September 13 - September 19

It has been a busy start to pastoral ministry for me. I have been doing what I can to get to know how things run at Central Abbotsford - where we keep all of the signs and banners, what time we hold pre-service prayer, how many ice cream treats do we need and all of that. This past week, I learned the answer to the question “how many fans do we have here?” (answer: not enough!). 

Most importantly, though, I am also trying to get to know you, the people who call Central Abby your church home. I’ve been able to meet some of you for coffee, or times of prayer, or just a chat in the hallway, and I’ve even remembered a few of your names (this is big for me!).

You may not know this, but in addition to my duties as the Central Abbotsford pastor, I am also overseeing our Men’s Bible Study, which started up this week with over 180 guys registered! I know that some of you were part of that packed house in Centre Court at Downes Road. On top of that, the whole Northview staff spent the past two weeks going through training to get us all on the same page on mission, vision, values, and procedures.

And, like many of you, it is also back to school season at our house. With three of our four kids starting at new levels of school (one of whom is in the fun of kindergarten graduated entry), there is just a lot going on. 

Maybe you feel that way too. September can be like that. It tends to be a busy season, and you might already be feeling worn out.

For me, though, these first few Saturday nights at Central Abbotsford have been joy-filled and life-giving. You have already made me and my family feel at home here, and we are tremendously grateful. My hope for you is that stepping into church will be a moment of stepping into God’s rest and enjoying His presence as you sing praises, hear His Word proclaimed, and fellowship with one another. 

To that end, this weekend, we will be celebrating the Lord’s Supper together - a tangible reminder of Jesus’ saving work and foretaste of the beauty of the marriage supper of the Lamb that awaits us in the future. The bread and the cup are means by which God displays His grace for us - past, present, and future.

Moreover, though, a key word in that last paragraph is "together". The Lord’s Supper is a meal we take communally, as family. It demonstrates not only a reconciled relationship with God, but also with each other as brothers and sisters.

So, that means that you might have some preparation to do before coming to the table. Whether that is confessing and repenting to God, or taking the steps within your power to mend relations with a brother or sister in Christ, we are called by God to do what we can to be peacemakers before we partake.

If you want to talk through what this might mean for your situation, feel free to ask me! You have welcomed me into your church home, and it is my joy and privilege to be welcomed into your lives. I look forward, Lord willing, to sitting beside you at the table this Saturday night.

In His name,
Eric

Join us this weekend as we kick off our new sermon series, Grow Up. This series takes a deep dive into the first letter to the church in Corinth, exploring themes of spiritual maturity and the importance of community within the church. This Sunday, we will begin by examining Paul’s greeting and thanksgiving in 1 Corinthians 1:1-9.

See you there!

SATURDAY MEALS

Join us at 4:30pm in the gym for a delicious meal before the service. 

Invite your friends and neighbours!

PRE-SERVICE PRAYER

At 4:15pm we pray for our campus & our neighbourhood. Join us in the Basement Lounge off of the main foyer.

NORTHVIEW KIDS 

Check-in for kids ages 6 months through grade 5 begins each weekend at 5:15pm. Want more info? Click here.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

The Higher Ground bible study happens every other weekend. Click here for more info. Higher Ground will not be running this weekend.

Did you know that over 2,000 people attended our Fall Kickoff event at Downes Road this past Sunday? (Mission had their own Kickoff event!) In case you're unfamiliar, Kickoff is our big celebration to launch the new ministry year, filled with games, food, music, and more. This year, we served an incredible 1,625 hot dogs, 1,020 samosas, 2,700 pieces of rollkuchen, and 45 watermelons, along with hundreds of snow cones and bags of popcorn! And let’s not forget—eight of our pastors were dunked in the dunk tank over 30 times each!

It was an amazing day of fun, fellowship, and gratitude for God’s goodness to us.

Well, now you know!

Join us for our Kids Serve Weekend at Central Abby on September 28th! Kids Serve Weekends are a great part of discipleship in kids' lives. It teaches them to be a part of the body of Christ and to serve others. If you have a grade school kid (kindergarten through grade 5) we'd love for them to come out and serve alongside an adult volunteer! We're looking for kids to help out with greeting, coffee, ushering and more! If your child is interested please register them at our website!

Northview Seniors Ministry is excited to announce big changes to our Seasons Ministry! To better accommodate all Northview seniors, we’re transitioning from our traditional Seasons luncheons to an exciting Sunday evening concert series for the 2024/2025 ministry year. These four special events will feature inspiring music from our talented musicians, delicious desserts, warm fellowship, devotionals from our Seniors Pastor, and performances by special musical guests.

We’re thrilled to kick off the series with Calvin Dyck, Steve Otterbein, and Nicolenco Trio as our special guests for the first concert, happening at our Downes Road location in the Worship Centre on Sunday, September 29th at 6:30pm.

For more information, visit our Northview Seniors page by clicking the link below.

Join us on Monday, September 16th from 10:00am-11:30am in Centre Court at the Downes Road Campus for a special morning of connection over coffee and baked goods. This is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy a devotional, meet special guests, and engage in meaningful conversations with fellow seniors. Whether you're looking to make new friends or reconnect with familiar faces, this event is for you. Plus, you'll have the chance to get to know Pastor Gary Lidstone, our dedicated pastor to seniors. Register today at the link below, we hope to see you there! 

We have a Baptism Class coming up in just a few weeks! If you have accepted Christ as your personal Savior and Lord, or if you're interested in becoming a member at Northview and have not yet been baptized, we would love for you to join our class.

Our class will be held after the service at Central Abby on September 28th from 7:00pm-8:00pm. You can register and find more information on our website by clicking the link below or by emailing [email protected].

Looking to become a member at Northview? We invite you to join us for our upcoming Membership class! It's happening at the Downes Road Campus on Tuesday, October 1st at 7pm. We'll walk through the history, mission, and vision of our church, and discuss what it looks like to walk in committed community with one another while deepening roots in Christ. To become a member of a church is to formally commit oneself to an identifiable, local body of believers who have joined together for specific, divinely ordained purposes. Learn more and register by clicking the button below.

Timothy Trust is a Canadian organization committed to training individuals in expository preaching. Northview will be hosting the Timothy Trust Conference on November 12-14 at the Downes Road Campus, featuring insightful teaching from Jeff Bucknam, Northview's former Senior Pastor, John Neufeld from Back to the Bible Canada; Simon Manchester from Australia; and Jonathan Griffiths from Ottawa.

Our Women in the Word team has been invited to lead a pre-conference event and a special breakout session for women. If you're considering which event to attend, both offer unique benefits. However, if time or resources are limited, choose the one that best fits your current needs.

The Women in the Word Workshop provides practical tools and hands-on experience to help deepen your Bible study skills, while the Timothy Trust Conference is designed to inspire and equip individuals to become faithful Bible teachers.

We hope to see you at one—or both—of these enriching events!

Whether you need prayer, have questions, or want to get plugged in, we're here for you! Check out the links below and we would love to connect with you.

Copyright (C) 2023 Northview Community Church. All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website.

Our mailing address is:

Northview Community Church

32040 Downes Road
Abbotsford, BC Canada

V4X 1X5

This email was sent to because you are subscribed to our newsletter.

If you do not wish to receive such emails in future, please unsubscribe here.