Minister's Challenge

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

This week SPPC participated in a game of musical pulpits. Rev. Irwin was at St. Andrew's in Nanaimo, their minister was at Trinity in Vancouver and Byron Knight took over the pulpit at SPPC. Many in the congregation know Byron as a leader of the Dominican Republic mission trips, pie auctioneer extraorinaire, and master chef at Camp Imadene. He also likes to share the gospel from the pulpit. Welcome Byron.

Having a guest preacher is a bit of a wake-up for the congregation. We tend to be so comfortable with our usual routine, we may not even notice its strengths or eaknesses.  

Retailers are encouraged to look at their premises through the eyes of a customer every now and then. They walk down the street and look in the front window. Does it sparkle? Is the display fresh and engaging? Or has familiar clutter built up in the corners and gone unnoticed? We can use the occasion of a guest preacher for a similar review. Are the prayers different? Is the sermon long or short? Who reads the announcements? There are any number of little differences that may catch our attention. And that is a good thing.

On Thursday night, choir practice was cancelled and 3/4 of the choir went to a concert at UVIC. Elizabeth Clarke and Lindsey Hurle both attended SPPC a few years ago and shared their musical talents with us. I especially remember Elizabeth as she filled in at the piano for the Living Flame Choir on occasion. So, when we learned that the two musicians were back in town to give a concert, we had to attend. Elizabeth's skill on the keyboard is remarkable and she had the audience enthralled. 

It was also a bit of an old home week for Fort MacMurray ex-pats. The Cunninghams were there in force, plus we met several people in the parking lot all coming to hear their "home town girls." A testament to friendship.

Stump the Preacher

Just a reminder, we have one week left to meet Rev. Irwin's

challenge of reading the whole Gospel of Luke. He invited us to mark the passages we found difficult and to present them to him. He has promised to preach on the problem passages remarked by the congregation. This is your chance to stump the preacher. Don't miss out.