Our National Church

 Belonging to Saanich Peninsula Presbyterian Church, means we are part of a national church, one that reaches beyond the borders of Sidney/N.Saanich, beyond the borders of B.C. and, in some ways, beyond the borders of Canada, as we are a member of the World Council of Churches.  Mostly our attention is centred on the local congregation, but this week I want to celebrate two events in our national life.

The first is General Assembly.

The 142 General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Canada was held at York University in Toronto June 3-6.  Our minister attended.  The General Assembly discussed all manner of things, church doctrine, history, justice ministries, PWS&D, and the Presbyterian Record, to name a few.  They received reports from the Women's Missionary Society, Young Adult Representatives, the outgoing Moderator, and Faith Presbyterian Church in Fort McMurray, among others.  The topics were many and varied, reflective of our national church.  Some topics stirred heated debate, others universal applause.  That is the nature of our church. We may hold different points of view, but in the end, all are dedicated to doing the will of God.  
During the General Assembly, delegates prayed for God's guidance and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in their deliberations.  Now that the Assembly is over, we must still pray, in our local congregations that God will lead us in the way we should go.  And we should pray for those delegated with difficult task in the coming year that they are strengthen, enlightened and faithful in their work.

If you want to read the proceedings of the General Assembly, either in brief or in detail you can find them here.


The second is "The Presbyterian Devotional."

For twenty years the faithful writers of the Presbyterian Devotional have prepared and e-mailed a short devotional to subscribers. What shows up in my in-box is authored by one of several writers. I've come to recognize some names so I suspect they use a roster.  Many of the contributors are Canadian.  Whenever a devotional starts with a story of country life, I expect it to be written by Lynn Phipps from Atlin B.C. even before I read her name at the bottom of the post.

These little devotionals are a great way to start the day.  I get mine delivered to my inbox, so when I open the computer in the morning, the first thing I receive is a reminder that "This is My Father's World," and that "He Loves Me Too."  Whatever the rest of the day brings, I'm held safe in those two precepts.

If you want to subscribe for email delivery of the Presbyterian Daily Devotional, or just to read some of the posts, click here.