Vancouver and Beyond

By the time I was eighteen I had crossed the Red River from Texas into Oklahoma and considered myself “well-traveled.” My eighteen year old granddaughter has been to Mexico, Kenya and Guatemala (twice) and does not considered herself “well-traveled” yet. After age eighteen, my travels intensified. As of today, I have been in all fifty states and fifty-six foreign countries. At least two things are the same everywhere. First, cultures differ, but people are people. Human nature is the same, wherever you are in the world. Second, people without God are lost, whatever language they speak. Jesus died for everyone, whatever customs are unique to them. I have several favorite places in the world, but at the top of my “fav” list is Vancouver, Canada. In one of the most beautiful cities in the world, there are three million people, the majority of whom do not speak English at home. Approximately one-third of the population is Asian. It is believed that there are more Chinese in Vancouver than in any city outside of China. Vancouver is said to have the largest East Indian population outside of India. Hispanics and Persians are entering the city in large numbers. The fastest growing religious preference is “No Religion” with 43.9% of the population claiming that category in recent surveys. Have you always wanted to be well-traveled? Always wanted to be a missionary? Always felt you should do more to “make disciples of all the nations” (Matt. 18:19)? Consider Vancouver. You can almost “go to all the nations” by visiting only one city, Vancouver. One of my new assignments with the WestCoast Baptist Association as their International Advocate is to recruit persons to participate in Vision Tours, three to four day exposures to Vancouver and what God is doing there. The long-range purpose is to enlist partners, prayer partners, and otherwise, for churches and new church starts in the city. The next three Vision Tours are Oct. 19-21 2010; Feb. 22-24, 2011; Apr. 26-28, 2011. Would you consider joining me in Vancouver on one of those dates? If not possible, would you consider praying for those who do? To reach Vancouver is to reach into the entire Pacific Rim and beyond. It is, in a small measure, “all the world.”

How about joining me today in praying for metro Vancouver:
• Pray for Origin, a new church start at the University of British Columbia and surrounding community.
• Pray for the thirty people who came to the first meeting of a new church in Pitt Meadows area of metro Vancouver.
• Pray for someone to volunteer to design a virtual prayer-walk of metro Vancouver.
• Pray for The Crossings, a new church start among the 74,000 residents of Vancouver’s inner city core.
• Pray for a church planter for the Fraser River Delta, tri-city area between Vancouver and the U.S. border.
• Pray for an English speaking person to work with second generation Chinese youth.
• Pray for the new student ministry among 14,000 students at Vancouver’s Capialano University.