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The Citizen, 1991-09-11, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 1991. From the Minister's Study Is pain a burden or a stepping stone? BY LORENZO RAMIREZ BLYTH UNITED CHURCH Psalm 27: 1, 14: “The Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heed, and wait for the Lord.” Most of us are familiar with the saying “Patience of Job,” or “you have the patience of Job.” I am assuming that people know the story behind the saying, if not, it won't take long if you read your Bible, look for the story of Job. If you read Job 1, 6-22 and then chap­ ter 2: 1-10 you'll have a pretty good idea. One of the hardest things for most ministers to do is visit family or parents whose son or daughter died in a car accident and when it happens even just once in our min­ isterial life is one time too many, because of the heartache, emotional and mental and spiritual anguish that parents go through. No amount of Theological or Psychological training can prepare one for such an iricident. When it happened to one of my people, the only thing I can do was being there with the parents and grandparents. At that point I felt no words of sympathy or comfort can console them so I just silently stayed there with them hoping that they know I care if that could be any comfort. Some weeks later they came to me and told me how much they appre­ ciated my presence there and that somehow they felt that God had not abandoned them. That's when I told them about Job's story of losing his children from a tornado (1: 18-19) and Job's reply to this misfortune was “Naked I come from My Mother's Womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away - may the name of the Lord be praised.” Even when Job was afflicted with sores from head to toe, his reply to his wife who had given up hope was “Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?” Last week I held a chapel service in one of the area hospitals. I shared with them the thought that pain and suffering in this world can either be burdens that we have to carry, making our spirits and our hearts and our minds heavy laden or stepping stones that we can use to cross our rivers of woe bringirig us closer to God. We sung hymns and our son accompanied us on the piano. Most of the people thanked us and some especially thanked John for taking time out of school and play for them. They said how much better they felt and comforted in the thought that God and people care about them. Burdens to carry or stepping stones? That's the two choices we have when we suffer or have pain in this life. May the light of God shine in you today. ANGLICAN CHURCH OF CANADA Rev. E. Paul Acton 887-9273 SEPTEMBER 15 - PENTECOST 17 TRINITY, BLYTH 9:30 A.M. ST. JOHN’S, BRUSSELS 11:15 A.M. BLYTH UNITED CHURCH Rev. Lorenzo Ramirez iVeir pastor at BlythlBrussels churches Pastor Paul Acton has assumed the pastoral care at Blyth Trinity and Brussels St. John's Anglican Churches, replacing David Fuller, who left to pursue his studies. The Acton family have moved here from Essex. From left, Jennifer, Pastor Acton, Christopher, Kimberly, Marjorie and Joshua. Pastor Paul Acton officially took over as minister of St. John's and Trinity Anglican Churches in Brus­ sels and Blyth, on September 1. He replaces David Fuller, who left to continue his education. Pastor Acton, along with his fam­ ily, wife Marjorie, and children, Jennifer, 10, Joshua, eight, Kimber­ ly, six, and Christopher, who will be two this month, come to the area from Essex, where they resided for two years, while Pastor Acton tend­ ed to the needs of a congregation in Windsor. Prior to that, while still in semi­ nary, he was an assistant pastor at a church in Toronto for two years. He graduated in 1982 with a BA in Philosophy and a Master of Divini­ ty. He is still enrolled at the Uni­ versity of Windsor, but continuing his studies at this time is "not a pri­ ority thing," he said. He then moved on to a parish in Sudbury where he remained for seven years before moving to Windsor. During his pastoral care in Sudbury, he was involved in a a large project that he personally feels went very well. "When I came to Sudbury, it was to a church of 35 people. They had been meeting in a hollowed-out three bedroom bun­ galow." With the area developing quick­ ly and many people moving in, the need for a new church was evident, so Pastor Acton and his congrega­ tion organized 4,000 volunteer hours to erect a new building of worship. The undertaking, he says, virtually brought people together and was completed with a happy spirit and on schedule. By the time he left Sudbury, there was on the average 200 peo­ ple attending Sunday services. In addition to his regular clerical work, Pastor Acton has served on the Pastoral Care Committee at Extended Nursing Homes and pro­ vided weekly service there. He has served on the executive of the Interfaith Television council and produced many programs for TV. He has been a camp director, work­ ing with children in a camp min­ istry extensively for 10 years. Pastor Acton says he has always enjoyed working with children and hopes to build up that part of the congregation in the Brussels and Blyth parishes. "After all, I'm adding four to the number off the bat," he says, in reference to his own family. In his earlier church, he was able to take on the role of Sunday School teacher as well, as classes were conducted prior to church. "I liked to rotate through the Sunday School, in order to work with all the age groups," he said. His first priority here, he says, is simply to let his parishioners know that he cares for them and will be there for them when they need him. "If people know you have a pas­ toral heart for them, it makes a dif­ ference," he explained. "They'll more easily excuse other quirks I might have. It's like family or mar­ riage, when you know you are loved, you can overlook some of the other things." "I have been fortunate," he said. "In Sudbury, I had a combination of friendly people and a strong pul­ pit ministry. You knew you were liked. I have found this community like that, very warm and friendly. " As an example, he described his family's welcome, when they first arrived at their new home. "We got here about 10:30 on Friday night. A crowd of people showed up and within half-an-hour the van was unloaded." The challenge of the two charge­ parish is a new one to Pastor Acton, but not one that intimidates him in any way. "It's too soon to judge, but because I like sports I tend to be a competitive type of person, who enjoys a challenge," he said. Marjorie Acton describes herself as a traditional minister's wife, who attends church as often as possible and supports her husband in his continued on page 27 11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship Service Junior Church - Nursery What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits toward me? Psalm 1[6: 12 Church Office 523-4224 HURON CHAPEL MISSIONARY CHURCH PASTOR JAMES H. CARNE AUBURN 526-7515• 10 a.m. - Family Bible Hour 11 a.m. - Morning Service 8 p.m. - Evening Service, Kubassek Brothers, Male Quartet Wednesday - Mrs. Comfort Adebola of Nigeria Friday 7:30 p.m. -Youth MELVILLE 11:00 a.m. - Morning Service - Sunday School 9:30 a.m. -Belgrave Service . We welcome you to come and worship with us PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS Rev. Carolyn McAvoy BRUSSELS UNITED CHURCH Rev. Cameron McMillan Church Office 887-6259 Manse 887-9313 A 11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship Service Sunday, and Church School Registration Sept. 15th and Opening. Children from three to 14 years welcome 9:30 a.m. - Ethel Worship Service and Sunday School Jesus is the Christ BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH HIGHWAY 4, BLYTH Guest Minister - Rev. Dirk Miedena from Clinton Sunday at 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sunday School 11:00 a.m. The Church of the "Back to God Hour" and "Faith 20" Back to God Hour 10:30 a.m. CKNX Sunday Faith 20 5:00 a.m. Weekdays, Global T.V. All Visitors ‘Welcomi BRUSSELS MENNONITE FELLOWSHIP 9:30 a.m. Sunday Worship Service 10:30 a.m. Christian Education Hour for children and adults A Church Alive A Church For You Pastor Tom Warner Elder Sharon Freeman 887-6388 887-6564