October 2025 A Time For Everything

As I reflect on the events of this last month, I'm reminded of some of the words from the third chapter of the biblical book of Ecclesiastes...

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,

I'll be briefly reviewing some of these many kinds of "time" as I share my experiences from October 2025.

The month began with the West Region Church Workers Conference in Calgary. My LAMP coworker Nathan S and I were able to attend the event and talk about LAMP with those in attendance. I helped present a session and also play some worship songs for one of the worship services. It was a wonderful time together with old friends and new friends. Here's a picture of the attendees...


I returned home for the first weekend of October and Lynne and I enjoyed a wonderful visit with our longtime friends Paul and Margie S. They were able to stay with us and we enjoyed exploring parts of Fort Langley and other sites in our area. It was so good to spend time with them!! Here's a picture of us with our friends exploring the fort! A time to reconnect and a time to explore!


I hopped on a plane at the end of the weekend and headed to Manitoba for some fall community visits. I was able to grab coffee with Pastor Cody S, one of our LAMP team leaders, in Winnipeg before driving up to Flin Flon. Our LAMP pilot Andrew A met me in Flin Flon and we flew to the community of Brochet that next day. Unfortunately, there had been a death in the community and we were not able to visit with everyone that we hoped to see. We did manage to make some new connections with staff from the school. On our return trip, Andrew noticed that the front tire of the plane had been damaged. While it still managed to work for us, we decided to forgo our plans for other flights that week. Andrew did accompany me on a road trip to the communities of Moose Lake and Cormorant before he flew safely home. I also managed to have a good visit over dinner with Father Shantha in The Pas and with Pastor Steve M over coffee in Grand Rapids as I made my way back to Winnipeg for my homebound flight. Andrew and I had some unexpected fun in Flin Flon...the Grey Cup (Canada's most coveted football trophy) was on tour and we got to get a picture with it. A time to travel! A time to visit! Fun!!




Lynne and I enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with her brother and his wife and my wife's cousin and her husband. There was turkey and ham and lots of other good things prepared and served...a time to eat! A time to be thankful!



I was able to do some work from home as I connected with some LCC deacons on Zoom as well as some other work related online meetings. I was just logging into a meeting on the morning of Friday, October 17 when my phone rang. It was a close family member calling to let me know that my mother had just passed away. I was shocked...and I think I might still be in shock. I was already planning to fly to Edmonton that night for some LAMP visits in Alberta so I packed my bags and hopped on a plane. I was able to postpone my team meeting in Calgary and my church visit / presentation in Lethbridge so I could meet with my extended family to talk about my mom and next steps after her passing. As far as we know, she passed away in her sleep after having a great week with family and friends. Very sudden and very sad! We were able to meet with the folks at the funeral home and make some arrangements there. We also started work on putting together my mom's funeral / celebration of life at my former church in Sherwood Park. I'll have more to say about my mom and the funeral / celebration of life next month. A time to die! A time to mourn!!

After doing some basic work on plans for my mom's funeral / celebration of life, I decided that I would still attend our LAMP staff retreat and LAMP board meetings in Cincinnati, OH. We flew there on Wednesday and spent Thursday together as a staff. We debriefed the summer events from summer 2025 and then took a trip to the Creation Museum in nearby Kentucky. No actual dinosaurs were present when the photo below was taken...and I am glad! 


On Friday, we had a ministry staff meeting to discuss plans for the fall, winter, and spring. For dinner that night, the LAMP staff joined the board members from our Canadian and our American LAMP boards. On Saturday, there was time for LAMP staff to share reports with the boards and also to begin thinking about our next five year plan. Sunday included time for worship, a LAMP presentation, and a Reformation service at St. Paul Lutheran Church. Here's some photos of the various events that weekend.





Part of our purpose in Cincinnati was to celebrate 55 years of God's goodness as we celebrate LAMP's 55th anniversary. A time to reflect! A time to celebrate!

My original plan after Cincinnati was to return home but I was able to change my flights and remain in Edmonton. This allowed me to continue working on plans for my mom's funeral / celebration of life. Our family appreciated meeting with Pastor James A from Bethel Lutheran Church to work out final details for the service and the luncheon. The staff and volunteers at Bethel were so helpful and supportive as we worked on these plans together. As the week progressed, my oldest son and his wife and daughter arrived. Later, my youngest son and my wife flew into town. We were offered both a place to stay and a vehicle to drive by my youngest son's in-laws. So very kind! We ended the very busy month of October with some trick-or-treating with our granddaughter and a special supper to celebrate the end of my wife's time working at Concordia University Edmonton. A time to gather...to comfort each other...to celebrate! 

As I write these words, I am realizing that my time to mourn my mother has just begun. I am missing her already and will be thinking of her a lot over the next weeks, months, and years. I'll have more to say about that and more to share next month. 












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