Chosen by God, Called by Jesus

On the drive out to Sardis (a community located just to the south of Chilliwack) on Highway 1, the afternoon of September 7th, 2014, I watched as the exterior temperature readout on the dashboard thermometer of my friend’s Volkswagen rose to 30 degrees. We both commented on a similar trip we had taken exactly three years ago on September 7th, 2011, when many in our diocese made the trek to St. Matthew’s, Abbotsford for the Induction of the Reverend Allen Doerksen on one of the hottest days of the year. It was a bit of a scorcher on September 7th, 2014.

All of the available sanctuary seating in the beautifully restored and renovated 100+ year old wooden church of St. John’s, Sardis was filled to capacity 30 minutes prior to the scheduled 4pm start time. With rather limited room in the nave, the addition of the narthex and chancel extensions to the original building came in handy, offering plenty of seating for the clergy (chancel) as well as overflow seating (narthex extension) where worshippers were abl

e to connect to the activity in the sanctuary with the aid of streaming video and audio. St John’s is one of the finest architectural examples in our diocese of a small, late 19th/early 20th century wooden church expanded into a much larger building. However, as the number of bodies in the church increased so did the interior room temperature, inspiring many in the congregation to put the 24 page order of service publication to good use as personal fan.

This was the second of three Celebrations of New Ministry in the space of five days and the fifth of Bishop Melissa Skelton’s young episcopacy. An hour before worship, Bishop Melissa met with St. John’s deacon, the Reverend Larry Adkins, and new rector, the Reverend Al Carson to organize and plan the flow of worship. They were later joined by the Executive Archdeacon of the Diocese, the Venerable Douglas Fenton. The first reader during the liturgy, who offered the Old Testament reading, Jeremiah 1: 4-9 was Al’s daughter An. At the very young age of 16, An is very involved in international compassionate service through her work with an orphanage in Sanmenxia in China’s Western Henan Province. The supporting organization, International China Concern (ICC) were the recipients of the financial gifts collected during the offertory at her father’s induction that afternoon. The p

reacher was the rector of St. Mark’s, Ocean Park and Regional Dean of Peace Arch, the Reverend Craig Tanksley.

The Epistle for the day read by Kathie Kompauer was Ephesians 4: 7, 11-16, however Craig had prepared a homily based on some earlier verses from Ephesians 4 (1-6) but including verse 7. During the Gradual Hymn he vacated the preacher’s bench in order to secure a copy of the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible so he could share the six verses with the congregation prior to beginning his message. This actually worked very well and served to focus the congregation on his message.

Ephesians 4: 1-6
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.

Craig began by making reference to the almost six years that he and Al had been deanery colleagues. He went on to say that an induction is like a marriage. The two parties share a deep commitment and the induction liturgy through ritual and covenant solidifies that commitment. “Nobody is born a Christian” said Craig “we are chosen by God and called by Jesus and given the task of bearing fruit.” Paul writing this letter in jail urges the Ephesians to live a life worthy of this “calling” to “walk the walk” in modern parlance.
He urges them to:
• Be Gentle
• Be Patient
• Show humility
• Be Long suffering
• Live fully.

These five directions are the “fruit of the spirit.” These are the qualities that God wants to grow in us. The fruit of the spirit identifies what God looks like, what Jesus looked like in life among us, and what the Children of God should look like. He then went on to list about a dozen potential ministry foci all valid and all worthy of support, but instead of endorsing a many and varied ministry plan, Craig wrapped the list up with Paul’s message that we must “make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace.” In Paul’s day there were no other churches to attend, but Paul sensed that maintaining the Unity of the Spirit would be the greatest challenge for Christians. It turns out he was right. The first and greatest priority in the face of tens of thousands of protestant denominations is to affirm the Unity of the Spirit:
• One Lord
• One Faith
• One Baptism
• One God

Craig then said that as he prepared this sermon and studied the text he put himself in Al’s shoes and wondered to which verse Al would be drawn. He decided that it would be Verse 7, “But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” It is

the Grace of God that enables people who come from varied backgrounds to worship and work together and it is in this context that they begin their “amazing journey together as priest and parish.” He finished his address by asking everyone to say together Paul’s words that began the service, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”
The worship continued with the Covenant in Ministry which concluded with the Bishop saying “I present Allan as the leader of your ministry, and I invite your welcome.” This was followed by the Intercession, the Peace and the Eucharist.

The music in worship was led with considerable skill and musicianship by Organist, Doug Johnson. Two St. John’s music groups, The Praise Group and Friends-in-Harmony led the music during communion with each group doing one piece on their own and then uniting for a rousing rendition of Come to the Well.

After worship, many of the clergy and lay remained and walked across the parking lot to the Parish Hall for a light supper consisting of sandwiches and sweets. There were tables set up in the Parish Hall and also tables and awnings set up outside on the green space

to the east of the building for those who wished to stay outside and enjoy the cooling air of the late summer afternoon.

The Reverend Al Carson had recently completed 11 years as Rector of St. Cuthbert’s, Delta. He and his family have been residents of the Chilliwack area for many years so an incumbency in the neighbourhood will certainly contribute to less driving and more family time. Please remember Al and his family and the Parish of St. John’s, Sardis in your prayers as they embark on their “amazing journey.”

Images: Top and homepage, The new rector, the Reverend Allan Carson waits for the presentation of the Gifts of Ministry, Crucifer/Server Glenda Eno looks on. Upper right, An Carson reads Jeremiah 1: 4-9. Upper left, the preacher, the Reverend Craig Tanksley. Middle,Bishop Melissa leads the applause as the congregation welcomes the new rector, the Reverend Allan Carson following the Covenant in Ministry. Lower right, the two dozen plus who gathered in the church building extension followed the service on streaming video. Lower left, two St John’s music groups offer “Come to the Well”. Below 1, Some senior clergy process out, the Reverend Major Art Turnbull and the Venerable Jack Major; and in behind, left to right: the Reverend Richard Leggett, the Reverend Denise Doerksen and the Reverend Sue Foley Currie are visible. Below 2, Bishop Melissa and the Reverend Larry Adkins close out the procession prior to the Dismissal

PHOTOS: Randy Murray