Notes and Themes from the January 30 prayer meeting
Transcript:
Rev. Darren Herbold:
Hi everyone. February is wrapping up and anticipation continues to grow as we prepare for Global Gathering, which begins on March 1st. Just a real quick comment. This cultural moment we live in, FOMO is a real thing, and I know global gathering is exciting and I’m so thankful for what the Lord will do and for the many of you that are praying. But even more so, just like General Assembly, where not everyone was able to attend, and yet the Lord did a remarkable thing in our hearts, and we see that happening across the country. So to that end, as Global Gathering comes very soon, would you pray that the Lord would continue to build the momentum, the calling, the conviction in our hearts to be all in on his mission and the things he’s calling us toward?
We’ve joined together for two Alliance-wide prayer events over Zoom. One was in November and one in January. These have been exciting times of seeking God together, and they highlighted how prayer is one of the main growth drivers of our strategic framework. And we are committed to expanding our capacity in this area. And so I’m excited to see opportunities like these continue to grow and to be able to pray together. I want to share with you notes from those times about what people are hearing and praying for us, and what the Spirit is doing, and you can find them below the video today.
This is so encouraging to me, especially as we see the many unknowns across the world. Maybe even more than usual. Tariffs and rumors of economic hardship, wars, natural disasters, plane crashes. The world can often feel overwhelming, and sometimes our natural reaction may not always be one of hope. At times anger, cynicism, or even bitterness. It’s easy to give in to fear at times, and a mindset of scarcity, isn’t it? So, Jesus’s words to us in this moment are very timely and important. His word is a lamp unto my feet, unto our feet, and a light unto our path.
I genuinely believe that Jesus is calling us to be bold and imaginative in how we respond to the things of this world. And so I’m praying that each of us will experience a fresh and deep sense of hope from the Spirit, that he will renew dreams, rejuvenate promises, and renew our hearts. Jesus is the one who redeems all things. And so we pray this for our churches, for our movement before the world. Jesus, come make all things new.
I have a few more updates and then a story. All of last year’s mail is finally starting to slowly trickle in, and our finance team is hard at work closing the accounting books for 2024. We ended the year strong and the Lord provided. Thank you to all of you who give so faithfully and thank you Jesus. We hit 98.5% of our faith goal for 2024, leaving us just shy of $200,000 below our 2024 goal. We can trim our belt a little here, pull some things in over there, but we are so grateful that the Lord has provided more than enough.
I’m constantly reminded that he always provides. And I’m so grateful that he’s done so through your generosity. And that’s worth celebrating. Thank you. Another thing we’re celebrating is that we raised approximately $516,000 for the Jaffray Offering. We’ll be able to offer training to over 75 pastors in the Middle East, provide relief, and help start a few entrepreneurial efforts to support believers in the area with sustainable businesses to lift up the church. We hope these seeds in the Middle East will become inroads for more international workers, and we’re eagerly anticipating what God might do through your gifts in the coming years. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
I want to share a story from New Ventures and some testimonies of their discernment process.
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Video:
So we had been in ministry, I think, for a year or two, stepped into ministry just before we entered this process. Coming from the context of being at home with kids and, you know, it was mid-Covid or Covid was just starting and not really knowing where my purpose or value kind of landed. Some of the questions for us, just as a couple, were what would it look like to step into ministry together? What will ministry look like? Who can we kind of serve alongside to develop some of those skills, as well as where will we end up?
God spoke to me on a personal level and through the discernment process, really helped me gain the confidence of saying that no, Payge, you are called and you are valued and you do have a purpose. Gaining that confidence and value within myself and the Roxy kind of just unfolded. So the first year was really helping locally where we were in Ontario with a new venture happening there, as well as exploring other things happening around us. As we got some clarity that took on almost another form for the second year, which was moving us towards Montreal and the180 Church and what it would look like to serve here.
One day we got a phone call saying, pray about Acton, and we said, where the heck is Acton? So we got in the car and we drove here and we met with Lloyd Lindsay, who was the transitional pastor at that time, really felt God saying, you know, this is your place. Now we need to figure out how to get here. We ended up back in Montreal, where we grew up, to join the church here. It's funny because if you look at our story, it lands in this really great way. And so it can kind of look like this airbrushed really lovely, like, oh, this was easy or simple, and it didn't feel like that from the beginning.
We had no promises of salaries and no promises of where we would live. With three little kids, that can be kind of scary. I think often in ministry, answers seem really clear. And next steps seem like they should come fast and really clear if God is calling us to them. And it was just really special in hindsight. But in the moment, it felt a little lost. And I think we often have ideas in our head that are exactly where God wants that community to go. So being able to take the time and listen and humble ourselves before the Lord and say, what is it that you want?
I ended up being the director of the Roxy Centre. We've ended up focusing a lot on low-income people, homeless people, as well as food security. We've just started a soup kitchen and partnering with other people within the community to make those things happen. As we paid attention to the ways that God was working in us, that's really hard work. But so precious that we were given that time. Even if it is a risk, it's still worth it, even if the results don't end up being what you want. But they end up bringing you more joy and bringing you more fulfillment in the end.
When you describe discernment time or discernment space, it could very easily be seen as a waste of time because of how we see ministry and the church. We want to get things done and get to the places, and it is literally the opposite of a waste of time. It is the best investment. God is so faithful in those spaces when we are intentional to listen. There is no bad outcome to a discernment time like this.
I think as humans, we tend to doubt a lot, and for God to say, "No, actually, I am going to make it happen," that was really surprising.
Rev. Darren Herbold:
I enjoy being able to highlight this video because we have been and will continue to talk about doubling our reach as the Alliance. Sometimes when we talk about doubling, we get nervous around numbers. How is this ever going to happen?
But as we saw in the video, it always comes down to obedience to Jesus, regardless of risk or sacrifice. I want to say yes to the invitations of Jesus and the things he’s asking me to do. Payge in the video says that we need to humble ourselves and take the time to ask God, "What is it you want?" And then comes the hardest part, choosing to be faithful to his direction and vision and trusting him for the fruitfulness.
But we must say yes. This is what I’m crying out to God—for me personally, for you, for our whole movement—that we would ask Jesus, "What is it you want us to do, Lord?" Come, Holy Spirit, fill us, empower us to be who you want us to be in this moment, and not just ask the Lord the question, but respond with courageous faith and obedience, willing to make the necessary sacrifices so we can share the love of Jesus with our broken world in efforts to double our reach by 2034.
Jesus, would you find us faithful? Have a great month everyone, and thank you for praying and making Jesus more famous each and every day.