In Canada

We rolled into Mississauga, Ontario, Canada on December the 2nd. It's already been three weeks since we have arrived!

We hit the ground running. We've made some new contacts with folks and renewed friendships with many we haven't seen in many years. Time changes a lot but one thing is certain, there is plenty of opportunity to minister and witness.

The culture here is so diverse that it is mindboggling. On every side there are people from every walk of life, nationality, culture and language. It is humbling to be a part of such a culture. But it is most exhilirating as well because these people need Jesus and we are here to do something about it.

David

Returning to Canada

So much has happened in the last month that it is difficult to rehearse everything as it happened.

Firstly, I resigned my church at Angleton (Greater Heights Baptist Fellowship) and it will be affective this coming Sunday. The church and I had a good relationship but I strongly felt that I was no longer being effective. My Lord was preparing me for a return to my 'home and native land', Canada.

Alice and I hope to be in the Toronto area by the end of November. We are excited but sad. We are excited about the great opportunities that abound in the Greater Toronto Area for church planting and outreach. We are saddened to leave our children and grandchildren! It has been 21 years since we lived in Canada.

We will be working to restart the church we planted in 1975. There is unfortunately just a small core group left but we will do our best with the Lord's help to restart this work and hopefully start other churches.

The need in Canada cannot be overstated! There are more people in Canada from other countries than are original Canadians. (In fact, it is becoming difficult to determine what an original Canadian is anymore; the country is now a mosaic of cultures and languages that surpasses anything else in the entire world).

The Greater Toronto Area (ten million) is probably the most diverse place on the globe. This affords us great opportunity for ministry and evangelism which can impact the entire globe. Everyone living in southern Canada has relatives somewhere else in the rest of world.

So please pray for us as we are in need of financial support to sustain us.
Please call us or email us to let us know you will be praying for us.

David

Pandemic of Apathy

We know what a pandemic is don't we? We have the swine flu. It is now a pandemic. Pandemic means it is on global proportions. The pandemic of apathy has reached America via Europe nearly 60 years ago. Europes' churches are mostly dead and it happened because of apathy. It wasn't about doctrine and the word of God it was about the 'sin of silence'. European believers quit soulwinning! They felt it was more important to build their buildings and worship God in solitude and peace. Now all they have is empty church buildings.

America is headed down the same path so swiftly that it makes my head spin. Church after church is hunkering down with worship and enjoying the fellowship of the saints. But the pandemic has fully arrived. It is apathy. Who cares that the lost are dying and going to hell, someone will tell them! Someone will get a bible to them! Someone will give them a tract! But I don't care if they do or don't, say those who have been struck with the pandemic.

I am so glad to hear of the places where this sordid hellish disease has not yet arrived. Praise God for Chinese believers who are winning their nation to Christ. Praise God for scores of other nations where the Gospel is in full swing and there is no apathy, yet.

What is the antidote to this Pandemic of Apathy? Go win some souls to Christ Jesus and you will find the remedy.

David

Closet Calvinists

You know something....most of us would bend over backwards to keep a 5 pointer (Tulip) Calvinist out of our pulpits. We would do it at all costs! Yet, we have numerous closet Calvinists in our pulpits and our pews. Now before you draw any conclusions regarding my comment please read on.

What do I mean by a "Closet Calvinist"? We all understand that most 5 pointer Calvinists believe that there are those who are 'elected' or 'preselected' (foreordained) to be saved. A Closet Calvinist is someone who doesn't admit he is Calvinist openly but practices it secretly. "Don't ask , Don't tell!

Therefore, being a 'closet Calvinist' is the idea that there isn't any need for evangelism or missions. This idea was stated clearly when J. C. Ryland was merely expressing the universal attitude of Baptist Churches (in England) when he impatiently interrupted William Carey (soon to be first missionary to India) and exclaimed, "Sit down, young man, sit down and be still. When God wants to convert the heathen, He will do it without consulting either you or me." Now Ryland was perfectly honest in his statements and reflected what everyone else thought around him. This is so typical in our churches today. So many are convinced that the lost need Christ but few really believe that God will really send the lost to Hell. There is a pandemic of apathy now ruling in our churches and it will be the death of us.

There are scores upon scores of Closet Calvinists among God's churches. We believe God will save souls but He doesn't need you or me to get involved! Everyone believes in a literal Hell but no one cares that anyone might be going there. The sad thing is that many of us have this attitude as part of our theological background. We were taught this by well meaning church leaders when they said "Let's build our church building and they will come if God wants them to come." Others have said, "They know where our church is so they will come if they want to". These comments and many others like it have contributed to a negative attitude towards evangelism over the last 50 years. We talk openly about the importance of people getting saved yet we do not believe that we need to get involved in the process called 'evangelism'.

David

I'm Back

Well, it has been quite a while since my last post. Been very busy and am still busy. I dropped off from Facebook. That was beginning to take more time than I had to spare so here I am once again.

Lots has happened since my last posting in April. We have now seen 42 souls saved through our outreach. Pray for these folks because most of them have never held a bible in their hands or been in a church, ever! We have had to go to them because they are not coming to us.

The summer attendance has been lower but we are gearing up for the Fall with a special Family Emphasis on September 13th. We need young families desperately to be a part of our church.

We are still looking for a youth and music minister. Pray for us on that one.

God bless you all and I hope to be back on here fairly regular again.
David

The Unchurched Need to be Invited

Recently, the polls have confirmed: "Most of the unchurched would welcome an invitation to church".

On the average, 80% of your community is unchurched. Some variations may occur. Recently we counted up all the churches in our city area and guestimated at the average attendance. We discovered that we were an average town where about 80% of the population does not go to church on the average Sunday morning. This is in the Bible belt, in the South!

And yet, so many still don't get it! We have a tremendous harvest that is awaiting us. And to think that the Unchurched are simply waiting for an invitation to come to church. Are we inviting them?

We are doing our second Friend Day this Easter Sunday. People are inviting. We more than doubled our attendance last year. We are hoping for at least the same this time.

David

Five New Works?

We are approaching April and to my knowledge there are 5 new works that have been started since July of last year. We are somewhat behind last year's tally at this same time period. 5 is fine but not anything to be getting excited about when there is such a great need.

My concern for our fellowship is that there doesn't seem to be an urgency for starting new works. Planting churches is still the best form of evangelism. You would think that we would see a lot of new works started since we believe in the local church so strongly. It only makes sense that if we believe in the local church we would want to start as many of them as possible.

Let's start some new churches/missions soon. Let's stir up our young men to go out and do it! Older men too!
David