Day 5 Vancouver Bound..

This one is close to my heart. UBC has been transformed in the past decade. Not only are there new buildings, it is like looking at a plant that had suddenly foliated and bloomed. It was hard to recognize.

The same would be true for UCM.

So, while  met with my former associate and long time friend, Greg Laing of Point Grey Community Church and then Tim Horman of UTown, earlier in the day for far reaching and stimulating discussions,  I will need to focus my thoughts on UCM@ UBC  (check out www.ubc.ucmonline.ca  )

Let me introduce the staff to you.

In the middle is the Director and PAOC chaplain, Arthur Howard. On the right is intern Kristen Hession and associate staff worker James Perreaux.  On the left is intern Tyson Beesley and associate staff Amber Barker.

Under Arthur Howard’s leadership, UCM has grown into a thing of beauty. Along with his Malaysian wife, Janice, Arthur had previously served as a missionary in Malaysia and had taken over the leadership of UCM nine years ago. We go back to when they were both students at Regent College and part of our community at Point Grey Community Church. Arthur and I spent an hour and a half before the service catching up on the past decade.

Like an iceberg, it what you can’t see that defines UCM@UBC. . There is so much more to it than meets the eye.

To be brief and incomplete, without an attempt at grammar, let me provide you a short list derived from observations I scratched on my steno pad…..

Strong student leadership. Discipleship. A Ten hour discipleship course. Mentoring. Interdenominational and interracial student involvement. UCM represents the diversity of the UBC student community. Core group training for both men and women. Executive group training. Staff internship, Wise, creative staff direction, gifted student outreach, prayer and hospitality and worship leadership director.

There is a very successful International student Alpha group that meets in a nearby home. There is also the Gerard House, named after Bernice Gerard, the first PAOC chaplain to UBC, that was bought by Point Grey Community Church in response to its vision and passion for the campus. The “G House” is right across the street from both Regent College and the UBC campus.

Arthur and Janice are developing a document for how to connect with international students.

UCM at UBC is a textbook example of our motto… Student run : Staff led.

A couple of further notes. They just finished a student retreat with Brad Jerzak, who taught them about listening prayer and led them in responding to the God who speaks. Arthur reported that it was a particularly powerful time. Also, they are running Core Groups that are focusing on the Book of Genesis for the fall. The staff prepare the studies themselves. In the second term the students get to choose their own curriculum.

Let me describe the TNT ( Thursday Night Thing) I had the opportunity to attend. After visiting with Arthur – who by the way is finishing his D.Min. and gearing his studies towards the creating a first class, accredited campus ministry internship program – we partook of the preservice soup dinner served just outside of the lecture theatre that is home to the TNT service. I had the opportunity to meet a number of the student leadership. Again, truly international.

Below is a TNT  preservice meal at the beginning of the year.

The room which seated perhaps 225 students was a typical amphitheatre with a lecture space in the front and large split screens high overhead. The worship team had setup, prayed and practiced, and were breaking for some soup. We joined with others for prayer in an adjoining room where we prayed that James would have freedom to say what God had placed on his heart and that He would impact the students for His glory.

As predicted, the service began and it was clearly student run. After a brief crowdbreaker that loosened up the 130 students attending, I shared a few words of perspective and encouragement. The announcements included an encouragement to invite friends to the next TNT which would feature Dr. Rick Watts from Regent College. It was geared as an outreach talk, something which Dr Watts does very well.

Then the worship team led us in several songs of praise. They did a great job and did much more than play music. They were clearly worshiping themselves so it was easy to follow their lead. By the last song there was a real sense of ‘breakthrough’ which was refreshing and liberating.

Then it was time for James Perreaux to speak. He spoke about discipleship. Actually, UCM likes to use other words that are perhaps less confusing to the contemporary student – words like Apprentice or Student. Using examples from the scriptures, he challenged the students to embrace the pathway of discipleship and to do what Jesus encouraged his followers to do : “Come and See”. His benediction was a reworking of the prayer of St. Patrick which spoke blessing to the students as they concluded. By way of conclusion, student prayer ministers made themselves available for anyone who might like prayer after the service.

So, there it is. Brief and amazing. It has to be seen to be appreciated.

Day 4 Summit Pacific College

Wednesday was a day committed to the Summit Pacific College. I taught a two hour course in the morning on ‘evangelism in a Canadian campus context”.

While I focused on the campus, it had a much wider application. I talked about ministry to postmoderns that is evidenced by humility, service and curiosity rather than arrogance, headhunting and a ‘know it all’ attitude. I know it sounds like I am caricaturing, but much of the evangelism of a previous generation was seen as "a crusade". The language and images that surrounded that approach to evangelism have not done well with the sensitivities of this emerging generation.

In fact, UCM has wisely taken the attitude, from the very beginning, that we would be defined by what we are for, rather than what we are against.

Further, effective witness is not as much about technique and information as it is about knowing the One we are talking about. He calls us to form redemptive communities that bear witness to His reality - where we have the opportunity to model service and compassion in a way that makes His claims comprenensible. For me it is sort of like hearing Mozart played well by a good orchestra. Suddenly, his music makes sense to me. I don't need to know a lot about music in order to be moved by it.

Immediately following class, it was time for chapel where I gave the morning address. Based on the account of Peter stepping out of the boat, I poured out my own story, how it connected with the biblical account and where it applies to the lives of the students. There was a very strong response towards the altars where students spent time doing business with God.

 

In the evening, George spoke from Isaiah 6 about our response to God’s call. Although he, Jaz and I prepared our messages independently, our messages overlapped in a way where it was easy to see how God had His hand in it. Again, there was a strong response at the altar where young people offered their lives to God’s service, wherever that might lead.

Day Three... Summit and S.F.U.

The following morning , I taught a course at Summit called “ Starting Campus Ministries”. I began by showing a powerpoint slide with a montage of various campus ministry pioneers from across Canada. As I pointed out each person, I told a bit of their story. It involved how they started their ministry and the model they used. I believe it is so much more helpful to connect models and methods with real people and situations.

Next, I went through an article I wrote years ago where I summarized various methods we had used in BC to kickstart university ministry. It allowed me the opportunity to provide commentary as we moved along and field questions as they arose.



After the class, I trundled over to the chapel. Our mission Canada team was facilitating a week of special missions emphasis at the college and our own Jaz would be the lead off speaker. I must say, the worship throughout the week was awesome. Summit is ridiculously blessed with musical firepower and top notch worship leaders. Our time of praise was a profound experience. It was a revelation to listen to Jaz, who had been raised as a Sikh and who had to pay an awful price to follow Christ at fifteen years of age.


Then it was off to SFU to meet with Seth Greenham and Kirsten Anonby. Both Seth and Kirsten had been involved with Campus Christian Fellowship at Western Washington University and were educated at Regent College. Both of them are rock solid and committed to building a prevailing ministry at SFU.

When I arrived at SFU, I made several observations. First, settled high up on Burnaby Mountain, it provides the most spectacular views of any campus in North America. Secondly, its architecture can be charitably described as “harsh modern” or less charitably as “brutalist” – in your face concrete, steel and glass. Inside the buildings it is even worse. The manner in which SFU is built militates against community. It is an unending maze of square cubicles that masquerade as classrooms and common space. Think of a fusion between office and prison. If it were not for the exquisite views from the windows, it would be barely tolerable. ( the pictures are coming soon..... )

So, it is in this context that Seth and Kristen are committed to building community. Like salmon swimming upstream ( an apt BC metaphor ), they are working against the very structure of the institution. Neither the institutional programming ( too many students and classes for the limited space) nor the physical structure facilitate a sense of community. Further, as I was going onto campus in the late afternoon, it looked as if a neutron bomb had gone off. The open areas were devoid of people. The campus empties as soon as classes are over.

Up until this year, UCM@SFU has not run a general meeting for a long time. However, they have provided flexible, cell based programming. They have six single gender core groups in operation that meet at different times and places. They have leadership training and development. This fall they are focusing on ‘The Hope of the Resurrection’ and working through the biblical foundation of true biblical hope. They are developing the series themselves and enabling students to go much deeper than pop or fill in the blanks Christianity. It is the dimension of discipleship and leadership development that distinguishes them from other campus groups. The picture to the right is on their website and their HOPE invitational postcards. Check them out at http://www.ucmonline.ca/  

So, I was sitting in on their third general meeting. Starting at 4:30 pm, in response to the aforementioned mass exodus, it was in a classroom where the tables had to be moved in order to facilitate chairs being placed in a circle. The worship was unplugged. We all had a song sheet and it was led by a single leader with a guitar. As you know, sometimes simple is good. This was really good. It was straight forward and sincere – with the songs all developing the theme of resurrection and hope.


Kirsten taught on 1 Corinthians 15. I was impressed by the depth, biblical fidelity and accessibility. She taught in a manner that was engaging and understandable. It was a rewarding time.

It was really nice to have supper afterwards with Seth, Kirsten and her husband David Anonby. It was good to hear their take on what is going on in the BC context and how they have overcome the challenges of ministry in the SFU context. They have tons to contribute about creating ministry to a commuter institution that does not easily facilitate community.

Also, they are an integral part of the interfaith chaplaincy at SFU. The Interfaith centre is an interesting place where world faiths intersect and where Islam, with its need for dedicated prayer and oblation rooms, leaves a large footprint. Seth has established a great rapport with the larger religious community on campus. He has paid his dues and has a great deal of institutional cred. It was a privilege to see him at work on his home turf.

Going West... Day 2

On Monday morning I drove to the scenic village of Harrison Hot Springs to meet with Matt Duffy, the chaplain and UCM Director at UBCO, the University of British Columbia of the Okanagan. HHS is partway along the road to Kelowna, and he was kind enough to come much more than half way to meet me.

Matt is a wonderful blend of maturity, passion and wisdom along with a creative drive tempered by profound patience. He and I roomed in Dallas about four years ago for a campus ministry conference, and I quickly grew to respect and appreciate him. As we met at the Hot Springs Hotel, three hours blew by before we knew it and we had to call it quits.
Matt is someone who is able to build bridges between churches and who has had a real impact on the actual institution of UBCO. He does more than relate to students. He connects with faculty and administration, many of whom actively seek him out because of his servant heart and wisdom. He has established a great deal of trust with the senior administration. In short, he uses the Chaplaincy model to great effect.

He has a solid UCM student group which he mentors and disciples. They have a strong small group thrust and he works extensively with the leadership to give them the necessary knowledge, skills and tools to provide leadership to their peers. He also has a Sunday night service where he loves to steer from the rear. This is very much a service by students for students, right on the campus.

Presence on the campus is a very important part of Matt’s philosophy of ministry. It could be called a ministry of “presence” or another word for it would be.. “incarnational”. Whatever it is called, it involves addressing the university in a wholistic fashion rather than as a fishing hole.


Then it was back to Abbotsford. Later that afternoon, I met with John Engels, the Director of BC Campus Ministries.  

We both met with  pastor Jeremy Postal, an associate pastor of Christian Life Community Church in Abbotsford, right at the base of the mountain upon which Summit Pacific College is situated. Jeremy has dedicated one day per week to the University of the Fraser Valley ( UFV). This is a great example of both Church based ministry and Club Ministry. Jeremy has reported that there are several dynamic students who are picking up the mantel of student leadership and taking UCM forward in a positive direction. The group is thriving.

The previous BCCM  UFV campus worker, Jayme, served the vision well by obtaining club status for UCM. As it turns out, there are and will apparently never be any other Christian groups allowed on campus. As the UFV reasons, there is no need for redundancy. UCM will be the representative for Christianity on campus.

That is not something we take lightly. We have taken an approach of servanthood, providing the people who live on campus with a pancake breakfast on Thursdays. It has proven extremely popular and has earned the good will of groups on campus who are usually hostile to classical Christianity. UCM is enjoying a rare atmosphere of grace and goodwill. We are determined not to squander it.

As it turns out, there is another group who has targeted the campus as the location of a church. We are not sure how that is going to turn out, but they are meeting with UCM to see how they can work together.

Following our meeting, John took me to tour UFV, which is a going concern. There are about ten thousand students attending the Abbotsford campus, which has a cluster of buildings and a large residence right near the Highway. It is great that we no longer have to meet with students 'below the radar' in the cafeteria, but that we are able to book proper facilities and properly serve the university community.

John phoned home and cleared my coming home with him for dinner with his wife Nancy and family. It was a real treat. John is a solid, wise leader who has steered BCCM into a very bright future. Make no mistake, he is not without real challenges. Leadership succession and credentialing weighs heavily on him, but he has been able to see the various campus ministries grow and mature under his leadership. I am reallllly glad that he is at the helm. I believe he has a vast amount to share with the rest of the country. I also believe that BCCM can provide a working prototype for other districts, as well.

Going West... Day 1

This past week, I went with Jaz Ghag, the specialized ministries coordinator for Mission Canada and George Werner, our intrepid Mission Canada leader out to the West Coast to lead several days of Missions Emphasis at Summit Pacific College. I took full advantage of the time to also visit with as many UCM campus ministries/ministers as I could. I will use the next several blogs to chronicle my wanderings and connect the reader with some of the great things God is doing through UCM ( see www.ucmonline.ca ).

My pictures are not all in yet, but I figured it would be better to get this up first and then throw the pictures into the mix in a few days.

Day One : Sunday
After I landed on Sunday morning, I dropped in on UTown Church, which was planted by Point Grey Community Church (which I planted twenty years ago). It was sort of like finally getting to see my granddaughter. You can get the links for both churches, and for UCM@UBC, the campus ministry, at www.pgcc.org  (look at the bottom of the home page). UTown meets right on the UBC campus in the midst of the growing community on the University Endowment Lands. It is an intergenerational campus church and I really wanted to see what they are up to. ( http://www.utownchurch.com/ )


Here are a few comments. First, it was one of those weekends. There was a UCM retreat, so many of the undergrads were gone. It was also the Regent College retreat, which took away another contingent. Tim Horman, their gifted pastor who hails from Australia, informed me that it might be a bit scarce. Well, it wasn’t.

Further, check out their digs at the UBC Forestry Centre ( the pictures will be up soon). Natural wood and natural light make it a gorgeous venue. Having been saddled with difficult places for the first years of their existence, this present facility is seen as a real gift. They serve coffee and pastries on the front end of the service. They provide a soup and bun lunch afterwards for a twoonie or whatever you can afford. Food and fellowship has been a part of their DNA from the very beginning.

The worship was deep and powerful. Without being loud or particularly upbeat (although it had its moments), it gave a real sense of uplift and provided an atmosphere of expectancy and openness. The announcements were brief and friendly. The worship pastor, Tracy Moar, called the gathering to pray for pastor Tim, who had just come back from Philadelphia where he had buried his 38 year old cousin. The congregation moved easily into prayer mode and it all seemed quite natural as hands were laid on Tim and different people led out in prayer.

Tim began his message by talking about his experience in Philadelphia and about being a sounding board for the pain of his cousin’s young widow. He then transitioned into Romans 12 where he lingered on the phrase, “ love must be sincere..”. He unpacked what sincerity in loving looked like and conversely what it didn’t look like, using examples everyone could relate to. He was intelligent, controlled and passionate. He was also prophetic, praying into the reasons for people’s reluctance to love the way Jesus would want them to love. He isolated two issues, first, those people who had been burned by being vulnerable. Love makes us vulnerable. And secondly , those people who simply did not care. He was speaking to those who were concerned that they didn’t care. As the service came to an end and communion was being served, he called these people to respond. Many people remained in their seats to pray or to go forward to receive prayer from the prayer ministry team.

At the level of the seemingly intangible, there was a strong sense of the Spirit’s presence. When Tim invited the Spirit to come, there was a very real sense that He was doing just that. It was more than words. There was an atmosphere of faith and possibility. There was also a strong sense that this was a community with depth. The leadership core was still together and made up of extraordinarily gifted and solid people. It gave stability in the midst of the transience and flux of the university.

UTown is surrounded by hundreds of student housing units, many of which are recently built. UBC is becoming a city in its own right as it develops its pricey land and takes on the appearance of a community that looks more and more like Whistler.

The vision for UBC ( with UCM, PGCC and UTown ) is one that I carried for many years. It is not only close to my heart, but it is in my spirit. Seeing it grow and mature is something I find deeply moving and gratifying. When I finally said goodbye mid-afternoon, there were deep emotions running through me. I am grateful for the opportunity to see the fruit of this ministry bless the rest of the country as well as receive from it.


Afterwards I billeted with my friend and former associate pastor, James Schiach. His family was off at a special celebration in Hawaii, so he and I “batched it”. James is one of the best people I know. Having left the vocational ministry years ago, he started building furniture. He has used his business as a means of Kingdom outreach ( see http://www.shiloliving.com/  ). James is a man of prayer. Prayer defines him. And God uses him – big time. Not only does he build furniture but he rebuilds the lives of those who work for him. He gives a hand up to the afflicted and addicted – many of whom owe the salvation of their souls to his faithful compassion and spiritual tenacity.

Talking with James Bradford.

When I found out that he was speaking at Braeside Camp this summer, just a half hour down the road from my house, I just had to grab Jim Bradford for lunch and pick his brain. Presently the General Secretary for the Assemblies of God, he was the founding pastor of a campus church in Minnesota  he started while he was doing his PhD in aeronautic engineering ( yes, he is in fact a rocket scientist ). He understands and supports campus ministry like few others. In fact, when I had first heard that he had taken on the senior pastorate of Broadway Church in Vancouver nearly ten years ago, I said to Seth Greenham who was the bearer of the good news " There is a God"!!   From the perspective of BCCM his involvement was wonderful news.

Well, he went Stateside again, and pastored in Springfield, MO and was then called by God through the AG conference to be their General Secretary, a position of great influence and Kingdom impact. Having  heard him at Braeside a number of years ago , I was happy to see him again - especially knowing that campus ministry would again be an integral part of my life.

I won't have the space to unpack what we talked about, but he was more than supportive of our efforts to impact the campus. I asked him if he would consider giving me something quotable - that would summarize in a few sentences what his convictions were regarding campus ministry. He was happy to comply. What you will read below is what he sent me. It's  good stuff...

“If I could focus ministry on 2 or 3 square kilometers in my city

by which I would most likely touch the whole world,

it would be the university campus.

I am excited about the expansion of outreach

to the university campuses of Canada.

There the shapers of culture, business, science,

government and the arts

are being trained and internationals students

from around the world gather to study.

As a pastor I always made room in my life

to be involved in outreach to students.

It takes specific missional focus, but reaching secular university students

is key to the transformation of a nation.

I highly endorse the initiatives of Mission Canada and the PAOC to reach the 21st century university.”

Humber Fall Launch

September 21, 2009 had been in my calendar since the first day of my joining the Mission Canada team. It was the date for the September launch of the Embassy at Humber-Guelph. So, George, Jaz and I had marked it our calendars and made our way out to the campus of Humber College – one of the largest colleges in the province in order to take in the event.


It was a year ago, October 6, 2008 that Trevor Gingerich held his first public service in the student services centre. Being commissioned to start a ministry on the Humber campus, he hooked up with a student group called Lifeline, a long standing Christian group on campus that had been planted by the Southern Baptist Convention but which by last year was without any affiliation. They were a group looking for a leader and Trevor was a leader looking for a group. The rest is history.  For more information check out  http://www.embassyhumber.com/.

Lifeline had built a great deal of goodwill in the college. They had thrived where all of the major parachurch organizations had failed. And they did it without any non-student involvement for nearly two years. Trevor brought his experience as an intern at the Embassy in Waterloo with him ( not to mention his killer guitar chops) in starting up a public evening meeting. The public gathering added a whole new level to the group and the leadership both he and Rebecca, his wife, provided proved to be invaluable.

Anyway, the Student Services centre had just gone through massive renovations throughout the spring and summer. It was not clear whether it would be ready in time for the Embassy Humber launch. However, ready it was, and it was looking great. Not only was it nicely set up with chairs and tables, but people could sit at tables in the adjoining cafeteria and take in the sights and sounds of the service. Further, there were people who lingered on the mezzanine above the stage and who took in big chunks of the service before wandering away. Last year, there were eavesdroppers like this who ended up  becoming regulars on the main floor.

Because Humber is a commuter campus, and students have to remain on campus in order to take in an evening event, they started the service at 6:30. They are meeting in this public format every second week.

They began with some great music played  by a  full band. They had paid attention to sound quality and it was clear and strong without being overly loud.

For his message, Trevor  gave an overview of the theme of the series for the fall. He will be looking at the Church  and drawing out elements of what real Christian community actually is,  from the book of Acts. In order to do this, he has to directly address misconceptions and apprehensions connected to the word "Church" in the cultural mind. 

Interestingly,  in giving away free bags of microwave popcorn for the clubs days,  members of his group were taken aback when other students were reluctant to take a handout because they were convinced the club would use it to convert them. They saw the popcorn as a part of a subversive plot. So, Trevor put the question out there and added examples from his own life where people, including Christians, were disingenous. I thought he did a particularly good job of handling the question with sincerity and sensitivity. It was disarming - largely because he came across as, well, real.

They broke for refreshments - a generous spread of edible snack items, tea and Free Trade Coffee. They then broke into discussion groups, led by the student leadership ( in the snazzy black Embassy T-shirts ) where they wrapped their heads around what they would like to see/do for the coming year. There was a high degree of enthusiasm and the crowd was nowhere near dispersing by the time I finally had to leave. The table format will be a part of upcoming meetings.

Elise Teeninga, our MC summer intern  and 4th year student sparkplug for the Embassy ( she is the one in the black T shirt in the above photo ( sorry about the quality) ) was pumped because there were all sorts of student leaders from the Student Union and from other clubs that just happened to be meeting behind the windows just above the stage. They were all exposed to the music and preaching in one way or another.

Anyway, Lifeline-Embassy @ Humber is up and running this year. We'll keep you posted.