The weekend of July 4th we made a trip up to Campbellton, New Brunswick. It is located on the northern border, where New Brunswick meets Quebec, on the Restigouche River. We were invited by the congregation of Gateway Assembly. This was our second visit to Campbellton and Gateway, and while there the church voted in favoring of asking us to pastor their congregation. We accepted and will start as the lead pastor of Gateway Assembly on Sunday, August 1.

We are excited to be moving on to a new challenge that fulfills God’s call on our lives. At the same time, we are sad to leave family and friends in St. George. We look forward to what God has in store for us and the city of Campbellton.

With a change in role you might notice some changes to the blog. Topics will be more sermon and issue driven, and focus less on some of my primary themes (e.g. worship). I will continue with book reviews, and will be adding some new regular segments.

Thank you for continuing with us on life’s journey. Don’t forget you can subscribe to posts via RSS and email, and you can also follow us on Twitter.

Heavenly Father,

We turn our eyes to You today,
Who showers us with blessings,
giving us life and breath.
It is by Your grace that we celebrate Canada’s Dominion Day.
You bless us with many freedoms,
You protect us from many dangers,
and You cause the world to look upon our nation with favour.

You are good, O Lord,
and You have been good to us.
Help us to see,
help us to appreciate,
all of the goodness You have shown this land and its people.

We come to You today with joy
and with thankfulness,
but also with humble hearts.
We pray for the leaders of our nation,
from the halls of Parliament
and the chambers of the Supreme Court of Canada,
even to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II;
For every representative,
from every corner of this land,
regardless of political persuasion;
From the office of the Prime Minister in Ottawa,
to our own mayor, here in St. George.

For them we pray Wisdom
that they may have eyes to see the right path;
We pray Courage
that they would embrace and take that path;
When the path is difficult
we pray Patience and Strength to endure.
Let their hearts be humble
to serve Your people with Honour.

We pray for the valiant men and women
serving this land in the Canadian Forces.
Keep them safe
and give them success.
Bring them home to loved ones
and a hero’s welcome.

Father God,
as this flag rises to its place today,
let Canada rise in favour with You.
Shine Your love and grace upon us,
from the northern snows to the Great Lakes,
and from Vancouver to Grand Manan.
Continue to bless and protect us;
keep Canada glorious and free,
a lighthouse of Your greatness.

We pray these things in the precious name of Your Son, Jesus,

Amen.

Maybe it’s simpler than that. Maybe Conservatism in America is following a pattern or redeveloping, evolving. Since its shaping in the mid-twentieth century, the movement has had its ups and downs. In 1994 the Republicans took control of Congress, but lost it again in 2006. A Conservative sat in The Oval Office for five out of seven terms between 1981 and 2009. But since election night 2008, connecting the Democratic presidential victory with its congressional victor two years prior, political pundits cry the end of conservatism on the horizon. Enter this book by R. Emmett Tyrell, Jr: After the Hangover: the Conservatives’ Road to Recovery.

Tyrrell jumps right in by denouncing modern day Liberals as existing and operating far from the historical roots of the term. He then moves into a treatise on the history of conservatism from the Reagan years to the present. He talks about some basic propositions about conservatism that hold it back from achieving more than it has.

Throughout the book the author turns out to be more and more of a chronic soapboxer, quoting previous soapbox works, and even going as far as to complain about a term he “coined” as being used prolificly without attribution. In these times, there is a lot of insightful information and background facts that appear regularly, and coupled with the author’s wit and humor, keep the reader engaged, though eagerly awaiting something more insightful. Often the first and last five pages of each chapter will suffice in getting the author’s point.

Generally the book is a good read for the political junkie or intellectual. The greater portion of Thomas Nelson’s readers wouldn’t make it through the introduction. I am glad to have read the book, feeling educated and better acquainted with the finer details, history, problems and outlook for the movement.

* A review copy of this book provided free by Thomas Nelson. Want to blog for books? Check out www.BookSneeze.com