Where: 135 Pearson Ave.

Come join us as we re-launch the City Builders’ Faith & Work ministry group. All architects, engineers, planners, developers, etc. as well as spouses and significant others are welcomed to come.

Please contact Mike to RSVP or if you have any questions.

See you there!

What better way to hang out together over the summer than a day in the park with sports, food and friends!

Throughout the summer, we are hosting a series of sports games and potluck picnics one Saturday a month.  Our last one of the summer is on Saturday, August 14th.  Join us for Kickball (Soccer baseball) Extravaganza at Christie Pits Park. This is open to everyone, from the newbie to the veteran, and we’ll be ending the day with a “bring-your-own” picnic. Feel free to invite neighbors, co-workers, friends and family.  To join a team, click on the link below, otherwise feel free to join us for the picnic at the end of the day.

Location:   Christie Pits Park (just north of Bloor St. on Christie St, right next to Christie Station)

Time:          3:00-5:00p   Kickball Extravaganza     5:00-7:00  Picnic

Sign up now for one of the teams, by clicking here.  For further questions or clarifications, please contact Stephanie Bourque.

Genesis 16 presents us with a story of the complications that come about when God’s people do not trust his promises. Instead of waiting for God to intervene into human history, Sarai grows impatient with her infertility. She takes her Egyptian servant Hagar and gives her to her husband (Much like Eve took the forbidden fruit and gave it to her husband in Gen. 3:6). Following this decision, strife infects Abram’s house. Sarai is harsh with her now pregnant servant Hagar. This complication from sin becomes a crisis and Hagar is forced to flee to her homeland of Egypt.

While on the road to Egypt an Angel of the Lord finds Hagar by a spring of water and asks her “Where are you going?” This question reminds the reader of God’s previous questions to people like Adam (Where are you?) and Cain (Where is your brother?). Unlike Adam and Cain, Hagar responds honestly. The angel tells her to return and submit to her master. Hagar responds with obedience.

In the midst of God’s people’s unfaithfulness and disobedience, Hagar is presented as the righteous servant who is obedient to the voice of God and to her earthly master. Though Hagar is not a descendent of Abram and the promised descendents will not come through her, the God of Abram communicates with her and blesses her. She is the only woman in the Old Testament that God addresses by name, and she is also the only woman in the Old Testament to confer a name upon God (“The God of Seeing”).

Later, Sarai’s children will suffer at the hands of Hagar’s people. Hagar will be an example to the people of God as they suffer. In the same way that God rescues Hagar as she fled oppressive slavery, God will rescue his people from their slavery in Egypt. In the same way that the Angel of the Lord finds Hagar wandering in the wilderness outside of Egypt (Gen. 16:7), an Angel of the Lord will direct God’s people in the wilderness after they leave Egypt (Ex. 14:19).Just as the God of seeing (Gen. 16:13) sees Hagar in her suffering, God will see Sarai’s children suffering (Ex. 3:7). God’s actions toward Hagar become blueprints of his actions toward his creation.

God’s grace is bigger than mankind’s mistakes. No matter how far in rebellion or disobedience one may be, the God of the Scriptures is relentlessly faithful to bring grace to a graceless situation. God sees his people oppressed by their own poor decisions, and he sees his people rebelling and wandering from his way, and yet he graciously intervenes. Before we even cry out to him, he is the God who sees us in need and provides a way. As God was gracious to Hagar, so also he continues to be gracious to those who least expect it.

We say that all the time around Grace Toronto Church, almost every week actually, but what does it really mean?

Does it mean we love everything about the city? Or does it mean that we love certain aspects of urban culture but look down on the parts that don’t fit with our churchy outlook? Or maybe it means we live our lives to fight for social justice and feed the homeless?

“Imprint” – a new magazine project from Grace Toronto aims to explore all of those questions and to find some answers about what those six words really mean to our church, to our friends and neighbours, to our lives.
But it’s more than that too. In these pages you’ll find neighbourhood profiles, music reviews, short stories, poetry, even photo essays and original illustrations – all by talented, creative people living in this big city.

We think you’re gonna love it, so pick up a copy this Sunday for $4 while we still got ‘em.
(Or order one online)

A couple weekends ago, a few of us travelled to Chicago to help a new staff member and his family move to Toronto.The weekend was a great success, and we had a lot of fun while travelling. One particular event clearly showed how God softened people’s hearts and aided us in our travels. Our biggest concern with travelling was getting back into Canada. Kyle, our new staff, needed to get a work permit for Canada and we weren’t sure that the border guards would issue one. To complicate matters, all of Kyle’s possessions were loaded up into a truck, and ready to cross with him. If the border guards were being strict, we might not have been able to cross the border, or there could have been a load of import taxes applied to the stuff in our truck.

We waited for about 30 minutes in our truck, inching along the bridge in Sarnia, waiting for our turn to talk to the customs official. When we finally got to the front of the line we met a customer official who asked a lot of questions about Grace – about our location, the size of the congregation, whether we needed an assistant pastor, what denomination we belonged to, and so forth. We were a little shocked at the depth of her questions, and at times it felt like we were being interrogated. Eventually, she was satisfied, and we were sent inside to talk with an agent.

While Kyle was being interviewed separately, I had some interesting interactions with other border agents. The customer official that had interrogated us came inside and said “do you go to Grace?”, and I told her that I did. She then asked if she could come to pub night*! As it turns out, she was asking these questions because she too went to a Presbyterian church and wanted to prove to her coworkers that young people still attend church!

While the agent was talking with Kyle, the customer official I talked to told the agent that Kyle “checked out”, and that seemed to speed up the process. In the end, we got everything we needed in record time!

God’s hand was evident throughout our travels, as in this story. It reminds me of Proverbs 29:25: “The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.”

How can we trust God more in our daily life? Do you recognize all the ways that God walks with you?

*Editor’s Note: Pub Night is a regular event hosted by the Faith and Work Ministry of Grace Toronto. See http://www.gracetoronto.ca/ministry/faith-work/ for details on future events.

Have you ever walked along the streets of Toronto and noticed those people sitting on the sidewalk or standing on the street corner who look unclean, wearing ragged, mismatched, filthy clothes that do not fit them and usually have a distinct smell that saturates the air around them? They often have their hand extended or hold a hat or used paper cup available for passersby to place loose change.

Have you ever given them some of your change or bought them a coffee or sandwich?  Perhaps you’ve flashed them a smile and said “God Bless you” back to them when they’ve thanked you for your kindness. Have you ever stopped to talk to them, to listen to their story, to see the real person that is living underneath the dirt and the filth and the poverty?

I have learned that in the eyes of society these are invisible people. One man said to me “Wow, I’m surprised someone actually saw me. I do exist,” when I stopped to hand him some change. I’ve had a few men start walking along with me and telling me their life story, or stop me on my way somewhere and talk to me about what has happened in their life to bring them to this point of poverty. I’ve learned to listen and acknowledge their humanity, even though at first I’m secretly a bit freaked out.

The most constructive time I have spent with this group of people is at the Salvation Army Warehouse, teaching literacy classes. Through conversation with them, I have learned that these people learning how to read and write grade-school level English are among society’s lowest status ranks. This is usually due to abusive, broken homes growing up as children, mental health disorders that are not properly treated and cared for, divorces where the estranged spouse is awarded everything, and debilitating work-related injuries where workers’ compensation programs do not deliver nearly enough funds to comfortably support one person. And the list goes on.  A few of the people I met at literacy classes trying to better themselves are the same people we see panhandling around the corner of Spadina and Bloor. The same could be true of any beggar we see on the streets of Toronto.

There is a stigma that people living on the streets or living in poverty are there by choice.  It was their own choices in life, their own mistakes that got them into that situation, and it continues to be their own choice that keeps them in hopeless circumstances. While this may be true to some extent, this is not always the exclusive case. In the article Meeting the needs of homeless people: The St. John Ambulance mobile service, Paula McGee and Ann Marie Barnard say “The experience of homelessness is associated with high levels of social exclusion. The lack of a home can also lead to being stigmatized by those who have more regular lifestyles and consequently, homeless people may be deterred from seeking help because they fear negative attitudes” (Nursing Standard, 1999, Vol. 13, Is. 42, pg. 38). It is the very stigmatizing opinion that we as a society have of people living in poverty that keeps those very people from achieving anything more than their own poverty.

Although this can seem like a rather depressing thought, by God’s grace we are not left with that as our only reality. Jesus said “Whoever wants to be great among you must be our servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” Matthew 20:26. What a great example set by Jesus! In Ephesians 6:7 He says, “serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people.”  And in Galatians 5:13, Paul says we are “called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge in the sinful nature, rather, serve one another humbly in love.”

Justice and mercy extended to people living in poverty is the outpouring of God’s love and compassion unto these people. It is what makes them visible. It is including them and acknowledging them as valid members of our society.  So may we take part in this and serve our Lord humbly by reaching out to them and being vessels of mercy and justice to them.  And perhaps in doing so, may we see Toronto transformed from these pockets of poverty to a place where restoration and healing occurs in all its streets, to all its people.

I work a lot. Ok, I admit it… I probably work too much. In the business world (and in general here in Toronto) we tend to wear our busyness as a badge of honour. It is almost a competition to see who works longer hours or has a more hectic schedule. How often have you felt the peace of God? When was the last time you truly rested: physically, emotionally, spiritually?

Jesus talked a lot about Peace and Rest:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light”
~ Matthew 11:28-30

However, if we look at Jesus’ life, we do not necessarily see a man who appeared to be at peace as we define it today. He was constantly preaching and healing, surrounded by crowds of needy people who were desperate for his physical and spiritual presence. When he was not preaching and teaching, he was generally traveling to the next town in Israel. How did he deal with with all the public pressure to perform 24/7? In Luke 4 verses 38-40 we see an example of Jesus visiting Peter’s house in Capernaum after preaching all day long. The people of the town discovered he was there and did not even allow him to eat, demanding healing and teaching. Talk about not getting any rest! The next morning Jesus leaves early and goes out into a solitary place … to do what? To sleep, read a book, watch some TV, get some “me” time? No, throughout his ministry on earth, Jesus often leaves the crowds to go and connect with God, the source of his energy and peace. Notice how when he returns he immediately sets off to continue teaching and preaching to all of Israel.

If we want to truly experience the peace of God, I think this is something we can take to heart. Sometimes in the busyness of this world, the only peace we have is the inner peace which comes from being close to God. And the only way to maintain or recharge this peace is by taking a step away from our lives and reconnecting with the source of peace: God. Filling ourselves with self-indulgence, no matter how well-intentioned, is temporary and ultimately just won’t cut it or enable us to continue pouring ourselves out for others in this busy world.

When Elijah was called to meet God in 1 Kings 19:11-13 first he saw a powerful wind, an earthquake, and fire, but the Lord was not there. God came after in the gentle whisper, in the stillness. How often do we long for God to come into our lives with a powerful wind or an earthquake and just shake things up to make everything right? How often all we need is the gentle whisper, the abiding peace of God to fill our hearts.

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
~ Philippians 4:7
I have included the following quotation from Paul Miller which can be found in his book, “A Praying Life” because it so wonderfully captures some of the implications of what I have been talking about.

“If we love people and have the power to help, then we are going to be busy. Learning to pray doesn’t offer us a less busy life; it offers us a less busy heart. In the midst of outer busyness we can develop an inner quiet. Because we are less hectic on the inside, we have a greater capacity to love . . . and thus to be busy, which in turn drives us even more into a life of prayer. By spending time with our Father in prayer, we integrate our lives with his, with what he is doing in us. Our lives become more coherent. They feel calmer, more ordered, even in the midst of confusion and pressure.” Paul Miller, A Praying Life.

What things could you be challenged to do for God if you dwelt in His peace?