consider this a sign.

the ice cream truck drove down our street today.
spring is coming...

all good things must come to an end.

on wednesday this past week we had the last bible study with Korean Christian Fellowship for the year. i have really enjoyed being able to be with them every week, getting to know them better and seeing the trust build between us. they have so many fantastic leaders who just desire so greatly to follow Jesus and have their lives changed by them. i always feel very welcomed by their community and we are able to do some great studies because there is a huge openness in the room to learn.
over the month of march, we met weekly to study stories from Luke about encounters with Jesus during the early stages of his ministry. i always get blown away by the experience students have with Jesus as they study the encounters others have had with him. it impacts them in a way that they continue to find ways to encounter Jesus outside of the scriptures, as He acts on our campus.
i also enjoy how the group claps at the end of every study. makes me smile every time...

winter newsletter

to read my latest newsletter, please click on the image to enlarge it (** note that none of the links will work. for more info about the city/script scholarship fund, please look at the previous post)

city/script 08!

It is time again for the Ontario wide annual conference called city/script.

At city/script students will live together in Toronto, study the half of the gospel of Mark, and be exposed to issues of urban poverty. It is amazing to see what God does in the lives of students when they spend close to 8 hours a day studying the Bible and living in community. It is challenging to be exposed to the reality of urban poverty in Toronto by different ministries downtown. It is awesome to witness God transform the lives of students and staff by speaking into their lives, healing their brokenness, and challenging them to take risks for the gospel. It is hard to express how beautiful it was to see what God did last year at city/script.

Because of what God has done in the past we as staff have committed to getting as many of our students as we can to come to city/script this year. The conference is expensive, however, (it costs $460/student) and many students are not able to afford the full cost of the week. Hence, as staff, we have created a scholarship fund to help subsidize the cost for students who cannot afford to go.

How to partner with us

It is our hope that our supporters would join with us in sending students to city/script this year. We have been training students to fundraise for this event and have also set a goal to have 40 people give a gift of $25, $50, $100 or more in order to build a scholarship fund. We think this is a great opportunity for our partners in ministry, because it offers you the chance to invest directly in the life of a student. In addition, the McMaster community will also benefit tremendously because of the difference it makes in the lives of our students and the impact that will have on the campus.

If you are interested in being a part of this special opportunity, there are two ways you can give.

ONLINE:
You can make a donation online with your credit card

1. go to: www.ivcf.ca and choose the donor option. (or click here)
2. click on 'Make a Donation'
3. enter 'city script' in the search box
4. click on the result 'City/Script Bursaries'
5. follow the donation steps to the last step
6. on the last step there is a box for 'special instructions' - write in McMaster VCF

MAIL:

If you would rather mail in a donation, please e-mail me and I will happily send you information and a postage-paid gift envelope.

Thank you for your partnership and prayers for city/script 08!

february is short.

february is a hard month for campus ministry. its a short month full of the blahs, reading week sends us all different directions and stress levels are high. i know for myself, my weekly routine was majorly disrupted by sickness, training and being away and i am only now feeling back in the swing of things.
i can not wait for warm weather. hamilton, in particular, is known for its overcast winter and i am just longing for some sunny days again. this is bittersweet, however, because with the warmer weather of summer comes a break in direct student ministry as classes are on hold for most until the fall. the focus of the next two months in the university world is solely on ending the semester.
even in our community, we are starting to focus on selecting leaders for the 2008-2009 school year, planning for city/script during the first week of may and students are busy trying to figure out their summer plans. in all of this, however, i do not want to miss out on the opportunities of the moment. there are still two good months of ministry to do this year, lots of great things happening in our small groups, great partnerships building between MAC VCF and MAC KCF (Korean christian fellowship) and with many relationships with non-believers on campus.
please pray that we (and me in particular) will have the right balance between the present and the future, living in the moment but also planning for the future. please pray also as we select leaders for the coming year, for a bible study series happening with KCF through march, that many students will register for city/script (check out the trailer below) and for peace on our campus as some tensions are running high between a few student clubs at the moment.