50th Reflections - Don Vogt

I was ten years old when my family was one of the families that was instrumental in the formation of our church.  I vividly recall the first Sunday that we met in the Women’s Institute Hall behind the Armoury building downtown.  I also recall moving to the basement of the Oddfellows Hall beside Safeway and then to the old Baptist church building on Ellis at Queensway.  Eventually we purchased the old MB church on Ethel Street and after many years we then built and moved into this current church. 

Buildings come and buildings go but the church was always more about our faith and our relationships than it was about bricks and lumber.  As I have perused old church directories and even recall years prior to the invention of directories, I am astounded at the endless thread of change that passes through time in the life of the church.  I enjoy recalling the vast number of people who have attended this church and have moved on, often in full time Christian service, and I also remember those wonderful people who have passed away, leaving their friendship and their influence in my life and in our church to this day. 

 

These thoughts cause me to have a sense of the big picture regarding life itself, the faith that we share and the church that we have and are.  Life is but a vapour, however, every person’s life is of great significance because our God has deemed it to be so and his unconditional love constantly reminds us that it is so.  The faith that we have in our Lord is the one constant in the history of our church.

Our church is changing rapidly and the style of our congregation is very different than the original tight knit, family cluster style.  This is a good thing.  We need to understand and respect the past but we also must embrace the future and the change that it will continue to bring. The strength and the success of the church rests in its ability to grow, to cultivate faith in our Lord and to meet the spiritual needs of all people, especially those who are young in their faith and impressionable.

May we learn from history and encourage each other in love and service as we move forward in our faith.

Don Vogt