Keith Knight

Getting church-goers to become engaged in scripture. What a novel idea.

One might start by removing all of the Bibles from the church pews. Have folks bring their own to worship that they can mark up and wear out. Smart phones will finally have a place in worship as parishioners -- especially young people -- become exposed to their favorite Bible app.

We as Reformed Christians have become lazy when it comes to opening up scripture. We've been conditioned to depend on the pew Bible, and that -- sad to say -- if often the only exposure that we have to scripture through the course of the week. We need to get trained to actually choose our favorite Bible translation and then take it with us to worship, to Small Groups, to work, wherever.

Biblical engagement is a huge issue within our churches, simply because we haven't grown up with the need to have an intimate relationship with our very own Bible. Without that intimate relationship, how can we expect to have meaningful small group discussions around biblical content?

Hundreds of Christian business leaders -- men and women -- meet monthly across Canada in small groups over breakfast.

They meet to connect their faith to their vocation. The Canadian Christian Business Federation (CCBF) is a 30-year-old network involving almost 4,000 Christians across Canada. It has deep Reformed roots but it has developed into a wonderful ecumenical gathering of Christians who deal with business issues from a biblical perspective. This isn't Bible study; it's leadership development but it is solidly biblical. The foundation for these monthly breakfast discussions -- and there are 35 groups across the country -- is the NIV Leadership Study Bible.

There is a five-year curriculum, dealing with everything from integrity and obedience to God to stress management, courage and risk-taking, communication skills and problem solving.

Among the participants are men and women involved in business, more than a dozen Christian non-profits and a half dozen Christian colleges and universities who connect their business students with business leaders.

A growing number of churches are creating their own CCBF groups, recognizing that the church does very little to provide faith support for their members who are in business or the professions. Interestingly, almost all of these churches are evangelical, Pentecostal or Assembly of God. There isn't a CRC among them, even though the discussion materials focus on the very Reformed notion that 'everything belongs to God' and that 'if you're in business, you're in ministry'.

Just as there are Coffee Break groups for women, I would love to see even one CRC consider creating a small group for the men and women in their congregation who are involved in business or the professions.

While I embrace the notion that we need to have more small groups that deal with Bible study, we also need to have small groups that practically apply those biblical principles to the challenges facing the Christian business community: How do you balance your corporate long range plan with the will of God? How do you handle power and influence? If all that we have belongs to God, isn't tithing robbing God of the other 90 per cent?

Keith Knight

Executive Director

Canadian Christian Business Federation

We celebrate communion weekly, just before the closing song and benediction.

It's always meaningful, never merely a tradition, and weekly reminder of God's grace.

I think that it depends on the nature of the volunteer position. We currently do police checks on those working with children ministries. Its a safety issue.  I'd insist on fully vaccinated volunteers involved in nursery or children's ministry.

Manning the sound board? Not necessary.

Elders have an obligation to protect their flock.

You raise a good point, Drayton CRC.

We are a binational denomination, with two very different cultures when it comes to dealing with COVID and vaccinations and all that.

The question at the beginning of this thread focuses on whether or not vaccinations should be mandatory for volunteers in church.

We're not debating COVID or the merits of masks.  The CRC has a denominational Safe Church Office. How do we make our church experience safe as we deal with COVID and vaccinations?

Do churches still have choirs?  I thought that worship teams -- designed to lead the congregation in worship -- replaced the need for choirs.  One can't beat congregational singing in a worship service.

So, choirs during COVID are redundant and non-existent. Let's permanently put choirs and "special music" to rest.

Instead, have worship teams teach and lead meaningful psalms, hymns and contemporary songs.

You raise a profound question and it even stretches beyond The Offering to a larger question about what worship will look like post-COVID? And will we ever experience a post-COVID or will we always have COVID with us ... like the flu or other viruses?

Those churches that had online giving or pre-authorized giving before COVID hit are probably still managing to pay their bills. Those church members have grown accustomed to giving to the church outside of the weekly worship service.

It is undoubtedly more difficult for churches that passed the offering plate on Sundays and that was the sole source of church revenue.

My hunch is that mission giving has moved from the offering plate to direct donations to the ministry agency. While non-profit funding is down considerably during COVID, my hunch is that mission agencies with their broad database of church members and supporters may be doing okay.

I have also noticed that online giving has spread to a wider family of kingdom causes. Local church loyalty is giving way to a broader Kingdom approach. Sunday worship during COVID has become "Sunday worships" -- often watching two, three or more worship services on a Sunday, either live or on YouTube. I live in Ontario but I regularly 'worship' with our kids in Florida and in Seattle on Sunday mornings.  While there is a temptation to donate to them when the offering call comes around, I've resisted the tempation ... mainly because U.S. churches can't issue Canadian tax receipts.

I guess I haven't really answered your question. Churches regularly encourage their online audiences to still donate online or to send a cheque in the mail. From a parishioner's perspective, The Offering still happens but the recipients vary ... depending on whim.

The initial question shouldn't focus on VBS content but on the size of the group. Since the transition to Zoom for most churches, there is no longer the assumption that VBS needs to be confined to the church building's neighborhood.  VBS has suddenly gone global; at least, it should.

There is no reason why any church can't expand its online VBS presence to children across the country or around the world. And if a local church is blessed with members who speak a language other than English, the natural audience could cover Mexico, France, much of Africa and Asia.

In fact, VBS shouldn't be confined to "Vacation" Bible School but should be rebranded as global children's ministry. Thanks to Zoom, the world has become our audience; limited only by our imagination and human resources.

Well, the first thing that comes to mind -- and I live in Canada -- is that the parsonage would lose it tax-free status. In Canada, the church does not pay taxes on church-owned property such as a parsonage. But if you're renting it out and receiving income, my hunch is that you'd have to pay property taxes on it.

It's best to consult a lawyer/attorney.

Just thinking out loud.

Most security systems are tied in to a central security office. When the alarm goes off, police are notified and they investigate.  Security systems can also be regularly checked to ensure that they are in operating order.

How does one determine if your dog will bark, cause a fuss, attack anyone who enters your house unannounced?

If your dog is a family pet that, at best, would lick someone to death, it wouldn't qualify.

On the other hand, if you have a Doberman, keep it caged, feed it only occasionally, it may very well qualify as an Extreme Security System.

Perhaps the easiest way to determine if your dog is a legitimate 'housing expense' is to ask your home insurer: ie Does a dog quality as a security system?  I doubt it.