I just returned from a packed four day trip to Quebec.

The Le Reseau-related French congregations there are in the process of launching their 7th of a projected 10 new ministry people who will be serving specific congregations for the purpose of seeing them renewed and more missionally effective. Their plan is to mobilize 10 new workers in five years. They are doing very well! I spoke to, and with, their leaders via translation for about 5 hours on Saturday in Quebec City.

On Sunday I spoke twice in Shawinigan and spent a couple of hours with the leaders from the Cap de la Madelaine group in Trois Rivieres. Great time with them!!
Monday and Tuesday i connected with leaders from English churches in Montreal; Westview, Bethel, Rosemount, Faith and Huntingville. Also got to spend some time with Glen Smith and Les Muirhead. In every case we were talking about how we can help each other be as effective as we can be under God’s sovereignty.
My voice which had almost disappeared last week regained sufficient strength to make it all the way through. Praise God!!

I purchased sandals the other day. The howling wind blew the snow in many directions and the temperatures were truly frigid. It all seemed a little incongruent. The sales woman proved unable to contain her curiosity.
“Off to build a school for a forgotten group in northern Ecuador,” was my nonchalant reply. (After all I was late for another appointment).
I had piqued her interest, so for the next 15 minutes, only interrupted because of customers, we talked about her desire to do something valuable and to get involved in a ‘cause’ that truly improved the life of another. Occasions such as this remind me that each of us is made for mission. Today’s follower of Jesus seeks a ‘real, hands -on, make a difference, get involved with people experience.’ In my role as team leader for ELI, (Emerging Leader Initiative), I get to witness first hand the incredible creativity, compassion and courage of so many. We can be encouraged, the world certainly needs changing, but in our midst there are a lot of people with world changing dreams!

I was in the last meeting of a trip to Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver from January 30-February 3, 2010. It had been a good time – kicked off with a Phil Keaggy/Randy Stonehill concert in Edmonton (that Phil still one astonishing guitarist, and Randy about the same as when I presented him in Grande Prairie AB 25 years ago) – then 29 meetings in four days – but I was still feeling good. 12 hours later, after the red-eye flight from Vancouver to London, I wasn’t quite so positive.

But at that supper on the 3rd with Mike Sherbino of The Way Community Church in Richmond, I was still pretty energized, so when he asked me what I’d been doing, I tried to summarize. Pretty soon I was counting on my fingers – not the number of meetings or all the elements of the huge breakfast Geoff Chapman of U-Chapel Vancouver had treated me to that morning. I got listing all the possible new things, churches and incarnational communities and such, that I had met about in the previous few days. I had to use some toes as well, because I’d had a dozen of those conversations.
There are all kinds of interesting possibilities in just those three cities. I didn’t meet with everyone who has things in mind – and I’m not counting the usual goading I do to some of my friends about the next thing their fellowship might do (Ted McKellar and Capilano Christian Assembly guys in Edmonton heard some of that from me on the Monday of my trip).
Of course nothing much may come from some of those 12 conversations. But some interesting, Spirit-led new things will be born and grow, and become bright little kingdom beacons in this world.
What a fun job I have.

Governance That Transforms PowerPoint and Audio training material has been posted to the website. Check out the materials posted here.

A ROBUST FAITH FOR DANGEROUS TIMES

Finding & Giving Direction in a World where Cultures, Faith & Values Clash. Special Guest: Michael Frost. A special 3-day event you don’t want to miss! More information as we get closer to the date. Call us if you have questions.