Upcoming Events: January 16-19, 2012
Vol. 8—Issue 3 November 2011
New times require new ways of thinking: January 16—Calgary January 17—Edmonton January 19—Langley
9:00 am-3:30pm REconneXions topics:
Igniting a church DNA for outreach and growth: Developing a culture of outreach helping a congregation become increasingly mission minded and outward focused. By Dr. David Overholt Igniting strategic idea development: Practical steps for discerning and implementing new church based outreach ideas and strategies plus talk about methods that are being effective across Canada today. By David Macfarlane. Igniting Creativity for fresh and effective outreach: Learn to use “Idea Blasts”, “mind mapping” “grids” and other tools to help you find new ways for outreach within your context. By David Macfarlane Igniting a connection with the gospel. How to relate and defend the gospel (apologetics) so as to impact Canadians with the good news today. By Dr. David Overholt
Reaching the next generation For information and to register go to: http://www.billygraham.ca/ministries/training-christians/reconnexion.aspx
The Value of Cocooning Metamorphosis must seem like a waste of time to the caterpillar that is in the midst of the change. It feels like it’s doing nothing. During the weeks of apparent inactivity while it is in its cocoon it may not see any change nor necessarily feel any. And yet that time of “doing nothing” is bringing the greatest changes imaginable. It can feel the same way for churches who desire not simply to do evangelism but to become evangelistic. The changes that transform a church’s DNA don’t happen quickly and often require much waiting on God to do what only He can do. Perhaps one of the most challenging changes is to align how we share the Good News to reflect the nature of the Good News we share. Too often, in their desire to see results, get decisions and gain a hearing, a church uses means of evangelism that can contradict the message we proclaim.
Threshold Ministries 105 Mountain View Drive, Saint John NB E2J 5B5 Make all cheques payable to “Threshold Ministries” with the notation “To E2” on the subject line. To donate online please go to our website at:
Os Guinness in 1974, speaking at the Lausanne Congress regarding encountering professional evangelism, made this comment: “Why is there such constant disparagement of the mind? Why so much appeal to the emotions? Why so little
content presupposed on which to decide? Why all the talk of “souls” and so little talk of whole people? Why the obvious exploitation of the testimony of the famous? Why is it so often a case of the most simplistic the message the most sophisticated the techniques? Why is there the need for always being bigger and more successful? Why the creation of Christian “celebrities” and “one man denominations”? Why the unconscious manipulations or the open fraudulence in public appeals for money or in prayer letters? …Part of our failure to get thinking people to take the Gospel seriously is born of a credibility gap. We claim Christianity is true - a claim which is awesome by contemporary standards, but then we whittle down our claims by the patent incongruity of our practices of the truth. The way we operate speaks louder than what we say. Without the practice of truth, evangelism is in danger of becoming a giant institutional mouth or as E.M. Forster dismissed it scornfully, “poor, talkative, little Christianity!” The challenge to become evangelistic may require that some churches first stop doing evangelism. I heard a story recently of a church that delivered seedlings to their neighbours with a note from the church. The next morning the pastor arrived and found a seedling returned with a note that read, “If you think you can buy our friendship with this seedling after how you have treated us you are wrong.” Changing the messages we project into our community will often pave a more receptive welcome as we go out into the community. And while it may feel like we’re doing nothing evangelistic, we may find that when we finally come out of the cocoon of our church we will have changed into something much more attractive. Merv Budd National Director
Oh… Canada! There are times when I pray for Canada when I feel overwhelmed by the need of our nation; for Christ and His Kingdom to come. I find myself deeply burdened by the loss of morality, the self-sufficient prideful spirit and the despair often present in our youth, elderly and marginalized citizens. When I read that according to the World Health Organization, the suicide rate among the Inuit people in Northern Ontario is 5 times higher than the national average or that in the province of Quebec those who claim an evangelical faith only represent .5% of the population, something deep within me wants to scream! This is where the church needs to share the light and hope of Christ. The most isolated regions of Canada are some of the least equipped and some of the neediest. We must find ways to equip congregations so that they, in turn, can reach out effectively to their communities. Our hope is to help meet this need by creating more networks to equip the church all across our nation and especially to those regions of greatest need. On average creating an E2 network costs about $530 to us as an organization. Our need for God’s provision to create new networks is as critical now as it has ever been. We’re asking those of you who pray for us and subscribe to Influence to consider a donation to help us influence the spiritual climate of Canada. Thanks for your consideration. Blessings,
Merv Budd National Director