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Day 5
Highlights
- The morning began with a Healing and Communion service that was marked by a great talk from Dr. Gordon T. Smith (new President of Ambrose University College) followed by a time of communion and then prayer for healing for individuals at Assembly.

- In the afternoon, we had our final business session of Assembly. It was a challenging session, with many items to get through and delegates who were pretty emotionally tired after a long week. Coming out of the session we had passed several items of legislation which had come before Assembly and referred some others.
- We will commit to continue to pray for our denomination and our love for one another as a family of churches as we process through all the decisions made by Assembly, particularly with regard to the decisions made on ordination.

- This evening was a special time. During the worship service, our new President, David Hearn was commissioned as was Ride2012 as they prepare to embark across Canada.
- It was such a joy to see David prayed for as he prepares to move into this new role as President, and to hear his words for our denomination - healing words, and a strong call to rally around our missional identity. It will be a joy to serve with him as our leader in the years to come.

And so, Assembly 2012 comes to a close, and I'm so thankful to our church family for praying for Assembly, the decisions, and for unity of the delegates and our family of churches. May God bless and keep us as a family of churches and continue to lead us deeper into the person of Jesus that we may impact our world in ever increasing ways with the hope of Christ!

Day 4
Highlights from Business Session:
- This morning, we waded into the deep waters of the question on ordination, and had many people speak to the issue on both sides. There was spirited debate, and yet generally a good spirit of care and charity for one another. In the end, we moved to a secret ballot vote which was taken in the afternoon just before the elections. The result of the vote was announced later in the afternoon, with the statement on ordination now being changed to read 'persons' instead of 'men'.
- Please pray for continued unity in our ongoing business and particularly with this new policy as the denomination works out how implementation of the amended policy will take place.

Highlights from the Elections:
- In the afternoon, there were three elections - 4 seats for the Board of Directors, the Nominating Committee of the 2014 General Assembly, and the Presidential Election. The Board of Directors nominees as well as those for the 2014 GA Nominating Committee were all appointed.
- For the Presidential Election, printed material from each of the candidates had been previously circulated, and each was given 15 minutes to speak today before the vote. 
- Before each candidate spoke, one of the other candidate couples came up to pray for them! I think the spirit with which the candidates have approached this election process has been phenomenal - encouraging and praying for one another instead of posturing and politicking and trying to garner support from the constituency. 
- After the speeches were complete, there was 15 minutes given for quiet reflection and prayer as we considered our vote. A secret ballot was then taken, and Rev. David Hearn was elected as our next President! 
- While our District will certainly miss having Dave as our District Superintendent, it was great to see how clear God made through this process that he was the one who should be leading us as the C&MA in Canada. We certainly pray God's blessings on Dave and Agnes and their family as they move into this new phase of ministry!

One more full day tomorrow of Assembly, with a healing and communion service in the morning, followed by a full business session in the afternoon, and a commissioning service for the new president in the evening! 

Day 3
Highlights from the Business Session:
- Today we got into more of the guts of the business of Assembly, receiving reports from various committees and beginning to work through the resolutions they have brought to the floor. Of note, a resolution was passed after much debate today regarding giving the board of directors permission to consider having Assembly 2014 outside of Canada. 
- While we were able to process through the reports from the Finance Committee (budgets, financial statements, etc.) and the Committee on Strategic Plan, we have much work still ahead from the Committee on General Legislation including the question on ordination.

Highlights from the Evening Worship Service:
- After a great time of worship tonight, we welcomed Lorna Dueck as our speaker who brought a compelling charge regarding followers of Jesus being agents of justice in the world and the significance of the gospel as it brings the heart-changing power of Jesus into people's lives. During the worship service, we also heard and update from Defend Dignity and the National Women's Ministry project focused on a Stage 2 home for women coming off the street here in Winnipeg where they can receive life skills and education training to help them re-enter life.

Many good things today, and a good spirit of being open to God as we conduct business and share this time together. 

Tomorrow we have much business before us in the morning from the General Legislation Committee and in the afternoon we will be hearing presentations from each of the presidential candidates before moving to the election late in the afternoon. Please be in prayer that God will lead us in this selection process. 

Day 2 - Business Session and Roundtables
Business session:
One highlight of the business session today was the report of the President, during which he highlighted:
- Seamless Link (of which we are now a part)
- The focus of this Assembly (and of the C&MA in recent years) on Justice and Compassion
- Church Planting
The other big item today was the report of the Nominating Committee. Along with a couple resolutions and nominations for the Board of Directors, 4 names were presented to Assembly of acceptable candidates with one selected as the official nominee:
- David Hearn (our District Superintendent) was presented as the official nominee
- Ken Driedger (former DS of Western Canadian District)
- Ric Gilbertson (former international worker)
- Gerald Hogenbirk (Regional Developer of Silk Road)

Following the business session, we moved to a hour time of prayer for the work of Assembly and for the election of the president.

After lunch, there was a Roundtable session focusing on a couple of key questions:
- First, we discussed some questions posed by Global Ministries about recruitment and funding of international workers.
- Then, we focused on the issue of ordination and giving opportunity to interact with the Board of Directors
It was a very good session with some great interaction and a chance to hear different perspectives on some pretty key issues.

Tonight, Franklin Pyles will be speaking at the evening service. Tomorrow, the bulk of the business begins...

Day 1 - Pre-Assembly Seminar and Banquet
Assembly has officially kicked off today with a pre-Assembly seminar on Transforming Discipleship and a banquet to honour our outgoing President, Franklin Pyles. At the banquet there were many very nice tributes given to his leadership and time as President. We also had some great times of worship led by the worship team from Peace Portal Alliance (thanks Phil!!)

Tomorrow morning will be the start of the business sessions, with the President's Report as well as the first reading of the Nominating Committee Report which will include the candidates for President. 

Please continue to be in prayer for the process of electing our new President as well as the rest of the business of Assembly!