A Foundation for Life:
Parishes helping parishes pursue
innovative mission and ministry
By David Edwards
A Foundation for Life, the congregational development fund about to be launched in our diocese, encourages innovative, risk-taking projects that will lead this diocese to spiritual, numerical and financial growth for the making of disciples. It encourages us to lift our eyes beyond what we see around us and trust that God, by his grace, will enable the transformational change we seek through the Nicodemus Project.
An annual $25 donation, above the regular offering, from every adult New Brunswick Anglican, and $5 from every Anglican child, will fund A Foundation for Life so parishes can help parishes and innovative mission and ministry can flourish.
All the money collected this year will be dispersed to make these exciting new ministries and missions a reality. Fresh donations will be sought next year to support more innovative opportunities.
Groups, parishes, deaneries and even archdeaconries with exciting ideas for growth may apply for funds. A brochure with detailed information on donations and grants, a postage-paid donation envelope, and a letter of encouragement from Archbishop Claude Miller are on their way to New Brunswick Anglican homes.
When I was a student about a hundred years ago The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy was very popular. One of the characters in the story was Marvin the Paranoid Android. A generally depressed character, he was frustrated because of his supposed vast intelligence and the mundane life he faced as he traveled the universe with a bunch of misplaced creatures. One of Marvin's favourite lines was “Life, don't talk to me about life, hate it or loathe it you can't enjoy it. Here I am a brain the size of a planet and I'm opening doors.” The poor android had very low expectations of life and they were realized.
As Anglicans in New Brunswick it would be very easy for us to fall into Marvin's way of thinking. The last 50 years have seen decline in many aspects of our life as a church. As a result some of us feel displaced in a world we do not fully understand. But we have things of great value to offer our communities and A Foundation for Life will help us do that.
About 20 years ago a dear friend, a young woman with a young family, was diagnosed with breast cancer. She and her husband were devastated. “I hate this disease and what it might do to us,” her husband said to me. “I am hanging on to my faith by my fingernails, but I know Jesus is in the resurrection business.”
My friend survived, but that is not the point, the point is — Jesus has a different perspective on our situations.
In his second letter to the Corinthians Paul wrote: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17 - NIV). Paul is not advocating the power of positive thinking here, he is saying no matter what we see, God sees things differently. We may have to struggle, but that is nothing compared to the glory of God that can be revealed now and will 
be revealed in the future as we exercise faith in him.
A Foundation for Life gives each of us the opportunity to see that we are not giving to the church, but to God. It takes us beyond our local issues and helps us to appreciate that all things come from God and we give him but his own.
The Ven. David Edwards is rector of Stone Church and Archdeacon of Saint John.
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