by Nancy Jones
Maritime Christian Fellowship (MCF) started in or around 1971 with the purpose of connecting Christians in a camp setting, to worship God together and to be inspired to strengthen our journey with God. The Fellowship is hosted each year by Christian Churches and Churches of Christ in the three Maritime provinces of Canada, and people from various places around the world take part. Eight years ago, some of the Maritime churches were having trouble fielding volunteers to help plan for the next year’s event, and we began to question whether we would be able to continue offering the Fellowship. A few of our thirty-somethings from around the Maritimes stepped up to help, and it has been a blessing to work with the next generation.
I was first introduced to the Fellowship by my husband’s grandmother, Hattie Armstrong. Richard and I had been dating, probably for not very long, when Grammie started talking about MCF and how excited she was to be able to go. I mean no disrespect, but my eighteen-year-old self thought, “hmmph, who would want to go to something like that?”. Fast forward to 1998, when my family and I attended our very first Fellowship. And, we have missed only a handful in the past twenty-six years. One thing that amazes me, to this day, is how Mrs. Armstrong’s influence has seen four generations of our family in attendance!
I am going to take the liberty to list many of the speakers, if for no other reason than to bring back fond memories for you: Ken Norris, Les Jones, John Macdonald, Stewart Lewis, David Haddon, Alan Smith, Daniel Kalnin, Merle Zimmerman, Jim Fagerskog, Bill Weale, Ivan Rayner, Rankin MacKinnon, Geoff Conley, AC Oliver, Ed Benoit, Larry Green, George Mansfield, Glen Barton, Terry Tanner, Earl Ohl, Wayne Lambert, Fred Osborne, Dick Hollis, Victor McCullough, Dale Eynon, Bobby Morse, David Morse, Blayne Banting, Maurice MacCabe, Jim Dewar, Grant MacDonald, Alan Beck, Mark Elley, Andy Rayner, Dr. Leroy Garrett, Jim Tune, Giles Mullen, Jeff Snell, Michael Hogg, Peter Bowyer, Bob Russell, Ben Merold, Mark Taylor, Danny Curry, Jared Johnson, Brian Siewert, Robbie Sevilla, Chuck Sackett, Dan Foreman, Tom Marshall, James Stevenson, Jim Midgett, and Stephen Weatherby. Stop for a moment and consider this rich history; be thankful for the faithfulness of these men to preach boldly from the Word of God!
In the Bible, fellowship is the unity that comes from Christians sharing their beliefs, convictions, and behaviors. The word "fellowship" comes from the Greek word koinonia, which means "holding something in common". In the Bible, fellowship can include sharing material goods, breaking bread, and praying. Fellowship is important in the Bible because it allows Christians to fulfill the "one another" commands in the New Testament. These commands include:
Loving one another (John 13:34)
Bearing one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2)
Encouraging one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
Fellowship is also an important part of Christian faith because it allows Christians to learn, gain strength, and show the world what God is like.
Fellowship is an important aspect of discipleship as well. The picture of discipleship which I hold to is found in Acts 2:42, where Luke tells us about the fellowship of the believers: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer”. Maritime Christian Fellowship touches on all aspects of this Scripture. We are encouraged and challenged in the Word, we spend time together, we pray together, and we break bread together. What an opportunity to come together as a community of believers!!
Fellowship weekends do not just happen by mistake. The planning committee, made up of individuals from all three Maritime provinces, begins planning right after the Fellowship ends. We do our best to let the Holy Spirit lead as we look to organizing the event, and we attempt to include as many churches to the mix as we can. We have relied on various worship teams to set the stage for our praise, and we have invited speakers whom we know will challenge us in our growth. We don’t want the Fellowship to be just another event to attend – we are intentional in making it a time of “spurring on to maturity”.
In fact, ‘intentional’ would be the word I would use to describe both the planning and operational phases of the event. People serve in their areas of giftedness, whether it be registration or children’s programming, prayer ministry or hospitality. A Fellowship weekend is a beautiful picture of “one body, many parts” (1 Corinthians 12:12-27), where we are not hindered by differences but united in our faith. Other Scriptures highlighting various aspects of Christian fellowship include Hebrews 10:24-25, 1 John 1:7 (which fosters genuine fellowship among believers as we live in the light), Philippians 2:1-2 (more unity and genuine love), 1 Thessalonians 5:11, and Colossians 3:16.
Why should you attend? For the same reason Mrs. Armstrong attended: to catch up with old friends and make new ones; to encourage and be encouraged; to help you and your children (and grandchildren) experience the ‘fellowship of believers’; and most importantly, to praise King Jesus for the work He is doing around the Maritimes and around the world. Many families can testify to the work He does in our hearts when we attend. I encourage you to pray about attending this year’s Fellowship if you’re going to be in the Saint John area, which is scheduled for July 25-27, in Browns Flat, New Brunswick. Registration for the event will open May 1, 2025 on our website: https://www.maritimechristianfellowship.ca/.
Come and be encouraged!
Comments