Author: George Fournier

Just came from another weekend away from home, in the last 5 weekends, I’ve been out of town for 4 weekends and for the remaining weekend, it was a full packed weekend, that it seemed I was away for the weekend anyway. The truth is, service can be draining and we need time to recharge and refocus on who  are doing this for.

 
It just hit me that I haven’t been able to visit the Blessed Sacrament in Adoration as much as I should in the last 5 weeks. The busy schedule has likewise taken the front seat from a quality prayer time. The Lord’s message to me just now is: STOP serving me for now, LOOK at My Eyes and LISTEN to what I have to say to you.

 
And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there. ( Mark 1:35)

And immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the multitude away. And after bidding them farewell, he departed to the mountain to pray. (Mark 6:45-46)

And they came to a place called Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here until I have prayed.” And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled. And He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.” And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground, and began praying. ( Mark 14:32-34)

And when day came, He departed to a lonely place; and the multitudes were searching for Him, and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from going away from them. ( Luke 4:42)

But He Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. ( Luke 5:16)
And it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. ( Luke 6:12)

I have been away from home the last 3 weekends, starting with the CFC-Youth North American Summit in Vancouver BC, MER3 in Canmore, AB the week after and then the SFC National Summit just this last weekend. There is no doubt at all that the future of CFC is so bright as long as we continue to support our youth and our young adults.

The mission has become so personal to me. At the SFC Summit, I was given a glimpse of the brightest future ever, our hope and prayer that our children will continue to stay on this path that we had started for them.  I asked my son Jak-jak to worship with us at the opening worship. During the slow song, I heard sniffles coming from him and I thought he just had a cold. But when I had another look, he was closing his eyes, his hands clasped together in prayer and he was crying. What an amazing sight. Later, we asked him why he was crying, he told us that he missed God.

Yes, I am here in this community to serve God but it has become personal for me, seeing my kids grow up in the community, I am truly convicted, that CFC can change the world, and CFC can win the world for Christ.

Lord, thank you for never giving up on us and for drawing us closer to you through this beautiful community. I pray for our children that the community will not only be a stage in their life but it will be their way of life. In you mighty name I pray, AMEN!

When serving God, it’s not about the position or authority but it’s about simply serving God.  Sometimes it’s not healthy to hold on to a responsibility to a point that it’s your comfort zone.  Being the Family Ministries Head for Calgary for 7 years now has led me to that comfort zone.  Now the time has come for me to pass on the responsibility and explore new horizons in service.

One of my inspirations in this is my former leader, Tito Rosco Doromal.  He was my Area Head when I was Family Ministries Head but last year, I became his household head.  It was such a difficult thing for me to adjust to; he was the team leader when we took our Christian Life Program back in 1999.  He was one of my first household leaders; I’ve always served under him.  But rather than trying to prove that he knew more about the community than me, he honored my anointing as his leader, allowing me to lead our household but more so giving the support I needed.  That’s humility in the mold of Christ, who, though God humbled Himself, taking the form of a lowly servant.

One day, I will be serving under the very youth that we have served or are serving, that’s the most exciting thing I look forward to.  What an amazing community, CFC will be.

Psalm 100:5

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

The recent North America Leaders Summit spoke to me so powerfully and personally, God never ceases to be amazing.

 

Here are my reflections from the weekend:

I am not alone in this work, there are people equally or more passionate in serving God in this ministry

The mission is not just my city, my province, my country but the world

Changing the face of the Earth is not impossible; our God is the God of the impossible

Even in our mistakes, God is glorified as long as our hearts and intentions are pure

 

I’ve seen the future of CFC in the faces of our CFC-Youth leaders, what an amazing community this will be and what an amazing world there will be.

In the listening session of NALS, the Lord spoke intimately to me.  The one that struck me the most was from Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you”.

What an amazing, touching and assuring feeling being prayed over by the youth leaders and Couple Coordinators of CFC-Youth.  It’s such a scary feeling to be entrusted with such a big responsibility and I know much sacrifice will be asked of my family.  I know the feeling I had when 3 years ago when I was asked to lead the ministry in Canada, I said Yes first then I peed my pants.  It’s now the same feeling although 5 times scarier (Yes, I peed my pants even more).

What I can say is that as you say Yes to God:

He will surround You with the best people

He will equip you in ways you can never imagine

He will be there to raise you up when you fall

To the next phase of CFC-Youth North America, Go for GOLD on SILVER!! ONE NEW WORLD!

God is great!

Yesterday, my family and I went to the annual Life chain in the usual spot where CFC Calgary is assigned.

It has been a family ritual for us for years.  During the first few years, the kids were shocked to see some people giving us the middle finger.  It still bothers me to this day and age  why people are so mad when we were simply defending the sacredness of life.  What if their parents decide to abort him or her, would have they existed?

But the truth is, the things of value in this world, our faith, our life, our families, will always be under constant attack.  We cannot be complacent into thinking that being in a community of believers will immunize us from the snares of the evil one.  The battle is real and will be going on throughout our lives.

As a parent, there is no way I’ll be able to protect my kids forever.  One day, they will be on their own facing their own spiritual battles.  All I can do is plant the seeds that will one day sprout and blossom into weapons of our faith.

Lord, please continue to remind us of the humiliation, ridicule, torment You went through because You simply love us.  In times of temptation, be with us and help us to overcome the enticements of this world.  St. Michael, the archangel, please be with us in this battle. Amen!

I was just reading an email that I was planning to send to my leader way back in 2007, asking permission to step down in our service because of the following reasons:

1.  My studies – I was trying to finish my designation
2. My family-my  eldest son was going into Grade 6 and I needed to spend time helping him with his school work
3. My prayer time – I felt my prayer time was being affected by my service

I never sent this email; we never stepped down, thank God!

From 2007-2013, here’s was happened:

1.  Our service increased, I was asked to serve as CFC-Youth National Coordinator in addition to our service as CFC Calgary Family Ministries leaders
2. I finished my CGA designation in 2010, my final exam was during intensive preparations for the CFC Conference in Calgary but God made everything fall into place
3. My eldest son is now in Senior High, my second son in Junior High and youngest in Grade 3.
4. We got busier as my kids got involved in more competitive soccer
5. There are more worldly reasons for me to step down now

But the Lord made everything fall into place.  I keep this email in my draft box to remind me that there will be times that I will not feel like serving but to never give in to the feeling.

Yes, we can think of all the reasons for us not to serve but I learned that as we allow God to take control, everything will fit perfectly.

Praise you God, the best organizer, not even Google calendar can beat you when it comes to managing our time! Amen!

Last night, I had a great conversation with my son, Geve, as I was driving him to his soccer practice.  We talked about my dad, my grandparents and great grandparents, his plans for the future and his soccer team.  Not really deep topics but was really touched me was the connection I felt with him.  It was only a 15 minute conversation but it really made an impact on my life.  Most of our time is devoted to service, we serve God through others, but I realized that our family is our service as well.  As much as I talk about taking care of our members and having one on ones on them, when was the last time I had a one on one with my sons and my wife?

I will never get tired of being a kid with them, I will continue to play video games with them (and get clobbered and not liking it because I’m so competitive), I will continue to play basketball with them and wrestle with them.  That’s what God calls me to do, to be a steward of my children but also to be a friend to them.

Last night ended with the kids asleep and me and wife snuggled together on a sleeping bag in our living room watching the Food Network until midnight-priceless.

Lord, thank you for the wonderful gift of family and reminding me why you have called me to be a father and husband!

P.S. It’s my son Geve’s 17th birthday today, what a blessing, please say a prayer for him!!!!