Sointula Community Church

10/03/2026

This beautiful Gillnet rug was made from the net of the Sointula fishing vessel "Jamboree". It has never been on lines nor fished. Thanks Heather!

09/18/2026

07/23/2026

Cruise ships are kind of ridiculous, when you really think about it.

In our unending quest for bigger and better, we have managed to create fleets of these monstrous ships that are each capable of carrying a small city worth of human beings, and we propel these behemoths around the globe strictly for entertainment and pleasure.

But here's the thing, even after living in Sointula for almost a decade and a half Anna and I still get a little excited when we see one of these floating cities poke its nose around Pultney Point to meander past our humble little island, if only for the sheer spectacle of it all.

It's funny though, if you happen to look out as a cruise ship is making its way past Malcolm Island you quite literally can't miss it - it absolutely dominates the coastline for the few minutes that it takes for it to drift on by and out of view.

But if you are busy, find yourself out of view from the water, or just don't happen to look out at the right time, you can miss the whole thing.

A ship that seems larger than life, carrying between 2,000 and 6,000 passengers plus crew and staff, and standing between 10 and 20 floors tall, can quietly sneak past you without your having the slightest hint of its presence!

It's kind of wild that we could miss something so immense and so close...

But then I look around at the world we inhabit.

A world that is broken and hurting.

A world that is confused and searching.

A world that is dying to find purpose and meaning.

A world that is in desperate need of a saviour.

A world that is so caught up in its own concerns and distracted by its own importance, that it is missing the proverbial cruise liner passing right in front of it.

We may miss the odd cruise ship from time to time, but may we never miss the clear and necessary hope of Jesus Christ.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." ~ John 3:16

06/25/2026

Recently I found myself in Genesis 50 - the very last chapter of the book of Genesis.

As things in the book are coming to a close, we are given a fascinating glimpse into a very personal interaction between Joseph and his brothers.

They have just buried their father, Jacob, when we read these words:

"When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.” (Genesis 50:15)

This is incredible - these guys have literally just lost their Dad, and this is where their heads are at.

The brothers are overcome with a fear that is rooted in a sinful act that they committed years ago - selling their brother into slavery in Egypt.

The passage goes on to depict how Joseph's brothers even try to leverage their late father's memory for their own ends.

These guys were seriously worried about how Joseph would respond...

But they didn't need to be afraid, because this was Joseph's response:

“Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them." (Genesis 50:19b-21)

Joseph's brothers knew their own sin well, and they were rightfully terrified of the consequences.

Joseph knew his brothers' sin well also - he was the one whom they had sinned against!

And yet Joseph chose not to respond with vengeance but with forgiveness.

He chose not to hold a grudge, but to show mercy.

Let's not be mistaken though, this doesn't mean that Joseph condoned or approved of his brothers' actions and motives, he is clear when he states that they "meant evil against [him]".

Likewise, this doesn't mean that Joseph didn't feel the pain of his brothers' sin, he most certainly did.

Also, this doesn't necessarily mean that Joseph trusted his brothers unreservedly; they had broken his trust in a big way, and I imagine that took some time to repair.

What this does mean is that Joseph made the intentional, difficult, and emotionally charged decision to honour God above all, and to extend a forgiveness that had neither been earned or deserved.

The question is, am I prepared to do the same in my life?

"...and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." (Matthew 6:12)

-Ben

06/04/2026

Have you ever met a true sports fan?

I'm not talking about someone who enjoys watching the odd game, but someone who is truly devoted to their team.

I've met a few such fans in my life, and here are some things I've noticed:

They never miss a game - if their team is playing, they are watching.

They can always tell you the results of the last game, and when the next game will be.

They always keep abreast of the latest news: injuries, trades, changes in starting lineups, etc.

They talk about their team whenever possible, to whomever will listen, and always with enthusiasm and passion.

They are 110% bought in.

Now here are some tough questions:

When I consider my faith in Jesus Christ, how does it compare?

Am I that passionate?

Am I that enthusiastic?

Am I that devoted?

Am I that bought in?

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." - Matthew 22:37b

-Ben

05/14/2026

Hope to see you there, rain or shine ☀️🌭🍪

04/09/2026

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name."

As you read these words, they are likely familiar.

Maybe you've heard them taught in a Sunday school class, recited in a church service, or sung in a beautiful arrangement.

However you've come across these words, you know that they are the beginning of something deeply significant - the Lord's prayer.

Christ, in teaching His disciples to pray, begins with this introduction.

Consider that for a moment - these are the opening words of one of the most important prayers of all time.

These words bear a gravity that we can only begin to understand.

Having said that, I was really struck by this introduction during a recent prayer time.

The phrase that absolutely stopped me in my tracks was simply this: "...hallowed be your name."

We've all likely heard, prayed, or recited these words at some time, but do we really understand the implications of them?

His name is holy.

His name is greater.

His name is set apart.

So, how does this affect the way in which we handle His name?

Do we approach it with honour, the way we would treat something of immense value, or do we toss it around thoughtlessly?

Do we show it respect, being careful of the context and manner in which we speak it, or do we spit it out as a profane punctuation mark, cheapening it to emphasize our jokes and outbursts?

Do we respect God's name as hallowed, or do we demean it as something far less?

Next time we are about to speak His name, let's take a moment to truly consider the weight of these words:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name."

-Ben

02/12/2026

I have a favourite frying pan.

There, I said it: I have a favourite frying pan.

This is a relatively new development for me.

You don't usually hear people in their teens or twenties pontificating about the merits of their favourite frying pans, but when you hit your mid-thirties or forties, all bets are off.

My frying pan is just the right size - not too big, but large enough that you can fry multiple eggs without them turning into one giant amorphous blob of white and yellow.

It heats up nice and even without any noticeable hotspots.

It's just a nice frying pan.

But here's the thing: no matter how much a person waxes lyrical about a frying pan, it's still just a frying pan.

On its own it cannot fry a single egg.

On its own it is incapable of heating up evenly; for that matter, on its own it can't heat up at all.

On its own it is just a cold frying pan, and a cold frying pan is a useless frying pan.

A frying pan only becomes useful when you place it on a source of heat.

It only begins to do what it was designed to do when it has a source of power behind it.

In that sense, we are kind of like frying pans…

As Christians, we can look like we are doing a great job of following Jesus.

We can look like we have it all together, like we know what we're doing.

We can even inspire others to follow Jesus too - or be inspired by others to follow Jesus more closely!

Like my favourite frying pan, we can do what we were designed to do.

This is not a bad thing, so long as we don't forget one very significant point:

We are all just frying pans.

And like a frying pan needs a source of heat to do what it was designed to do, so we rely on a source of power to be who we are designed to be.

Paul makes this abundantly clear in Ephesians 2:8-9:

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

It is only through the grace of God and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that any of us are saved.

We don't earn it, we can't achieve it, and we don't deserve it.

We are His workmanship - He has created us - and He has not only saved us, but He is faithful to work in us and through us as we seek to follow Him.

We have the privilege of living our lives for His glory, by His strength, walking in the good deeds that He has prepared for us.

Having received salvation through Christ, we are designed to live lives that glorify God - but just like my frying pan, we cannot do it on our own.

May our lives always point to the source - the One who truly deserves all of the glory.

Ben

12/25/2025

If you spend any time at all watching TV, you are bound to see advertisements for products designed to reduce the signs of aging, banish the appearance of wrinkles, improve your health and/or attractiveness (usually with no effort whatsoever on your part), and generally keep you looking and feeling younger than you are.

We see actors playing carefree games of football, whitewater kayaking, and even skydiving, all with permanent smiles plastered across their airbrushed faces.

It all looks like it would be such a blast, but I know full well that it would have me reaching for the Advil in short order.

See, we as a people are enamoured with living.

We love the idea of retaining our youthful vigour, even though we groan slightly as we get off the couch.

We love the idea of retaining our youthful age, even though our birthday cake becomes more of a fire hazard every year.

And we love the idea of retaining our youthful looks, even though the stranger in the mirror resembles us less and less each morning.

We love to live.

So how do we, as lovers of life, grapple with the concept of Jesus?

"...Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." ~Philippians 2:5b-8

As we celebrate Christmas, we tend to focus on the Christ-child in the manger; there is nothing wrong with this, but in this passage Paul reminds us that the baby in the manger is part of a much larger picture.

Jesus wasn't just born so that shepherds and wisemen could visit Him, He was born for something greater.

Jesus was born to die.

He came to die so that you and I could know true life - life that is so much more than just smooth skin and sky-diving.

"I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10b

-Ben