Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Soldiers Honoured


Two local heroes were honoured in Niverville, Manitoba, on January 6 at an event sponsored by Canada Awakening Ministries. Ringo Klassen and Gord May will be leaving for Afghanistan in February. A local band played the national anthem, and Pastor David Reimer opened the meeting in prayer. Greg Fehr welcomed the guests, and MLA Kelvin Goertzen brought greetings.
Roger Robert (Canadian Bible Society) presented Ringo and Gord with a special edition of the Bible specifically for those who are in the army. He also showed a powerful video clip, Operation Bible, which shows how eagerly Bibles are being requested and used by the Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.
I had the privilege of presenting Bibles, Finding Hope Beyond the Battle, to three spouses of soldiers, as well as to several other relatives. This Bible, from LifeLight Ministries, is specifically designed for military families and has stories of military spouses and the fear, anger, loneliness and other challenges they face. These Bibles were gratefully received by family members who are believers, as well as some who are not yet believers.
Both Ringo and Gord gave a brief report on what their involvement will be in Afghanistan. Peter Braun, pastor of the Maranatha Good News Centre, the home church of Gord May’s family; and Nick Klassen, Ringo’s brother, led in prayer for the soldiers. They prayed for their protection and for peace between the various tribes in Afghanistan.
The final item on the program was a powerful prayer from Brian Doerksen's latest album, "Our Father in Heaven," a prayer for safety in the present and also for the ultimate permanent peace that will come with the coming of His Kingdom. Then the audience of two hundred, from all walks of life in Niverville, both churched and non-churched, prayed the Lord's Prayer together.
The families mixed and mingled for at least an hour afterwards, expressing support and the assurance of prayers to the family members.
We are so thankful for this opportunity to plant seeds in the hearts of people, and we know it will result in good fruit. A Bible especially for family members of people in the military is much more likely to be read than a generic edition of the Bible. Thank you to LifeLight Ministries for your part in this special evening.

Roger Armbruster

Roger and Marge Armbruster are bridge-builders who minister cross-culturally, Marge by teaching English to new immigrants in southern Manitoba, and Roger by helping to build the indigenous church in Canada’s North, particularly among the Inuit.

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