Quite a few items of interest have accumulated concerning the places in which our various congregations hold their worship services. Previously reported was the news that our Hudsonville congregation was now worshiping in their new church building. Even the church building committees which have a new building under their care have their problems. There was no water in the new Hudsonville church one Sunday. It seems a pipe was frozen. Redlands is holding services in a temporary place of worship beginning this January. As of the 1st of the year, our congregation in Edmonton, Alberta is meeting in the Anglican Church at 122 Ave. and 139 St. in Edmonton. Worship services are scheduled at 9:00 A.M. and 2:00 P.M. Our church in Isabel, South Dakota installed new pews in their church last November. Isabel printed a thank you note to Mr. R. Ezinga from our church in Loveland, Colorado for his help in installing the new pews. Our Holland, Michigan congregation decided to make some major changes in their church building. The Holland auditorium will be enlarged by reclaiming the hall space to the south. The present society rooms will be converted into a new hall. An addition will be added to the building on the south to include a new consistory room, a nursery, a large assembly room and a new kitchen. Both our Faith and Southwest churches are making plans for new church buildings which they hope to construct sometime in the future. Our Hull, Iowa church has established an organ fund, looking forward to the time when they can install a new organ in their church. 

A committee of Classis West has scheduled classical appointments for our vacant church in Forbes, North Dakota as follows: Rev. G. Lubbers will preach for them on January 9, 16, and 23. Rev. Miersma is scheduled on February 13, 20, and 27. 

The congregation at our Hope Church in Walker, Michigan expressed congratulations to their pastor (Rev. R. VanOverloop) and his wife in the birth of a daughter on January 22. Mother and baby are well. 

A bit of news has been received from Skowhegan, Maine. You may recall that Rev. Dale Kuiper labored in Skowhegan for a time under the supervision of the Mission Committee of our Churches. Two families with whom Rev. Kuiper met and occasionally some others, gather together to listen to tape recorded sermons from 1st Church in Grand Rapids. They also meet together on Wednesday evenings to study Rev. Hoeksema’s book Behold He Cometh. 

Prof. H.C. Hoeksema sent along some information about his visit to Iowa in December. On the 17th he preached an installation service for his son Rev. Mark Hoeksema. On Sunday morning he preached in his former charge at Doon. Rev. Mark preached his inaugural sermon in Hull that morning. For the afternoon services, the Hoeksemas switched churches. It seems Rev. Kamps was down with the flu in Doon! Prof. Hoeksema says this was the first time he preached in Hull since he officiated at Rev. Heys’s installation in 1955. 

Rev. Van Baren placed the following interesting note in the 1st Church bulletin: “Last year the series of the pastor’s sermons on Genesis l-3 were recorded. These were later submitted to The Family Stations, Inc., a network of religious FM stations—the same stations which earlier aired Rev. D. Engelsma’s sermons on Ephesians. We have been informed that this series will be used, beginning on February 9. This is a network of seven stations (and four additional affiliates) located in California, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Nevada. One of the stations is shortwave, broadcasting to Europe and Africa. There is no charge for this ministry. The pastor has also received a request from the shortwave division to help them prepare a chapter-by-chapter study of one or two books of the Bible for a half-hour broadcast to be beamed overseas. The opportunities to perform this work arose through the efforts of Rev. Arie den Hartog (pastor of our Covenant Church in Prospect Park, NJ) who sought to obtain broadcast time on these stations. We thank our heavenly Father for the possibility of performing this ministry.” 

Recently, Rev. VanBaren’s sermons on Romans 9 were recorded, and presently the series on Genesis 4 and following are also being tape recorded for possible broadcast by the Family Stations. 

A Quiet Thought from Redlands’ bulletin: “The Church is not an art gallery for exhibition of eminent Christians, but a school for the education of imperfect ones.” 

—KGV