The Montreal Chronicle - Spring Issue 2014

VICTORY HARVEST MINISTRIES
Pastor Steve and Esther Roach
821 ch de la Carriere, Brownsburg-Chatham, QC  J8G 1K7

Dear Family and Friends,
Greetings to each of you in the Wonderful Name of Jesus from Brownsburg, QC! It is with thankful hearts that we come to you today. God has been so good to us, our family and our ministry! Here is a little update....

Len and Michelle have returned to the beautiful province of Quebec with many stories of victory and the power of God. He protected them so well... especially the day Titus found a black widow spider nest! That was the same day that Hunter almost got hit in the face with a very large boulder that was rolling down a steep hill towards him. As it gained speed with every inch, Len stood helplessly at the top of the hill, and Michelle was too far away at the bottom of the hill to do anything! At the very last second, that boulder veered off to the side! We know God protected him, and we are thankful! They drove all the way to California and back without any car problems, or travelling difficulties. Our God is faithful!!!

Estelle and Mark are excited about what God is doing in their lives, as they grow in Him. They, along with their children, love their Church in Toronto. The little ones are growing so fast! Baby Abel will be 2 years old in just a few days. It doesn’t seem possible that the time has passed so quickly, and they all are growing so rapidly! We are really missing them, because we haven’t seen them since Christmas. We haven’t had a chance to go and see them because we have been working some extra hours.

God graciously gave us the strength to work at Len’s daycare cleaning jobs while they were away. Three times a week, we cleaned 2 very large daycares. We could not start the work until after 6:00 pm, so it made some very late nights for us. We certainly gained respect for the work that he does. It is not easy! Doing these jobs did help us financially through the winter months, and that was definitely a blessing!  

In the middle of February, an elderly couple in our Church lost their home to fire, and we both strongly felt to take them in to our home. We quickly did some renovations in the basement, and moved them in. The kitchen was the area that needed to be worked on. Everything else was pretty well ready. They ate with us for the first few days, and we still try to take them a meal or two each week. The stress of all they went through with losing their home, having to move their belongings into storage, and moving temporarily into our house, showed up after a couple of weeks, and he broke out with shingles. That has been an added trial for him. He has a lot of pain at times, and is extremely uncomfortable with it. Please keep them in your prayers.  They are presently still with us, and looking for a permanent place to live.

Victory Bible Camp: Our next event will be the Purity Retreat at the end of May. This is a tremendously important retreat. These young people do not get this teaching anywhere else in their lives. We have 2 Staff Training days coming up in preparation for our 2 weeks of camp during the first 2 weeks of July. We desperately need God to move in a powerful way. So many lives of children and young people have been changed and transformed by the Holy Ghost, and it only happens because His people are praying! Last year, we had two very large weeks, and it looks like it will be the same this year. Please pray for our staff and speakers as well! God is ready to pour out His Spirit on these people – we are ready to witness it and be part of it as well!

Victory Harvest Church: Francois and Carole (the 2 newest ones) are doing great! My husband has been preaching and teaching on the experience of the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, and praise the Lord, last Sunday Francois received the Holy Ghost! It was marvelous to witness! The presence and power of God is so very real in every service. Our numbers are small (attendance & offerings) but there is no shortage of the power of God! This couple will be getting married on May 3. We ask you to keep them in your prayers, along with the rest of us. God is good.

Financial Support: We want to thank each one of you for your prayerful financial support. It has been 18 ½ years now that we have lived here, and God has been faithful. We presently do have some needs, and we ask that you join with us in prayer for these needs to be supplied. The winter hydro bills have arrived for our home, the camp, and the Church, along with the oil bill for the Church. With some careful micromanaging, we were able to cut the oil bill this year by $1,300.  We did use an electric heater some, so overall, we saved $1,100. It was an extremely cold winter as you all know, so we feel blessed to have saved this much. Our Church insurance bill of $2,600 has arrived, along with the Municipal tax bill for the camp property. I’m not sure how all of these things come in at the same time, but this is how it is! So please join with us over the next couple of months as we ask God to meet this $7,000+ need. He is able, and He will do it by using people. Ask God if He wants you to be used in this way. His Word says that when we give to those in need, we are lending to The Lord! Thank you for all that you have done! Many blessings to you and your house!!!

If you can come visit us this summer, you are gratefully invited!! ANYTIME!!

In Love with Jesus,

Pastor Steve& Esther Roach

ON...NEVER EARLY, NEVER LATE, BUT ALWAYS RIGHT ON TIME

It was 1996 shortly after moving to Quebec that our ’89 Oldsmobile Cutlass died.  We had already been planning a trip to New Brunswick.  The girls were so excited because on this trip we were going to a place they absolutely loved! Magaguadvic Youth Camp. Both girls had been to that Summer Camp every summer during our pastorate in Springfield and Back Bay. And since we didn’t know of any Christian camp in Quebec we decided we would take them down to New Brunswick.  

We didn’t even have enough money to buy another car and we knew we couldn’t borrow money to buy one!  So, we just waited.  For one solid month we endeavoured without a vehicle.  It was hard!  I did have my motorcycle and once in a while I would take Esther on the back of the bike to the grocery store to buy supplies.  We could only carry a few at a time.  

I remember feeling discouraged about the situation and was wondering what are we going to do.  As we got closer to the day that we were supposed to go to New Brunswick, the girls became more and more anxious wondering how we would be able to go. 

The day came and still no car. But that morning I told Esther, I think I’ll just go up the street and check out one of the local car lots. Knowing that I didn’t have any money for a car, I must confess that my expectation of coming home with a car was low. 

Well, while I was gone Esther entered into her “TURBO FAITH” mode. Now if you don’t know what that is, it’s when you get this overwhelming sense that something is about to happen and it’s gonna be good! You see, since coming to Quebec we have noticed that when you live totally by faith you simply believe that God is your supplier and that HE CANNOT FAIL!  

It wasn’t long after I had left the house that she called the girls into the kitchen and said, Girls, I want you both to go to your rooms and I want you to pack your suitcases and we are going to set them right out here by the front door because, TODAY WE ARE GOING TO CAMP! One of the girls looked at her mom and said, “Are you gonna pack your suitcase too?  Esther responded, “YES!”.  

As I was looking at the cars on the lot a young salesperson came over to me and asked if I needed any help. I said, “As a matter of fact I do.”  I said, “Are you the manager?”  He said, “No, but the manager is right there in the office.”  I said, “I’d like to speak with him.” He said, “Sure!”  

As I walked away from the salesperson I noticed he stayed by my motorcycle as I went into the office.  I introduced myself to the manager and said, “I have a problem.” He said, “And what’s that?” And I said, “I don’t have a car and I need one today.”  He said, “How much money do you have?  I said, “I don’t have any money.”  He said, “You do have a problem.”  

Without any hesitation and without any forethought about this, I heard myself say these words, I don’t have any money today but I do have that motorcycle and I can have money within 30 days.  I no more than got those words out of my mouth when the young salesman walked into the office and said to me, “I want to buy your motorcycle.” I looked at the manager and he looked at his salesman and the manager looked back at me and said, “Which car do you want. We can make a deal! 

The timing was like it had all been rehearsed. It all happened within just a few seconds! We quickly drew up the details and that day I drove off the lot with a beautiful, white 1994 Ford Taurus in perfect condition with only 60,000 kms. I was so excited!  

I remember driving into the driveway and Esther and girls came running outside. I’m sure the girls were thinking, Our dad is such a Hero!” while at the same time I was thinking my Dad “up above” is such a Hero! Living by faith is like walking a tightrope at times but there is one thing I know....MY DAD IS NEVER EARLY AND NEVER LATE, HE’S ALWAYS RIGHT ON TIME! SRR

ON ACROSS THE MILES

I was in my first year of Bible College at Apostolic Bible Institute in St. Paul Minnesota.  It was 1978. 

One afternoon, while working at Budget Rent-A-Car at the Minneapolis Airport, my boss, Mr. Larson, asked if any of us guys wanted to take a fleet of cars to Fargo, North Dakota on Friday. He said it would put another $50. on our pay check if anyone wanted to go. It would mean skipping classes on Friday. 

There were eight of us who volunteered. Three of us were from the Bible School and the rest were just other guys who worked for the company. Now Fargo was about four hours away from Minneapolis.  

So that Friday we all arrived at the Budget terminal at 6 o’clock in the morning. We were all assigned to our individual cars.  It so happened that we were delivering seven brand new Chevy Camaro’s. I was given a bright red one with silver flames on the hood!  WOW!  I remember saying to one of the other guys, I think we’re gonna have a fun day!! He agreed! Ha! 

The eighth car in our fleet was a Chevy Caprice station wagon.  This would be the common car that we would all return to Minneapolis in later that evening. Once we had all the cars fuelled up and ready to go it was about 7 o’clock. And as our eight vehicles hit Interstate 94 it wasn’t long before we were cruising at wonderful speeds of 70, sometimes 80 and once in a while 90 miles per hour. Shhhh! Don’t say anything to my mom! I don’t need any friction today! Ha! Ha!  After all, it was many years ago and there has to be a statute of limitations preventing any recourse from her! 

We arrived safely, thank the Lord, into Fargo at about 11:30. We only stopped long enough to park the Camaro’s and then we all piled into the Caprice station wagon for our trip back to Minneapolis.  

Now this is where the story takes on a whole different atmosphere. Three Bible school students and five unsaved guys in one vehicle!  As I recall, the Caprice had a folding rumble seat in the very back of the car that faced the back window. That’s where one other student and I ended up. The other six guys including the other student sat in the regular passenger seats. We hadn’t gone very far from Fargo when all of a sudden we took an exit. I watched as our car pulled into a liquor store and a couple of the unsaved guys ran in and came out loaded up with several cases of beer. 

The next few hours were perhaps some of the most frightening hours of my life. During that course of time one of the unsaved guys introduced a bag of marijuana. The smoke that filled the car was perhaps the worst smell I had ever smelled in my life. It literally made me feel sick to my stomach!  Please understand, I was raised in a Pastor’s home all my life and was never exposed to that sort of lifestyle. Not even at school! Thank God! 

I remember that we were travelling at a high rate of speed...nothing compared to the trip up to Fargo. The car swerved from time to time across the lanes. I turned around several times to see just how fast we were travelling. Each time I looked, the needle was pointing straight downward at about 6 o’clock with the needle completely buried. That means we were going in excess of 115 to 120 miles per hour and we did this steadily from Fargo all the way to St. Cloud, Minnesota, normally a three hour drive. It gives me shivers as I think about it now! I remember the driver of the car was so high and intoxicated that I was literally terrified!  Frightened beyond words!  I still have trouble riding in the passenger’s seat today!  When we were about four miles outside of St. Cloud, we once again took an exit and the driver drove directly to a liquor store.  It was at this stop that I said to myself and the Lord, “I’ve had enough! God, please get me out of this car!” I remember asking to be let out of the car and said I had to go to the bathroom. I made my way over behind the building as though I was just going to relieve myself.  But once I got out of site of the car I ran like a ‘mad-man’ and found myself in the middle of a trailer park. I remember crawling underneath the porch of a mobile home with my heart pounding so hard I could hardly breathe! I also remember the driver hollering for me and cursing because I was not returning to the car. They wanted to get going and I was holding them up. They then proceeded to drive around and around, up and down every street of the trailer park cursing and hollering my name. This went on for so long until finally they gave up on me and left.  I knew this made them so mad, that if I had shown my face I would have perhaps received the beating of my life! 

I remember laying under that porch for the longest time crying and pleading with the Lord to help me. I was over 2000 miles from my home in Hoyt, New Brunswick and Oh! How I wished I was there! I didn’t know where I was nor did I know exactly how far I was from St. Paul. I recall staying there for a very long time. 

Once I felt it was safe, I crawled out from under the porch and began walking.  I walked for what seemed to be many miles until I came to a sign that said, “Welcome to St. Cloud, Minnesota.” Once inside the city limits I remember searching until I found a phone booth.  I didn’t know anyone in that city, so I began looking through the listing of churches in the yellow pages. I found a Pentecostal church in the listings and took note that that the address was 301 7^th street avenue and I was on a double digit avenue.  I do remember that I still had a very long walk ahead of me. Since I didn’t have a dime on me, I wasn’t able to make a call. I recall it got dark as I walked along until late that evening when I came to the street where the church was located. As I walked closer to the church all the lights were on and it appeared that they had been having a service and it had just ended.  I knew I didn’t smell very nice and I was reluctant to go in but I knew I had to. 

As I stepped into the foyer I was greeted by an older man who said to me, “Can I help you?” I said, yes, I need to speak with the Pastor. He said, “Just a moment and I will get him.” In a minute or two the Pastor came to where I was and asked me if he could help me.  I said, “I am from a Bible School in St. Paul and I need to get there tonight, somehow.”  He said, “What’s the name of the Bible School?”  I said, “Apostolic Bible Institute.”  He said, “Stay right there, I’ll be right back.” I had no idea what he was doing.  Within a couple minutes he returned and said there will be a car outside in just a few minutes with someone you’ll want to meet!”  I said, “Okay.” So I stepped out of the church onto the sidewalk and waited.  Within a few minutes a small car, a Monza, pulled up to the curb. I was startled and shocked as I looked at the person in the driver’s seat.  It was the President of my Bible College, Bro. Robert Sabin!!  It turns out that he was there at that very church that very evening speaking at a rally and when he left the church after the service he remembered that he had left his topcoat at the pastor’s home and had to go and get it.  The pastor had intercepted him by telephone and got word to him to come back to the church before leaving for St. Paul.  

Now folks...only God can orchestrate something like that!  The Bible says that, “There hath no temptation (or trial) taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted (or tested) above that ye are able; but will with the temptation (trial) also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” That is not the end of the story!  There is another twist to this story that you can read on my blog entitled, ACROSS THE MILES PART 2! SRR