You can now view the latest issue of LivingStones online. Click the link below and enjoy!
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There are a few new pastors in Elgin County… a big welcome to you and thank you for your investment in our community.
Pastor Len Hjalmarson is one of the recent arrivals. He moved with his wife Betty from the West coast to step into the role of lead pastor at the Aylmer EMMC. Pastor Len is a prolific reader/blogger and has authored a few books. He posted this quote on his blog, http://nextreformation.com a few days ago and it’s been rattling around in my brain.
“How is it possible that the gospel should be credible, that people should come to believe that the power which has the last word in human affairs is represented by a man hanging on a cross? I am suggesting that the only answer, the only hermeneutic of the gospel, is a congregation of men and women who believe it and live it.” (Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, 227.)
Newbigin is right, of course. There are few things more compelling and powerful than a group of people who believes and lives out the Gospel. It comes down to individuals, though - you and me – living what we say we believe. The question that immediately comes up is, “To what extent do I do that?”
It only takes a tiny bit of self-reflection to realize a gap exists. It’s a pretty big gap. The longer I’m on this journey of faith, the more I am aware of the gap. It’s only by the grace and mercy of God, by the forgiveness, reconciliation & restoration obtained by the man on the cross, that I’m able to continue on the journey – safely and gratefully belonging to Him while stumbling along, making attempts to narrow the gap.
Phil Yancey says this: “Grace does not depend on what we have done for God but rather what God has done for us. Ask people what they must do to get to heaven and most reply, “Be good.” Jesus’ stories contradict that answer. All we must do is cry, “Help!” (Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace? pg 55.)
This seems to be my only prayer so often: “Help!”
I’ve come to the conclusion there is a great deal to be said for knowing who to thank and who to cry out to help for.
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The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:
The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.
A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 2,600 times in 2010. That’s about 6 full 747s.
In 2010, there were 17 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 21 posts. There were 25 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 15mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.
The busiest day of the year was January 13th with 50 views. The most popular post that day was Contact Us.
The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, mail.live.com, studentloansinterest.org, tips-tools-tutorials.com, and statistics.bestproceed.com.
Some visitors came searching, mostly for living stones magazine, livingstones magazine, andre reda, grace punnoose, and navapur convention.
These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.
Contact Us November 2009
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Our Sponsors November 2009
Where to Find LivingStones November 2009
Meet the LivingStones Team November 2009
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Community Calendar November 2009
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The Winter issue of LivingStones is nearly complete and we’re particularly excited about this issue as we’ve finally made the leap to printing in full colour! We’re also excited about having a very talented husband & wife, Shayne & Shelley Wyler, joining us as our graphic design team.
Here are some previews of what’s in our first full-colour issue.
Why am I Here? What am I here for? What is the purpose of my life? These are the questions that drove Shayne Wyler for most of his life. And now, Shayne, a former Hollywood actor, devotes himself to helping others answer those questions for themselves.
Becoming Her Father’s Daughter ~ MariaBack 
Maria Back radiates joy and needs little encouragement to talk about the radical love her Heavenly Father has poured into her life. But, she wasn’t always this way. She struggled with depression for many years, but was delivered in a single moment when she finally understood an important truth.
Destination Church: Where will the journey take you?
As the selected pastor for a new church plant in St. Thomas, Beth Fellinger has been busy and productive. The church, which will decide on a meeting place in the new year, has already been reaching out and sharing the Gospel and recently celebrated its first baptism of a new believer. Beth says, “Destination Church is in early stages of developing its DNA but it has a heart and hope to be a place of positive influence that will add value to its larger community through the love and grace of Jesus Christ.”
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In years past, the Gospel Lighthouse has served as the depot for Operation Christmas Child, but for the good reason of running out of space in the store, the Salvation Army church has taken up the task. Operation Christmas Child 2010 will be kicked off at the Salvation Army Church on October 7th at 7 pm with Dan Noble. Dan is the regional manager of Operation Christmas Child in our area; he will be there to talk about the shoe boxes and fill us in on where they actually go. Refreshments will be served and, of course, this is your chance to grab one (or more) shoeboxes to fill!
National collection week is November 15-22nd. In Elgin County, boxes can be dropped off at the Salvation Army Church November 15-20, 9 am to 3 pm. You can contact Sandy Kellestine at 519 633 6431 or the church at 519 631 6202 for more informaton.
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The award winner production “Meaning of Christmas” written by Matthew Marshall and produced by m & s Marshall productions will be returning for an encore run during November 2010. Since its premiere in a four show run in Port Stanley and St. Thomas during December 2008, the production of “Meaning of Christmas” has been recorded and released on DVD and has won four 2009 Christian Drama awards. The production was nominated for, and won, Best Production, Best Director (Matthew Marshall), Best Actress (Karlee Dowell) and Best Actor (Alan Legg).
Shows for the encore performance run will take place in London , St. Thomas , Port Stanley and Aylmer . Look for further updates in the near future. For further information dealing with the production contact Matthew Marshall @ 519-782-3971 or msmarshall@sympatico.ca
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LivingStones Magazine is seeking a graphic designer for layout, ads, promotional flyers, brochures, etc. This is a part-time position (20-30 hrs per issue) but will increase over the next year as the ministry expands. The designer will work with the editor, advertisers and print shop to produce a quarterly publication. Qualifications: follower of Christ, knowledge and experience with Adobe design and publishing programs, creative and able to work independently; must be able to meet deadlines!!
Apply to livingstonesmagazine@rogers.com.
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The fall issue of LivingStones Magazine will be available September 11th. It is filled with great stories about God intersecting lives and articles to encourage you in your walk of faith. Here are some sneak previews.
Worship Service and High Valley Concert to Kick Off 2010 International Plowing Match//
For the past 10 years, the kick-off to the IPM has been an ecumenical worship service, and this year will not be an exception. Pastors Don and Diane Macpherson, clergy of the United churches in Yarmouth, Talbotville and Dutton, have taken on the task of co-chairing the planning committee for the worship service… A bonus to this year’s worship service is an evening concert with High Valley, an up and coming country band from Alberta. This trio of three brothers, described as a “diamond in the rough” in the Canadian and American country music scene, has opened for the likes of Doc Walker, Paul Brandt and Michael W. Smith.
Parenting Teens Today by Andre Reda, Director of Youth For Christ in Elgin//
Because of my vocation of working with youth, I have been asked this heart-wrenching question on more than one occasion by parents, grandparents, and others who are closely connected to youth, “Why do Christian kids rebel?”
LS VIP// Sarah Penner
Sarah is married to Jacob and has two sons. Michael, in the pic with Sarah, is three years old, and Ryan is one. Sarah says, “Don’t worry so much of what other people think, be yourself and love life as you live for Christ!”
John & Veronica McDougall//
How does an embittered, gambling, drug and alcohol addict, living the fast and hard life of horseracing and partying become a man who chokes up with emotion in gratitude for the gift of life? A man who loves his wife lavishly and tenderly and openly confesses his need of her? A man free of addictions and freely extending hospitality and help wherever he can? Ask John McDougall, a self-proclaimed cowboy, and he’ll tell you it’s only possible by a touch from the hand of God…
My Life’s Musical Journey by Kevin Abel//
One day at my workplace, my co-worker, Bob, asked what my top ten favourite songs were. Most of the guys I worked with took the time to write down their own top ten and I spent my day going through the musical landscape of my life. This was my response.
#10 The Ballad of Dwight Fry, Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper was one of the first artists I began listening to. Much of his music had violent overtones, but to be honest, I really connected with a lot of what he sang about…
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Sunday evening turned out to be quite a night, even before I drove through the most blinding lightening and torrential rains I’ve ever seen. Our kids had deserted us for friends earlier in the day, so Bob (my hubby) and I decided to enjoy the annual Praise in the Park event at the bandshell in Aylmer. One of our favourite local musicians, Chris Bray, was going to be performing (great guy, loves God, awesome musician – gotta go see him). Envisioning a pleasant & relaxing evening on the lawn at the park, we grabbed a large regular to share. Except when we arrived, we were redirected by the ever-enthusiastic and friendly Peter Ungar (another one of my favourite locals) to Aylmer Full Gospel’s awesome new facilities. Uh oh… fresh, delicious coffee in hand, faced with yards of beautiful, spotless, brand-new carpeting throughout = dilemna. Thankfully we were welcomed at the door by Helene Barbour, the gracious wife of Pastor Peter who took quick stock of our maturity level and turned a blind eye to our Timmie’s cup.
Wow! The crowd that showed up was pumped before the music even started. This was the tenth annual event of Praise in the Park in Aylmer, and it’s always been about bringing the local Body of Christ together (which, incidently, is what LivingStones is about, too!) and I met people there from lot’s of churches: Aylmer CRC, New Sarum Baptist, Dorchester Family Christian Centre, Aylmer Evangelical Missionary Church, Aylmer EMMC, St. Paul’s United, Aylmer Baptist, Mt. Salem EMC, and more. Great to see these folks forgetting about the names on their churches for the evening and simply coming together to worship as believers of Jesus Christ. Into His Light, singer/songwriter duo Tracey Tiersma & Lisa Helder and Derrick Drover almost rocked the brand-new roof off the building. The only disappointment was that Chris Bray was fighting a case of strep throat & wasn’t able to sing a whole lot. But…
This Saturday will be another opportunity to catch Chris in concert. He’s performing at Christian Community Celebration of Faith
at the Pinafore Park Bandshell in St. Thomas. This event is being put on by the Salvation Army in hopes that support will be raised in the fight against human trafficking. There will actually be four concerts starting at 4 pm and going steady until 9 pm, and these folks are catering to everyone’s taste in music. If you like Country & Old Time Gospel, On Eagles Wings will be kicking it all off. Contemporary Christian worship leader, Cindy Baker & friends, GMA Covenat Award Winner, Chris Bray, and high energy contemporary Christian band, U Turn will be following. A freewill offering will be taken at each concert to help the Salvation Army in their cause. In the event of rain, concerts will be held at the Salvation Army Church on Elm St, St. Thomas.
Enjoy! Hopefully there’ll be room for us & our Timmie’s in the front row, and here’s hoping for more blind eyes if the concert turns out to be moved indoors!
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Teresa’s Story
When Teresa Wilson of Pt. Stanley begins to talk about God, and the impact knowing Him has had on her life, she can hardly stop. Maybe it’s because her life is such a demonstration of the grace and power of the Redeemer God who seeks out and brings freedom, hope, joy and beauty to lives that are hopeless and imprisoned. Hopeless and imprisoned is exactly what Teresa’s life was…
Harvest Outreach: Taking the Gospel to the Streets
The day is chilly, and the air carries in it a threat of rain. But grey skies and cool temperatures do not dampen spirits in the group of people that begins to collect at Tim Horton’s on the west end of St. Thomas. It’s Saturday morning, and they’re on their weekly mission to take the gospel to the streets…
LivingStones VIP, June 2010
Meet Jake Wall, Manager of De Brig radio station of Aymer, enthusiast of classic vehicles & owner of ’72 Ford pickup truck.
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Tagged Evangelizing, LivingStones Magazine Preview, LS VIP, Street ministry, Teresa Wilson
