My future

I thought that before I tell you about where I’ve been this summer and where I’m hopefully going, I would tell you about what brought me to this place. I grew up attending http://www.salvationarmy.ca So to be completely honest, I don’t remember ever not calling myself a “Christian.” As is to be expected, I’ve been far from perfect, but throughout my entire life there have been specific people, events and the such that have affected my salvation, and my understanding and acceptance of it greatly.
The one, up until now that sticks out the most, happened in the summer of 1993. I was 16 years old and left my comfortable home to spend 2 months in Poland with 30 total strangers. During that summer God stretched me, taught me, fed me, exhausted me, and enlightened me in ways I never thought possible. It was then that I knew that this God that I had been taught of my entire life was for me. It was also then that I knew missions was something that I wanted to pursue.
Jump ahead MANY years!!

Matthew 28:19,20 says “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

I have spent a lot of time over these past years thinking about missions and where my place on the mission field will be. Again, life hasn’t been perfect. There have been many ups and downs, but God is prevailing in my life.
Now let me tell you about http://www.thewarcollege.com which is where I hope to be in September.
While the war remains the same, the third millennium has introduced a myriad of changes to the nature of the battles we face. Soldiers require training to face these old enemies in new garb with an effective Godly response.
The War College has been created to train this generations warriors to win the world for Jesus. The training program will focus on areas such as holiness, spiritual disciplines, spiritual accountability, social justice and apostolic leadership. This school offers our heritage while establishing a legacy for the next generation.
In the downtown eastside of Vancouver, which is considered to be Canada’s poorest neighbourhood, trappings of luxury are easily juxtaposed with homelessness, wide open drug traffic and use, and prostitution. I cannot think of a better way to invest a year of my life – in training and fighting the Holy War! Eastside living, among the people, close to the bone.

Whether I am here in Toronto, in Vancouver, or in Ecuador as I was this past summer, I feel that God is calling me into his service in missions. Deciding on missions is not as easy as it sounds. I would love to be able to say, “OK, I’ve decided to become a missionary” and have it happen as easy as that!! It takes a lot of faith and various areas of support. Its so nice to receive encouragement, letters, e-mails, and if possible financial support. Because without all of this, I will not be able to get the training that God wants me to have. However, the MOST important thing that you can do is to PRAY! For me and anyone else who is or has decided to enter into the mission field. Here are just a few things that you could add to your list of prayer requests:
- Boldness, strength, and courage to share Christ
- Protection from physical, emotional, and spiritual harm
- That the message of the Gospel would be understood, and that we may see many come to know Christ
- Consistent financial support
- Perseverance
God led me to Ecuador this summer and that proved to be a wonderful time of witnessing to the people there, and experiencing the love of Christ through them. God is leading me to Vancouver for special training this year so that I may be able to better equip myself to wear his armor. I do not know where God will lead me after Vancouver, but I do know that I am willing to go and will be ready to fight the fight.Thank you for your spiritual, emotional, financial and most importantly your prayer support.

I shared this with my church last Sunday, with the hope that more people within my denomination will come to see that missions is not only a denominational ministry. It is an individual ministry, and that the church needs to support the individuals as well as the denomination.
Now do not forget to pray! Pray for me and the 30 others who are preparing to descend upon Vancouver's Eastside. Pray that God's will will be done among those streets and the people there. Also, continue to pray for financial support to flow in for myself and any others who may still need funding to be self-sufficient for one whole year. And if you feel that you are able to donate to this mission, feel free to do so by clicking on the donations button on the bottom right hand corner of this blog(follow the directions from there).

Blessings.