Mt Tremblant

Over a year ago, as I began my role as campus ministries coordinator, I arrived on the campus of Carleton University to pray and to connect with a young pastor, Jonathan Hutchison, of Peace Tower Church. Jonathan had just been released by PTC to give a day per week to the Carleton campus and we talked about first steps to creating a ministry on campus. You can read about this in previous blogs ( Oct 09 etc).



Anyway, Jonathan set to work laying a solid foundation. Carleton Christian Ministries was formed.  The ministry began this September and he has been instrumental in drawing together a diverse and dynamic group of students who have a deep desire to pursue God and to change the campus for Christ. A group of the guys have committed to daily prayer from 7-8 on campus, with a combination of worship and prayer ( harp and bowl). As a result, God is “surprising” them with healings and salvations. It is exciting to hear.



 So it was a privilege to be the speaker at their inaugural retreat at Mt. Tremblant, an hour and a half north of Montreal. Although a number of their people, including some key leaders, were not able to make it due to commitments they could not escape, there was a solid group of students who came to pray, worship and be challenged by God’s word ( not to mention ski, tube and play board games until the wee hours of the morning). The retreat gave them a chance to learn and play together. I could just sense the depth of prayer that had gone into this retreat and it was exciting to be there.

 They came from places like Burundi, Botswana, Guyana, Haiti, Rwanda, Ireland, and Sarnia :) . They came with international experience, a global perspective and the potential to impact people far beyond our sphere. It was a privilege to be amongst them. I think of a quote that Matt Glombick shared with us by another campus minister who wrote “ we are able to have access to future world leaders before they no longer have time for us….”

The entrance theme for our time was “one thing” ( regarding vision and focus) and we talked about how important it is to have a big picture sense of where we are going. That means having a vision of eternity. In the second session we worked from John 3:16 and unwrapped “the big story of God” imbedded in the gospel. In the final session we looked at Living for the Kingdom – Now.. . We actually covered a lot of ground and it was energizing to see people engaging the truth and for “lights to go on..” all across the room.


This is a ministry grounded in prayer. They have a respect and appreciation for the Word. They are not afraid to desire the fulness of God's Spirit, while engaging truth at a profound level. They expect God to communicate Himself to them and it is clear that He does.


It is a solid group and it is well led. Jonathan is one of the rising leaders in our movement and I appreciate his depth and maturity along with his bright mind. His wife,Tera, who accompanied him for the weekend, is an ideal match for him, even as she holds down a demanding job on Capital Hill. I enjoyed the time I was able to spend with them.



 

Village of St. Jovite with Mt.T in the background