live magazine May-June 2020

live A Baptist resource for women on a mission May - June 2020 ¡ $3.50

Faith from Scratch God’s goodness in the face of tragedy (p3)

Faith Pursues the Real Would you like Him here or there? (p8) Prayer, Intercession, Interruption and Invitation How are these connected? (p10) 2020 Strategic Giving Projects Empowering Soura Widows (p15) Brand New Programs!

Soul Sisters 3 (p20) Complete (p22)

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in this issue

cONNECTING

COLUMNS/RESOURCES 2 CONNECTING BIBLE STUDY 5 Called to Faith RESOURCES 20 Soul Sisters 3

21 Stay Connected Online 22 Complete Missional leadership development at any age or stage

FEATURES connect to god 3 Faith from Scratch God’s goodness in the face of tragedy 8 Faith Pursues the Real Would you like Him here or there? connect to MISSION 10 Prayer, Intercession, Interruption and Invitation How are these connected?

12 Chosen | Holy | Called Rev. Abby Davidson 13 Being Available Rebekah Larente’s call to mission 15 Empowering Soura Widows

18 What Love Looks Like The impact of Baptist Women on one Soura girl connect to others 23 We have a new treasurer!

23 We Remember

Cover photo: Unsplash.com/SergeiPlunninen

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We prepared this column not knowing how COVID-19 would have affected Africa by the time you read this. When writing this piece, there were more than 27,000 confirmed cases of the virus across the continent with a number of Africa countries imposing a range of prevention and containment measures.

In some countries like Kenya, Rwanda and the Congo—countries where Baptist Women has a history of supporting vulnerable women and their families—the numbers were low, relative to Egypt, Morocco and South Africa where cases are in the thousands.

Even so, we know that poverty, inequality and discrimination—economic, tribal, sociopolitical—render measures like social distancing almost impotent. The UN has also warned that several African countries are among the most at-risk for widespread famine caused by the pandemic.

Sisters, we must continue to pray—in faith — to God whose power, authority, love and compassion never fail. I know. It’s hard to hold high those truths about God when the tide of information and misinformation overwhelms.

May I encourage you to offer your seed of faith to our great big God? Our prayer partner —the Baptist Women’s Union of Africa—needs us to pray.

Pray for overseas aid and medical infrastructure support to ramp up and roll out with care.

Continued on page 7

VOLUME 93, NUMBER 3

live (formerly The Link & Visitor) began as The Canadian Missionary Link (1878) and Baptist Visitor (1890). Published bi-monthly by Canadian Baptist Women of Ontario and Quebec 5 International Blvd., Etobicoke, ON M9W 6H3 416-620-2954 Fax 416-622-2308 bwoq@baptist.ca baptistwomen.com Executive director Diane McBeth Editor and communications director Renée James 416-651-8967 rsejames@gmail.com Art director Donna Lee Pancorvo of GEPM Group Inc. (gepmgroup.com) Contributors Emily Dargie, Rev. Abby Davidson, Linda Ellsworth, Diane McBeth, Morgan Wolf Circulation and subscriptions Subscriptions 416-620-2954 live@baptist.ca Subscriptions Individual: $20* (direct or through promoters) US & overseas: $39 All currency in $C unless otherwise noted.

The publication of comments, opinions or advertising does not necessarily imply CBWOQ agreement or endorsement. All material is copyrighted and may not be reproduced in print or on websites without permission. Advertising inquiries and freelance submissions should be addressed to the editor.

Member, Canadian Church Press.

ISSN 2293-5096.

Canada Post Customer Number 1008592.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada for our publishing activities. *includes HST

CONNECT TO GOD

Faith From Scratch God’s goodness in the face of tragedy As we live through a pandemic, it seems to me that we are called to go deeper in our confidence in the goodness of God so that we can proclaim that goodness to people who may struggle.

by Diane McBeth Diane is the executive director of Baptist Women

Tragedy often raises questions about the nature of God. Tragedy crumbles assumptions we did not even know we had. Does God really care? Is He in control? I have lived through shattered assumptions and had to rebuild faith, but after many years, and different tests, I can confidently say . . . God is completely, absolutely, wonderfully good.

But there was a time when I wasn’t sure. When I was 21, my 19-year-old brother disappeared. He just didn’t come home that July long weekend.

He had been talking about moving to make a fresh start, so we hoped he had done that. But we knew it was unlikely—he had paged my parents not long before to tell them he was going away for the weekend.

A year later they found his body and charged a friend of his with murder.

I got the news as I stood in my living room surrounded by moving boxes. A few weeks later, I was in a new city, away from friends and the ministry I loved. Then, as the trial and plea-bargaining ground along, my belief in our legal system collapsed. For a long time I had to read Psalm 37 before I went to sleep: “fret not yourself because of the wicked.”

Worse yet, my assumptions about God were crushed. While my brother had been missing, the message I had received (intended or not) was entrust him to God and all will be well. After his body was found, people would quote Romans 8:28, “All things work together for good.”

I felt like the victim of a bait and switch con, where a shyster convinces you to buy one thing but once you are committed, they change it for something else. It seemed dishonest to act as if God would not let anything truly bad happen . . . and then brush that belief off when tragedy did come.

I nearly gave up faith altogether. But that made life meaningless—so I started again from scratch. Over the next months I struggled to understand suffering and the true nature of God. At Christmas a very wise man gave me a book titled No Pat Answers. I don’t remember the content, but I do remember where I was standing when he handed it to me. At that moment the light went on. If no one had discovered a simple answer live • May - June 2020

Photo credit: Linda Wolfe

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to suffering in the last 2000 years, I wouldn’t either . . . but that was OK because I could still find peace.

And I did. Then over the years I found theology that encompasses the whole truth—no bait and switch—and that has brought deeper peace. There have been other losses and griefs, but none have shaken me like that first one.

Now I can look back from a distance and see how God has acted in gracious goodness before, during and after each loss. He is good.

On that foundation I can look ahead in assurance that no matter what comes, God is good.

He really does love you. You really are precious to Him. Here is a verse that God repeatedly used to comfort me, “Because you are precious in my eyes, and honoured, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life.” (Isaiah 43:4 RSV) 

Peace Principles

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For those of you with theological questions, here are a few principles that brought me peace.

Not everything that happens is desired by God. Some things are the result of sin, Satan, or living in a world that is no longer as God created it.

God allows corruption because free will is so valuable. Without free will we cannot genuinely love, and He created us (in love) for the express purpose of having a loving relationship with us.

God often intervenes in the world (especially in answer to prayer)— but not always. He is not our servant, and sometimes the answer does not come. BUT we are also not prisoners of fate. Part of the blessing of free will is that God invites us to partner with Him. In love and grace, He waits to empower us to bring justice and freedom and to reconcile people with God. God cares. He feels our pain. Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus— even though He knew there would be a resurrection.

It may be no one’s fault. The disciples had the same question, “Who sinned that this could happen?” (John 9:3) Jesus clearly replied that suffering may have nothing to do with guilt or blame but be part of a much bigger storyline.

Forgiveness sets us free from the past. Covering ourselves and others with complete, unmerited grace opens the door to a flow of the healing grace of God. If we have a wound that is not healing, chances are that unforgiveness is at the root. And if we judge someone—decide something about their character or motivations—we will need to forgive all over again.

Jesus taught that tragedy has nothing to do with the relative goodness of people (Luke 13:4). Perhaps this is the hardest lesson of all: Sometimes good things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people. For many of us that goes against the very foundation of our view of justice: It feels unfair. But Jesus was telling the truth when He said, “In this world, you will have trouble.”

Can we take an eternal perspective and wait for God’s justice to be revealed? If we can accept that some things will never be fair in this lifetime, that will go a long way toward living in peace . . . loving God and others fully, and with our eyes wide open.

BIBLE STUDY

Chosen | Holy | Called . . .

Called to Faith “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.“ (1 Peter 2:9 NLT) Turn with me to a well-known Old Testament story, and let’s consider the precepts upon which faith is built.

Merriam-Webster defines faith as follows: • Complete trust • Firm belief in something for which there is no proof • Belief and trust in and loyalty to God. Daily, without question, we act on the belief that the lights will come on when we flip a switch; that food in the refrigerator will stay cold and frozen food frozen; that water, both hot and cold, will emerge from our taps; heat will blast from our furnaces at the set of a dial; and that the seasons will (eventually) change with the tilt and rotation of the Earth.

If we have “faith” in these daily situations, why do we find it difficult to have faith in God, who promises to be faithful?

by Linda Ellsworth Linda is the member care coordinator for Christian Camping International, Canada.

Unsplash.com/HeatherShevlin

READ Genesis 16:1-6 The Beginning of the Story PART A: Abram has been living in the land of Canaan for 10 years when God promises him a huge tract of land between the Euphrates River and the Nile and its smaller tributary, the Wadi elArish. Yet Abram has no heir and is in his 80s.

What is Sarai’s reaction to being childless . . . to her inability to give Abram a son to inherit this great tract of land God has promised them? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Sarai’s solution: Give Abram her Egyptian maidservant Hagar.

Abram would then lie with Hagar who would conceive and hopefully bear a son who would be Abram and Sarai’s son. The situation becomes fraught with tension when Hagar does in fact become pregnant. Describe what the scene must have been like. _________________________ live • May - June 2020

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_________________________ _________________________

stream, likely in the wilderness of Zin.

What are the results of Hagar’s becoming pregnant: a) For Sarai _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ b) For Hagar _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ c) For Abram _________________________ _________________________ _________________________

What was so amazing about her encounter in the wilderness? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ What was Hagar instructed to do? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ What would have been your response to the Angel? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ What did the Angel promise Hagar? (This promise results in an extremely important historical outcome!) _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ What was Hagar’s response? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Interestingly, verse 14 is the only time in Scripture that God is attributed the name (Beer) Lahai Roi, (the well of) “You-Are-The-God-Who-Sees.”

As an Egyptian, coming from a culture that worshipped multiple gods, Hagar asks herself a very important question at this point (see verse 13b). _________________________ _________________________ _________________________

Do you think Sarai was justified in using her logic to solve her childless situation? Explain: _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ In what situations do we use our logic and run ahead of God? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ READ Genesis 16:7-16 PART B: Can you imagine being in Hagar’s place? Alone, pregnant by your mistress’s husband at her insistence, and then banned to wander in a foreign land? We don’t really understand what Hagar thought of the God of Abram, but we can glean some very interesting facts from these verses.

Hagar ran from Hebron to Shur, a distance of approximately 100 miles, when she stopped by a 6

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Thus far in the narrative, as a result of her encounter with the one true God, Hagar has exhibited two characteristics of faith.

• She has listened to God’s voice, as spoken through the “Angel of the Lord.”

• As implied in verse 15, she has obeyed God’s instructions.

READ Genesis 17 The Rest of the Story PART C: At 99 years of age, Abram receives a name change, a physical change and the most incredible promise from God. Explain: _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Halfway through the chapter, we get this little “insight insert” regarding the child born to Hagar.

See verses 18-21.

What is to become of Ishmael, if he is not “the son of promise” to Abraham? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Remember the Angel’s covenant with Hagar? Is God true to His promises? Will Hagar’s faith play out? What thoughts would be stirring in your heart at this point, were you Hagar? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ READ Genesis 21 PART D: The great day had finally arrived. Sarah at 90+ years of age

BIBLE STUDY

gives birth to Isaac, the child of promise. Note: the “other” son of promise, Ishmael, was about 14 years of age at the time.

Describe the events that took place following the “weaning party” Abraham threw for Isaac: _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ List the negative emotions and reactions. _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Do these emotions/reactions have any place in a life of faith? Describe how they might creep into your life. _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Describe what transpires in verses 9-16 _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Once again Hagar finds herself in the wilderness of Zin. She has forgotten to continue in trust.

What is so interesting about the end of verse 16 and the beginning of verse 17? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ What might lead you to believe that Hagar had forgotten the

promise God had made to her 14 years earlier? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ How often do we forget the great and precious promises God has made to us in His Word, and through His interaction with us? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Do we tend to “lose” our faith? _________________________ _________________________ _________________________

Our God is The God who sees you today. Live in encounter with Him as He grows your faith.

Here’s an encouraging word for you: Watch the YouTube video, The God Who Sees by Kathy Lee Gifford and Nicole C. Mullen. 

Connecting

Continued from page 2 Remember, the saving of Hagar and Ishmael required a second encounter with the Angel of God . . . to restore the faith of Hagar so that God’s promises to her regarding Ishmael might be fulfilled. The “wild man” of promise returned to the desert and became the father of many himself.

READ Hebrews 11-12:1-2 The Rest of Our Story As you meditate on these wonderful examples of faith, recognize in them the following characteristics: • FAITH requires ENCOUNTER • ENCOUNTER produces KNOWLEDGE • FAITH involves LISTENING to the voice of God • FAITH is activated through OBEDIENCE, and continues in TRUST • FAITH is rewarded by the Author and Finisher of our faith—Jesus Christ

Pray for all medical personnel— for their protection and safety.

Pray for women and children— the most vulnerable, that justice will flow like a river for them.

If you’d like to pray regularly for others, with others, do join the weekly online prayer meeting every Wednesday at 6 a.m. or 7 p.m. EST. It’s hosted by Baptist Women of North America (formerly NABWU). Information on how to join is at this link: https://www. bwna.today/pray/weekly-prayer/ RJ   The videos of our first ever online Women’s Conference have been well-viewed by hundreds since we livestreamed plenary sessions and workshops at the end of April.

You’ll find the videos (including playlists of the worship songs) at baptistwomen.com/events. live • May - June 2020

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Faith Pursues the Real Would you like Him here or there?

Unsplash.com/ZoritsaValova

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CONNECT TO GOD

I write stories for a living.

I invent people and stick them in impossible scenarios to see how they manage. Usually, when I start writing I have some idea where I want these characters to end up; whether they will behave nobly or ignobly—usually a mixture of both—as they confront the obstacles I throw in their path.

“You talk to Him . . .”

The trouble is, characters—like the Velveteen Rabbit who was loved by his boy—eventually become real. Real to me at least, and then I can’t do a thing with them.

I write scenes and put words in their mouths and they stubbornly disagree and refuse to say them with any kind of conviction. The action of the story stalls. The other characters look at the floor, awkwardly pretending not to notice my embarrassing faux pas, and the writing comes to a dead end until I delete all the way back to authenticity. Characters who have revealed who they are can’t be manipulated into being someone they aren’t.

God also has a stubborn way of being real and not taking my stage direction. More often than not, He

by Morgan Wolf Morgan is a writer from Calgary. She blogs about her faith and writing at anothergratuitousmdash.blogspot. ca. Morgan has just published her book, Altruism in Gophers.

doesn’t say the thing I want Him to say, and the stuff He does say . . . well, let’s just say that God isn’t particularly concerned about human opinions. He is who He is.

I can always tell when I’ve tried to put words in His mouth or force His hand. The conversation goes dead and I find I’ve painted myself into an uncomfortable spiritual corner with nowhere to go. Once again I realize that I’ve tried to call the shots and write both sides of the conversation. It’s embarrassing but I don’t think it’s just me.

It’s a bad habit that plagues us all. Humanity doesn’t want a God with His own opinions. We want a god whose rules enable us to live as we please; who we can pick up with our hands and see our own reflection in the gold-plated surface and then set aside again whenever convenience suits.

But God is real and the faith that He gives us to pursue Him is far more unwieldy than a set of religious dictates. Faith is vision and the drive to pursue the God who is the destination of life’s arduous climb. Sometimes the path of faith is steep and harrowing. Sometimes we pause out of breath with every muscle screaming for reprieve, and we doubt whether we have another step in us. But the view from the height is something else.

After their victorious exodus from Egypt, the children of Israel elected to stay at the foot of the mountain. The God who had

rescued them through wonders and signs was too frightening to meet face to face. “You talk to Him,” they implored Moses, “and we’ll do whatever you say.”

Moses’s faith drew him up the mountain because he alone longed for God’s presence. The people, however, stayed far below, content to cater to their fears and appetites. What each of them saw of God depended on where they stood. Moses climbed the mountain and entered the glory cloud of God’s presence where the Almighty spoke to him; revealing His thoughts and plans as one might share with a friend. But to those who wanted nothing to do with God Himself, “To the Israelites at the foot of the mountain, the glory of the Lord appeared at the summit as a consuming fire.”

(Exodus 24:17) At a distance, God will always be frightening to us—no matter how many oceans He’s parted, or how many desperate prayers He has answered. When we stand far off and resist the beckoning of faith, He is terror and destruction to our eyes. Yet when we dare to approach Him, He envelopes us in His glory cloud and unclasps His heart. The destination of faith is God alone. It is to be taken into His presence; to experience the revelation of who He is. He is who He is. 

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Prayer, Intercession, Interruption and Invitation How are these connected?

Rev. Jill Weber lives in the United Kingdom, serving on the global leadership team of 24-7 Prayer Network. In this role she connects with Houses of Prayer around the world. live magazine continues the conversation with Jill about touchstones for doing mission that began in the January-February 2020 issue.

StoryBlocks.com

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Why are prayer and intercession so important to both authentic experience of God and intimate connection to mission?

(These are our taglines for CBWOQ’s vision and mission.)

Mission, of course, starts in the heart of God. God went on mission—Jesus came down to where we were to rescue us. Mission is not about us; it’s about God. If mission is about God then He’s the resource. He’s the one who strengthens our heart for mission.

We need to be looking at who God is so we have the right perspective about what ‘s going on in the world, a God-consciousness that He is King over it all. He is unfolding His redemptive purposes, and it’s not about us fixing the world. It’s about Jesus making all things new and we get to go along with Him on the journey.

And this all starts with prayer, listening to God and talking to God. We discover that worship is so important to mission because we need to remind ourselves how strong and smart God is; we need to stop gauging our abilities to do mission by our natural capacities.

Read Letters of a Modern Mystic by Frank C. Laubach. He was a missionary in the Philippines during the 1930s and these are letters he wrote to his father about what he discovered doing mission—that God is the heart of the whole matter.

Let me put it this way. Jill can go out and do Jill-sized things but without intercession I won’t see God-sized things flowing out of my life. At

CONNECT TO MISSION

this point I’m too small and too old to have only Jill-sized things flow out!

In your book Even The Sparrow, you share lessons you’ve learned about how God works with us when we make ourselves available for mission. You write that He interrupts us, calls us out (gives us an identity) and invites us on a journey (mission). You link interruption to invitation.

God interrupts Abram, Moses and Gideon. He interrupted them to invite them to take part in what He was doing in the world. Jesus’ ministry was characterized by interruptions. Think of all the people who got in His path—the blind beggar; the woman who touched His garment. Jesus Himself interrupts Peter and James. The question becomes: Are we “interruptable?”

What are some helpful pointers for small groups whom God has interrupted and invited to do mission?

Count the cost. You will have to do an assessment as a group and ask, Are we ready to die or not? Mission isn’t a hobby, self-improvement process or a way to self-actualize.

There’s a cost involved. There’s also an inherent sweetness and joy in giving God the costly gift, and an interior freedom you get when you do. A small example: We had regular GOHOP community dinners every Tuesday night and forks from my wedding set began disappearing one by one. I went to

Value Village and got more. They started going too!

Don’t confuse success or productivity with fruitfulness. If you do, you will try to be a strong group, in control, somewhat respectable, ready to scale up your efforts.

Instead, lean into the vulnerability of being fruitful.

Don’t get wrapped up in the quick change. Your group will get discouraged when members don’t see differences in people’s lives right away. You’re not operating a spiritual drive-through. You will see transformation but it will come slowly. Is your group committed to accompany people; to the slow work of God? Jesus used farming imagery in His teachings for a reason—farming is slow work.

“If you don’t love it, you won’t fight for it,” you write. How do we fight for our communities well? Where do we start?

Go on a tour of beauty and fall in love: do a prayer walk through your neighbourhood. You walk and ask God, “What do you see?

What are you doing?” You’ll begin to see the nooks and crannies where God is up to stuff—all the little signs of life.

insight?

Jesus said that He only said and did what He saw His Father saying and doing. Jesus did mission this way and so, if we are attentive to mission, then this is how we are also to do mission.

How did Jesus know what the Father did?

He modelled how a human can live with and before God. First, He went to lonely places to pray, taking time out to orient Himself to His Father. He did this regularly.

He also did it for extended periods of time—before He picked His disciples He spent the whole night in prayer.

Jesus also modelled fluidity.

We may not know everything all at once, all the time. Think of the wedding at Cana. Things were revealed to Him as He did ministry.  We’ve added Jill’s book Even The Sparrow | A Pilgrim’s Guide to Prayer, Trust and Following the Leader to our book club list.

Order it online at ReadOn Bookstore and enjoy free shipping. $18 You’ll find contact information for ReadOn Bookstore on page 23.

“Live in the place of encounter and build out of response to revelation.” You emphasize this in your book and it’s one of the fundamental principles shaping how you respond to God’s call and do mission. Why do Baptist women need to grasp this live • May - June 2020

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Chosen | Holy | Called Rev. Abby Davidson

We continue to profile our ordained women clergy who serve in a variety of roles in our Canadian Baptist churches. We hope that their stories of calling inspire you to pray for them and to reflect on God’s call to you.

In this issue we meet Rev. Abby Davidson.

Tell us about how you experienced God’s call to be ordained.

My call to ministry came toward the end of my time in seminary when I heard God speak three words to me: Feed My sheep. That call deepened as I began to serve as a pastor in Toronto. My church and family encouraged me to pursue ordination.

What was your process of responding to that call?

I wanted to respond to God’s call with covenantal love. My first step was to find a supervisor. I had been at a Canadian Baptist Ministries event earlier in the month where I was introduced to Rev. Nancy Webb* who was serving as the interim pastor at Kingsway Baptist Church. She agreed to walk with me through my ordination process. We spent the next year meeting regularly for tea and theological reflection. Her experience and wisdom were so valuable to me as I sought God’s will for ministry.

How has the Spirit kneaded holiness into your ministry?

In the last few years, I have come to understand holiness as described in 1 Peter 2:9—a way of showing God’s goodness to others. When I started in ministry, I often wondered if I was “good enough” to be a pastor.

There was a shift in my mindset when the Holy Spirit showed me that it’s not about me being good enough, but about the goodness of God. This meant that instead of operating from a place of scarcity, I was moving into a place of abundance and God’s love came pouring through.

Photo courtesy Abby Davidson

Abby was ordained in the CBOQ in June, 2017. She currently serves as the pastor of family engagement and outreach at Blythwood Road Baptist Church in Toronto, where she has been for five years. She is also the moderator of Toronto Baptist Ministries. Abby led one of the workshops at our virtual conference in April. *Rev. Nancy Webb is a former Executive Director of Baptist Women 12 live • May - June 2020

What’s challenged you the most about declaring God’s goodness?

The greatest challenge has been for me to be vulnerable enough to share my suffering with others so that God’s glory can be shown through my pain. I have learned that in allowing others to grieve with me, I am also allowing them to rejoice with me when God brings purpose out of my pain, and this serves to unite and edify the body of Christ.

How would you advise a young Baptist woman seeking ordination?

Do it! If God is calling you to be ordained then have courage and step boldly into your calling. We are at time in history when we need to hear the voices of young women speaking out against injustice and proclaiming the goodness of God. 

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Being Available Rebekah Larente’s Call to Mission

Rebekah Larente is an Uptick Baptist Women graduate. Uptick is a discipleship and leadership development program run by CBWOQ. In 2019, CBWOQ supported Rebekah’s work on the Six Nations Reserve in southwestern Ontario through a New Initiatives grant. “It’s such a privilege to work on the reserve,” she says. “And it shows CBWOQ’s compassion and empathy.

It’s incredible to have people supporting native ministry.”

Read about the impact of Uptick Baptist Women on Rebekah’s spiritual formation at baptistwomen.com/about.

Rebekah Larente never thought she’d be good enough to do mission even though she’d earned a college diploma in community and justice services. Plus, she was the shy person in most groups. “God qualifies the called,” she laughs. “That describes me.”

In 2016, with that college diploma in hand, she spent two years with Operation Mobilization (OM) aboard their mission ship, sailing to Africa and Colombia, stopping at 25 countries along the way. This was Rebekah’s first working mission experience and as she puts it, ”God taught me so much through that ministry.”

God taught her how to be patient—to understand that mission wasn’t about what she thought it was to be, but rather, about what He wanted.

“Mission is sometimes just about serving the people you work with versus 24/7 evangelism.”

She learned humility. She worked in the department responsible for cleaning the whole ship from top to bottom every day. “Essentially I was serving the people I was working with,” she recalls. Cleaning toilets, bathrooms and beyond, made her connect with women on a different level.

“It was women who did the cleaning, and every day we’d start with devotionals, singing and prayer and then get to the work.”

Photo courtesy Rebekah Larente

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More than that, she discovered that the very act of cleaning, day in and day out, brought her to a different level of vulnerability with God. Drenched in sweat as she cleaned, she learned how to spend time Him; how to pray; how to trust. “There was a lot going on at home,” she recalls, “and I had to trust God with all of that—that He was taking care of my family while I was on the ship.”

Trust didn’t come easily to Rebekah. Growing up in a Christian home, she’d given her heart to Jesus as a child and knew the church-every-Sunday-youthgroup-Friday-night schtick by heart. Yet through her public and high school years, a learning disability, constant bullying by her peers, trauma and its resulting depression and anger, had defined her sense of self and fuelled her actions. All that changed in Grade 12. The tragic death of a young man she knew made her realize that her life could be taken away in a moment. “If I died, would I be with Jesus? Could I say yes with confidence?” she asked. She made the decision to get help.

That was a major turning point for Rebekah. “I no longer cared about what people thought of me.

My identity was now standing as a daughter of the King,” she remembers. And as her understanding of her new identity blossomed, Rebekah discovered a passion for ministry and for mission; a passion that could only have come from

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God; a passion that her church community at First Baptist Church in Welland confirmed.

Returning home after her OM mission trip, Rebekah discovered that her calling to mission encompassed a fixed address much closer to home—the Six Nations Reserve in southwestern Ontario.

Pastors Brian and Andrea Chicki at Ohsweken Baptist Church. They had had a vision of a church made stronger and healthier because it had literally opened its doors to the Indigenous communities surrounding it, inviting everyone from Indigenous elders to youth to experience Jesus through an honoring and preserving of their Indigenous heritage. Would Rebekah like to help?

Like Brian and Andrea, Rebekah reaches out on a grassroots level.

For almost a year now, she has helped people with the basics: groceries, transport if they need it. She’s visited people. She’s had conversations. “This is a very hands-on and practical ministry,” she says. “We’re building trust.”

She’s immersed herself in building relationships with youth from the community. She shares the connection of Indigenous heritage with them (she is part Ojibwe). She also shares food and time. “I’m a firm believer in food ministry,” she laughs. “Kids love food and they will come out for free food.”

She meets with several girls now, spending time and listening well. A pat “if you don’t accept

Rebekah’s prayer requests  strength  for the girls—that they will see their identity as rooted in Christ  that God will give her continued opportunity to be with them and to share God’s truth with them

Jesus you will go to hell” message makes these girls draw the bolts tight on doors they’ve firmly closed in the face of abuse, neglect and poverty. In her very first lunch with them, Rebekah couldn’t mince her words, either about her calling or about God’s heart: “He’s called me to build relationships with you, not to judge you.”

Rebekah considers her mission and ministry long term. “A lot of people have it in their minds that things will be fixed right away, but the reality is that this is not the case. Damage has been done on the reserve.” She is learning to take this in stride. “God has taught me to trust Him through it all and to believe that if I’m praying for these girls and being there with them, only doing what I can do— then I’ve done my best for them.”

Rebekah plans to return to school to become a registered practical nurse. 

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CONNECT TO MISSION

Empowering Soura Widows Baptist Women is the exclusive fundraiser for this project which is part of our strategic giving program for 2020.

We hope you’ve had a chance to review all the projects in the January-February 2020 issue and read Audrey Morikawa’s reflections on her years as a missionary in India working with Oriya women and girls in the March-April issue.

There are more Soura widows like Simothy, Ebita and Anjalita who want to provide for their family and build better lives for themselves.

Thank you for your support of these projects.

PROJECT COSTS Fundraising Target: $13,000 Coverage: This project provides income generation for 120 widows. $56 provides a widow the opportunity to participate in two business training workshops $215 gives a widow a small business loan

by Kristine Gonsalez, CBM

Beginnings in India A century and a half ago, God led Canadian Baptists to India.

Canadian Baptist field staff, then called “missionaries,” embarked on a journey to embrace India through word and deed. The work started with the building of a hospital, the provision of health programs, Bible translation into local languages, leadership training and education. Today, the partnership between Canadian Baptist Ministries (CBM) and local churches in India continues to flourish, helping to empower communities who live on the margins. Communities like the Soura widows.

Who are the Souras?

The Souras live in the state of Odisha. They are one of the oldest tribal groups in India and the largest. They were considered to be lower in social class than “untouchables,” so much so that people washed down the streets after Soura people walked on it.

About five per cent of the Soura people live in the plains while others, like those with whom CBM works, live in the hills and mountains of Odisha in northeastern India. Their villages are hidden in thick forests, mostly inaccessible except by foot. The hills are susceptible to erosion, and transportation is unviable. This presents challenges for the Souras, who depend on two sources of income—agriculture and labour.

With much of the land unproductive or unsuitable for a single annual crop, the Souras rely heavily on seasonal cultivation during five months of the rainy season. Whatever income comes from the cultivation is not enough to support the family for the whole year. Labour work only averages eight days per month and this is irregular at best. Wages are also less compared to labour work available in the city. Nearly 70 per cent of the Soura community is illiterate, which limits options for income.

Soura Widows Poverty, illiteracy, food insecurity, under-employment, low wages and systemic social discrimination. Within this context, Soura women risk potential exploitation when their husbands die.

Empowerment of Soura Widows program CBM, in partnership with Soura Baptist Christian Mandali Sommilani churches (SBCMS), offers a solution to this community through a program called Empowerment of Soura Widows. live • May - June 2020

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CONNECT TO MISSION

Photos courtesy CBM

Ebita with one of her goats

Ajalita and one of her children 16 live • May - June 2020

Simothy with her sons

CONNECT TO MISSION

Through sustainable microenterprises, widows earn income by selling cashew nuts, tamarind, turmeric, bananas, apples and vegetables. Others sell brooms made out of local grass, or rear and sell goats and chickens.

Widows will have the opportunity to learn business and marketing skills through two workshops, and receive financial assistance to help them start their own businesses.

The Empowerment of Soura Widows program is already changing lives for women like Ajalita, Ebita and Simothy.

Ajalita Ajalita Gomango’s husband died two years ago. He had been walking home from work when he started bleeding from the nose and ears. By the time he was brought to the community health centre, he was declared dead.

Despite unbearable grief, and with two young children to care for, Ajalita had to continue the work of growing crops on their family land right up until her brothers-in-law forcibly took away the land. “Even before we could come to terms with the death of my spouse . . . we literally had to fend for ourselves through whatever I earned as a daily wage labourer,” she says.

Ajalita found out about CBM, SBCMS and the program for widows. She was able to receive assistance in setting up a small grocery store in her community. She also sells onions, vegetables and other items every week at a nearby

market. Today, she is able to support her family, including having school expenses for her children.

“With CBM’s support I now stand on my own and earn a decent income. I can take care of my children in a better way.”

Ebita Ebita Roito lives in a village that has a high mortality rate caused by malaria. Not only had it taken her husband, it had also wiped away chances of a better future for her two children, who had had to drop out of school when they were little because they couldn’t afford to continue. Grown now, they work at their daily wage jobs for meager earnings.

Through her hardships, she always turned to God for support, knowing that He would provide for her and answer her prayers in His time. Today, she is the president of the women’s group in her local church. Her church recommended her for the Empowerment for Soura Widows programs.

“The small help received from CBM has made me happy. A goat was provided and it has given birth to three baby goats over the past year and half. I look forward to selling them at an opportune time and making use of the proceeds for the benefit of my family.”

She also has a piece of land on which she has planted cashew nut trees, the fruits of which she can sell in the market. Ebita wants to save money to help give her children a better future.

Simothy Simothy Saboro became widowed when her husband Obadiah died in a tragic road accident. With two children, she faces the burden of raising her family alone.

Thankfully, Simothy has always been able to rely on her church family. This is where she sought solace while grieving for Obadiah and now, this spiritual family is where she is able to find additional income. “When I was provided with a tailoring machine through a project that is being implemented by our church in partnership with CBM, my joy knew no bounds,” she says. “At last, I could make a road map for my family’s future and take up tailoring on a full-time basis as an alternate livelihood.”

Through the program, Simothy enrolled in a tailoring class where her teacher was also able to provide her with work. With additional income brought in by her newly-acquired skill, Simothy can now do more for herself and her children. She loves that she can earn more money while doing what she loves: “In my time of difficulty, you have shown me a way of making a livelihood.” 

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CONNECT TO MISSION

What Love Looks Like The impact of Baptist Women on one Soura girl

Ruth Troyer spent 39 years among the Soura people. She taught Sunday School, led Bible studies, mentored pastors and loved the babies entrusted to her care at the Babyfold.

Grab a copy of Our Heritiage Becomes Our Challenge by Esther Barnes and read about Ruth, Anne Munro, Ellen Priest and other female Canadian Baptist missionaries who accomplished amazing things for God in India.

This is the story of one Soura baby girl.

by Emily Dargie

- February 18 live • January May - June 2020 2020

Around 1942, Miss Ruth Troyer committed her life to serving as a missionary to India with the Canadian Baptist Foreign Mission Board. After arriving in India she began working alongside Miss Anne Munro. At that time, there was a great need for a Babyfold in Orissa (now Odisha) among the Soura tribe for those babies (mainly girls) who were motherless due to religious or cultural beliefs. The babies were taken care of and then placed in a Christian home where possible. This was a wonderful avenue to share the gospel to the Soura people who were spirit pot believers.

As more Soura people became Christians, their attitudes and family practices changed. By the late 1950s, the Babyfold closed, its services no longer needed.

I was born several years after the Babyfold closed. My mother died shortly after my birth. I do not know the depth of faith in Christ my biological father had, but I know he believed and understood what love looked like through Ruth Troyer and the other missionaries.

Now widowed and with no mother to care for a new baby girl, my father took me and walked for miles from his village to Serango where Ruth Troyer lived. He sat on her porch for days until she agreed to watch over me temporarily. Then when he didn’t come back after six months, she kept me. Ruth Troyer became my Missionary Mom and guardian.

While living in India I went to Kodaikanal International School (KIS) in Tamil Nadu. All the Canadian Baptist missionary children attended this boarding school. I grew up speaking English as my first language. I wore Canadian clothes all the time. I learned to square dance (because that was acceptable), to fight (that wasn’t acceptable), to play cards (that was OK) and I stole fruit from the trees (that wasn’t acceptable)! I loved playing any kind of sports. If I wasn’t playing sports, I was up a tree—my favourite place to be. Droves of people prayed for me! At age 11 I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Saviour.

CONNECT TO MISSION

Ruth Troyer and Emily, circa 1972.

Emily (L) with Lakki Joy. Ruth had adopted Lakki Joy in Photos courtesy Emily Dargie 1946.

I first met the Dargie family in 1969 when Mom Troyer came back to Canada on furlough. Through some of her friends, Bob and Barbara Dargie found out that I would need appropriate support while she was on furlough. They stepped up. Because of them, I was able to go to school and be with a Christian family for those months of furlough before Mom Troyer and I returned to India.

As Mom Troyer’s retirement approached, questions arose about my future. Was I to stay in India, and with whom? God already had my future planned for me as He nudged the hearts of Bob and Barbara Dargie again. So steps were taken for them to be my sponsors while in Canada. I travelled to Canada in 1977, arriving on Christmas Eve. At first I struggled to understand the dynamics of this family life: my role as sibling and daughter, my duties within the home, Canadian humour. I needed to catch up on Canadian culture and history. Friends at school were very good to me and that was helpful.

But I still missed my friends at Kodai. Because I came from an Indian school system, I was held back for a year. That was the best thing that could have happened, but at the time it was difficult.

Even so, prayer, coupled with the passage of time, meant that I grew into a place of peace and happiness.

It helped that through the years I also stayed in touch with my biological father.

As the Lord continued to direct my life, I gained confidence. I finished high school, went to the Baptist Leadership Educational Centre, taught Sunday school, coordinated and directed Pioneer Clubs for several years. I joined the Muriel Harrington Mission circle.

I joined the executive for the Norfolk Association of Baptist Women. I learned that the mission field does not have to be far away in a foreign country. It can be right in my own community and family.

As Mom Troyer aged we had the opportunity to care for her. It was my turn to show unconditional love during her last days. She passed away in 2009.

She was 95.

In 2010 I returned to India. For the first time, I travelled that same route my father had walked so many years ago, experiencing firsthand the journey he—a simple tribal man who had trusted and believed in God—had taken with me as a baby. My father died in 2014. I am confident of his faith in Jesus Christ at his death. 

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RESOURCES

Soul Sisters 3

by Diane McBeth

Soul Sisters 1, 2, and 3 are available for free download from baptistwomen.com/resources

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I often tell others about your heart for God—about how many of you have hosted prayer rooms and prayer walks; how you pastor each other in Soul Sisters groups; how many good works you quietly do in your community.

This stood out to me vividly once when I was explaining interactive prayer rooms. I said something like, “The goal is to make prayer less taskoriented and to focus on really connecting with God.” Before I could go on, the woman I was speaking to gushed, “Oh that is the desire of my heart!” So many of you have proved that communion with God is the desire of your hearts too.

There is another thing that has been in your hearts for many years: mission. You want to feel like you are personally making a difference.

We’ve made some steps toward that, giving you the opportunity to give to specific projects as you feel called.

We know that many of you also want to reach out to your own communities, but you feel frustrated about how to do that. Structured evangelism seems too unnatural and lifestyle evangelism too nebulous.

There is a way to reach others that deepens, rather than stressing, our relationships; a way of sharing the Gospel that flows from a core of communion with God. It is possible to learn how to create openings so that people who aren’t Christians feel free to share their opinions. We can learn how to listen

well. We can learn how to notice what God is doing and how to bless others rather than treating them as projects. We can learn how to accompany others on a spiritual journey.

We hope Soul Sisters 3—our latest addition to the Soul Sisters series—will help you begin to reach out in ways that are non-threatening to you and to others, while trusted friends support you. But as we do that, it is important to remember that we can only offer

the presence of Christ to others if we are currently in communion with God. Therefore, Soul Sisters 3 will include more spiritual formation practices so you can continue to develop and share your soul.

The chart shows what you will cover in Soul Sisters 3. Soul Sisters 3 is your chance to take easy— but definite—steps toward fulfilling Christ’s commission to share the gospel; and to do it within a circle of support. 

SESSION

SPIRITUAL FORMATION

MISSION TRAINING

1

Strengthening Our Core

Breath Prayer

Mission as Worship

2

Making Room

Sabbath

Creating Capacity for Relationships

3

Developing Awareness

Sacred Pathways - Music

Recognizing Our Own Culture Prayer Walking Your Church

4

Learning to See

Gospel Contemplation

Ethnocentrism

5

Becoming More Relational

Healing Prayer

Reflective Listening

6

Understanding Cultural Change

Receiving Promises from Scripture

Understanding Culture: Modernism and Postmodernism

7

Stretching

Hospitality as a Spiritual Discipline Journalling Prayer

Christianese Learning to Notice

8

Commissioning for Mission

Liturgy

Service of Consecration

Stay Connected while social distancing

1 2

Watch the videos of our online conference. You’ll find the videos plus a link to the playlist of worship songs we sang at baptist women.com/events and also in our Facebook Group.

Now, more than ever, our partners need us to honour our commitments.

Commitments like those we’ve made to Soura Widows (read about the project on page 15) and the Mising Tribe in India, victims of war rape in the Congo, and two single women—national field staff with CBM—serving in Asia and Germany.

If you’ve been wondering how to continue to support us, please send in donations online. If you need help with this, do leave a message on our office answering machine—we clear those regularly.

(If you subscribe to live magazine directly or are a live magazine promoter, we also need you to send in your live subscriptions payments.)

We can truly be proud of what we have accomplished together. Since 1953, we have given over $60 million to mission and development work abroad and here in Canada. And with your continued support, despite this current global crisis, that giving can continue. Thank you. 

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RESOURCES RESOURCES

Complete Missional leadership development at any age or stage

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We know that many of you would like support in order to discern God’s personal call to you and be equipped to answer it. And we know that desire extends across ages—the different crossroads of life require new wisdom and often the development of different gifts. We know you want the kind of peer support that launches you into new ideas and new growth and that many of you dream of real fruitfulness for the Kingdom.

We believe God wants that for you too!

So, we are going to gather a group together, provide great input from a wide variety of sources, and go deep.

On one side, there will be continuing support for identity formation and fullness in Christ, so 22 live • May - June 2020

that ministry can come from the overflow of our communion with God. The other side of the program outlines a holistic, relational model of connecting with people outside the Church. You will become a more effective witness for Christ as well as learn how to help others grow in their witness too.

We will learn from visiting speakers, from each other, and from excellent resources. We are calling the program Complete.

Being part of this program will require commitment: • a web conference once a month • 2 one-day retreats during the year (once social distancing is lifted) • a reading assignment every month • homework activities each

month (often one spiritual practice plus one relational step) There is no charge for the web conferences or for the retreats though you will need to cover your own transportation. You will also need to buy and read the two text books: Outrageous Love, Transforming Power by Terry Wardle God-Space: Where Spiritual Conversations Happen Naturally,

by Doug Pollock Diane McBeth and Hilary Vanderwater will facilitate the group sessions.

If you would like more information, please contact our group administrator, Joan Peacock at joanpeacock@gmail.com or 705761-7602. 

CONNECT TO OTHERS

We have a new treasurer!

We are thrilled that Keisha Cooper-Chotoosingh joined us on May 1. Keisha is a chartered accountant. She was born in Jamaica and received her masters in accounting and finance in London, England and her accounting certification in Canada. She emigrated to Canada from England with her husband and son in 2009. Keisha comes to us highly recommended by our auditors, with excellent accounting skills, and a wonderful sense of humour. The email address will continue to be cbwoqtreasurer@baptist.ca. 

We REMEMBER Each generation has the opportunity to fuel mission for the next. We are thankful for the following gifts: In Memory of Audrey Barnard, Hamilton Dorothy Buck, Toronto Rosalind Collins, Cobourg Glennis Garraway, Guelph Lily Homorodean, Strathroy Janice Leveielle, Timmins Kathryn Managhan, Hamilton Ruth Medhurst, Cobourg Ana Gladys Nieto, London Carol Paulsen, Toronto Mary Sturgess, Guelph Sharon Wallace, London IN HONOUR OF Sue (Cullen) Green (70th birthday) Helen Hales, Belleville (101st birthday) Patricia Sedore, Stevensville (93rd birthday) Helen Wilson, Arkona (100th birthday)

Bernice’s Picks . . .

Even the Sparrow: A Pilgrim’s Guide to Prayer, Trust and Following the Leader,

by Jill Weber $18 w w w. e v e n t h e s p a r r o w. c o . u k

Keeping Place: Reflections on the Meaning of Home,

by Jen Pollock Michel $15 ReadOn Bookstore is open online.

Order online, call or email. Free shipping on your order (for now).

All titles available from ReadOn Bookstore 5 International Blvd.

Etobicoke, ON M9W 6H3 Tel: 416-620-2934 Fax: 416-234-8840 E-mail: books@readon.ca readon.ca

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23

Psalm 121:5 (The Passion Translation) Jehovah himself will watch over you; he’s always at your side to shelter you safely in his presence.

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Give the gift of 20/20 vision in 2020 . . . with a subscription to live magazine.

A subscription costs $20 for six issues.

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Send your old mailing label and your new address to: live Magazine Circulation Dept., 5 International Blvd., Etobicoke, ON M9W 6H3 PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NUMBER 40007159 REGISTRATION NUMBER R9703 RETURN UNDEliverABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO: live MAGAZINE CIRCULATION DEPT. 5 INTERNATIONAL BLVD ETOBICOKE, ON M9W 6H3 live@baptist.ca

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