Artificial Intelligence

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

Once again we welcomed Pastor George Hodgson to the pulpit on Sunday. In this, the last week of Rev. Irwin's holiday, the congregation is grateful to the ministers who have led us in worship over the month of August, Rev. Jacqueline Birnie, Rev. Arnold Aksne, and Pastor George. Thank you all for sharing your ministry with SPPC.

Saturday was the last of the summer concerts put on by the DieMahler Ensemble in our sanctuary. They have provided eight evenings of chamber music to an appreciative audience, and raised over $1200.00 for the Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation. Thank you, Ensemble.

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There is a lot of talk about Artificial Intelligence in the news these days. We've all been promised--or threatened depending on your point of view--with computers that can do our jobs, write our papers and imitate us on social media. We've had glimmers of this in the past few years -- Facebook insists on using predictive text which results in some very strange posts. I have a niece named Mya and whenever I mention her, Facebook changes her name to Myanmar. 

Last week I searched the catalogue at my library for The Benevolent Society of Ill-mannered Ladies. It is a story set in Regency England about a pair of detective sisters. The library couldn't find it and suggested I must be looking for The Secret Society of Demolition Writers, a book of short stories billed as contemporary fairy-tales.

Years ago I had a friend named Margot. In those days MS-Word was the big thing and it did not recognize her name. So, whenever she signed something, they changed Margot into Maggot. Needless to say her teen-aged son made the most of Microsoft's "intelligence."

My experience of computers telling me what I meant to say, has, so far, been most unintelligent.

Yet, even as technology controls more and more of our daily lives, we can take comfort in the words of Scripture. Our God truly knows us, our thoughts, our needs and our desires -- and He cares for us.

For I know the plans I have for you. . . . plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Jeremiah 29:11

For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb. Psalm 139: 13-14.

Praise God, for He is good; His faithfulness endures forever. 

 

Fire!

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

Continuing our August adventures in worship, this week and next we welcomed Pastor George Hodgson to the pulpit. Pastor George is a familiar figure in our congregation but if you want to refresh your memory, you can find a short biography of him here.

Fire!

Remember the Kelowna fire of 2003? It burned 250 square kilometres and forced the evacuation of the 33,000 citizens. At the time it was unimaginable. Twenty years later, Kelowna is one fire again.

Then there was the Fort McMurray fire in 2016. It burned 5895 square kilometres and forced 80,000 people from their homes.Our screens were filled with images of fire and ash and desperate people driving through the flames.  Again, unimaginable. The country sent aid in trucks, in suitcases, and in bank drafts, and in prayer.

Now, it is 2023 and the unimaginable is happening again. 

Two thirds of the North West Territories is under evacuation order. By Friday noon, the entire city of Yellowknife, the territorial capital, had been evacuated. The 22,000 citizens of that city joined the thousands of others from villages and hamlets in the Territory seeking shelter in far away Alberta or Manitoba. Hospitals in BC took in patients and long-term care residents. The closest evacuee reception centre for people travelling by road is over 1,100 kilometres from Yellowknife. While the number of people affected is not as great as in previous fires, the range of the fires is horrifying. As one spokesman put it "the Arctic is on fire. People need to pay attention." 

Fire map of Canada 2023

The area burning is 21262.54 square kilometres, nearly 100 times the size of the "unimaginable" Kelowna fire in 2003.

Interviews with those who have fled their homes not knowing where they are going and when or if they will be allowed to return are heartbreaking. The hardest to hear are of families who have left one or two people behind as essential workers. They know the choice was necessary, but the fear for their loved ones is palpable.

Here in pretty Sidney, we look out at ocean dotted with sailboats. Mountains shimmer in the distance. Even with a smoke haze in our skies we feel so far away from danger. That is perilous thinking. All of BC is under a state of emergency. The fire risk on Southern Vancouver Island is rated extreme. We all need to be extra cautious. Butchart Gardens cancelled their fireworks on Saturday night.

Our fellow citizens need support in many ways. Here is a list of recognized organization accepting donations As of Friday the Salvation Army had organized food trucks and volunteers to head into Yellowknife to provide food and a sympathetic shoulder for the 1000+ essential workers and firefighters remaining in that city. Help is pouring in to support those who have been evacuated. If you want to make a donation directly to the NWT on line, the link is here.  https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/82499?v2=true 

The stories and images of those in evacuation stations are heart-breaking and inspiring. Despite the fear and uncertainty, evacuees are helping each other, pledging to rebuild, and being grateful for the  front line workers fighting the fires and the friends and strangers offering places to stay. Please keep them in your prayers.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.     1 John 4: 7 (NKJV)

By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13: 35 (NKJV)

Loving Kindness

 

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

This week, in Rev. Irwin's absence,  we welcome Rev. Arnie Alksne to the pulpit. He has blessed us with his leadership on several occasions in the past few years. We were very glad to see him on Sunday, given all the mishaps with the ferry system this summer. Thank you, Rev. Arnie, for getting up early and journeying from Pender Island to share time with our congregation. 

Rev. Arnie is accompanied by his wife, Marion, another early riser. The previous week, when Rev. Jacqueline Burnie was in the pulpit her entire family turned out to offer support. They didn't have to catch a ferry, but with a toddler in the mix, I expect Sunday morning came early for them too.

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Every Sunday our sanctuary is graced with flowers. Our thanks to all who contribute to this ministry, year round. But, now that it is summer, we are especially blessed with dazzling bouquets from home gardens. Pam and Norma generously bring the best of their blooms to share with the congregation.

 They brighten our worship and remind us of God's generosity. If He were a miserly deity, He would give us only enough to sustain life. But our God treats us with loving kindness. He not only gives us harvests to fill our stomachs, but beauty to feed our souls. 

Did you hear the little boy's definition of "loving kindness?"  "If I was hungry," he said, "and you gave me a piece of bread, that would be kindness. But if you put some butter and jam on the bread, that would be loving kindness."

Our Lord is generous with loving kindness.

And speaking of jam, would you look at the size of these blackberries!

Every year the garden holds surprises -- some happy and some not so good. These berries are a happy surprise, eight of them would make a cupful.

If you are in the mood to enjoy a beautiful garden and good company, Friendship Coffee is meeting this week in the rose garden, beside the library in Sidney, Thursday at 10:00 am. The space affords sun or shade depending on your desire. You can sit quietly and watch the bees bumble from blossom to blossom, or you can chat with friends, or you can do both. More loving kindness.

Another "unnecessary" gift from God is music. We don't need it to nourish our bodies, but how it nourishes the soul. As our summer concert series continues, on Saturday night, 7:00 pm the McPherson Trio will play Brahms, Haydn and Dvorak at SPPC. Admission is by donation, with a portion of the proceeds going to support the Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation.

Summer -- perfect time to enjoy God's extravagant gifts to humanity.  All Things Bright and Beautiful . . . the Lord God made them all.

Summer Guests

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

This week we welcomed Rev. Jacqueline Burnie to the pulpit as guest preacher. Rev. Burnie lives in Ontario but is the sister of Joan, one of our elders, so she is combining a family visit with pulpit supply. She and Rev. Irwin are almost classmates, both having studied at Knox College in Toronto. Irwin was one year behind Burnie.

Also on Sunday morning we had a guest musician, Mary Byrne. Mary hardly qualifies as "guest" since she has played often for our service, and accompanied vocalists, Alice and Tore. We are always grateful to her for sharing her talent and love of music with the congregation.

The Saturday night concert series continues. On Aug. 5, the Die

Mahler String Quartet played Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Next Saturday, Aug 12 they will play the last of the string quartets by these composers. On August 19 we will hear the McPherson Trio play Brahms, Haydn and Dvorak.

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The Cops for Cancer campaign will run through September-October this year, and our own Jerusha is taking part. In memory of her sister, Ruth, Jerusha has volunteered to shave her head. Oh, Jerusha, what a brave gesture! 

There is a donation box in the narthex for anyone who wants to support her.