This weekend close to 200 RCA and CRC members gathered together in Toronto to learn about Adaptive Leadership, to receive support and resources, to worship, to pray, to fellowship, celebrate communion together, and to encourage one another in ministry. ‘Navigating Change Together’ was a Regional Synod of Canada (RCA) event, also visited by many CRC brothers and sisters.
We had a wonderful time together! Our keynote speaker was Tod Bolsinger, author of Canoeing the Mountains and expert on adaptive change. One of the things Tod taught us was that, while change is often healthy and exciting, it almost always also involves loss.
Canadians are no strangers to loss lately. As our CRC colleague, Darren Roorda, writes, “April has been a sad month for Canada.” On April 6, a bus carrying 23 junior hockey players, their coaches, and trainers collided with a semi-truck leaving 16 people dead and 13 injured. We were holding that reality in our hearts this weekend even as we enjoyed one another’s company and raised our hearts in worship together.
Then on Monday, a man rented a van and drove it up onto the sidewalk in the Yonge and Finch neighbourhood of Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 15. Our regional synod board was still at the hotel in Toronto, in the middle of AGM meetings. One of our friends, who had stayed Monday to take a tour of Toronto, texted us to tell us she was ok. Other friends called and emailed to ask if we, or anyone else from the leadership event, had been impacted by the tragedy. Expressions of shock and sympathy began to roll in. Our board stopped our meetings to pray.
In times like these, how are we as Christians to respond? Sometimes we feel immobilized by shock and sadness. It feels jarring and confusing for us to be celebrating one moment and lamenting the next. I believe this month in Canada we have been reminded of the “already/not-yet” quality of the kingdom of God. It seems to be how the gospel is experienced in the midst of the human condition, isn’t it? That we can simultaneously taste heaven and feel the pain of earth.
We were reminded of this when the RCA and CRC celebrated communion together this weekend, and we spoke aloud: “Christ has died! Christ is risen! Christ will come again!”
We heard it in our final sermon by Betsy DeVries, who preached from 1 Corinthians 15 (where, O death is your victory?), and exhorted us in light of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, to stand firm. “Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
We saw it in the collaborative artwork that was produced this weekend by Flo Dekker, incorporating delegates’ written perceptions of the past, present, and future. Flo and her assistants created an image from the book of Revelation, with a river of life flowing from the Tree of Life to another tree, which symbolized the country of Canada. This image of the kingdom reminds us that the life of Christ is truly sustaining us in the present moment, even though we yearn for the day when God’s kingdom will fully come, every tear will be wiped away, and we will gather around the throne of God under the shade of the Tree of Life, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations.
As we wrestle with the pain and loss of this past month in Canada, let us, as followers of Christ, live in the tension of the “already/not-yet.” Let us turn to the Lord in prayer and pour out our honest questions. Let us search the scriptures for answers and for hope. Let us remember that the one who raised Jesus from the dead is at work in the world to transform death into life. Let us give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord, and all the more as we see The Day approaching.
We had a wonderful time together! Our keynote speaker was Tod Bolsinger, author of Canoeing the Mountains and expert on adaptive change. One of the things Tod taught us was that, while change is often healthy and exciting, it almost always also involves loss.
Canadians are no strangers to loss lately. As our CRC colleague, Darren Roorda, writes, “April has been a sad month for Canada.” On April 6, a bus carrying 23 junior hockey players, their coaches, and trainers collided with a semi-truck leaving 16 people dead and 13 injured. We were holding that reality in our hearts this weekend even as we enjoyed one another’s company and raised our hearts in worship together.
Then on Monday, a man rented a van and drove it up onto the sidewalk in the Yonge and Finch neighbourhood of Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 15. Our regional synod board was still at the hotel in Toronto, in the middle of AGM meetings. One of our friends, who had stayed Monday to take a tour of Toronto, texted us to tell us she was ok. Other friends called and emailed to ask if we, or anyone else from the leadership event, had been impacted by the tragedy. Expressions of shock and sympathy began to roll in. Our board stopped our meetings to pray.
In times like these, how are we as Christians to respond? Sometimes we feel immobilized by shock and sadness. It feels jarring and confusing for us to be celebrating one moment and lamenting the next. I believe this month in Canada we have been reminded of the “already/not-yet” quality of the kingdom of God. It seems to be how the gospel is experienced in the midst of the human condition, isn’t it? That we can simultaneously taste heaven and feel the pain of earth.
We were reminded of this when the RCA and CRC celebrated communion together this weekend, and we spoke aloud: “Christ has died! Christ is risen! Christ will come again!”
We heard it in our final sermon by Betsy DeVries, who preached from 1 Corinthians 15 (where, O death is your victory?), and exhorted us in light of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, to stand firm. “Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
We saw it in the collaborative artwork that was produced this weekend by Flo Dekker, incorporating delegates’ written perceptions of the past, present, and future. Flo and her assistants created an image from the book of Revelation, with a river of life flowing from the Tree of Life to another tree, which symbolized the country of Canada. This image of the kingdom reminds us that the life of Christ is truly sustaining us in the present moment, even though we yearn for the day when God’s kingdom will fully come, every tear will be wiped away, and we will gather around the throne of God under the shade of the Tree of Life, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations.
As we wrestle with the pain and loss of this past month in Canada, let us, as followers of Christ, live in the tension of the “already/not-yet.” Let us turn to the Lord in prayer and pour out our honest questions. Let us search the scriptures for answers and for hope. Let us remember that the one who raised Jesus from the dead is at work in the world to transform death into life. Let us give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord, and all the more as we see The Day approaching.
A STATEMENT FROM THE REGIONAL SYNOD OF CANADA
The Regional Synod of Canada joins with Christians across Canada and the world, who lament the tragic event in Toronto on Monday, April 23. We express deepest sympathies and condolences to the families and friends of the 10 people killed when a van drove onto the sidewalk and struck pedestrians in the Yonge and Finch neighbourhood of Toronto. We join in prayer for the families of those who were killed, as well as for the 15 people who were injured. We ask all RCA members to pray for those whose lives have been forever changed as they grieve the loss of loved ones and care for the injured. Please also pray for first responders, medical teams, and police officers. |
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