>> Hello and thank you
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for joining us on
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It Is Is Written Canada.
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At this time of the year,
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Christmas, we are reminded of
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how Jesus came to our world
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and there was no room for Him
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to stay anywhere
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but in an unhygienic, filthy
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shelter for animals,
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not exactly a 5-star hotel.
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So the question may be asked,
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what does the birth of a child
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more than 2000 years ago have
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to do with you and with me?
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>> Jesus answered that
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question when He declared:
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In other words, by welcoming
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those who are needy and being
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kind to the less fortunate,
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we are showing love for God.
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>> God identifies Himself
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in a special way with the poor
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and the needy.
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And on that note, we would
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like to take a moment to let
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our friend, Ryan, share with
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you a message with an
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important question
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for you and for me.
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And here's the question:
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What can I give to Jesus
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this Christmas?
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>> Christmas.
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To many it means friends and
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family, a theoretical time of
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peace, love, and joy,
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and the ratio of kid to toy
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is one to five.
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That's about to change when
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Grandma and Grandpa arrive.
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Sounds of crumpled wrapping
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paper and smells of spice,
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fresh cut trees with lights
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that deck the halls
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on silent nights.
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All appealing to that
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sentimental feeling of
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Christmas and that
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ever-growing wish list.
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All the while knowing the
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moment it's finished,
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you're gonna miss this
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and it all starts over.
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Looking forward to the next
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year, perhaps the next
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Christmas concert,
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a new family picture and
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Christmas letter the next
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November, December.
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But for now, we're here,
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in that most wonderful time
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of the year,
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Family gatherings and
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Christmas programs,
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couples holding hands and
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hours stuck in traffic jams,
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waiting in line for your turn
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to take the exit to your local
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shopping centre or mall
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or maybe you're just tryin'
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to get home after a long day,
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there with a million others,
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wrapped up an empty package
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of holiday.
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So completely many missing the
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true reason for the season,
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searching for that sentimental
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feeling, tryin' find joy and
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happiness among the craziness
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of today's Christmas.
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Lost in the frivolity and the
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yearly monotony of this
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holiday philosophy.
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Next time you're in the mall
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or just walkin' down the
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street, just take a look
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at people's faces,
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maybe even your own
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and ask yourself if just maybe
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we're looking for joy in all
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the wrong places
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'cause Christmas...
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Christmas isn't about
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the presents underneath the
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tree, the food, the shopping,
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the lights, Christmas is about
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Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
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the Prince of Peace,
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the King of Kings.
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He bore the cross,
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He died to save,
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He rose from the grave forever
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to bear the scars of the gift
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that He gave.
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Christ bought our freedom,
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but He left it a choice
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'cause that freedom only comes
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from leaving the things of
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this world behind.
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Giving Him our thoughts,
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our wants, our past,
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our worries, our time...
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you fill in the blank.
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He gave all for us,
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what will we give Him
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this Christmas?
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>> He gave all for us,
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what will we give Him
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this Christmas?
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That question challenges me,
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what about you?
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>> Oh, yes, it challenges me
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to look for ways to connect
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with those who are less
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fortunate because in Proverbs
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chapter 14, verse 31 it says:
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It's like, you know, whatever
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you've done for the least of
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these you have done it for Me
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or done it for Jesus.
00:04:37.41\00:04:39.41
There is this place in our
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town called the
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New Life Neighbourhood Centre
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and Rene and I, we drove past
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it one day and we noticed that
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there were people outside the
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centre and they were
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connecting with people within
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the community.
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And it was so practical at
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helping people and
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I said to you at the time,
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"Those people are really"
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"honouring God."
00:04:59.73\00:05:01.10
"They are living the message"
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"of Christmas, they are"
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"helping the least of these."
00:05:04.57\00:05:06.30
And so I connected
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with the pastor,
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Pastor Frank Dell'Erba,
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and I invited him and his
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director for the centre,
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Ann Thompson, to be our
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guests here at
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It Is Written Canada today.
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>> And we are so thankful to
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have them visiting with us to
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tell us about their work.
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Welcome, Ann Thompson
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and Pastor Frank to
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It Is Written Canada.
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[Ann] Thank you for having us.
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[Frank] It's a pleasure
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to be here.
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>> So, Anne, I wanna start
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with you.
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So you are the director of the
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New Life Neighbourhood Centre
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and before, let's go back.
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What got you personally
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interested in helping those
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who are poor and needy?
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I know you weren't always the
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director, so what
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got you started?
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>> Well, for many years I've
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watched my husband get up
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early Sunday mornings to go to
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the centre to serve breakfast
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and distribute food.
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I couldn't understand his
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dedication, so-- because
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I was a morning person,
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he wasn't a morning person.
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So I decided to join him one
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Sunday morning.
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As I walked in, I was assigned
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a table with bread to
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distribute to the people
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when they come in.
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The first person who came
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through the door was a young
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mother with two young
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children, ages 4 and 5.
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They walked directly to my
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table, the kids stood there
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and looked at me,
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I looked at them.
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They were all messy, dirty,
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it was the middle of winter,
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they had on just little
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sweaters, no boots.
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The one had mittens on and
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it was torn with the little
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fingers peaking out
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and the mom was all jittery,
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I understood later that she
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was on and off drugs.
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That broke my heart and
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prompted me to get involved.
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But I never got involved
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until years later.
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I had a major accident and
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decided to take early
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retirement and it was at that
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time I was approached by one
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of the elders.
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He asked if I could take over
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the operation of the centre.
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I said to him, "No, that's"
00:07:12.86\00:07:14.83
"not for me, I can't do that."
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And he said, "Just pray about"
00:07:16.87\00:07:18.73
"it, take a few days"
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"and pray about it."
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And I said, "OK, I will,"
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"I will think about it."
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'Cause I wanted to--
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wanted him to stop.
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I went home, the Saturday
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morning, that was Thursday,
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Saturday morning about 3:30
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I had a dream.
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I woke up and I could not go
00:07:38.09\00:07:39.65
back to sleep.
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The dream was,
00:07:41.86\00:07:43.49
"Read the story of Dorcas"
00:07:43.49\00:07:45.86
"and go and feed My sheep."
00:07:45.86\00:07:47.96
I got up,
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I struggled with that.
00:07:51.00\00:07:52.87
I picked up the Bible and
00:07:52.87\00:07:54.37
started flipping through
00:07:54.37\00:07:55.50
to find the story.
00:07:55.50\00:07:57.54
I woke my husband and said
00:07:57.54\00:07:59.34
to him, "Do you know where"
00:07:59.34\00:08:00.61
"the story about the lady who"
00:08:00.61\00:08:02.61
"helped people in the Bible?"
00:08:02.61\00:08:04.35
"Where can I find that?"
00:08:04.35\00:08:05.81
And he said, "There are many"
00:08:05.81\00:08:07.48
"women who helped people"
00:08:07.48\00:08:08.75
"in the Bible, which one?"
00:08:08.75\00:08:10.22
"The Dorcas story?"
00:08:10.22\00:08:11.49
I said, "Yes!"
00:08:11.49\00:08:12.79
And I told him my dream and
00:08:12.79\00:08:15.12
he said, "What are you gonna"
00:08:15.12\00:08:16.06
"do about that?"
00:08:16.06\00:08:17.26
I said, "I can't do that."
00:08:17.26\00:08:20.36
You know?
00:08:20.36\00:08:21.63
So I struggled
00:08:21.63\00:08:23.43
and then I said, "Lord,"
00:08:23.43\00:08:25.73
"OK, I'll give it five years"
00:08:25.73\00:08:29.00
"and that's it."
00:08:29.00\00:08:31.11
Here I am eight years later.
00:08:31.11\00:08:33.94
I've been blessed and humbled
00:08:33.94\00:08:35.31
by this journey.
00:08:35.31\00:08:37.31
Serving, listening,
00:08:37.31\00:08:40.22
encouraging people.
00:08:40.22\00:08:41.72
It has been such a blessing.
00:08:41.72\00:08:44.19
[Rene] Mm-hm, that's wonderful!
00:08:44.19\00:08:45.69
So...
00:08:45.69\00:08:46.89
And Pastor Frank,
00:08:46.89\00:08:48.62
you have pastored at many
00:08:48.62\00:08:51.39
different congregations.
00:08:51.39\00:08:53.60
How is this congregation
00:08:53.60\00:08:55.83
different to the others that
00:08:55.83\00:08:57.43
you've pastored at?
00:08:57.43\00:08:59.87
>> Well, I think some of it,
00:08:59.87\00:09:02.10
Ann kind of exemplifies that
00:09:02.10\00:09:03.44
what's happening at that
00:09:03.44\00:09:05.11
church, every church has a DNA
00:09:05.11\00:09:07.38
that God calls that church to
00:09:07.38\00:09:09.01
be uniquely a blessing
00:09:09.01\00:09:10.35
to the world.
00:09:10.35\00:09:11.85
What I found at New Life
00:09:11.85\00:09:13.62
though was that we're a group
00:09:13.62\00:09:15.92
of people that...
00:09:15.92\00:09:17.89
we understand brokenness.
00:09:17.89\00:09:20.42
All of us have been through
00:09:20.42\00:09:21.46
stuff, including me.
00:09:21.46\00:09:23.89
And that means because we've
00:09:23.89\00:09:25.26
been broken and we've
00:09:25.26\00:09:26.43
experienced the healing of
00:09:26.43\00:09:27.86
Jesus, it's a natural thing to
00:09:27.86\00:09:30.83
not judge others who are going
00:09:30.83\00:09:32.40
through struggles.
00:09:32.40\00:09:34.27
And this church has tried in
00:09:34.27\00:09:36.84
many different ways to be a
00:09:36.84\00:09:39.21
blessing to others just
00:09:39.21\00:09:40.34
because they feel that's the
00:09:40.34\00:09:42.38
heart of what Jesus is about.
00:09:42.38\00:09:44.71
And so there's not much
00:09:44.71\00:09:46.35
arguments about stuff in the
00:09:46.35\00:09:47.72
church about, you know,
00:09:47.72\00:09:48.68
this theology or
00:09:48.68\00:09:49.75
that theology, it's--
00:09:49.75\00:09:50.89
We all feel very clearly that
00:09:50.89\00:09:52.25
the mission of Jesus,
00:09:52.25\00:09:53.49
as you mentioned with
00:09:53.49\00:09:54.76
Matthew 25, you know,
00:09:54.76\00:09:56.42
"the least of these."
00:09:56.42\00:09:57.36
[Mike] Yes.
00:09:57.36\00:09:58.36
[Frank] And so I've seen this
00:09:58.36\00:09:59.23
church be very open and very
00:09:59.23\00:10:01.06
willing to try new things to
00:10:01.06\00:10:02.66
be a blessing like the church
00:10:02.66\00:10:04.57
picnic we have in the summer
00:10:04.57\00:10:06.57
when we cancel church and we
00:10:06.57\00:10:07.87
just go out and feed the
00:10:07.87\00:10:09.30
community and we have our
00:10:09.30\00:10:10.24
praise team out there.
00:10:10.24\00:10:11.34
It's just trying new things
00:10:11.34\00:10:12.47
just to lift up Jesus.
00:10:12.47\00:10:14.38
And it's been a great journey
00:10:14.38\00:10:15.71
for me as a pastor.
00:10:15.71\00:10:17.85
>> That's very practical
00:10:17.85\00:10:19.55
working in the community.
00:10:19.55\00:10:20.92
So I've got so many
00:10:20.92\00:10:22.22
questions, you know,
00:10:22.22\00:10:23.55
who, what, when, where...
00:10:23.55\00:10:25.45
So I just wanna ask you, Ann,
00:10:25.45\00:10:27.92
what are you doing?
00:10:27.92\00:10:29.36
Like, what specifics are the
00:10:29.36\00:10:32.53
needs within the community?
00:10:32.53\00:10:35.83
>> We've identified three main
00:10:35.83\00:10:37.70
areas of need in the
00:10:37.70\00:10:40.87
community: food security and
00:10:40.87\00:10:43.41
hygiene, housing,
00:10:43.41\00:10:44.97
and job opportunities.
00:10:44.97\00:10:47.14
And here are some of the
00:10:47.14\00:10:48.41
things we're doing
00:10:48.41\00:10:49.68
to address those:
00:10:49.68\00:10:51.01
We do a weekly meal box
00:10:51.01\00:10:53.05
distribution, it's mainly
00:10:53.05\00:10:55.18
groceries, three--
00:10:55.18\00:10:58.05
the meal is three healthy
00:10:58.05\00:11:00.66
meals per day, 7 to 10 days,
00:11:00.66\00:11:03.96
to last them to 10 days.
00:11:03.96\00:11:06.39
And we have fed over 3000.
00:11:06.39\00:11:10.07
We have delivered over 3000 of
00:11:10.07\00:11:12.23
those meal boxes each year.
00:11:12.23\00:11:15.24
We also handled hygiene
00:11:15.24\00:11:17.27
packages, monthly for females
00:11:17.27\00:11:20.51
and quarterly for families.
00:11:20.51\00:11:23.01
We also have what we call
00:11:23.01\00:11:25.05
Special Event Dinner.
00:11:25.05\00:11:27.55
This happens around Christmas
00:11:27.55\00:11:29.28
time where we hand out turkey
00:11:29.28\00:11:31.72
hampers, we have Christmas
00:11:31.72\00:11:33.79
dinner with the community
00:11:33.79\00:11:35.56
members, we hand out toys and
00:11:35.56\00:11:39.06
gifts to the members-- to the
00:11:39.06\00:11:42.03
community members just to make
00:11:42.03\00:11:45.50
Christmas special for them.
00:11:45.50\00:11:47.54
'Cause it's a special time of
00:11:47.54\00:11:48.50
the year and they don't have
00:11:48.50\00:11:49.74
families, most of them, they
00:11:49.74\00:11:51.67
don't have the means to have a
00:11:51.67\00:11:55.24
turkey dinner so we do that.
00:11:55.24\00:11:57.55
We also distribute backpacks
00:11:57.55\00:12:01.72
for the homeless and we do
00:12:01.72\00:12:03.72
this once or twice a year
00:12:03.72\00:12:05.35
in Memorial Park,
00:12:05.35\00:12:06.76
downtown Oshawa.
00:12:06.76\00:12:08.76
You know, I'll just say one
00:12:08.76\00:12:10.56
story, we gave out a backpack
00:12:10.56\00:12:12.03
to a homeless man one winter
00:12:12.03\00:12:15.33
and he said, "You brought"
00:12:15.33\00:12:17.23
"Christmas to me today."
00:12:17.23\00:12:19.23
He had no gloves, his hands
00:12:19.23\00:12:20.64
were frozen, he said,
00:12:20.64\00:12:21.87
"Thank you so much."
00:12:21.87\00:12:23.10
"This is my Christmas."
00:12:23.10\00:12:25.04
So those are the-- some of the
00:12:25.04\00:12:26.41
things we do for food.
00:12:26.41\00:12:28.54
>> So how do you afford to
00:12:28.54\00:12:30.55
meet all these needs and to do
00:12:30.55\00:12:32.61
all these programs?
00:12:32.61\00:12:34.82
[Frank] Well, that's
00:12:34.82\00:12:35.88
a good question.
00:12:35.88\00:12:37.62
It's pretty amazing because
00:12:37.62\00:12:40.16
I would say 100% of the
00:12:40.16\00:12:42.36
Neighbourhood Centre is funded
00:12:42.36\00:12:44.13
outside the church by donors
00:12:44.13\00:12:45.99
who just believe in what
00:12:45.99\00:12:47.13
we're doing.
00:12:47.13\00:12:48.63
Our church doesn't have a lot
00:12:48.63\00:12:50.37
of money, we're in downtown
00:12:50.37\00:12:51.33
Oshawa, and a lot of our,
00:12:51.33\00:12:53.13
you know, we just don't have a
00:12:53.13\00:12:54.60
lot of means and yet people
00:12:54.60\00:12:57.74
see that we're trying to help
00:12:57.74\00:12:59.91
without strings attached,
00:12:59.91\00:13:01.44
you know, it's not like people
00:13:01.44\00:13:02.74
have to hear a sermon in order
00:13:02.74\00:13:03.91
to get food, we just love them
00:13:03.91\00:13:05.11
where they are.
00:13:05.11\00:13:06.51
And so there's-- we've
00:13:06.51\00:13:08.68
multipled organizations and...
00:13:08.68\00:13:12.65
So it's amazing that God
00:13:12.65\00:13:14.09
provides because everyone
00:13:14.09\00:13:15.76
believes that, you know,
00:13:15.76\00:13:18.16
poverty is bigger than any one
00:13:18.16\00:13:19.39
church, it's bigger than any
00:13:19.39\00:13:20.60
one organization.
00:13:20.60\00:13:21.90
We have to work together and I
00:13:21.90\00:13:23.83
find that there's a lot of
00:13:23.83\00:13:24.83
people that are willing to
00:13:24.83\00:13:25.87
help when you're doing work
00:13:25.87\00:13:26.97
that is blessing others.
00:13:26.97\00:13:30.11
>> So I'm interested
00:13:30.11\00:13:31.34
in the who.
00:13:31.34\00:13:32.94
Tell us some stories,
00:13:32.94\00:13:34.58
specific stories of people
00:13:34.58\00:13:35.98
that you've helped.
00:13:35.98\00:13:37.01
[Frank] OK. Well, some of my
00:13:37.01\00:13:38.55
favourites...like William.
00:13:38.55\00:13:41.95
William, my good friend,
00:13:41.95\00:13:43.32
William, he came to the
00:13:43.32\00:13:45.15
Neighbourhood Centre as a
00:13:45.15\00:13:46.45
client and there was something
00:13:46.45\00:13:48.89
there that he appreciated,
00:13:48.89\00:13:50.29
he appreciated the way he
00:13:50.29\00:13:51.56
was treated, and he asked
00:13:51.56\00:13:53.66
about becoming a volunteer
00:13:53.66\00:13:55.23
which is a process that
00:13:55.23\00:13:56.77
happens quite regularly,
00:13:56.77\00:13:59.03
you know, and we have a
00:13:59.03\00:14:00.44
process where they have to get
00:14:00.44\00:14:01.57
a police check and so on and
00:14:01.57\00:14:02.87
he did so and so he began
00:14:02.87\00:14:04.41
to volunteer.
00:14:04.41\00:14:05.51
But when I first met him,
00:14:05.51\00:14:06.91
I remember him saying to me,
00:14:06.91\00:14:08.14
"Pastor Frank,"
00:14:08.14\00:14:10.01
"I'm an atheist."
00:14:10.01\00:14:11.68
"I don't wanna hear any of"
00:14:11.68\00:14:12.68
"this God stuff," you know.
00:14:12.68\00:14:14.25
He was very firm, you know,
00:14:14.25\00:14:16.08
he made it very clear and
00:14:16.08\00:14:17.69
I said, "That's OK, William,"
00:14:17.69\00:14:19.19
"I'm just glad you're here,"
00:14:19.19\00:14:20.39
"glad you're part of the"
00:14:20.39\00:14:21.46
"family, that you're helping"
00:14:21.46\00:14:22.52
"out here and..."
00:14:22.52\00:14:23.43
And that was that.
00:14:23.43\00:14:25.43
And every time he would see
00:14:25.43\00:14:26.59
me, you know, it was,
00:14:26.59\00:14:27.40
"Pastor Frank,"
00:14:27.40\00:14:28.43
"I'm an atheist..." You know?
00:14:28.43\00:14:29.66
And he would talk about his
00:14:29.66\00:14:30.70
atheist stuff, but we accepted
00:14:30.70\00:14:34.24
him, you know, that's where he
00:14:34.24\00:14:35.40
was at, that's what he knew.
00:14:35.40\00:14:37.37
But over time, there was--
00:14:37.37\00:14:41.31
Something was changing in him,
00:14:41.31\00:14:42.71
but I didn't see it, we didn't
00:14:42.71\00:14:43.95
know what was happening under
00:14:43.95\00:14:45.58
the surface because in
00:14:45.58\00:14:48.05
September of 2018 he
00:14:48.05\00:14:49.65
approached me and he said,
00:14:49.65\00:14:50.92
"Pastor Frank, I'd like to"
00:14:50.92\00:14:51.95
"talk to you."
00:14:51.95\00:14:53.36
In my mind I'm like,
00:14:53.36\00:14:54.42
"Oh, great, he's gonna tell"
00:14:54.42\00:14:55.19
"me more about athei--"
00:14:55.19\00:14:56.06
you know, "how he's an"
00:14:56.06\00:14:57.19
"atheist," and stuff like that.
00:14:57.19\00:14:58.23
And when we met, he said,
00:14:58.23\00:14:59.56
"Pastor Frank, I wanna do"
00:14:59.56\00:15:02.40
"Bible studies with you,"
00:15:02.40\00:15:03.57
"I wanna be baptized."
00:15:03.57\00:15:05.50
I was like,
00:15:05.50\00:15:06.40
well, I was like my jaw hit
00:15:06.40\00:15:08.04
the floor, you know?
00:15:08.04\00:15:09.74
I'm like, "Lord," you know,
00:15:09.74\00:15:10.77
"I'm a pastor, I should"
00:15:10.77\00:15:12.37
"believe Your power,"
00:15:12.37\00:15:13.31
"but this is amazing."
00:15:13.31\00:15:14.58
And like I couldn't--
00:15:14.58\00:15:15.54
I didn't see it coming.
00:15:15.54\00:15:17.11
And it seemed that over time,
00:15:17.11\00:15:18.68
you know, as he worked with
00:15:18.68\00:15:20.28
the Neighbourhood Centre
00:15:20.28\00:15:21.55
volunteers, under Ann's
00:15:21.55\00:15:23.69
leadership, you know, every
00:15:23.69\00:15:24.72
time they met, the food banks
00:15:24.72\00:15:26.59
opened, they'd have a
00:15:26.59\00:15:27.69
devotional and he would just sit
00:15:27.69\00:15:28.96
quietly, you know, he wouldn't
00:15:28.96\00:15:30.43
say anything, but something
00:15:30.43\00:15:32.23
was working into his heart and
00:15:32.23\00:15:34.36
he began to sense a need.
00:15:34.36\00:15:36.70
And I had the pleasure of
00:15:36.70\00:15:38.43
baptizing him in June of 2019
00:15:38.43\00:15:40.10
and he's a member of the
00:15:40.10\00:15:41.64
church today, you know...
00:15:41.64\00:15:43.04
And another quick story
00:15:43.04\00:15:44.11
is Norman.
00:15:44.11\00:15:45.41
Norman is another person who
00:15:45.41\00:15:46.74
came as a client,
00:15:46.74\00:15:48.94
connected with others and
00:15:48.94\00:15:51.95
little by little, and it's a
00:15:51.95\00:15:53.28
gradual process, right?
00:15:53.28\00:15:54.72
A lot of the time we just want
00:15:54.72\00:15:55.88
an instant result, but you
00:15:55.88\00:15:57.19
befriend them, you love them
00:15:57.19\00:15:58.99
and you let God do His thing.
00:15:58.99\00:16:00.46
And over time, Norman began to
00:16:00.46\00:16:03.79
do Bible studies, he was
00:16:03.79\00:16:05.19
baptized and today he is one
00:16:05.19\00:16:07.66
of our most trusted deacons,
00:16:07.66\00:16:09.43
he has a key to the church and
00:16:09.43\00:16:11.13
he does fantastic work, so
00:16:11.13\00:16:13.13
God is good, God--
00:16:13.13\00:16:14.94
all we need to do is love and
00:16:14.94\00:16:16.04
God does His thing.
00:16:16.04\00:16:17.44
[Mike] Yeah, that's beautiful.
00:16:17.44\00:16:19.71
>> So it's not friendship
00:16:19.71\00:16:21.28
evangelism, it's really
00:16:21.28\00:16:23.38
friendship because you are
00:16:23.38\00:16:25.41
accepting these people
00:16:25.41\00:16:27.45
as they are, you're giving
00:16:27.45\00:16:29.38
them a sense of belonging and
00:16:29.38\00:16:31.59
you're not judging them.
00:16:31.59\00:16:33.32
[Ann] Friendship.
00:16:33.32\00:16:34.56
We're making friendships,
00:16:34.56\00:16:36.09
you know, and we are meeting
00:16:36.09\00:16:38.96
them where they are and
00:16:38.96\00:16:40.00
journeying with them.
00:16:40.00\00:16:42.70
One story that stands out to
00:16:42.70\00:16:44.47
me is of a young lady,
00:16:44.47\00:16:47.24
I'll call her "Kathy."
00:16:47.24\00:16:49.37
She-- the first time I met
00:16:49.37\00:16:51.21
her, I met her by the garbage
00:16:51.21\00:16:53.81
dump at the church, at the
00:16:53.81\00:16:55.78
side of the church.
00:16:55.78\00:16:57.41
I asked her, "What are you"
00:16:57.41\00:16:58.45
"doing there?"
00:16:58.45\00:17:00.18
She said, "Oh, I go around"
00:17:00.18\00:17:01.65
"and clean up the church,"
00:17:01.65\00:17:02.95
"the garbage around"
00:17:02.95\00:17:04.19
"the church."
00:17:04.19\00:17:05.72
She struggled with drugs,
00:17:05.72\00:17:10.16
homelessness, hopelessness.
00:17:10.16\00:17:13.70
She started coming to the
00:17:13.70\00:17:15.33
centre on and off.
00:17:15.33\00:17:17.03
One day she came to the
00:17:17.03\00:17:18.90
continental breakfast and I
00:17:18.90\00:17:21.30
invited her to join me
00:17:21.30\00:17:24.14
upstairs for the service.
00:17:24.14\00:17:26.94
She came up, and that day
00:17:26.94\00:17:28.64
Pastor Elizabeth Pule was
00:17:28.64\00:17:31.68
preaching and her topic was
00:17:31.68\00:17:34.08
"Light Their Candle."
00:17:34.08\00:17:36.32
This young lady got up--
00:17:36.32\00:17:38.85
Pastor Pule asked for a
00:17:38.85\00:17:40.22
volunteer to help demonstrate
00:17:40.22\00:17:42.19
the lighting of the candle.
00:17:42.19\00:17:44.23
She got up out of her seat and
00:17:44.23\00:17:45.89
went right up and I was so
00:17:45.89\00:17:47.20
nervous, I'm going [gasps]
00:17:47.20\00:17:48.63
'cause I don't know what's
00:17:48.63\00:17:49.66
gonna happen here, you know?
00:17:49.66\00:17:51.77
So she took part in that
00:17:51.77\00:17:54.67
demonstration and after the
00:17:54.67\00:17:58.41
service I didn't see her for
00:17:58.41\00:18:00.58
a couple months,
00:18:00.58\00:18:02.11
almost a year.
00:18:02.11\00:18:04.31
One day she showed up
00:18:04.31\00:18:05.68
at the centre.
00:18:05.68\00:18:07.28
Somebody said to me,
00:18:07.28\00:18:08.65
"There's a lady out there"
00:18:08.65\00:18:09.52
"looking for you."
00:18:09.52\00:18:11.05
When I went to the door
00:18:11.05\00:18:13.79
I didn't even recognize
00:18:13.79\00:18:14.89
this person.
00:18:14.89\00:18:16.32
She was all cleaned up,
00:18:16.32\00:18:19.66
she had on this nice suit,
00:18:19.66\00:18:21.73
and she said,
00:18:21.73\00:18:23.00
"Ann, it's Kathy."
00:18:23.00\00:18:24.87
And she hugged me.
00:18:24.87\00:18:26.57
And she just said, "I just"
00:18:26.57\00:18:27.94
"wanted to thank you guys for"
00:18:27.94\00:18:29.74
"what you have done for me."
00:18:29.74\00:18:31.31
"That sermon that day"
00:18:31.31\00:18:33.51
"impacted my life"
00:18:33.51\00:18:34.91
"in a big way."
00:18:34.91\00:18:36.44
"I have quit drugs"
00:18:36.44\00:18:39.78
"cold turkey and I have"
00:18:39.78\00:18:42.08
"gotten myself a job"
00:18:42.08\00:18:43.82
"and now I'm lighting"
00:18:43.82\00:18:45.29
"other people's candle"
00:18:45.29\00:18:46.96
"in the community."
00:18:46.96\00:18:48.29
[Mike] That's beautiful.
00:18:48.29\00:18:49.26
>> It's just amazing.
00:18:49.26\00:18:50.26
[Rene] Oh, I got goosebumps
00:18:50.26\00:18:51.39
just think--
00:18:51.39\00:18:52.43
Total transformation.
00:18:52.43\00:18:53.76
[Ann] Total transformation.
00:18:53.76\00:18:54.56
[Rene] Wow!
00:18:54.56\00:18:56.13
>> So I wanna ask you a
00:18:56.13\00:18:57.27
question about the why.
00:18:57.27\00:18:58.63
What is your dream?
00:18:58.63\00:19:00.40
What do you want to achieve?
00:19:00.40\00:19:02.04
What's the end goal
00:19:02.04\00:19:03.57
of what you're doing?
00:19:03.57\00:19:06.31
[Frank] Well, Rene, you just
00:19:06.31\00:19:07.41
said it, you know,
00:19:07.41\00:19:08.54
transformation.
00:19:08.54\00:19:09.98
See, one of the things we
00:19:09.98\00:19:11.31
noticed over time, we would
00:19:11.31\00:19:13.42
help people with food or
00:19:13.42\00:19:15.32
hygiene products or whatever
00:19:15.32\00:19:16.55
it is and of course they're
00:19:16.55\00:19:18.09
grateful, but they come back,
00:19:18.09\00:19:19.32
you know, and we have one of
00:19:19.32\00:19:21.09
those jobs that we don't wanna
00:19:21.09\00:19:22.32
be successful.
00:19:22.32\00:19:23.86
We would love that nobody came
00:19:23.86\00:19:24.83
for food because they help--
00:19:24.83\00:19:25.79
they had what they needed.
00:19:25.79\00:19:27.36
And one of the things we
00:19:27.36\00:19:29.10
realized is that we need to do
00:19:29.10\00:19:30.33
more than alleviation, we need
00:19:30.33\00:19:31.70
to see transformation.
00:19:31.70\00:19:33.44
And how do we do that?
00:19:33.44\00:19:34.77
So we began to think about
00:19:34.77\00:19:37.04
journeying with people over
00:19:37.04\00:19:38.04
the long haul, investing in
00:19:38.04\00:19:39.77
them and we started what's
00:19:39.77\00:19:42.54
called the SLIP program which
00:19:42.54\00:19:43.91
is sponsored by the True
00:19:43.91\00:19:45.31
Potential, we're partnering
00:19:45.31\00:19:46.78
with this organization and
00:19:46.78\00:19:48.28
what we've done is that--
00:19:48.28\00:19:50.39
we take about 15 people at a
00:19:50.39\00:19:51.85
time, people we see that have
00:19:51.85\00:19:53.86
the potential to move forward
00:19:53.86\00:19:56.29
in their lives with
00:19:56.29\00:19:57.43
transformation.
00:19:57.43\00:19:59.06
And over a period of twelve
00:19:59.06\00:20:00.36
weeks, twice a week they meet,
00:20:00.36\00:20:02.46
the founder Karen Bell along
00:20:02.46\00:20:04.30
with Ann and Daniel Cullen,
00:20:04.30\00:20:06.70
they work with these folks
00:20:06.70\00:20:08.77
to-- these participants to
00:20:08.77\00:20:11.51
teach life skills, to help
00:20:11.51\00:20:13.04
them learn confidence, to...
00:20:13.04\00:20:16.28
just whatever they're needing
00:20:16.28\00:20:17.28
at that time, whether it's
00:20:17.28\00:20:18.45
struggling with drugs
00:20:18.45\00:20:19.68
or trying to find a job
00:20:19.68\00:20:20.88
or whatever it is.
00:20:20.88\00:20:21.78
And so we are--
00:20:21.78\00:20:23.05
This journey is helping them
00:20:23.05\00:20:24.55
become the people they have
00:20:24.55\00:20:26.09
always dreamed they could be,
00:20:26.09\00:20:27.82
but maybe nobody believed they
00:20:27.82\00:20:28.76
could, they didn't believe
00:20:28.76\00:20:29.59
they could...
00:20:29.59\00:20:30.86
And so we're loving this
00:20:30.86\00:20:32.33
because-- and it's happening
00:20:32.33\00:20:33.36
literally, you know, as of
00:20:33.36\00:20:34.83
this recording, it's happening
00:20:34.83\00:20:35.86
right now at the
00:20:35.86\00:20:36.97
Neighbourhood Centre.
00:20:36.97\00:20:38.03
And Ann's been telling me
00:20:38.03\00:20:39.80
stories of the transformation
00:20:39.80\00:20:40.54
we're already seeing there.
00:20:40.54\00:20:42.27
And so that's our end goal.
00:20:42.27\00:20:43.64
We wanna see people
00:20:43.64\00:20:44.77
transformed, finding Christ,
00:20:44.77\00:20:46.51
finding life...
00:20:46.51\00:20:48.11
[Mike] Absolutely.
00:20:48.11\00:20:49.31
>> And then passing on the--
00:20:49.31\00:20:50.68
lighting the candle of others,
00:20:50.68\00:20:51.81
as you said.
00:20:51.81\00:20:53.35
[Rene] That's wonderful!
00:20:53.35\00:20:55.08
So if we have some viewers
00:20:55.08\00:20:57.12
that are watching and they're
00:20:57.12\00:20:58.42
thinking to themselves,
00:20:58.42\00:20:59.79
"We would love to start a"
00:20:59.79\00:21:01.16
"program like this."
00:21:01.16\00:21:02.69
What advice would you
00:21:02.69\00:21:03.83
give them?
00:21:03.83\00:21:05.89
>> I would say find out the
00:21:05.89\00:21:07.40
needs of your community.
00:21:07.40\00:21:09.76
Not what you want, what they
00:21:09.76\00:21:12.17
really need and find a way
00:21:12.17\00:21:14.70
to get involved, the area you
00:21:14.70\00:21:16.60
can best get involved in,
00:21:16.60\00:21:18.37
do that.
00:21:18.37\00:21:20.38
Choose leaders and volunteers
00:21:20.38\00:21:23.08
who have the heart for service
00:21:23.08\00:21:25.81
and connected with
00:21:25.81\00:21:27.18
God as well.
00:21:27.18\00:21:29.05
You need lots of volunteers
00:21:29.05\00:21:30.59
because you're gonna get burnt
00:21:30.59\00:21:31.75
out, you know, so you need
00:21:31.75\00:21:33.59
lots of volunteers and we have
00:21:33.59\00:21:34.92
about over a hundred
00:21:34.92\00:21:36.06
volunteers spread out among
00:21:36.06\00:21:37.36
the different programs.
00:21:37.36\00:21:39.23
Also, don't preach.
00:21:39.23\00:21:41.83
Don't preach to the community,
00:21:41.83\00:21:44.63
the people you're
00:21:44.63\00:21:45.70
interacting with.
00:21:45.70\00:21:46.84
Live what you preach.
00:21:46.84\00:21:48.44
Show them respect, love,
00:21:48.44\00:21:50.81
and compassion
00:21:50.81\00:21:52.34
and they will remember.
00:21:52.34\00:21:53.88
Don't judge them.
00:21:53.88\00:21:55.31
They're already going through
00:21:55.31\00:21:56.58
a lot, they feel like they're
00:21:56.58\00:21:57.75
not enough, they're being
00:21:57.75\00:22:00.12
judged and so they're afraid
00:22:00.12\00:22:01.58
and embarrassed, a lot of them
00:22:01.58\00:22:04.05
are embarrassed to even come to
00:22:04.05\00:22:05.29
get a meal box.
00:22:05.29\00:22:06.52
They'll say,
00:22:06.52\00:22:08.19
"This is my last time"
00:22:08.19\00:22:09.76
"I won't be coming back."
00:22:09.76\00:22:11.16
So you have to be very caring
00:22:11.16\00:22:13.76
and respectful, loving and
00:22:13.76\00:22:15.73
compassion because that's what
00:22:15.73\00:22:17.70
we do, that's what we show,
00:22:17.70\00:22:20.20
God's love to our fellow man.
00:22:20.20\00:22:24.47
>> So in closing,
00:22:24.47\00:22:25.91
Pastor Frank, if there's
00:22:25.91\00:22:28.28
someone watching and they're
00:22:28.28\00:22:29.41
thinking, you know,
00:22:29.41\00:22:30.58
"It's Christmas time, how can"
00:22:30.58\00:22:32.45
"I show my love for Jesus?"
00:22:32.45\00:22:34.22
"How can I reach"
00:22:34.22\00:22:35.78
"out to others?"
00:22:35.78\00:22:37.79
Do you have a word of
00:22:37.79\00:22:38.82
encouragement, something from
00:22:38.82\00:22:39.99
the Bible to share with them?
00:22:39.99\00:22:41.79
>> Yeah, sure.
00:22:41.79\00:22:43.63
I think the thing that comes
00:22:43.63\00:22:45.03
to mind right away is that
00:22:45.03\00:22:46.73
this is not rocket science.
00:22:46.73\00:22:48.80
We as humans tend to make
00:22:48.80\00:22:50.40
things complicated.
00:22:50.40\00:22:53.07
But loving people like in
00:22:53.07\00:22:54.24
Matthew 25, it just talks
00:22:54.24\00:22:56.04
about, you know, "I was in"
00:22:56.04\00:22:57.37
"prison, you visited me,"
00:22:57.37\00:22:58.54
"I needed food, you gave me"
00:22:58.54\00:22:59.47
"something to eat..."
00:22:59.47\00:23:00.21
That's very basic, basic love,
00:23:00.21\00:23:01.68
you know?
00:23:01.68\00:23:02.28
>> Yeah, just showing up.
00:23:02.28\00:23:03.28
[Frank] Just showing up, yeah.
00:23:03.28\00:23:04.88
And I think to-- you know,
00:23:04.88\00:23:05.91
some people think that in
00:23:05.91\00:23:07.08
order for me to help the,
00:23:07.08\00:23:08.55
you know, someone who's poor,
00:23:08.55\00:23:10.55
I need to be on the front
00:23:10.55\00:23:12.29
lines and I need to go into
00:23:12.29\00:23:13.82
situations that may be unsafe
00:23:13.82\00:23:15.32
and that's not necessarily so.
00:23:15.32\00:23:17.56
You have some people on the
00:23:17.56\00:23:18.56
front lines like Ann is and
00:23:18.56\00:23:20.03
you have other people that
00:23:20.03\00:23:21.13
are, you know, more in--
00:23:21.13\00:23:22.30
working in the background and
00:23:22.30\00:23:24.67
anyone can do anything,
00:23:24.67\00:23:26.07
you know, you can do something
00:23:26.07\00:23:27.10
to help, you know?
00:23:27.10\00:23:28.64
When you have this thought
00:23:28.64\00:23:30.04
that you can give someone a
00:23:30.04\00:23:32.01
fish and over time you can
00:23:32.01\00:23:33.41
teach them how to fish,
00:23:33.41\00:23:35.11
you know, for themselves.
00:23:35.11\00:23:36.38
The Neighbourhood Centre
00:23:36.38\00:23:37.25
started--
00:23:37.25\00:23:38.28
before it was just like a box
00:23:38.28\00:23:39.45
of food that members would
00:23:39.45\00:23:40.52
just bring and as it got full,
00:23:40.52\00:23:42.35
you know, they could bring it
00:23:42.35\00:23:43.32
to somebody.
00:23:43.32\00:23:44.25
It was just a simple thing.
00:23:44.25\00:23:45.22
>> Yeah, free fish,
00:23:45.22\00:23:46.02
but now you--
00:23:46.02\00:23:47.46
[Frank] Now it's something
00:23:47.46\00:23:49.02
that we're teaching people how
00:23:49.02\00:23:50.03
to fish and there's thousands
00:23:50.03\00:23:51.36
of people that are being
00:23:51.36\00:23:52.63
helped and it's kind of
00:23:52.63\00:23:53.80
multiplying with other things.
00:23:53.80\00:23:55.23
So God will grow it, just do
00:23:55.23\00:23:57.27
what you can in your vineyard,
00:23:57.27\00:23:59.33
in your neck of the woods.
00:23:59.33\00:24:01.07
>> Yeah, yeah, just start.
00:24:01.07\00:24:02.40
[Frank] Yeah, just start.
00:24:02.40\00:24:03.94
And as Jesus said, you know,
00:24:03.94\00:24:05.01
Matthew 25, verse 40,
00:24:05.01\00:24:07.31
"Inasmuch as you have done it"
00:24:07.31\00:24:08.34
"to the least of these,"
00:24:08.34\00:24:09.51
"you've done it to Me."
00:24:09.51\00:24:10.68
So really I don't see helping
00:24:10.68\00:24:12.85
the poor and service as a
00:24:12.85\00:24:14.85
department of the church,
00:24:14.85\00:24:16.52
I see it as the Gospel.
00:24:16.52\00:24:17.89
[Mike] Yes, yes, absolutely,
00:24:17.89\00:24:18.79
absolutely.
00:24:18.79\00:24:19.62
[Frank] Be a blessing.
00:24:19.62\00:24:20.89
>> Thank you for blessing us,
00:24:20.89\00:24:21.79
both of you.
00:24:21.79\00:24:22.86
I wonder if you could close
00:24:22.86\00:24:23.89
with a word of prayer for us?
00:24:23.89\00:24:24.83
[Frank] Certainly.
00:24:24.83\00:24:25.83
>> Pastor Frank, thank you.
00:24:25.83\00:24:26.86
[Frank] Yes, let's pray.
00:24:26.86\00:24:28.03
Heavenly Father, you know,
00:24:28.03\00:24:29.70
I think from Your perspective,
00:24:29.70\00:24:31.13
we are all poor there but for
00:24:31.13\00:24:32.93
the grace of God go I.
00:24:32.93\00:24:34.44
We could all be that person
00:24:34.44\00:24:36.40
that is down and out,
00:24:36.40\00:24:37.97
struggling with various things
00:24:37.97\00:24:40.58
and so we don't approach this
00:24:40.58\00:24:41.68
from a position of superiority
00:24:41.68\00:24:43.91
or pride, but we are humbled
00:24:43.91\00:24:45.88
realizing, Lord, that you see
00:24:45.88\00:24:47.65
us all in need and You died
00:24:47.65\00:24:49.98
for each one of us.
00:24:49.98\00:24:51.42
So I pray that you would touch
00:24:51.42\00:24:52.79
the hearts of everyone
00:24:52.79\00:24:54.16
listening today that you could
00:24:54.16\00:24:56.36
let them know, Lord, that
00:24:56.36\00:24:57.63
they, through Your power,
00:24:57.63\00:24:59.69
You can make them so
00:24:59.69\00:25:00.90
much of a blessing wherever
00:25:00.90\00:25:01.86
they are, they just need to
00:25:01.86\00:25:03.47
ask and be open to You.
00:25:03.47\00:25:05.33
That they can touch other lives
00:25:05.33\00:25:07.14
just as You have touched them.
00:25:07.14\00:25:09.30
So thank You for empowering
00:25:09.30\00:25:10.37
us, thank You for Jesus who
00:25:10.37\00:25:12.81
shows us the way of love that
00:25:12.81\00:25:14.84
is the Gospel and that can
00:25:14.84\00:25:16.21
live it out in our
00:25:16.21\00:25:17.28
day to day lives.
00:25:17.28\00:25:18.61
Thank You, in Jesus' name,
00:25:18.61\00:25:19.65
amen.
00:25:19.65\00:25:20.38
[Others] Amen!
00:25:20.38\00:25:21.78
>> So, Pastor Frank and Ann,
00:25:21.78\00:25:23.69
thank you once again
00:25:23.69\00:25:24.39
for joining us on
00:25:24.39\00:25:25.72
It Is Written Canada.
00:25:25.72\00:25:27.16
[Frank] Thank you!
00:25:27.16\00:25:28.22
It's been a pleasure.
00:25:28.22\00:25:28.82
[Ann] It has.
00:25:28.82\00:25:29.96
[Frank] God bless you.
00:25:29.96\00:25:31.09
>> While I was listening to
00:25:32.56\00:25:34.10
Ann Thompson and Pastor Frank
00:25:34.10\00:25:35.80
Dell'Erba, I was reminded of
00:25:35.80\00:25:37.83
how so many people are tempted
00:25:37.83\00:25:40.04
to give up on life because
00:25:40.04\00:25:42.07
they feel like they're never
00:25:42.07\00:25:43.71
really going to be good enough.
00:25:43.71\00:25:46.98
And the question keeps
00:25:46.98\00:25:48.04
haunting them:
00:25:48.04\00:25:49.11
"Will I ever be good enough?"
00:25:49.11\00:25:50.71
And often, sadly,
00:25:50.71\00:25:51.65
the answer is "No."
00:25:51.65\00:25:54.05
The thoughts of their past
00:25:54.05\00:25:56.58
trouble them and torment them
00:25:56.58\00:25:58.09
and they feel that they can
00:25:58.09\00:26:00.06
never be good enough.
00:26:00.06\00:26:03.12
>> The title of our free offer
00:26:03.12\00:26:05.13
today addresses that question,
00:26:05.13\00:26:07.66
Am I Good Enough?
00:26:07.66\00:26:10.23
This little booklet is
00:26:10.23\00:26:11.83
completely free of charge to
00:26:11.83\00:26:13.57
you so get your smart phone
00:26:13.57\00:26:15.84
ready or a pen and paper to
00:26:15.84\00:26:17.84
take down the details of how
00:26:17.84\00:26:19.34
you can get this free offer,
00:26:19.34\00:26:21.11
Am I Good Enough?
00:26:21.11\00:26:23.68
To request today's offer,
00:26:24.95\00:26:26.95
You may call toll free at
00:26:26.95\00:26:28.92
1-888-CALL-IIW.
00:26:28.92\00:26:31.55
That's 1-888-CALL-IIW.
00:26:31.55\00:26:34.66
Friends, we'd also like to
00:26:35.26\00:26:37.06
invite you to follow us on
00:26:37.06\00:26:38.56
Instagram and Facebook and
00:26:38.56\00:26:40.96
subscribe to our YouTube
00:26:40.96\00:26:42.43
channel and also listen
00:26:42.43\00:26:44.37
to our Podcasts.
00:26:44.37\00:26:46.40
And if you go to our webpage,
00:26:46.40\00:26:48.24
you can see our latest
00:26:48.24\00:26:49.47
programs including our
00:26:49.47\00:26:51.37
exercise workouts and healthy
00:26:51.37\00:26:53.48
eating videos called,
00:26:53.48\00:26:55.31
Experiencing Life and our
00:26:55.31\00:26:57.95
short spiritual messages
00:26:57.95\00:26:59.71
entitled, Daily Living.
00:26:59.71\00:27:02.12
[Mike] And they are all there
00:27:02.12\00:27:03.89
free for you to watch whenever
00:27:03.89\00:27:06.62
you choose because we want you
00:27:06.62\00:27:08.59
to experience the truth that
00:27:08.59\00:27:10.39
is found in the words of Jesus
00:27:10.39\00:27:12.13
when He said, "It is written,"
00:27:12.13\00:27:14.40
"man shall not not live by"
00:27:14.40\00:27:15.83
"bread alone, but by every"
00:27:15.83\00:27:17.57
"word that proceeds out of"
00:27:17.57\00:27:19.43
"the mouth of God."
00:27:19.43\00:27:21.04
¤You're the God of this city
00:27:22.54\00:27:25.21
¤You're the king
00:27:25.21\00:27:26.27
¤of these people
00:27:26.27\00:27:28.41
¤You're the Lord
00:27:28.41\00:27:29.48
¤of this nation
00:27:29.48\00:27:31.71
¤You are
00:27:31.71\00:27:34.12
¤You're the light
00:27:34.12\00:27:35.28
¤in the darkness
00:27:35.28\00:27:37.32
¤You're the hope
00:27:37.32\00:27:38.29
¤to the hopeless
00:27:38.29\00:27:40.09
¤You're the peace
00:27:40.09\00:27:41.19
¤to the restless
00:27:41.19\00:27:43.63
¤You are
00:27:43.63\00:27:47.66
¤There is no one like our God
00:27:47.66\00:27:53.30
¤There is no one
00:27:53.30\00:27:55.57
¤like You, God
00:27:55.57\00:27:59.31
¤Greater things
00:27:59.31\00:28:00.81
¤have yet to come
00:28:00.81\00:28:02.81
¤Greater things have still
00:28:02.81\00:28:04.45
¤to be done in the city
00:28:04.45\00:28:11.55
¤Greater things
00:28:11.55\00:28:12.62
¤have yet to come
00:28:12.62\00:28:14.42
¤Greater things have still
00:28:14.42\00:28:15.86
¤to be done here
00:28:15.86\00:28:20.60
¤You're the Lord of creation
00:28:22.43\00:28:25.57
¤The Creator of all things
00:28:25.57\00:28:28.34
¤You're the King
00:28:28.34\00:28:29.37
¤above all Kings
00:28:29.37\00:28:31.64
¤You are
00:28:31.64\00:28:34.44
¤You're the strength
00:28:34.44\00:28:35.38
¤in the weakness
00:28:35.38\00:28:37.35
¤You're the love
00:28:37.35\00:28:38.41
¤to the broken
00:28:38.41\00:28:40.15
¤You're the joy
00:28:40.15\00:28:41.15
¤in the sadness
00:28:41.15\00:28:43.55
¤You are
00:28:43.55\00:28:47.86
¤There is no one like our God
00:28:47.86\00:28:53.50
¤There is no one
00:28:53.50\00:28:55.40
¤like You, God
00:28:55.40\00:28:58.87