ALUMNI HIGHLIGHT:
DR. JAMES PATON
Lead Pastor of FAC Calgary Doctor of Ministry, Asbury Seminary, 2005.
F
irst Alliance Church (FAC) in Calgary, Alberta, takes loving their neighbor seriously. They chose to shut their doors to the 4,000+ people who gathered each weekend one week before the government’s COVID-19 mandate. But their ministry didn’t stop. Instead, James Paton, lead pastor of FAC Calgary, and his innovative team developed a rallying cry for this season: “Thriving Today and Shaping Tomorrow.” In two weeks, they successfully transitioned to online services, opened their church as a homeless shelter, started delivering lunches to food-insecure children and became the South Calgary Food Hub. “We have been blessed with very creative leaders, who saw the opportunity to do something different, and rather than try to figure it all out, ran full steam into the future, believing that God could use us if we’d say yes to it,” James said. The team at FAC is more afraid of missing an opportunity than of making mistakes. They realized
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they had other ways to deliver ministry and worked creatively to cover the gaps the congregation is experiencing because of the pandemic. They encouraged all groups currently meeting in person to transition to online to continue to provide the necessary emotional and prayerful support for each other. FAC offers daily digital content on social media and offers experiences, such as Zoom and Coffee following services to provide an online version of visiting friends in the foyer. For those who struggle with technology, FAC has helped provide the needed support to help those individuals learn to navigate Zoom and FaceTime to stay connected with family and friends. “One of the great things about serving others is that it often helps us take our preoccupation off ourselves,” James said. “Sometimes when we see others in their needs, we begin to realize that our problems aren’t as bad as they seem to be.” In just two weeks, FAC turned their largest campus,
