft, I once found this "flowering" tree in the backwoods of Algoma. Miller can tell you how to make the flowers.