The Ververda's
Murray and Naomi
Murray and Naomi Ververda began working with the Vernon Church of Christ in December 2000! That’s 20+ years striving to Know God and Make Him Known – and such blessings there have been!
Murray and Naomi Ververda
- Born and raised in Red Deer, Alberta
- Married May 28, 1994 -Yup, that’s 25 plus years! ?
- Two exceptional daughters – born in Vernon.
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Murray’s Ministry Credentials:
- Center for Christian Education, Irving TX, (1996-1998)
- Bachelor of Arts Bible, Dallas Christian College, Dallas, TX (1999)
- Master of Arts Biblical Counseling, Theological University of America, Cedar Rapids, IA (2011)
Ministry and Educational Experiences in:
- Western Canada
- Memphis, TN
- Searcy, AR
- Dallas, TX
- Papua New Guinea
- Mexico
Hobbies:
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- Our First Pick: Spending quality time with people sharing God’s love.
- Cooking – Murray makes delicious soups and is a great chef!
- Hiking, biking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, golfing, camping, and canoeing.
- Working with power tools, creating wooden bowls and items as well as using his computer, construction and landscaping skills to help others with their projects.
- Naomi enjoys organizing, singing, making greeting cards, and being the “sous chef” for whatever project Murray is working on…kitchen or construction. (But take her off any golfing or skiing list! ?)
Connections:
- NeighbourLink (250-558-5527) helps our neighbours in need to connect with the resources our community offers. Murray has been on the NeighbourLink board since 2002. Our congregation supplies monthly food hampers through NeighbourLink.
- Vernon Live Well Clinic (778-475-6016) helps provide unintended pregnancy testing, support, empowerment, care and education. Our congregation helps to label and fill baby bottles for their yearly fundraiser.
- Melanesian Bible College (MBC) in Lae, Papua New Guinea (PNG) helps train men and women in Bible knowledge and application to equip them in their towns and villages as they share the gospel. Our congregation financially supports students to attend MBC and Murray has made several trips to PNG and has taught several classes at MBC.
- Biblical Counseling is available with Murray by appointment (250-545-6892).
- Premarital Counseling is available with Murray and Naomi by appointment (250-545-6892).
- Murray is a licensed Wedding Officiant available by appointment.
- Murray is a Workshop Facilitator offering local workshops on Healthy Relationships, Communication, Love Languages, Managing Change, Stress and Anger, Apology and Forgiveness, Anxiety and Hope, etc.
- Murray preaches almost every Sunday! ? And teaches a Bible class most Wednesday’s.
Who We Are
- We are a family of Bible-believing Christians.
- Our aim is to follow Jesus Christ, seeking to live up to the beautiful gift of salvation that He died to provide us.
- We humbly seek to Know God and Make Him Known; by following the example of Jesus and the first disciples, learning and living out the active Word of God, and abiding in God’s love.
- We are a non-denominational congregation seeking to follow the pattern of Christians in the New Testament.
- We are a fully autonomous and independent.
- We are in fellowship with 25,000+ sister congregations worldwide.
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We believe
- In the authority of the Bible as the revelation of God’s will for the world.
- That salvation is only possible through faith in the power of the blood and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
- This involves personal faith.
- This is a decision to follow and submit to Christ’s will, accepting His gift of salvation and the removal of your sin through baptism. [Baptism is immersion in water representing a death to your old sinful life, being buried in Christ, and being resurrected {being raised} to a new, sins washed away, life with Jesus as your leader].
- That faith in Christ should be central to our whole lives.
- This emphasizes that each Christian should live their faith, striving for a godly conscience and understanding of the scriptures.
- We encourage each other to study the Bible, think for ourselves and follow the example of the Bereans in Acts 17:11 who “received the word with eagerness, searching the scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.
- That faith, as the Bible portrays it, is reasonable and intelligent.
- We are each growing and learning to be more like Jesus. Faith is a continual process of believing, trusting and obeying
- Guests and questions are always welcome.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Bible is a unified book written over 1500 years, by 40 different authors, ranging from Kings to farmers, on three different continents, in three different languages.
A few related links to get started:
Worship Services
Singing
We sing here – “Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord” Eph. 5:19
- Everyone is encouraged to sing.
- We are “a cappella” (meaning unaccompanied).
- Why?
- (Click on read more below)
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- CONSIDER: Jesus raising from the dead changed everything!
- God took away the physical items of worship: the temple, blood sacrifice, incense, and musical instruments.
- God calls us as New Testament believers to internalize these.
- We, the church, are the temple of God.
- Jesus’ blood was sacrificed once – for all.
- Our prayers are incense to God.
- Our voices and hearts are the instruments praising God.
- Singing is a command from God.
- Singing is to teach
- Singing is to praise and worship
- “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” Colossians 3:16
DID YOU KNOW?
The first Christians did not use musical instruments in worship, and that pattern continued for around 1000 years.
A few related links to get started:
Male Worship Leaders
Men lead our services.
- Why?
- (Click on read more below)
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- CONSIDER: God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are equal in value and purpose; uniquely gifted to their tasks, they complement one another and together complete their tasks in each of our lives. They too have different roles and choose to submit to each other.
- Christ is the Head of the Church.
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- God created men and women equal with different roles and responsibilities.
- Adam was created first and given the role of leadership, Eve was created to complete him.
- Men and Women are equal in value and purpose.
- Men and Women are equally and uniquely gifted to complement and complete one another in the body of Christ – the church body.
- God created men and women equal with different roles and responsibilities.
- Bible passages to study this topic include Genesis 2-3, 1 Corinthians 11 & 14, and 1 Timothy 2.
Giving
Giving is part of our response of love and gratitude to God.
- Each of our activities and ministries are funded by the free-will contributions of our members.
- Any gift given to the church should be given freely, not because of expectations or pressures.
Prayer
Prayer is a very important aspect of our relationship with God in expressing our hearts to Him.
- Those leading public prayer mostly use their own words and thoughts.
Preaching
Preaching is centred on God’s Word; the Bible.
- Through preaching we are taught about God and His will for our lives.
- We encourage people to follow along in their Bibles.
- If you have any questions about the lesson, please ask.
Bible
Bible reading allows us to listen to God’s instructions to us.
- The reading normally relates to the morning’s lesson.
- We most often use the NIV translation.
The Lord’s Supper
The Lord’s Supper is a memorial of Jesus’ great love for us in His sacrifice on the cross. The Lord’s Supper is the focal point of our worship service, and because of its importance and meaning, we observe the Lord’s Supper every Sunday.
- Why?
- (Click on read more below)
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- CONSIDER: In the Upper Room during the Jewish feast of Passover, Jesus taught His disciples, and apostle Paul summaries for us…
- “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
(Matthew 26:26-30; Mark 14:22-26; Luke 22:14-23)
- We pass trays of unleavened bread (kind of like pie crust) and each Christian breaks off and eats a small piece, reminding us of His body as it hung on the cross.
- We pass trays with small cups of grape juice that each Christian drinks, reminding us of His blood that was shed for our sins.
- The Lord’s Supper is a time for meditation and self-examination.
- The trays are passed to everyone, though each person chooses whether to partake.
- “Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.”1 Corinthians 11:27-29
DID YOU KNOW?
The first disciples met on the first day of the week to break bread. “On the first day of the week we came together to break bread.” Acts 20:7
Ministries
Hand out “Thirsty” Water Bottles
- “Thirsty” is a ministry of our church family, in the name of Jesus, providing the kindness of cold water, on a hot day, to people in our community.
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- Our Thirsty outreach begins in June handing out cold water-bottles to the local Graduates during their photo shoots and continues until school returns in September. Most often look for us out on the hottest day of each week! Have you seen us? Like us on Facebook! facebook.com/vernoncoc/
- We have people who help with labeling the bottles, handing them out at the beach or parks, restocking the fridge, following up with contacts, and in prayer for the ministry and its intent.
- If you are spiritually thirsty to know more about Jesus and His great love for you, contact us at vernonchurchofchrist@telus.net. Only Jesus can fill your thirst!
Providing Food
- Our congregation purchases and prepares food hampers each month to help our neighbours in need. We also help to connect people with the other resources that our community offers including the food bank, and social services.
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- Every two months we pack food with bulk items and canned goods after our Wednesday Daytime bible class to have them ready to help our neighbours in need.
Resources for expectant families
- Vernon Live Well Clinic (778-475-6016) offer resources for both men and women during times of unexpected pregnancy or during pregnancy care. Support, empowerment, education, medical testing, and ultrasound care are available through this community resource.
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- Our congregation helps to label and fill baby bottles for their yearly fundraiser held between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
- This is an excellent ministry that requires volunteers and financial support. http://www.vernonpregnancy.ca/ for more ways to connect.
Faith Based Counseling
Premarital
Are you engaged? Start your marriage right with open and clear communicating skills and expectations.
Marriage & Relationship
Struggling to get along with your spouse or other important relationships? Take time to understand yourself and your needs.
Personal
Do you want help with issues related to anger, stress, poor communication, unhealthy relationships, grief, finances, understanding anxiety and finding hope…? Are you ready to make changes?