ON Mission: Gateway & Marketplace Pathways
ON Mission: Gateway & Marketplace Pathways
Reflection by Ilana Lobbezoo
On Tuesday, May 10th, a group of over 50 pastors and lay leaders from the Central and Eastern Canadian Districts gathered at Rexdale Alliance Church for an Alliance mission-focused event called “On Mission.” The idea for the event was birthed when both Harvey Matchullis, Global Ministries Candidate Development Director, and Paul B., Gateway Country Developer, requested an opportunity to engage with pastors and mission-minded lay leaders on growing Alliance initiatives to reach the least-reached people of our world. As an international worker in the CCD, I had the pleasure of joining in this event.
As we emerge from the past two years of pandemic restrictions, it is refreshing to be able to gather again in various ways⏤and this sentiment was shared by many during this event. We began the day with worship led by Darin Martin from The Groundswell Church, which helped to focus our attention first and foremost on Jesus, who is our message of hope to the nations. We spent the rest of the day in interactive break-out sessions led by Harvey and Paul. These sessions were meant to be both informative and oriented toward engagement. As a group, we were provided with the opportunity to exchange thoughts and ideas on marketplace engagement in international settings and ministry partnership opportunities in South Asia specifically.
Though the concept of engaging marketplace professionals in our churches on mission is not a new one, Harvey articulated fresh pathways for engagement from Canadian Alliance churches. Through marketplace ministry, local churches can empower professionals from within their congregations to take their vocation internationally as a means of reflecting Christ’s presence and His heart for the nations in every sphere of work and in every corner of our globe. An especially exciting component of marketplace ministry is that, by virtue of their vocational roles, these professionals have special access to previously unreached groups. Harvey clearly explained new structures being developed within the Alliance to empower mission-minded professionals.
Paul also challenged our Alliance mission mindset with an explanation of our strategic need to partner with the Global South as the Spirit empowers Christ’s church in the Southern Hemisphere. He reminded us of our need to recognize where God is already at work and consider how churches can come alongside God at work in partnership and support. In Paul’s session, we discussed our modern culture and the world and the need to adapt our missional methodologies in response to these dynamics. We learned how churches are already partnering with movements on the ground in one Southern Asian country to see the exponential growth of the Church through the training of national pastors and leaders. What if we could see 50,000 new believers and 500,000 new churches planted by the year 2030? These seem like phenomenal numbers but, as Paul explained, through sound partnership they are already well on their way. Paul also challenged those present with a tangible opportunity for those in our churches to join a Digital Mentoring Team, which is a seed-planting mentoring ministry to individuals seeking help in this same South Asian country.
Though the information received on Tuesday was substantial, of most importance to me is this challenge: that each attendee would grapple with how to put feet to what was presented in our local church contexts. We were presented with opportunities like never before for our Alliance family to engage in the task of a global mission. A response is essential!
So, I want to encourage our CCD family to be intentional about identifying and commissioning the professionals in our congregations who are being deployed overseas by God’s sovereign hand. Let’s equip them to make an eternal impact on the lives they come into contact with. Let’s consider how a church can adopt a leadership training centre in South Asia and partner financially to see those men and women equipped to reach and disciple their peers. Let’s use the technology so readily available to us to cross the miles and be vessels of God’s love to the hurting, who may otherwise never have the opportunity to hear about the freedom they can find in Jesus.
I am so thankful for those who took the time to join us for this event. I hope that we will be able to host similar events in the near future. If there are observations, comments, or questions regarding your church’s engagement you can direct your emails to me at lobbezooi@cmaccd.com.