“You shall become like a well-watered garden...” began Joyce Heron’s message last Sunday. Jesus’ conversation with the woman at the well laid her life bare for inspection, yet it was done in the spirit of transformation, such that this woman became the first evangelist – “Come see...Could this be the Christ?” (Jn 4:29). So too did Pauline Fell’s transformation after her husband’s death 27 years ago make her an evangelist in the Downtown Eastside (DTES). Going into bars where people lived their lives, she held them as friends to make a difference in how they lived their lives. Less than three years ago, Pauline’s devotions left her with a need to leave her “inheritance” of twenty years of relationships in the DTES to someone, and so Jacob’s Well was born 2 ½ years ago across from the police station at 239 Main. Out of this story of Jesus and the woman at the well, Joyce told stories of how she and the fifty volunteers she oversees are called to be evangelists, not by seeking to count the number of souls saved, but by “sitting at the well” with the poor, needy, orphan, widow, marginalised, oppressed... Joyce reflected how needy the area has become - with 92% of residents infected with Hepatitis C, more than 60% with AIDS, and 18% of BC’s mental health cases, most with a history of violent abuse, many taking powerful drugs to numb themselves, all housed in this area four blocks in any direction. One measure of the success of Jacob’s Well is in the attitude of government ministries toward it. Normally, faith-based organizations not dealing specifically in food or shelter are ignored by the government - but not Jacob’s well, which receives active referrals for spiritual help. Joyce still has some of the friends with her that she met on her first day 2½ years ago when she went out with Pauline and encountered a pair of drug dealers. May the well never run dry. [AP]

Passage: Jn 4:29
Communion: No
Ecumenical or Event:
Potluck Lunch: No
Congregational Meeting: No

Speaker: Joyce Heron
Worship Leader: Bob Delamar
Song Leader: Nubia Martens
Pianist: Edward Kehler
Usher:
Zoom Coordinator:
Children's Feature Leader:

Bring Flowers: Peter & Helga Neudorf
Coffee Helper:
Sound Helper:

Child Care Volunteer: