Easter Sunday – 1 service only

A special reminder that on Easter Sunday, April 4th, there is only one Sunday morning service at 11am.  Please come and join the entire Cornerstone community as we worship God, and remember the resurrection of Jesus.

A Challenge

Disturb us, Lord, when
We are too pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
with the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wilder seas
Where storms will show Your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push back the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

This we ask in the name of our Captain,
Who is Jesus Christ.

– Sir Francis Drake

Volunteer/Called

It’s volunteer appreciation month here are Cornerstone church, and we have  a very dedicated and creative group here in Music & Arts. Being able to serve God, and build the church through the use of our gifts is a great thing.  In reality, we are not just volunteers, it is something more significant than that.  We who serve the church need to understand the concept of calling, and that it is God who gives us the purpose and the power to call others to come and know the glory of his name.  So what does calling mean to a musician?

1.   Calling means that band rehearsal is another opportunity to be used by God.

2.  Calling means that I’m grateful for constructive feedback so I can serve at my best.

3.  Calling means that I put in my best effort.

4.  Calling means that I look out for the health and interests of the whole group, not just my own.

5.  Calling means that I come prepared and well practiced.

6.  Calling means that I don’t back down when it becomes difficult or challenging.

7.  Calling means that I will allow myself to experience spiritual growth as I stretch my faith and my skills.

8.  Calling means that I encourage and cheer on the other musicians I get to serve with.

9.  Calling means that I resolve conflict and look for opportunities to bless other musicians.

Oswald Chambers said it this way “When God has put His call on you, woe be to you if you turn to the right hand or to the left.  He will do with you what He never did with you before the call came; He will do with you what He is not doing with other people.  Let Him have His way.”

Keep up the good work Music & Arts Volunteers!  Be encouraged knowing that when God has placed the call on your life He will be faithful to equip you and to bless you as you serve with joy his presence.

Lorn Gieck

Pastor’s Blog II.III

What are you doing? If you have a little imagination and a tv set you may remember a series of ads a few years ago where fellows with different accents asked that question to each other while talking on the phone.  That is my question for you….what are you doing? Feel free to ask it with whatever accent you want. I am not sure where or when that question first popped into my head but it is a question I find myself wondering about these days.
First let me ask that question in response to Haiti. What are you doing? Seriously…what are you doing? We have seen the single most devastating event to strike in the Western Hemishpere occur in Haiti. We have watched newscasts with visual details that most of us don’t even want to see. Now we are starting to hear first hand accounts of people from our area who have gone down and returned with more details. We know the earthquake wrecked the country. At a recent fundraiser it was estimated that the death toll could reach into the 300,000’s. We know schools have been closed and countless children have been orphaned. We know that right now most of the devastated people are living in temporary shelters. We know there is an ongoing need for food. What are you doing?
What more motivation do we need to do something? We know the need is real. We know organizations that are helping. We know they need cash and manual labour. What are you doing? We know they need prayer….are you praying?
I started the year at Cornerstone talking about Matthew 25 and it is like the Lord will not allow me to forget it or move on. The passage tells us that whatever we have done to the least of these we have done to Jesus. Think about that for a moment.  You give twenty dollars to buy rice to feed a hungry family in Haiti and really what you just did was you ministered to Jesus Christ. Seriously. Why would we choose to not be involved when what we are doing is directly connected to our Saviour?  The smallest thing takes on eternal significance when we do it unto the least of these.  Perhaps best of all is that in the doing of practical things to help the least of these it opens a door to tell them why.  Jesus is the answer to the why.  Jesus is also the answer to their greatest need.

What are you doing?  Attending church?  I don’t see that in Matthew 25 as something that impresses God.  Each one of us who call ourselves Christian has a mandate.  Our mandate is to do something.  Help someone.  Give something.  Pray for some situation.  Do something.  What are you doing?  Seriously…what are you doing?

Pre-authorized Debit Form

Pre-authorized Debit Form

The church is dependent upon cash flow for its month to month operating expenses. Having a steady cash flow allows fo rthe church to more effectively budget as well as operate through months which are normally lower for donations.  Please consider setting up a monthly automatic deposit for your giving. Simply download the form, fill out and return to the church office.