Trinity Central has an exciting opportunity to partner with an initiative to plant into Toronto.
We talk a lot as a church about being on mission together. As a church we’re working out what it means to be part of Jesus’ mission on the ground in Vancouver – seeing our friends and colleagues impacted by the Gospel, and working out our part in seeing the advance of Jesus’ Kingdom.
But beyond the local we are also part of a family of churches who are on mission together. Being out on the West Coast it can feel like we’re a little separated from them all by our geography, but we’re very connected to them relationally! We’ve been well served by our church family in lots of different ways: they’ve supported us in leadership development, pastoral care, finance and friendship over the past three years as Trinity Central has become established.
The wonderful thing is that we get to play a part in this too! Earlier this year a number of us went out to Fredericton, and relationships with friends there in Christ Central church have grown. Last week I was out in Toronto for our Canadian team meeting, followed by a leaders conference. It has been exciting to see the development of things in Ontario, with some 150 people at the leaders conference, and a sense of anticipation about what God is doing.
Dreaming of church planting
Jeremy & Mel Little at the Toronto Roundhouse
The most exciting part of the trip was spending time with Jeremy and Mel Little and Jeremy and Ann Simpkins in Toronto on Monday morning, dreaming about a church plant into downtown Toronto. Jeremy and Mel are moving to Toronto over the summer in 2015 to start a new church. Just as other have stood with us, we’re delighted to be able to stand with them on their faith journey! These next months will involve working out what that will look like on the ground, gathering a team, working out the costs, and praying for God’s hand to be in all the details!
What was particularly significant for us was standing in the Toronto Roundhouse, in heart of Toronto’s downtown. For those of you who have tracked with us over these past years you will know that God has seemed to use the theme of trains in the way in which he has spoken to us and led us. One of the significant words we have received from God has been about His calling us into planting churches into cities in Canada along the railway lines. Well, the Toronto Roundhouse stands at the end of the line that used to connect Vancouver to Toronto!
Trinity Central’s first venue was the Vancouver Roundhouse, and so, as we stood and considered God’s heart for the great city of Toronto, and dreamed of a church which would impact that city, we were struck by the sense of prophetic promise that God has given to us as a church, and which was playing out in front of us.
On the adventure together
Only God knows what the adventure will bring, or how it will look a few years from now, but what we do know is that God has called us to be a family of churches together, and though we are still in our early days as a church ourselves, God has prophetically and relationally connected us to Jeremy and Mel and their heart to see a city-impacting church planted in Toronto.
We get to pray, give and serve. We may even send some people!
