Evangelical Fellowship Church (EFC) in Steinbach experienced an active and meaningful fall season. In late November, we were pleased to celebrate the ordination of Trevor Fleming. Pastor Trevor, along with his wife Jamie and their family, joined EFC as our associate pastor in January 2024.

From greenhouses to trucking, our town is changing fast, and God is doing something new. At Leamington Evangelical Mennonite Church (LEMC), we are seeing young people, families, and new members coming together to worship, serve, and grow in faith. In a community full of opportunities and challenges, we are discovering that God’s work in our church reflects his work in our town.

Picture a sleepy prairie hamlet nestled at the foot of the Pembina Hills in southern Manitoba, surrounded by rolling hills and lush farmland, with a small creek running through it. This lovely farming community boasts six streets, three churches, a community store, an outdoor rink, a public rose garden, and a memorial. It is in this idyllic setting that you will find Roseisle EMC, a growing congregation of worshippers of all ages and backgrounds.

When I arrived at Pineridge Fellowship Chapel in 2020 to pastor, the church was already warm and friendly. My family and I instantly felt welcomed, which was important given all that was going on in 2020. It is easy to become complacent as a congregation. Sometimes when you have a smaller church, new people can almost be treated like outsiders, particularly if they’re different from the church.

We have one. Do you? If not, you should! Our candy grandma gives out candy to kids after church, in bags (small ones, but even so)! After the service, candy grandma Linda sits expectantly with her notebook in hand, pen at the ready.

Peter was in a very restrictive colony and knew there was something better than following rules in the hope of perhaps making it to heaven. But the rules were a cage that kept his soul imprisoned and he wanted freedom in Jesus. He now works to bring understanding, surety of eternal salvation, and new life to many within hearing distance of the radio station, which he manages.

We, Reza and Bahar, are Afghan but were born and raised in Iran. Through a Farsi-speaking church, we immigrated from Iran to Turkey. There, we were discipled and began our ministry among the Afghan people in 2017, primarily through online outreach.

We find ourselves in very interesting conversations as a ministry in Winnipeg’s North End these days. Though our foundation is firmly placed on Jesus Christ, we are constantly pressured to compromise that foundation. If we did, all kinds of financial support would come our way, so I understand how many Christian ministries fall into the temptation.

We are all familiar with Paul’s metaphor in his letters of the church being a body, and it is common to talk about being the hands and feet of Jesus in the world. A number of years ago, we noticed one part that doesn’t usually get attention: the ligaments.

A mixed group of people from a Muslim community meet almost every day online to translate Jesus’ teachings in the Gospels into their mother tongue. One of them said passionately, “Jesus’ teachings are important for everyone; we need to make them accessible to all the people in the area, so that their communities can be changed by them.”

What does stewardship in local churches look like regarding global missions? Is it just a matter of finances—bang-for-the-buck kind of thing—or could we include the time given by individuals and congregations to study missions, to hear reports from mission workers, and intentional time in prayer for mission efforts?

A poetic devotion by Brigitte Toews