Parkland Evangelical Free Church

Parkland Evangelical Free Church Parkland Evangelical Free Church in Kamsack, Saskatchewan

06/09/2026

READ REVELATION CHAPTER 1.
WORSHIP JESUS—IT'S ESSENTIAL TO CHRISTIAN FAITH.
Every angel in the universe worshiped Jesus in the flesh when He was born in Bethlehem: “And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says: 'Let all God’s angels worship him'” (Hebrews 1:6).
Someone asked me once, “Did Jesus ever say that He is God?” I said Yes, and turned to John 8:58, where Jesus identified Himself as the “I AM,” as the Lord God had identified Himself in Exodus 3. The Jews were ready to kill Him for blasphemy on that occasion—THEY clearly understood His claim!
In Revelation, the first and last chapters of the book clearly identify Jesus as God to be worshiped. Revelation 1:8, “'I am the Alpha and the Omega,' says the Lord God, 'who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.'” And then Revelation 22:13f, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End... I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
In the book of Revelation, Jesus is also called “Son of God” (2:18), Creator (4:11), “Heir to David's Throne” (5:5), “Lamb” (5:6), Shepherd (7:17), “The Word of God” (19:13), “King of kings and Lord of lords (19:16).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD JESUS CHRIST, I worship You; You became God in flesh. Glory, Hallelujah!

THIS IS DAY 66: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 8/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/08/2026

READ JUDE. WHEN OUR GREATEST TEST COMES, THE LORD CAN KEEP OUR FAITH FROM FAILING.
Verses 24-25, “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”
Can you identify what was the greatest test to your faith that you've faced? Was it in the form of temptation to sin? Was it a smooth-talking person teaching what is false? Was it a charming person trying to persuade you into a relationship because they loved Jesus like you did—but somehow you knew that wasn’t true? Or was it a test of loss, persecution or suffering of some kind?
When I was a teenager in the seventies, I heard speakers tell about Christians suffering for their faith under Communism, and I wondered if I could endure some of the tortures described while staying true to Jesus.
In the book, “I Am N,” the story of an Iraqi Christian named Abu is told. In 2014, he lost his house when ISIS moved into the city: An ISIS member spray-painted a giant “N” on the house (symbolizing Jesus the “Nazarene.”) At an ISIS checkpoint, Abu answered the interrogator honestly: “Yes, we are Christians.” The leader said, “Convert to Islam or be killed. It is that simple. It is an easy choice, no?” A discussion continued, and finally: “'Enough,' declared the leader.
He grabbed Abu by the arm and led him away as his wife, mother and sister wept, pleaded and prayed. 'Prepare to die,' he said, pushing Abu to his knees. 'Last chance. Will you convert to Islam?' 'No, I will not be a Muslim,' he stated. I do NOT denounce Jesus.' The man raised his sword. Abu bowed his head, closed his eyes and prayed. Then he heard another vehicle arrive, and exhaled.”
At a second checkpoint, everything they had left was taken from them, including money hidden underneath the car seat. “'If you convert,' said one guard, 'all that we took from you will be given back. You will even be protected. So, tell us you embrace Islam.' 'I am a Christian,' said Abu.”
And then suddenly, mysteriously, he was free to go.
“They sacrificed it all. They left behind their homes, the lives they had lived, and their hopes for the future, choosing instead to trust in God and serve Him wherever he would lead” (from “I Am N: Inspiring Stories Of Christians Facing Islamic Extremists,” published David C. Cook and Voice of the Martyrs, 2016).
The Lord was able to keep Abu from falling or stumbling (Jude vs. 24).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, help me to stay true and faithful to You in the little things—and when the biggest tests come later, I’m confident You will keep me strong in faith!

THIS IS DAY 65: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 7/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/07/2026

11am Sunday Service, Frank Nadeau speaking + Children’s Church. Come!

06/07/2026

READ THIRD JOHN.
WHEN FAITH IS HINDERED BY A TROUBLE-MAKER IN CHURCH.
“'It was over before it got started!' 'Short, sweet and to the point.' But just because things are brief or small or short doesn't mean they're unimportant. Take 3rd John for instance. With only 15 verses, it is one of the shortest books of the Bible—a quick contrast between godly living and worldly behavior” (from “Student's Life Application New Testament, Pg. 339).
The troublemaker was Diotrephes. He needed to be removed, said John.
“Those were perilous times, and it would not be an unknown thing for a disaffected Christian to turn over an incriminating letter to the non-Christian civil authorities, and to procure prosecution of the writer for provoking a disturbance. John would write Second John, but he would avoid names and addresses: the church would be “the chosen lady” (2 John 1) and he himself “the elder” (2 John 1)--which to an uninformed reader might simply mean, in an affectionate sense, 'the Old Man.' It fell out as expected, and the report was brought back that Diotrephes had suppressed the letter (2 John). NOW John wrote to a trusted believer (Gaius) in that same church, censuring Diotrephes in terms which left no doubt as to his unsuitability as a church leader. At the same time Gaius, and with him Demetrius (3 John vs. 12), is furnished with a testimonial of unreserved confidence. The Apostle (John) hopes to visit the church, but in the meantime the church has a chance to set her own house in order. Let her take the hint, and throw off the domination of this unspiritual autocrat in favour of the [leadership] of these two well-proved men” (R. W. Orr in “A New Testament Commentary,” eds. Howley, Bruce and Ellison, Pg. 622).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: It is sad to admit, Lord, but I can see that sometimes a person who causes so much trouble must go.

THIS IS DAY 64: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 6/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/06/2026

READ SECOND JOHN.
Vs. 4, “It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us.”
Let's rejoice over those we see walking in the truth.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, thank You for ___ and ___ who are true to You—they are walking in the truth!

THIS IS DAY 63: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 5/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/05/2026

READ FIRST JOHN CHAPTER 4.
EVALUATE WHAT PEOPLE PREACH & TEACH; THE BIBLE IS GOD'S MEASURING STICK FOR MESSAGES.
Vs. 1, “Test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”
When I've heard a lie spoken as biblical truth, I've sometimes wanted to leap to my feet and shout, “That's not true!”
There's a time and place for confronting lies.
The Bereans in Acts 17 were good examples of what we are talking about. Acts 17:11 tells us “They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, give me a discerning mind.

THIS IS DAY 62: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 4/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/03/2026

READ SECOND PETER CHAPTER 1.
GOD SAYS THROUGH PETER: “DO THE MATH!—KEEP ADDING GOOD STUFF TO YOUR LIFE.”
“I need more money!” Have you expressed that in any way recently?
The following question was asked on Quora by a young woman whose boyfriend's life motto seemed to be, “I need more money!” She said, “I love my boyfriend, but he keeps asking me for money. What should I do? He earns more than me and never mentioned returning the money.”
EVERYBODY needs more money, don't they?
How about this—have you expressed this kind of desire recently? “I need more goodness!” “I need more knowledge!” “I need more self-control!” I need more godliness!” Do these exclamations express felt needs in your life? Have you asked a fellow-believer to pray that you’ll get more of what you need from Peter’s list?
Verses 5-8, ”Make every effort to add to your faith goodness... knowledge... self-control ... perseverance ... godliness ... mutual affection ... love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Self-control (vs. 6) was a big one with Peter. Maybe he'd experienced some addiction which prompted him to include this, but more likely he had to contend with out-of-control emotions and words from his own life. A servant girl asked a question about his association with Jesus as they stood around a fire warming themselves, and it paralyzed his heart with fear! And before he knew it, out gushed a lie from his mouth! When we give in to fear, instead of being strong in faith, we do things that are “out of control.”
Peter's point in this section is: Keep growing, progressing, maturing. Keep adding all the good stuff Jesus wants to put into your life.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, You never stop working in my life to help me grow!

THIS IS DAY 61: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 3/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/02/2026

READ FIRST PETER CHAPTER 4.
DO YOU SEE THAT GLOW OVER YOU WHEN YOU SUFFER SOMETHING FOR THE NAME OF JESUS? THAT SHINING IS THE GLORY OF GOD.
Vs. 14, “If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.”
At one of our Bible studies, we would read together a few pages each meeting from the book “Tortured for Christ” by Richard Wurmbrand.
Wurmbrand mentions the case of one Christian who suffered in those awful days for Christians in Romania under the brutal Communist government. She was a young lady whom the communist police discovered spreading Gospels and teaching children about Christ. They decided to arrest her, but waited until her wedding day, then rushed in to handcuff her when she was dressed in her bridal gown.
She kissed her handcuffs, and said to the ones she loved: “I thank my Heavenly Bridegroom for this jewel He has presented to me on my marriage day. I thank Him that I am worthy to suffer for Him.”
She was dragged off with everyone weeping, knowing what happened to young Christian ladies at the hands of Communist guards in Romanian prisons in those days.
She was tortured and released five YEARS later, a destroyed, broken woman, looking thirty years older. Her man had waited for her.
Wurmbrand concludes, “She said it was the least she could do for her Christ. Such beautiful Christians!” (Pg. 36).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, we don't naturally welcome painful things. But help us to be willing to suffer for You, Jesus, if it means staying true to You!

THIS IS DAY 60: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 2/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/01/2026

READ JAMES CHAPTER 2.
TRUE FAITH REACHES LOVINGLY ACROSS BARRIERS.
Verses 18, 26, “But someone will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.' Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds... 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.”
When Jesus told about the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25ff.), we need to make sure we understand that it was a story of love reaching across racial and religious boundaries. Jews in that time would ordinarily have nothing to do with Samaritans. Samaritans had a different religion, and, as Jesus Himself said to one: “You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22). But in Jesus' parable, he reversed things, or turned things upside down from what was expected by making the Samaritan into an example of love! It's that rejected race and religion that provided for Jews and Christians exemplary love reaching across barriers!
If we have true faith in Jesus, let's find ways to lovingly cross barriers.
Tunney Hovorka, born in 1926, wrote a book about growing up in Kamsack, the town we live in now. He belonged to a Roman Catholic family in what he considered at the time a White Anglo Saxon Protestant town.
“Most of our peers, friends and school mates, as well as an adult influence were non-Catholic. As a result, our religious association was limited, being upfront with kids at least. Adults, I don't know about. It wasn't a concern to me at the time. One of the major restrictions, in restrospect, partly due to the rigidity of the Catholic Church at that time, was not being allowed to participate in any other faith but your own. This, I felt, was a narrower path I had to navigate. The problem at hand was that a good friend of mine, who had been sickly all the time I knew him, suddenly was gone. He died. When he passed away, his family wanted his friends to be his pallbearers. I was honoured to be asked but had to refuse because the funeral was in a Protestant church. It took a lot of explaining to get me through that one. Thank God, this thinking has been relaxed. These twists and turns of our journey through life have to be negotiated. The upside of this is that they help to shape and broaden our being” (Tunney Hovorka, “It Just Happened,” 2010, Pgs. 28-30)
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD JESUS, fill my heart with love, and my mind with wisdom to reach across barriers like You would do in my shoes.

THIS IS DAY 59: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” June 1/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

06/01/2026

READ HEBREWS CHAPTER 1.
FEED YOUR FAITH IN JESUS WITH BOTH THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.
A study of the book of Hebrews to find how it ties in Old Testament references would be a rich study indeed. We are actually starting a study in Hebrews in our Thursday Bible study in a couple weeks.
If you launch into a study of Hebrews, you could start by noticing all the places in the Bible that are quoted or alluded to from the footnotes.
Check the footnotes in your Bible for Hebrews 1 alone, and you find it takes you back to 8 different places in the Old Testament: Psalms 2, 45, 102, 104, 110, 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17; Deuteronomy 32.
A PRAYER FOR TODAY: LORD, You have woven the whole Bible together as one Book. I need to study diligently to see the beauty and deep truth of that unity!

THIS IS DAY 58: OF HAVE FAITH! The Call to believe all through the Bible, for “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” May 31/26. A 66-DAY ADVENTURE THROUGH THE BIBLE, written by Stephen Ruten (edited or re-written from an original 2017, 36th Series). Would you like to receive the current “Adventure” in the process of being written week by week, and sent out by email every Saturday night? Private message me with your email address. And—please—pray for me as I continue to write.

Address

329 Carment Avenue
Kamsack, SK
S0A1S0

Telephone

+13065424140

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