With this update we would like to wish you all our Lord's richest blessings for this new year. We took some time off over the Christmas holidays but are now back to work.
Last month we shared with you a bit about the work we have been involved with in Goose Cove. This month I would like to share with you another aspect to our local ministry -- Sovereign Grace Presbyterian Church, Blues Mills.
Blues Mills is a small community located on the Trans Canada Highway about 95 kilometres west of Sydney Mines where we live. The nearest community with a grocery store, pharmacy and gas station is Whycocomaugh about 10 kilometres away. For a larger selection of goods, most people travel to Port Hawkesbury about 45 kilometres west. Hospitals are located in Baddeck about 47 kilometres away or just outside of Port Hawkesbury.
A number of people in Blues Mills and surrounding area are employed at a paper mill in the town of Port Hawkesbury. This mill has gone through some significant changes this past year which has resulted in about half of the employees loosing their jobs. Many of these former employees have gone to western Canada for work. In most cases the wife and children remain in the community while the father goes away to work.
There are very little employment opportunities for youth in the region. Most youth attend university and find a job elsewhere, leaving the community.
Sovereign Grace Presbyterian Church is a member of the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA). The nearest sister church is in Sydney about 120 kilometres away. While I am not a member of this denomination, the leadership has given their support to my ministry in this church. They are seeking the Lord for a full time church planter/pastor from the denomination. I have been filling in for the last year.
Sovereign Grace Presbyterian has been in the community now for a number of years. A core group of 15 faithful believers gather each Sunday for worship. The church needed to experience a measure of healing this past year and I believe the Lord has been doing that for them. I trust that the Lord will become more and more real to the members of this church.
Because I have a full time ministry already, I have only been able to give Sovereign Grace the weekend. We have done our best to make Sundays a time when we can address the spiritual needs of this congregation. Our lunch after church gives me time to speak to and pray with individuals. We have also tried to structure the church service so that the pastoral needs of the congregation and their children are addressed. When necessary, I can send an email to encourage, phone to see how people are doing or drop by to pray with someone in the hospital.
Sovereign Grace has been a rich blessing both to me personally and to the ministry of Light to My Path Book Distribution. Money received from this ministry goes directly to the mission and has been a means of getting hundreds of books out to Christian workers overseas last year.
Sovereign Grace Presbyterian is one of three evangelical works in the small community of Blues Mills.
In this past year I have gotten to know a number of believers from the Gospel Hall across the highway. This year they had a series of Gospel meetings in the area. We encouraged members of Sovereign Grace to attend in support of our brothers and sisters. The Gospel Hall in Blues Mills has had an important role to play in this community. Over the years a number of people have come to the Lord and grown in their faith as a result of their ministry.
River Denys Christian Fellowship is another ministry that has been started in recent years. This group is lead by a friend and supporter. He has been ministering to some very particular needs in the community. We joined with River Denys Christian Fellowship for worship and a common meal over the Christmas season.
It is quite amazing to see that in a community of this size there would be three evangelical works each reaching out to a unique set of people. The Lord has been working in this community and has not forsaken His people. As we meet in these smaller groups, we are able to deal with particular needs. I am trusting that each of these groups of believers will continue to walk together as fellow believers supporting each other and the various works God has called us to do in the area.
My role at Sovereign Grace Presbyterian has been to care for the spiritual needs of the believers and prepare them for what God has next. I do not know how long the Lord will keep me there. There has been no pastor in site for this congregation for the past year. I look forward now to the second year and pray that the Lord would bless and make His presence known in our midst.
HOW PRAY THIS MONTH:
Praise:
* The Lord has been working in the small community of Blues Mills, Nova Scotia by establishing three evangelical works, each reaching a unique set of people.
* I am thankful for a good year with the believers at Sovereign Grace Presbyterian and the measure of healing we have seen in their lives.
* I thank the Lord for the way Sovereign Grace Presbyterian has provided for the shipping of so many books to needy Christian workers around the world.
Prayer:
* Pray that the members of Sovereign Grace Presbyterian would experience a special touch of the Lord this year, making Christ very real to them.
* Pray that I would have wisdom, strength and discipline to care for the spiritual need of Sovereign Grace Presbyterian, Blues Mills.
* Ask the Lord to touch loved ones connected to members of the church who have never made a commitment to the Lord Jesus.
FREE Monthly PDF Download
This month I am pleased to offer my commentary on Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther as a free PDF download. I trust it will be a blessing to you. These commentaries are devotional in nature and are designed for your personal time with the Lord. Visit http://ltmp.ca/ministry/free-download.htm for your copy. Feel free to share this link with others as it will be good for the next month. Pray that the Lord would be pleased to use this commentary in the lives of those who download it.
THANK YOU
I am thankful to the Lord for the local ministry that the Lord has given me here in Cape Breton. Thank you for praying for us as we seek to be instruments for His glory here in Cape Breton as well as around the world.
God bless,
WAYNE MAC LEOD
LIGHT TO MY PATH BOOK DISTRIBUTION
WEBSITE: WWW.LTMP.CA
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