SURVIVING THE COVID ICE AGE

You have probably all heard the frigid metaphor being used to define our experiences with Covid 19, whereby “we thought we were in a blizzard, then we thought we were in winter, but it turned out that we had entered a new ice age.” Not really encouraging. Unlike most of you, I was happily ignorant of that depressingly accurate description until one of our Fellowship staff brought it to my attention. If you are interested, we can probably work out a trade of staff member for staff member that will be to the benefit of your church.

KEEPING OUR FOCUS

A couple of weeks ago, I was blissfully standing in an off-leash dog park, totally focused on the raw joy of my Wheaton Terrier puppy as he zoomed wildly around the park. It seems highly probable that Winston Furchill is the Greatest of All Time. While there are plenty of dog owners who might think their canine is cuter, smarter, friendlier, or more athletic than Winston, they are quite simply—wrong.

GOD IS GOOD — THE MEETING PLACE, NANIMO

Back in August, we received an email from Camp Qwanoes asking if we would be willing to have three Kaleo students attend and serve in our church from September to April. We were really excited at the prospect of having them join us. The only hurdle we had to overcome was getting the students from camp in Crofton to Nanaimo—about a 45 minute drive. Conversations ensued about how we could make this happen and the only viable solution we could come up with was to supply the students a car.

STAFF CHANGES — THANK YOU LARA!

The Ministry Centre staff are joyfully sad to say goodbye to our co-worker and friend, Lara McAllister. Lara has decided it is time to move on to the next chapter in her life, effective the beginning of October. While not entirely certain of where this journey will end, Lara is looking forward to more time at home with the family, gardening, writing, and hopefully some new adventures.

2019 IMMERSE GRADUATION

September is a busy month in the Immerse program as we welcome new students and celebrate the completion of the program for others.

On a beautiful Friday evening, we gathered to watch as five students walked across the platform at Southridge Fellowship and received their Master of Divinity degrees from Northwest Baptist Seminary.

SERVING FAMILIES TOGETHER — CENTRAL FELLOWSHIP, PRINCE GEORGE

At Fellowship Pacific, our mission is “to leverage the collective strength of our churches in order to produce a God-honouring impact in BC and Yukon” because we know that to reach a mission field as large as this one, it’s going to take all of us working together. It’s not just about big goals, however, like reaching an entire region, we also need each other in the ongoing, day-to-day challenges as we minister to each person in our churches and communities. Take a minute to read and be encouraged by this beautiful story of how God has used and is using the collective strength of multiple Fellowship Pacific churches to love and provide for two special families.

RADIANT LIFE OUTREACH — CAMPBELL RIVER BAPTIST CHURCH

In October 2018, CRBC took over the ministry at Radiant Life Outreach, so I have been bringing leadership to the ministry for 6 months now. Time sure does fly by!!

For those six months, there have been many peaks and some hurdles as I have learned to lean on others for wisdom in the things that I don’t know anything about. God is faithful and has seen us through each and every trial.

REACHING OUR CITY — SAANICH BAPTIST CHURCH

These are a few examples of outreach initiatives that Saanich Baptist has been involved in in 2018. Many of these are possible for your church to do in your own communities.

SMITHERS BAPTIST CHURCH

As with many small towns, Smithers hosts an annual Fall Fair complete with a parade that runs through the centre of town, down Main Street. It had been many years since our church participated in the parade, so in 2018, we decided to get involved by entering a float.

SUPPORTING FELLOWSHIP PACIFIC

The Ministry Centre is excited to report that the church support level outlined in the annual budget for 2018 was exceeded for the first time in many years. The budget for church support was $575,000. In 2018 our churches provided funding of over $580,000. The Ministry Centre kept expenses below budget again in 2018 and we are happy to report that we finished 2018 in the black.

AMANDA’S STORY — NORTHERN COLLECTIVE CHURCH

Northern Collective Church launched as a new church plant out of Mountainview Church in Whitehorse last April and Pastor Harrison Kwok is excited to share this story of God’s redeeming love for Amanda who is the church’s first new believer. In her own words, Amanda shares her journey to redemption.

SPIRITUAL CARE SERIES

Have you ever thought about how to provide spiritual care for the seniors in your family, your church or community? Are you looking for a way to provide purposeful ministry and leadership training for older adults in your church?