Peter was in a very restrictive colony and knew there was something better than following rules in the hope of perhaps making it to heaven. But the rules were a cage that kept his soul imprisoned and he wanted freedom in Jesus. He now works to bring understanding, surety of eternal salvation, and new life to many within hearing distance of the radio station, which he manages.

♪It was the last day of my children’s first week of school. Every morning, I walk with them to school and cry on the way back because I’ve discovered that crying warms your eyes, and you need all the warmth you can get when you’re walking in minus-forty degrees. That morning, I dropped the children off as usual and began the walk home. The tears came again, but this time they were not for warmth.

We continue to be blessed here at Prairie Rose. We have many long-time members and attendees in our congregation, and this contributes to a close, family atmosphere. We have welcomed a few new families and individuals into our midst in the last year or two which is encouraging.

On June 6 and 7, the Board of Missions had the privilege of hearing Jayda Brandt, Jenny Klassen and Mark and Gillian Wiewel share about their calling into missions. All four were formally accepted as EMC associate missionaries.

♪ Gordon and Sharon Skopnik have been serving South Sudanese refugees for 21 years and have seen for themselves that helping can end up hurting.

THE ST. MARY’S First Nation, where Venus Cote lives and does ministry, is inside the city limits of Fredericton, New Brunswick. It is home to the Maliseet people, or “people of the beautiful river.” Although the proximity of the reserve to the city makes it seem like it would be culturally similar to Winnipeg, where her aunt Elvira Cote works, Venus says it is very different and therefore ministry looks different as well.

Genesis 2:15 records work as it was meant to be—getting into the soil, dirt under the fingernails, and tending to the animals, all with satisfaction and joy. God, as part of his good and perfect plan for his creation, tasked Adam to “cultivate and tend” the Garden of Eden. Eve was given as a companion and partner in this calling. How glorious! But then comes Genesis 3—the fall—with its resultant “weeds and thistles” and “hard labour.” Work perfectly designed had become work pretty disfigured. Now it seems that creation itself militates against us in our calling to “tend.” And yet, the calling and blessing of work has not changed.

Are you fulfilled? We’ve likely all asked ourselves some version of this question about our lives and vocation. Is my life meaningful? Am I doing the right things with my life?

An occupational hazard of ministry is not finishing well, and this was the topic guest speaker Lorne Meisner was asked to address at the Ministerial meeting held on June 2, 2023.

We walked down the metal steps of the small jet in Tabatinga, Brazil, and were hit by heat and the smell of the rainforest. There was beauty in nature, but the buildings and streets were well-worn and plain.

Looking back on 2022, there are many things we could catch up on. We could talk about the parent-child dedication service for six young families in May. Or we might highlight the two baptism services in summer where a total of 15 were baptized.

Welcome to the Minimalistic Art Edition of the Messenger missionary feature. This is the edition where I made a quick minimalist piece of art for everything God did in the last three months on our field in Northern Ireland. And by everything, I mean four things.