Our annual Canadian Field conference was held, for the first time, away from the city out in God’s nature. Surrounded by towering pine trees, with lovely trails, a flowing river, and a beautiful beaver pond where the baptism was held, it was a peaceful and serene setting. Despite the rain that fell on and off throughout the conference, we were all blessed by the opportunity to praise God surrounded by His glorious handiwork. Many of the attendees stayed at the conference site, sleeping in rustic cabins, reminiscent of days gone by. Our meals were prepared by the staff at Edgewood, which took the burden off the members from providing food, allowing our full focus to be on hearing the words of our Lord from the various speakers.

  • Thursday, August 9
  • By the grace of the Lord, our Canadian Field Conference began by singing the hymn, “We Praise Thee, O God.”
  • Brother John Bescec opened the conference with a service based upon John 17:3. Understanding that we are getting closer and closer to the second coming of Jesus, he asked us, “How close are we to the coming of the Lord today compared to the previous conference?” He invited us to take advantage of this conference to come closer to Jesus (Hebrews 3:15).
  • It is important for us to determine what has hindered us from connecting with Jesus in a deeper sense. He outlined four crucial elements we need to consider to advance in our Christian walk. The first is prayer. It is the breath of the soul. It is through prayer that we open our hearts to God. We need to understand that intense prayer will not guarantee that our prayer will be answered as we expect. It is instead the attitude in which we pray. Jesus is our example in all. His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane was not merely to try to have the cup passed from Him, but to allow God’s will to be done. The more we focus on our problems and issues, the bigger they get. It is by focusing on positive things that we advance. The more we focus on Jesus the better our prayer life will be.
  • The second element is Bible study. The Bible is a treasure-book, full of knowledge, but it should not only be that. Its spiritual food nourishes our souls with the proper ingredients for a healthy and well-balanced life.
  • Thirdly, working for God. We are called to be “fishers of men” rather than keepers of an aquarium. The field is the world; we need to look for souls for the kingdom of heaven at all times.
  • The fourth element is daily surrender to God. We need to surrender to Jesus in every aspect of our lives.

Brother Anca continued with the first workshop entitled, “What will be the result of knowing God?” Eternal life is a gift. It can only be received by faith in Jesus. Sin will keep us from the Bible and the Bible will keep us away from sin.

  • It is through the word of God that we are led step by step to eternal life. We need to accept our condition, believe in Jesus and His sacrifice, and confess our sins to Him. It is vital that we always remember that there is nothing in us to make us deserve salvation, but it is only by God’s amazing grace.
  • As we live godly lives let us focus on God’s love. Love is an eternal principle, just as God is eternal; after all, God is love.

Friday, August 10

Sister Rose Powell led the morning worship based on the story of the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:16–22). Are we looking for a secret element to gain eternal life, just as the young ruler was? The principle is clear: Love the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind, and your neighbour as yourself. This love should lead us to a full surrender to God on all levels of our lives.

Brother Elder Hernandez led the workshop on “The result of knowing God in our prayer life,” by analyzing John chapter 17. He pointed out the context in which it took place. John 17:3 has three main elements. First: knowledge. It does not mean simply to have an intellectual knowledge. It points to a relational  knowledge of God and Jesus Christ.

Second: Life. In Greek there are different words used for life. The main word is “bios” that refers to living creatures, including humans. But Jesus uses the word “zoe,” which means “absolute fullness of life.”

Third: Eternal. The Greek word is “aionios,” which emphasizes the concept of quality as opposed to quantity. The relational knowledge of God and Jesus will give us absolute fullness of life on this Earth and guarantee us eternity, not only in the sense of endless time, but of the best quality of life we could ever have.

Br. Larry Watts presented the workshop titled, “Knowing God better in our relationships.” He talked about the various stages in a human life. We start with the “I am here, feed me” stage. On this level, we find babies.  Then comes the “I want to have that” stage. The mindset is to do that whichever feels “good”. The third is the “why can’t I have that?” attitude. It is a victim attitude when we look at the  circumstances we find ourselves in throughout our lives. Fourth is the “What are the rules?” stage. This applies to people who want to know the rules so that they can create loopholes. This is shown in legalistic people. The fifth stage is the “Let’s negotiate” attitude; this is the attitude of those who want to avoid hardship and is therefore the “compromise” principle. Last and most important is the “Verb me” attitude. It is only by God’s grace that we move from being the “noun” and become the “verb”. This means we are in action, and not trying to be the center of everything. This is well expressed in the song entitled “Fade me away”. We need to let Christ grow and self be faded way.

Brother Oscar Oviedo followed with the workshop entitled: “Knowing God in our witnessing.” He presented the topic in which we were shown how our knowing God and Jesus will impact the way in which we present the present truth. We have been in charge of a great work of rebuilding the old paths. But we will not be able to finish our work if we push the cornerstone, Jesus Christ, to the side. In every doctrine Jesus should be the introduction, the development and the conclusion. We find Jesus in every chapter of the prophetic books of Daniel and Revelation. Once we build our witnessing upon the cornerstone we will finish the spiritual temple and “the glory of the Lord” will fill our lives, our church and finally the whole earth.

  • After taking the afternoon to do our Sabbath preparation, Brother Morris Lowe presented “Knowing God In Our Church/Christian Life.” Time is valuable and we should take advantage of every opportunity to know God and Jesus Christ. People often ask themselves: “How is it possible to know God? Is there a way to prove it?” Based on 1 John, we see that once people open their hearts to God and His word, there is a total transformation in their lives. The fruits of the Spirit are clearly manifested in their lives at home. Then those fruits will be also seen in the church family. Love is the only way in which we can prove that we have known God and Jesus.
  • Brother Clyve Russell opened the Sabbath hours with a meditation titled “Knowing Jesus as our Saviour.” Since the entrance of sin into our world, our lives have been badly hurt. We can clearly see how traits such as selfishness, pride, hate and other negative things have shown the need for a solution. God, in His infinite wisdom, has prepared a solution: a Saviour. Jesus, our Friend, came to be our Saviour. He saved us from the condemnation of sin and gave us the power to live selfless, humble and loving lives, by the indwelling of Jesus in our hearts. In every occasion where sin shows its ugly face we have a Saviour to cling to, and to be victorious by His power.

Sabbath, August 11

On Sabbath morning, we had the privilege of studying our Sabbath School Lesson titled: “The Victory of Cross.” This precious study lay down the foundation for the Divine service which was led by Brother Idel Suarez. He compared John 17 with Leviticus 16. In Leviticus we see the high priest making an offering for himself, for his family and then for the congregation. In John 17 we see the same elements. Jesus starts by asking His

Father to glorify Him. He then prays for His disciples and then for the future believers.

Jesus prayed for us in that prayer. He prayed for unity, for a revelation of God in our lives and for a total victory over sin. As Jesus finishes His work in the Most Holy Place, let us always have in mind that He wants our lives to be fully cleansed from sin and death.

In the afternoon God’s name was honoured by the youth and children’s program. Children from the eastern and western parts of Canada presented many beautiful songs in praise to the Lord. The youth presented a program, describing what heaven will be like in both speech and song.

We also witnessed the ordination (being set apart) of two brothers for higher service in God’s work. Brother Oscar Oviedo was ordained as a Minister, and Brother Clyve Russell as an Elder. May God’s providence and grace continue blessing and guiding these brother’s lives and ministries.

The congregation then had the opportunity to share testimonies and songs in a Testimony and Praise Meeting, led by Brother Timo Martin. We were abundantly blessed by those who showed what God has been doing in and through His people.

Brother Larry Watts closed the Sabbath hours by inviting us to consider our prayers. Are we Christ-centered or self-centered in our prayers? We need to be more grateful in our prayers and to ask God to make us a blessing in other people’s lives.

Sunday, August 12

On Sunday, Sister Raquel Sosa led the morning worship. She shared her experience of practical missionary work with less fortunate children. It is an excellent way to show God’s love in a practical way. This will also bring a blessing to our lives and to our Christian experience.

Br. Evald Perdersen led the first workshop entitled: “Knowing God and church unity”. Unity is a precious value. The Bible gives us various examples of unity. The friendship of David and Jonathan is an excellent one.  Position never divided them. David could have been seen as a threat to Jonathan, but their God-centered friendship continued. Unity is possible only when we are Christ-centered, when our goal is to serve and not to be served. Knowing God will never lead us to disunity.

Brother Jerry Eaton presented the workshop entitled: “Knowing God and the Latter Rain.” It is important to know what the latter rain is, and what it is not. It is a special power from above to finish God’s work on earth. It was never intended to help us gain victory over our sins.  He emphasized that the conditions for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit are the same as for the early rain. There must be full repentance from all sins which would lead to unity among the believers and help us work together in evangelizing the world.

The experience in 1888 helps us see that the brethren hindered the Holy Spirit from being poured out at that time. Let us do our part in this work so that our hearts will be ready for that precious event.

Brother Idel Suarez brought to us the last workshop under the title: “The Loud Cry.” It is important to understand what it is, and when it is to take place. Revelation chapter 18 has three phases: The first was the light, followed by the cry, and finally the power. The power is the Loud Cry. The light started in 1888, the cry began in 1914, and the power is to be manifested under the Latter Rain. We are to pray, overcome and work in the power of the Holy Spirit in order for this precious experience to be accomplished in our time. In this way the Lord Jesus Christ’s second coming can be hastened.

In the afternoon, we had the privilege of witnessing three young souls being baptized, surrounded by the marvels of God’s creation, with the congregation watching from the shore. The three young people were James Bessec, Elaine Romero and Miguel Climaco. After the baptism the three of them shared words of thanks to God and to those who were instrumental in their lives, in bringing them to this important decision of giving their lives to God in baptism. Brother Miguel shared his experience, and he encouraged the young people who have been raised in the church but who had not made the decision to follow Jesus, not to wait any longer. The world has nothing to offer. It only has destruction and death. Only through Christ can we have life.

All too soon it was time for us, who had found so much joy and peace communing with the God of nature in the works of His hands, to separate from one another.  We had many precious opportunities to be uplifted by songs, testimonies and messages from the Spirit, not to mention the comfort of fellowship with meeting and getting to know new and old friends in a closer, spiritual way.  We look forward to another camp meeting out in nature, if God permit, and if not here, then, when type meets anti-type, the great Reunion meeting in the sky.

Brother Larry Watts closed the conference by presenting the new Canadian Field Officers. He invited us to go and share the joy and blessing we received during the conference with those in our homes and cities. May God add His abundant blessing to those who attended this precious conference and to those who will be blessed by reading this report.

Oscar Oviedo

Canadian Field Secretary