Previous | Next 

A snow shovel is a good tool

Jon Unger Brandt

It has been said that our lives are made up of numerous small decisions, often unnoticed and almost unconscious. These decisions shape who we are and who we will become. If one’s desire is to be a servant, sharing God’s love in acts of service, then one must be conscious of those many small choices.

Sometimes we get a glimpse of what we can become by looking at others who spend much of their time in service of God and others. Two such couples live in Winnipeg.

Jake and Elsie Bergen have worked in numerous places as teacher, pastor and nurse, so you might expect that ministry is important to them. Having worked in every province from British Columbia to Ontario over the past 50 years, they have a legacy of service to the communities in which they lived. So perhaps it is not surprising that they continue to serve, even in retirement. What is surprising is that they serve in ways that one would not expect for a retired pastor and a retired nurse.

Elsie and Jake Bergen

For instance, 15 years ago, while they were pastoring at Mountview MB Church in Stoney Creek, Ont., the Bergens were invited to volunteer at a seniors’ home. Elsie baked with the women in the kitchen, and Jake led woodworking projects with the men. Jake recalls, “Some of our projects included making doll’s cradles and rocking horses. I would prepare the pieces at home, and the men would assemble them together at the centre.” Then the residents would hold a sale for these products. As a result of this service, the Bergens were asked to hold a church service once a month at the home.

With this experience behind them, the Bergens were open to similar opportunities after they moved to Winnipeg. Elsie says, “We phoned about helping out at Riverview, a palliative care hospital in Winnipeg. . . . It is not anything profound, but it gives the patients something to do. Some sit there and watch; others can do a little sanding. Jake makes everything at home and takes it there.” Jake says, “It has opened new areas, given us a chance to meet the residents – many of them are quite lonely – and talk to them.”

Another area of ministry also started in Stoney Creek. “I used to put an ad in the paper and offer my services,” Jake says, “cutting lawns, cleaning windows, odd jobs like that. I got a number of calls.” The Bergens are still in touch with a number of people that Jake got to know through this service. Although there are a variety of handyman services that advertise in the local paper and elsewhere, Jake’s is a little different. Elsie says, “People can’t quite understand it. They want to pay him when he does work. He says no, that’s not what the ad says. They can’t figure out why he would do it.”

Jake tells a story of a woman in Ontario who became a Christian as a result of a simple request to move some furniture in her bedroom. After the job, there was an opportunity to talk. This led to a chance to share. This is one of a number of stories that encourage Jake and Elsie.

Jake and Elsie have continued the handyman service since coming to Winnipeg. Not all the results are dramatic, but Jake sees it as “a door that we enter to share the gospel”. Relationships are the key. Elsie says, “So many people want to talk, need to talk.”

On some of these opportunities, Jake has worked with others with the same approach. Ernie Dyck, a retired electrician, and Henry Loewen, a retired contractor, have done a variety of tasks with him. “Henry and I call ourselves helpers,” Jake says.

Loewen has worked in construction most of his life, and a major portion of that was as an independent contractor. This experience has given him skills to serve in ways many cannot. “My interest has always been in people,” states Henry. “I have always tried to maintain a Christian testimony, that when I do some work I could come back and not have left a negative example.”

“In 1990,” Henry continues, ”my wife, (Susie) and I decided to make a change in our life. We served with TransWorld Radio. That was an eye-opening experience for us about the great need in this world, when you depart from the daily activity and get involved with ministering to the spiritual needs of people. Since coming back, my aim has been to keep the focus on what is important in life.”

Susie and Henry Loewen

Henry says that he and Susie wanted to stay in Canada after their stint abroad, in order to stay close to their children and grandchildren. However, they still had a desire to serve, and this led him to get involved with a chapel service twice a week at Union Gospel Mission. “My great interest there,” Henry states, “is to get personally involved with people, get to know people, talk to them about their relationship to the Lord.”

Henry and Susie also visit a group home every Monday to visit with the residents.

Henry says that his prime purpose in volunteering, whether it is working on a deck or visiting with the homeless at Union Gospel Mission, is to witness. “When I was still working, I always carried a Bible with me to give away. First you have to practise what you preach; then you can back up your testimony with your walk.”

Susie is involved at the MCC thrift store, organizing the volunteers on a weekly basis, and Henry is involved with the Billy Graham telephone ministry. He says it is a highlight for him “to spend a couple of evenings answering telephone calls and recognizing the need. Very often people have heard the message often, but this is the night that they call in to make a decision for the Lord. It is rewarding to talk to someone maybe 2000 kilometres away and pray with them.”

Jake and Henry have both found ways to create relationships and share the gospel. Jake says, “I guess I started doing that because I find it difficult to knock on someone’s door and then start talking about spiritual things. If I have a natural situation where I am working and doing something, then it is much easier to start conversing about things that matter most. The apostle Peter says that – ‘Be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.’ That’s what opens the door.” Henry states, “Volunteer work opens the door to people’s lives. You forget about the work and then enjoy the relationships.”

Jake concludes, “A good tool for evangelism is a snow shovel.”

Previous | Next 

Last modified May 17, 2000.

© 2000 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
Masthead and usage information.