Speaker 1: 0:09

it's a sweet, uh spirit here today. I'm uh, I'm reminded of psalm 133 um, how beautiful and pleasant it is when his kids come together and dwell together in unity. It's a sweet, smelling offering, and it says that it's there that he pronounces his blessing. So welcome this morning. There's so many faces that have so many memories, and so we're here to be together. We're here to support each other and, most importantly, receive his love in our hearts.

Speaker 1: 1:09

And so, father, what a privilege it is to come together in oneness in our common union. In you. You are in us and we're in you. And, father, we just give you full access to our hearts. Today, whatever you have for us, we say yes and amen. Thank you for holy spirit, you're, you're this, you're the comforter and you lead us into all truth. And so we come and we want to be sensitive to all that you want to do, but thank you for your goodness and your love and all that you have for us today, in Jesus' name, amen, amen. And all that you have for us today in Jesus name, amen, amen.

Speaker 1: 2:10

Well, we're, we're full this morning, and I just encourage you to grab a chair so that we can see how many more chairs we might need to pull out. Our gentlemen at the back will help ensure that there's ample seats for everybody and kids are dismissed. Kids are dismissed and there may be a possibility that kids will go outside, and so if there's a jacket, please bring your jackets. And teenagers, if you're here too and you're like you know that kind of looks fun or I want to help out, we would love that you are welcome to help out with the kids today. No pressure, though. No pressure.

Speaker 3: 3:01

All right, can I?

Speaker 4: 3:03

borrow that. Thanks Dad, All right Can.

Speaker 1: 3:13

I borrow that mic stand. Thank you Well, well, well, I hope that we could just be real. Yeah, keep it real. We have many online that could not be here this morning, and so we say a welcome and a hello to you as well. There's many that wanted to be here that couldn't be, and it's just good to be together. We've got a few things that we feel we felt like Holy Spirit wanted to do this morning encouragement we want to do communion together and, most importantly, just entering into his presence in worship.

Speaker 1: 4:24

My last physical picture of being with Jen was her standing right here and in full abandoned worship two weeks ago, and that's pretty much the lasting picture. It's just so embedded in my mind and it's. She is a worshipper and she's running and fully alive, fully healed, in the presence of Father right now and she would be just so enjoy. She is enjoy knowing that we're here together as family, worshiping and and loving each other, receiving father's love. So this morning we just want to draw close to him. He draws close to us. It's a promise you know and encourage each other.

Speaker 1: 5:34

I've been rereading the book the Shack and there's that one scene where Holy Spirit, they first meet Mac and Holy Spirit and he's having an encounter with the Father which is not who he thought he would look like at that moment and he's just undone and he's, he's letting it. You know, the tears are coming and Holy Spirit, before he even knows what's happening, has just captured all his tears and he says Holy Spirit says to Mac, mac, we all collect treasures of things that we hold dearly and I don't know about you, but it just comes in waves. I mean it's just waves of where did how many of you been in the ocean? And it's like where did that come from? And it just hits you and it's it's it's mourning and grieving, but it's anchored in hope. And that is so tangible when the Holy Spirit is just, he's with us, he's loving us and we are fully embracing Him. And it's messy sometimes.

Speaker 1: 7:14

Thank you, rob and Donna, donna, for last week that you hosted online, that just beautiful time. Not everybody could make it, but it was. It was amazing because we got to just, you know, kind of sit together in a space, in a safe space of sharing what was on our hearts and memories, and just in shock, I mean we're in shock. Um, siobhan and I still look at each other this week and go. I can't believe it. And it causes us to remember that every moment is precious and not to take people for granted, each other for granted, and to hold short accounts. Oh, that's a tough one, but it's a reminder. We're thankful for these reminders this morning. So, yeah, worship team, just be free. Thank you for being here. We're going to flow. There's a few that are going to share this morning. We're going to do communion. There's a few things that Father put on my heart to just share. This morning. We're going to do communion. There's a few things that Father put on my heart to just share this morning.

Speaker 1: 8:29

And you know, jen was a spiritual mother to many of us. She was a mother and nana for many years. How many of you had the experience of being receiving prayer from Jen? Just put up your hand, wow, how many of you have? How many of you knew that Jen was praying for one of your family members or one of your friends as an intercessor? Wow, how many of you had or did RTF ministry with Jen? I mean faith, right, she could tell spirits to go like nobody else's business. I was in shock. You know go. I'll never forget that. Walks how many of you went for walks with Jen and your dog Maybe a Starbucks in your hand too, at the same time. That was common. How many of you remember her saying I have faith for you for that. For that thing, I have faith. For that, yeah, totally, totally. Have faith for you for that. For that thing, I have faith. For that, yeah, totally. How many of you remember her praying for you for healing? She had just a gift of praying for healing I. It was amazing, I could go down the list. You know a glass of wine she loved wine. Down the list. You know glass of wine she loved wine. She's drinking the best wine right now. I mean, I'm just, I'm really jealous. Foundations class yeah, foundations class with jen father heart ministries.

Speaker 1: 10:39

There's one point where there's an opportunity to come up and receive the mother God as mother hug, the storge love, and I struggled with this one. I'm going to be honest. I think I skipped it the first few times I went and then, just a year ago, I felt okay, I'm ready, and it was Jen that I felt safe enough to go to and I'll never forget Just the comfort and the nurture that she imparted and allowed herself to to be a container for wow to be a container for wow. I came prepared. Thank you, my love. But how many of you received a mother hug from Jan and that, yeah, this is just a small list From Jan and that, yeah, this is just a small list of many things that she's left a legacy in our hearts with? And, yeah, we did. We wanted to honor her this morning and just remember these things and share these things.

Speaker 1: 12:28

I also want to say, on behalf of the Redding family, thank you so much for your support and encouragement, amazing support and love this week and prayers over this week. There's been meals prepared, there's been, you know, donations that have come in. We I believe it's June 29th, no 28th, sorry, 28th that is the plan to have a celebration of life Preparing for, and so there's many that are going to come from out of town for that even, but there's a lot of planning for that. If you haven't been on the email list of communications, just please let us know on that. If you haven't been on the email list of communications, just please let us know on that.

Speaker 1: 13:31

But, yeah, navigating my way here, yeah, I had a call with Leon Fontaine's, the late Leon Fontaine's daughter, this week, springs Church who, a year and a half ago he passed away on the Saturday night before their service and I shared with her what happened and we were getting some, some, some advice from them on things, and and she, just she just felt this overwhelming sense of God is going to do something great in your church. I just sense it, I know it, and she encouraged us that it's as hard as it is, you know, father's going to meet you all and do a deep work and you will be surprised by joy. And I received that on our behalf. And I felt this week, as we were praying a few times times that you know, I kept hearing Isaiah 55 of enlarge the place of your tent, get ready to stretch out your tent curtains wide, do not hold back, lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. And why do we do that? To to make more room for what he wants to do, not just quantity, but there's a quality of hospitality and union that he wants to do in our hearts. And I, we, we just have been sensing this week a preparation for that, and so this morning we just wanted to encourage you with a few things that will remain Faith, hope and love. You know, gift of miracles, evangelism, tongues these things will all cease. We won't need them anymore, but faith, hope and love will always remain.

Speaker 1: 15:50

And on this side of heaven, you know, we can't avoid pain. There are mysteries that we get to carry here, that we just don't have answers for. But he is bigger than all of that and he's good, as we sang this morning. He's good all the time. All the time he is good. So if you want to worship someone where there are no mysteries, well, your God might be a little too small. It just comes with life, and I know some say that there's a deeper level of his presence that we find in suffering or in the valleys, but I don't know about that. What I do know is that there's a greater appreciation or an awareness of his presence in those places, because he wants to be very close and present all the time. Right, but it seems to be amplified sometimes in our darkest hours. I look around the room and I none of us are have avoided pain and I can say probably some more than others.

Speaker 1: 17:26

Verna, I want to honor you this morning too. You know all that you've been through. It's just a testimony of your joy and your faith, his faithfulness in your life and he brought your mother this morning. We love you, our heart is with you and we're so glad that you're here. But I, you know, I've stumbled across. Our heart is with you and we're so glad that you're here.

Speaker 1: 17:53

But I've stumbled across an old song. It's a classic that has been remade and revived in one of my playlists. It's a Simon and Garfunkel song. You probably know it. It's called the Sound of Silence. I'm just new to it. This year is the first time I've heard it. I'm sorry, steve's gonna give me a beating later, but I was compelled to research this song because what is it about this song that keeps hitting me, like I'm literally at the gym and I'm getting hit by the, the message here and uh. And so, as I understand it in an interview the sound of silence.

Speaker 1: 18:41

Art, garfunkel's friend, one of his best friends in university, named Sanford, suddenly all of a sudden lost his vision and Garfunkel called himself darkness in a show of empathy to his friend. He was at a point of just giving up. He didn't want to continue school or anything, he was just alone in darkness. Uh, by himself gave up, and uh, and art comes to him and finds him and and begins to say remember all the things that we talked about, remember our commitment to each other, remember the plans that we had. And and he explained that I was saying that I want to be together where you are in the darkness. He would just come and say darkness is going to read to you now, and there's a line in the song that says hello, darkness, my old friend.

Speaker 1: 19:50

And and it's the song is all about restoring his vision. His vision is not limited to what we can see with our natural eyes. It's far deeper than that and this morning I feel like Papa wants to give us a deeper vision for his kingdom, for his heart, for his people, for each other. I mean, thank God we don't have to stay in darkness metaphorically, but that we can find him in there, in that pain, in the disappointment, that we can come out with a greater depth of appreciation and awareness and an intimacy with him than if we didn't. Only God can do that.

Speaker 1: 20:47

So many ask the question do we have to go through the pain? Do we have to have suffering? I don't know, I'm not smart enough to answer that, but life just happens and if you're still breathing you will have disappointment and pain. It's just part of life. But Father is so good, he uses everything to draw us closer to Him, and so Holy Spirit is releasing a new measure of hope for you, church, and that's what I want to say this morning is hope is an anchor, it's, it's faith. Is that evidence of things that we don't have to see? And it's like it's going to happen. I know it. Hope is something deeper. It's a foundation of trust, and just rest in him.

Speaker 2: 21:53

He's got that, he's going to cover it, and so in a moment we're going to take communion together, but I'm going to ask Rowena to come and share hey, family, it's a privilege to be with you guys this morning, just kind of processing, as I'm was sitting there listening to Carl and feel like Father just wants you to know how much he loves you guys. He really, really loves you. And this week, as I was, you know, just processing everything that's happened, I saw a picture I shared this with Katie yesterday but I saw a picture of Jen's prayer journal and, if any of you have ever noticed, jen was a note taker. She would spend hours with God and write meticulous notes, write down things that God was speaking to her. And I just saw this, this book, and it was full of little seeds, you know, just planted in there, and then I saw the Holy Spirit just beginning to let those seeds like open up and like you know, like when your kids bring home that bean from school in the plastic cup with a little piece of paper towel, keeping it wet, and you can like see it begin to sprout and the little roots go down, a little plant come up, and I just saw this like beauty coming out of her prayer journal, like all these seeds just starting to blossom, and I really believe that's a picture of you guys, it's a picture of the things that she faithfully, via the holy spirit, like the holy spirit through her, planted in each one of our hearts and that there is beauty coming out of your hearts.

Speaker 2: 23:49

And as we were worshiping and Lance was leading us, I saw a picture of just inside of our hearts. There was like a shell around certain areas, certain tender spots, and we had gone with our little pickaxe and we tried so hard to pick at this little shell, trying to break it open. And then God was just like, gently came, just like, touched us on the shoulder, took away our little tiny like pickaxe that we thought was really heavy and he just was like, you know, like a walnut. Have you ever like knocked a walnut right on the top and it just like splits right open. He was just like, and just like, split off this shell and let the tender parts of our hearts just be healed by his love.

Speaker 2: 24:33

And, um, yeah, so just encourage you all this morning that, uh, yeah, god is with us in every season. We know that. But there's a really special place, there's a a grace in this season to receive his love in in a way that that maybe we haven't known him in those places yet. We've known him, but in certain places in our hearts we haven't been able to, and it's maybe not for lack of trying, it's just, you know, we've been trying with our little pickaxe and God's like I just want to pop that open just gently for you and let you receive me.

Speaker 2: 25:11

So, um, I wrote down about a million verses and I've just been asking God which one, um, which one he wants me to read to you guys. But, uh, this is one of my favorites of all time, um, and I just feel like God has something for you guys in it. But it says do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall. But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. And just to encourage you, god wants to journey through us in every season and he's here in a special way for every one of us today. So love you all and just to encourage you.

Speaker 5: 26:12

God wants to journey through us in every season and he's here in a special way for every one of us today so love you all, I love what has been shared, that there's this beauty of the hope and in his presence, you know, he's opening up those places in our hearts. I just have been feeling this morning this sense of encouragement that we all like this season. What God's doing, we'll all go through it very differently, you know, and even this morning, in his presence, as he touches places in your heart, you might feel joy, unspeakable joy at what he's releasing. You might feel grief, you might feel a sadness or a comfort that you've never felt before and in that you can rejoice. And I just encourage you in the presence of family and it's so good to see faces that I haven't seen for a really long time and it's just so beautiful that this amazing woman that we're celebrating it just drew you all here Because it's family and that's what she cared about so deeply.

Speaker 5: 27:22

But in this place I just encourage you to feel what he's doing and it might be different. For some it's tears and grief, it's shock and it's processing, it's something. And for others it's like looking around here and going, wow, look what he's done through the years. So enter in fully, feel all the feels. That's why we're here, in his presence, that beautiful presence that makes it a safe place for those seats to open up. And as you leave this place, carry that with you. Let him do the fullness of what he started in the days and the weeks to come, whatever he starts here, in the presence of family, in the presence, in his presence.

Speaker 4: 28:32

Good morning everyone. There was a group of us and I'm sure there was lots of group that met on Saturday to pray for Jen, but there was also a group that came afterwards to pray for Jen and we got together on Zoom and we decided to go visit Jen in heaven. That might be weird for some of you, but for a lot of us, or some of us who have had heaven visits, it's lots of fun. And so one person saw Jen going to the park department and she was grabbing pieces. So all the prayers that she was praying for healing for you guys. She was grabbing the pieces from the part department and what I saw in the vision because you can enter into these visions together is a foot and all those who knew Jan that was the one thing she prayed for was for her foot to be healed Because she had places to go, people to meet and things to do Like she hated that, that hindered her and that. And then, as we considered to pray, continued to pray.

Speaker 4: 29:45

Another person got a vision of her with what looked like camping equipment. I saw a fishing pole and a sleeping bag and just pondered that and she had so many other things. Like I was surprised that she could carry it all, because it was hanging down and some of it and I was expecting it to drop. And then, as I pondered this, I thought, of course she's got a fishing pole. Anybody who knew Jen she was a fisher of men. If she could tell someone about Jesus, she told someone about Jesus. And then I pondered the sleeping bag that I saw and Jen's heart wanted to rest in God. And so these things weren't about her, they were about you guys, because that's what she was about. And I thought here she is with all this camping supplies and she wants to give someone here a fishing rod. Whoever feels led that way, someone's a place to rest in the Lord. And then I thought of more of her in heaven and I thought if anybody's joining an intercessory group with Jen, it's gonna be her with Jesus is gonna be Jen, and I can just see her going.

Speaker 4: 30:55

Lord, I'm sensing. You know she did it and she was, yeah, like having so much fun, and of course she's going to come from a place of knowing instead of sensing. But, brent, I want to honor you and Jan for what you have done for so many years in this church, like Amy was so little when she first came, and I know you guys personally and I want to honor that, even in the midst of all your struggles, that you guys were always here for the body of Christ. You guys were always available, and I just want to honor you and Jen in that, because we're very, very blessed to have you guys as our pastors. Yeah, and just one more thing when we were praying, we were praying with Greg and Angela this is also a legacy that has been left to us by our pastors is it doesn't matter where any of you go, you're always welcome back, you're always family and, yeah, anytime you want to come hang out, come hang out time you want to come hang out.

Speaker 1: 32:17

Come hang out. Ah, it's good before we go into communion. Um, maybe picking off a bit of what Catherine said. We know that I'm thinking of that verse. Uh, we no longer recognize each other according to the flesh, and how many of you know that? She sees things fully now, right, I mean, it all makes sense.

Speaker 1: 32:47

And as I think about that, you know, I feel like what would it look like if we all, all the time, saw each other according to the Spirit? And I'm like is that according to their spirit or the Holy Spirit, Both? But we don't see each other as we are. If you know what I mean humanly speaking, I mean the gifts and the callings and the treasures that are in each of you and each of us collectively. What would happen if we saw that every day, all the time? What would happen if our marriage was able to cultivate that? And our kids? Right that we would call that out of them? I don't recognize that. What I do recognize is this right. So maybe, Siobhan, you had some things to share along those lines, I know.

Speaker 6: 34:08

Before I share this, I just really sense the Holy Spirit, just saying you're blessed when you mourn because he's going to come into that place, right where you are, and bring his comfort and when you experience that it changes you, right like God said to Job, or Job said you know, I thought I knew you, but now I know you face to face, like there's this place of, of meeting, a meeting place you know, and I and I just believe that this has created just this appointment with the Holy Spirit.

Speaker 6: 34:46

And he's brooding over all of us and he's saying behold, I knock and if you open up, I'm going to come and I'm going to dine with you, I'm going to meet with you and have a feast, you know, in this place for you and me. And he's taking us all the way up to this high place where we get to start to see, from his perspective, things that don't make sense. But there's a promise that says you know, trust in me with all your heart and don't lean on your own understanding. It's okay to not understand, you know you can still trust in him. And there's that sharpening of just hearing that still small voice kind of start to nudge you.

Speaker 6: 35:49

And I was reading this this morning. It's a paraphrase of Hebrews 4, 12 and it said soul realm sources its wisdom from information gathered and interpreted through our senses, our emotions. You know what we see, what we understand, familiar avenues of our cultural, historical or personal references. But there is another source, supreme and most significant, when your ears begin to hear the whisper, the spirit to spirit resonance and the logic of a thought incarnate inside of you and knowing that you are known entirely Even before time, was that you're loved unconditionally and very intentionally. And this understanding cuts like a two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, ending the dominance of the self realm, neutralizing its effect upon our human spirit, what we understand, and in this way our spirit's free from the ruling influence and the thoughts, our spirit's free to become the ruling influence again and the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Speaker 6: 37:17

And Jen was such a pursuer of the spirit and that still small voice. And he's speaking now and he's brooding now and you may not know this, but it's actually. We're entering into a pentecost and it was like the heavens are open and everything you need from god is available through his holy spirit and I just believe that he's going to you know, even as we enter into communion I think Carl's going to give some direction for that, but there's this place of just communing with him. You know, we remember, right, and we're part of this great cloud of witnesses that Jen's a part of now, and the veil gets thinner and thinner, you know, when you know people that have gone to the other side and they're still here, right, and so all of us are partakers of what Jesus has done, and Jen was so passionate someone told me she took communion every day.

Speaker 6: 38:27

Peggy, I think she said Jen took communion every day and it's a place of communing with right. And so, again, holy Spirit is knocking on each of our hearts right now, and so I just encourage you to open the door, you to the rooms of your heart that maybe have felt pain or sorrow, or anger or just I don't know anymore. You know, and just allow him to come in and pitch his tent, you know, and all his love, father, son and spirit, and just eat with them of him.

Speaker 1: 39:19

You will be satisfied so so we have a table prepared at the back and father says I have a table prepared for you yet another example of how the most seems like the most powerful worship songs come out of such pain and wrestling through.

Speaker 1: 39:57

But it is well with our soul. Yeah, and it's a declaration as well. Declaration as well. The night that he gave himself up, he met with the disciples and did this together and said to continue to do this in remembrance of me. He said in his last prayer in John 17, you know, we get a glimpse of it in the garden and he's. His prayer was that we would be one. I believe Jesus' prayers are answered and he has given us everything we need to enter into that oneness, that common union. And I know that it's been said that unity is the manifestation of humility, it's the fruit of it, and as we see each other, as he sees us and we, we enter into that. Together we come and we're, we're literally family, brothers and sisters, all equal, and I love that verse. And you know, in hebrews 12, of this great cloud of witnesses Gloria, you shared it on the Zoom. It's not just up there, we're surrounded by them and it is like a baton race when they don't just leave after they ran the first lap and go have a shower. They are very engaged until the race is done, actively cheering us on, waiting to receive their prize as we finish and finish. Well, yeah, so let's take this.

Speaker 1: 42:18

Jesus took the bread that night. This was a common practice meal that they do every year Passover. It meant something to them every time and he just fulfills it. He says that which you've been doing all this time always pointed to me this is my body that is going to be broken for you. And so we remember all that he's done, that this represents healing, this represents sacrifice, brokenness, and that we get to be broken vessels as well. So let's take that and remember. And then he took the cup again, which was a representation of the lamb that was being spread over the doorposts. Every time they had this supper, they remembered salvation, we were saved, and he says this actually is my blood for you. If you can enter into it, it's all there for you, not just on the other side, but now, right here. But now, right here. The kingdom of heaven was for here and now, and it permeates everywhere it goes. It's permeating into our hearts right now.

Speaker 6: 44:40

So we take this cup and we remember this is Jesus' blood for us. Another name for Jesus Prince of Peace. I just sense him saying my peace I give you in the midst of this. So, father, I just declare your peace over each and every person here, god, a peace that passes all understanding. So, father, pour out, lord. Pour out Jesus. Pour out your peace, lord, god. Every anxiety, every fear, every pain, god, we just declare peace to those places. We thank you, jesus. You said you'd never leave us, you'd never forsake us. You're with us always, god, whether we see it or not, you're always with us. So I just pray that you'd open the eyes of our heart to see you right here with us as we go into the week and as we go into the rest of the day and as we go into the years. We thank you, god, for the gift of each day full of you, full of peace.

Speaker 1: 46:08

Would you stand together? We're going to sing one more song, worship. Would you stand together? We're going to sing one more song worship and just allow the Holy Spirit to continue to go deep. Father, we keep our eyes on you. Thank you that you say you never leave us or forsake us. We just love you. We open our hearts and we just want more of you. Just thank you that you're pouring in. It's that deep well that never runs dry, where you said if you knew who I was to the woman at the well and I thank you for the springs of life that just continue to flow. It's not by works or effort. We rest. We rest in you. Our soul chooses to rest and be anchored in hope. So thank you for what you're doing here. Yeah, it's good you may be seated. We uh, we're so blessed that the family's here and we said no pressure. But I'm glad, Brent, you came up and you just really wanted to address us and say something and I would invite you to come now and we would love to hear.

Speaker 3: 48:18

Careful careful.

Speaker 3: 48:23

This is going to be a short word. How many believe that? Hey, cloud of witnesses, I know you're there. I get the last word today. For those of us who have gathered here over these last. You know it's so funny.

Speaker 3: 48:46

All day this week I got the text that the council was going to put something together and you don't have to come, come whatever. And I had. Well, I don't even know, I don't even think I made my mind up until yesterday and I'm so glad I did, because I heard of some people that were coming and driving distances. And for those who asked me on the way in, you know, is this the celebration of life? No, that's friday the 28th and city pastors have wanted to know about it, and people from overseas and different things like that, and so I can't even tell you how many texts and well-being things that have come in and it's just impossible to respond to them all and I haven't been on Facebook for so long and all of a sudden that's blowing up for people who don't know my text number or anything. But first I want to say I'm so glad I'm here and we're glad we're here, even though we're feeling the pain, as you know it's. It was a shock. I I do know. I just got a three short things one.

Speaker 3: 49:58

A few weeks back or a while ago, we hosted a conference in near Vancouver, near Langley, and there was I don't know what 250, 60 people from around the world that came, and one one of the speakers was, you know, going through palliative chemo and they were talking about how precious the Lord had become to them in that moment, knowing in a sense that his days are numbered. But it doesn't bother him because he knows he has hope. It's that first. Thessalonians, four verse, where, you know, encourage them to grieve with hope, not like how the world grieves. And the hope isn't just some fake thing. The day is going to be better tomorrow. The hope is this bigger picture. The joy set before christ he endured the cross. What's the joy set before Christ endured the cross? What's the joy and, as Carl was sharing, it's just the joy is that cloud of witnesses is cheering us on because of their lives we're living off for, shoulders after shoulders after shoulders, and most people in this room would know there are just volumes of things. So much has happened in this week that I look forward to sharing part of that down the road. As to the assurances of what's going on.

Speaker 3: 51:18

Most of you know I would stand up and say almost half my life I spent as agnostic and atheist and tried to disprove God. And I was challenged by a very bright Cambridge professor who had had the shift and he happened to be in a little town of Fox Creek and said you know, why don't you basically try and disprove God? And I thought that would be easy. Every university in the world I didn't know it, had anything to do with the heart. I thought it was about head knowledge, I thought it was all about science, I thought it was, and of course, it took three and a half years because this heart's a bit stiff and didn't get nurtured the way Jen nurtured her kids and nurtured many of you and me.

Speaker 3: 52:05

I think I'm her first and most important prayer topic. I think I'm her first and most important prayer topic and it's working. It's working and I can't begin to tell you, as this guest speaker in Vancouver unpacked it, how much they began hearing since that time. And for me this week has been. You know, I get to bed, go to bed quite late Well, try to fall asleep and the presence is incredible. I know why Jen asked me, asked to send out certain things that you know, cara, you were quoting for some sort of speak, for some of it today, and it's not because she believes so much in the presence. He lives here for those who said I surrender, and it's the last prayer of Jesus, and say in love, you've loved me. Now let it be in them, as I will continue to reveal myself to them and I will be in them. And I've realized in this time there's just such a quietness where he's coming and things are happening. I can't even explain it it, but it's in a way that's just incredible. The joy set before Jesus and us is this my little cup cracked. I thought, well, that's how blood is spilled. And I just first wanted to say thank you for your prayers, your encouragements, everything that's going on. It's going to take some time. Some incredible people from around the world that have been down this road a few years ago, whichever, have been sending me specific insights and they've been just so good. But it's like don't rush it, don't put it in a box. Know, everyone in this room, including our family members, including our grandkids, are going to go through this different.

Speaker 3: 53:59

I loved it when my son and daughter, you know, dustin and Katie and Andrea and Matt told the oldest grandkids and they I think I'm going to quote real now, where she, uh, you guys, sat her down and she said, hey, mom, dad, what, what's wrong with your face, like, look, you've been crying, what's wrong? What happened? And you told her and she, she said she's with jesus, she's so happy, she's with Jesus, she's so happy. And and I and Bella same way. And they came over yesterday and they came into the house, bella and Jack, and I could tell they were looking for Nana.

Speaker 3: 54:41

I was a bit hard and then Bella and I went out and cut lilacs that Jen's favorite. If you've seen her backyard, it's been turned into a forest and all her hand, all her doing. And we started cutting these and I said, oh, nana would love to give these to people. So she started running in and giving it to everybody and she goes. But so, papa, well, how do you know that Nana would love that? Did she just talk to you? And I said well, you know how your brother, jack, how he loves dinosaurs. You know he loves dinosaurs, right? So if you gave him a dinosaur, you just know he'd like another one. And I just know enough about her and I know the legacy that she's deposited is beyond me. She was the best and is the best thing that's ever happened in my life, and so there's a lot of processing to go, but I feel there's a lot that's going to come out.

Speaker 3: 55:39

The joy set before us, that, the hope that it talks about in thessalonians, all through faith, hope and love. The hope is there's nothing hopeless. The hope is why was Jesus for the joy? The joy is some people have seen pictures of her chatting with Jesus and they're having the greatest theological conversations known to man. It's he, because he is true theology. He is it. And I just go tell me that 30 years ago I would have, like 20 years ago, I'm getting there. It's a journey.

Speaker 3: 56:15

When I walked in here I thought would I be allowed to stand up at the first second and just do what I always did for those years was because I didn't grow up in the church and and I remember as people started coming and that science theater started getting filled with people and I'd say you didn't come to church. You know, you are it. It's just a word that describes family, it describes Ecclesia, and so if you're here and you don't know what he's really like and you've only heard the tales that one song is about and what he's really like and you know, oh, it's so different. This is actually a family reunion really like and you know, oh, it's so different. This is actually a family reunion.

Speaker 3: 56:55

Glenda duboninski, when they started coming, she asked me a question and she said something about it and I said, uh, and braden is not here today, but he reminded me of a couple years ago. He said you remember what you told me when you met me in 2016. I said what he said um, take a look around. I'm not sure how many people are going to be able to make the turn, and we've talked about that a lot. The turn is basically going further and further into him and what he has for us, and I just Glenda reminds me all the time. One day she says I just Glenda reminds me all the time. One day she says you remember when you told me you'll know when this community, when we have actually completed, if you will, the Great Commission, no one will show up Because they're going to be doing exactly what they're supposed to be doing as a son or daughter.

Speaker 3: 57:49

It doesn't say that family doesn't gather how many of you have left your homes and you're not with your parents all the time, but you still celebrate, and so it's always been my premise and so many city pastors are calling because John Hutchinson and Aunt Olive and all the history has always been about unity. I could never figure out my 13 years in the corporate world why it seemed like the corporate world had more unity than the church did, and it's because it was a lack of love. We had theology, we had knowledge, but it's here and all the things that have been said today, this pain, this hurt. I know there's people in this room that have gone through more than I have, or us your own versions, and you know, in there you can take a dark turn, it can take a while to come through, but count it all joy when you experience these trials and tribulations. Why? Well, it produces endurance. Well, why do you need endurance? Because you have purpose. There is a reason for us here on this planet. Our hope lies out in the future. Is that true? If we're not sure, we'll be fearful and controlled, but if our hearts get to see what this is all about, we'll live without restraint. And Jen was breaking out and has broken out and has always. Our hearts get to see what this is all about. We'll live without restraint, and Jen was breaking out and has broken out and has always been ahead of me in this. And there's so many neat things I'd love to share with you, but that's for another time, maybe in two weeks, maybe whenever. But I just wanted to encourage you and thank you. We feel it. I know this is not something to go through alone.

Speaker 3: 59:32

I could pick names out of this room and all these memories are flashing by and I'm going. I think Peter Bubik, who's over in Czechoslovakia now. He'd come down to my office downtown at 6 am. We'd meet every Friday one of these engineers and I was over all these engineers and they said how did you come to faith? Because it doesn't make logical sense. And we had these long conversations and I remember the. I remember his shift and he went all in and he come over and he said I'm going to help plant trees for Jen and she would say put it over there there and you dig a hole for an hour. No, over there. And I'm like, no, he's just a student, he's got work to do, he's got exams to and he'd go dig another hole. I think that tree moved three times and that tree now is about 50 feet high and and I just go, how many people I knew in this room have been. I said, can we get a really big kitchen, because I never had family growing up? Can we just have the open door policy? She goes well, no, there's going to be some guidelines here and there's only so many chairs around the table.

Speaker 3: 1:00:44

And one of the things for me this week has been the invitations to go walking or talking or to connect are beyond all. This wonderful family Jen's sister, jane and John and brother just flew out last night Tim was here, laura. I have found myself in the middle of a family now, with kids, siblings and a bunch of grandchildren six of them and I love the screaming because I grew up with me and that was it and I'm going, oh my gosh. And then, for most of you who know me know that this is not a career for me, this is not a go-to-church thing, this is not a hope-you-believe-the-right-thing, it's family and we're all in different phases of it, of our understanding and growth. And it's funny for me, who grew up without anybody in my life, I didn't think I needed anybody.

Speaker 3: 1:01:47

And what does God do? He says we're going to draw you out of the corporate world and put you in front of are you kidding, I don't know how to do this John Hutch crying, we're all crying. One day and he said God's told us to come here and you're to be our pastor. I said, john, that makes no sense. You read Rabbi Zacharist to Christ, mother Teresa, blah, blah, blah. It goes on and I was thinking it was about knowledge and capacity and competency. And through their tears they just said, smiling, brad, he doesn't want someone who knows what they're doing, he doesn't want someone who knows what they're doing. That's taken me 25 years to fully start to see. As much as knowledge is great, it's about the heart it really is, and the only way that works is in connection with people and all that stuff. I'll leave with this.

Speaker 3: 1:02:46

Everybody's here except you-know-who Amy Jen's last picture and she loved pictures, a lot of selfies on my phone that she made me take. And if you come to the Celebration of Life, you're going to see not so much pictures but hopefully the video clips of her vibrance and all these things going down the rivers and stuff. But the last picture that I know that was taken was a week ago, wednesday, and Amy was receiving her blood transfusion with new stem cells from an anonymous donor A 10 out of 10 match that would allow her to be born again, basically. And Jen and others said it's a miracle, it's what we've been waiting for for a few years now. And I remember I asked him you're gonna, what do you want to say about this? And he's I've got this. I said okay. When it came back, I said okay. You said you got this. I don't push for anything more. But he said I do, but I haven't told you how okay.

Speaker 3: 1:03:52

The next time it was like this one's how do we get through this? I had to get my car and drive ended up on the top of Mount Norquay crying out to God this is your precious baby girl that you can't fix, you can't do it yourself. And he says he whispers at this time he says we've got this and it's taken me since that time process of understanding. The we is this. The we is outside this room. The we is the cloud of witnesses, the we is the trinity, if you will, plus. They don't exist without us. They love one another. We're in.

Speaker 3: 1:04:31

And so we all got kind of interesting news that she was going to be released early, and so she was released after three and a half weeks, instead of four or five weeks that it takes, and so she's at home resting right now. She's pretty having to recover. It's going to take a long time for her to get all her strength back and things like that, and I just would ask you to pray for her in this. She doesn't get to do this right now and she was right there at the hospital when it all went down and I just feel for my kids. It's a shock. It's a shock, but all these songs are true. I give my soul, I let it out, I go for it. So I know there's a lot to process and I invite you to join in to the journey and I know I'm going to have this interesting time.

Speaker 3: 1:05:31

As everybody heads back to their homes, john and Jane have cleaned my clothes, by the way Jen would have. She made me wear these. She bought these for me because she said you've lost weight and the other ones are too baggy, and I said, yeah, but they're tight. You know I'm used to baggy now and she goes yeah, but you have to wear that belt all cinched up. And so I told Jane today. I said I've got to wear them and I know her favorite color was kind of purplish. Our front door in our house would be that color if I had let her. Everything else is her. But no, no, the door. We're not going to do that one yet. The door. We're not going to do that with you. But I thank you and um, I've had phone calls from so many leaders around the world shenonke in africa, jim lefoon, for know him, live and praying, and rice brooks, and others, um, james and east jordan, etc.

Speaker 3: 1:06:22

Etc. And they all have this similar theme the older they are and the more they're close to understanding what we're talking about, this hope, the more they encourage us as a community and myself, that in the same way you're being comforted, you will comfort others. We all will have things to go through and this morning I'm just going to read one verse John 16, 33,. Jesus is speaking and we all know Jesus actually did the verbal. But what he said, I only say what I hear the Father say. Everything I've taught you has Jesus taught you anything? Everything I've taught you Is so that the peace which is in me Will be in you and will give you a great confidence as you rest in me. For in this unbelieving world you will experience trouble and sorrows, but you must be courageous, for I have conquered the world and in that hope the joy is flowing and it's just so hard to explain it all. But it's incredible Heart, heart. But it's amazing what I've been reading from people and these people are encouraging us and I know there's many people in this room have been there.

Speaker 3: 1:08:00

I think I don't know if verna has where you are, she's gone but in the icu, when we had our, when we had our last minutes with mom, it was the same room that I went in and we prayed for Verna, and the same one in ICU and I was like all these little things happening. These are sound, really, but this butterfly flew past the window two days ago and I've never seen a butterfly in our backyard like this and it went by. It was one of those things and then was it a bunch of others. The next morning you guys saw another one or the same one and I thought these things are not our senses. Pick up on it, as was said today, and so be very tender. Let him show you things and I will be available in the weeks to come to answer the hardest of the questions, as from what I know.

Speaker 3: 1:09:02

But don't get caught up in why and how comes. God is not at liberty to have to tell you. Don't make it up, don't let your theology come down to your experience. Let him draw you into who he is. His ways and his thoughts are beyond us.

Speaker 3: 1:09:22

And in that that's where Jen had gone to and I can remember when I didn't know she'd said this, but every minute she was in perfect health, except for her foot had it fused, and so that's been her biggest can't ski, can't skate that well can't. Can't. Run, can't. Oh. And as she grew in these last, since that time she's met people who've had metal leave their body and all that kind of stuff. And and I'm like a bit cynical about it, like until I meet them, you know, and she goes, but I know he can heal, I know, and I know, when she told Amy, that the first thing I'm going to do when I'm healed, when my foot's healed, is run. And if you read the email that you guys passed on, you have to realize the person who wrote it had no idea that Jen liked running and swimming and no idea.

Speaker 3: 1:10:21

And so there's this comfort that's coming, and I'd love to share it with any of you to know, regardless of what your face like, it could be like mine 30 years ago well, 40 years now, 42 years ago that I didn't believe. And uh, so with Amy her last picture that I know of was her in the hospital room with Amy Sunny. Her husband is sitting there. She'd been going in every day for all that time and now it's time for the blood transfusion. It's now time for the spilling of someone else's blood. Who sacrificed their blood? It had the right match that will go into her and restart a new immune system. And we're like, wow, this is too close to the truth. And she's so. She said I don't know who she got to take the picture, but she got behind Amy. Amy's in the bed in the hospital and Sonny's there and here she's beaming over the top. And I thought I know right now that I currently have and our family has. I know right now that I currently have and our family has. You know, we know that we're going to nurture her. Her getting out early would have been a dream to Jen and she would have been there daily doing her thing, and so I just thank you for your prayers and I thank you for being here.

Speaker 3: 1:11:46

This is how you process, this is how I process, and the thing I avoid the most was people, typically until I'm with them and then I'll talk you off Until you tell me to stop. I tell all my friends you can stop, you just go. Like this, rice Brooks and others say, okay, brent, I need to process. Okay, keep going. And there's people in this room who told me oh, there's a name for what you have, brian, it's called expanded memory. I just did it a number of times. I tell you to a certain point, go there. And then I go, oh, yeah, over there, and then I go there. So if any stories are not completed for you, come and tell me and I will complete them. So thank you so much. I know our family and hopefully we'll see you in a few weeks and hear some of the story of her whole life. So, bless you.

Speaker 5: 1:12:35

Thank you.

Speaker 1: 1:12:40

We love you. February 28th, I think it's. I was just testing you to see if you were listening From one till three. Right, which church is that? Okay, bow Valley, awesome, we'll send it out. But awesome, I don't know about you, but I heard he likes to have children around, so parents just go ahead and drop your kids off, and he loved that. So, um, can we do one more thing? One last thing. This is kind of the the pinnacle. We want to. We want to stand up and sing the blessing over this precious family. So would you stand with me as we do that together?