letter from Canada
Fourteen months ago, I arrived in Vancouver to take on a role at St John’s Anglican Church (formerly known as St John’s Shaughnessy).
For Anglicans, this church will stir up various associations; the home of J.I. Packer, the Rector David Short who spoke at the ReNew Conference and Bible by the Beach, and the strong connections with GAFCON.
What is not so obvious, however, is the ministry amongst the Chinese population who have arrived from both mainland China and Hong Kong.
Years ago, a couple of faithful saints began to transcribe the Sunday sermons into Mandarin, making them accessible to this new group of people who had arrived at the church. It is now common practice for sermon notes to be handed over to this small team in advance so that work can begin. Our Chinese brothers and sisters attend the morning service and then meet again in the week to go over the notes in detail. This grassroots ministry has gone from strength to strength and many have grown extensively in their faith while learning English, but it has not ended there. I have been deeply humbled by the culture of natural invitation the Chinese Christians extend to their friends and family, even while living in the West.
It is not uncommon to see new Chinese people every Sunday and for groups of them to be praying in a cluster after the service, leading someone they brought along to faith in Christ. In fact, one woman I spoke to had led so many people to Jesus that she needed guidance on what to do with them!
Here lies the lesson to my socially appropriate heart; if I have discovered the greatest news known to humanity, why would I think there is such a thing as an inappropriate moment to mention it? It hasn’t occurred to these new saints that they shouldn’t, so with ease, they tell those nearest and dearest or anyone within earshot.
