Horizon Weekly | 12 February 2021
By Grace Thornton
VANCOUVER, BC — It was almost more than Cindy* could handle. Her husband was in the hospital, and her daughter was sick, too.
So, she shared her burden with a couple at her workplace — Simon and Asiya. And it just so happened that Simon and Asiya were Christians.
“Asiya shared Cindy’s prayer need during our Wednesday Zoom Bible study and prayer time, and we all started praying for Cindy and her family,” said Shahid Kamal, who planted South Asian Community Church in metro Vancouver in 2016.
Not long after, Cindy’s daughter got better, and so did her husband, and Cindy decided to give church a try. She was afraid her husband would be angry since he came from a different religious background.
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Shahid Kamal preaches to his congregation in Vancouver called South Asian Community Church. They have incorporated several different languages in their church as they have reached out to different people groups in the city. NAMB photo by Jono & Laynie Co. |
“But she was amazed that he didn’t say anything,” North American Mission Board (NAMB) church planting missionary Shahid Kamal said.
And when Shahid talked and prayed with her after the service, she told him that she felt drawn to the church.
“She felt peace in her heart while she was in church and did not feel judged,” he said. “She felt accepted and loved. On that Wednesday she joined in our video conference Bible study and prayer time, and she was praising God saying her husband also wanted to come to church.”
Connecting through intercession
It’s a story Shahid and his family see happen time and again — people being brought to faith in Christ by seeing the power of prayer. It’s not easy to convince South Asians that God is the only deity they need. Hindus have many visible gods, and Sikhs have many gurus, Shahid said. But the church’s prayer ministry has been a successful connecting point.
“Many came to our church for the very first time for prayer. They have their certain prayer requests. And, praise God, God answered them and showed them that He’s a living God,” said Shahid.
That fact stands out against the religious system they’ve been living in, he said, and word is getting around. A church member brought one woman for prayer who told Shahid “that her guru told her to go to church because he isn’t able to help her in her struggles.”
That was a touching moment for Shahid, and he prays that kind of experience keeps on spreading.
“In the midst of this complex situation (of people believing in multiple deities), we are trying to help them to know, believe and receive Jesus Christ,” Shahid said.
South Asia in North America
More than 300,000 South Asians call the Greater Vancouver area home, and Surrey, a city that’s part of the metro area, has “become the West Coast hub of all things South Asia,” Shahid said. The community is full of South Asian grocery stores, restaurants, signboards and even street names.
The people there speak a mix of languages, mostly Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu. South Asian Community Church held services in Punjabi at the beginning, but as they began to draw in different people groups, they began incorporating other languages as well.
“We try to connect with people and help them with things,” Shahid said. “Some people need help adjusting in the new culture, like navigating work, housing and government services.”
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One aspect of Shahid Kamal’s outreach to South Asians in Vancouver has been through the avenue of sports. Soccer has been a great way to reach out to those in their community as Kamal plants a church in the city. NAMB photo by Jono & Laynie Co. |
He definitely understands their struggles. He and his wife, Maroofa, moved to Canada from Pakistan several years ago with their four children. Together, they are trying to make their church a place where South Asians can find love and support. Maroofa is actively involved in ministry, leading women’s Bible studies and counseling sessions.
And of course, they’re constantly offering prayer as a way to connect. In past years, they’ve set up a place along the route of a massive Punjabi-Sikh celebration called the Vaisakhi Festival. They give out free food and set up a bouncy castle for the kids. Then while the parents wait, they ask if they could pray with and for them.
“They are always ready,” Shahid said. “They will not refuse that. If you ask them, ‘OK, do you want us to pray for you?’ they say, ‘Oh, yes, please pray for me.’ God is showing them that He is a living God.”
The church has had to make adjustments in light of the pandemic, but God is still at work, Shahid said. He sees that in Cindy’s involvement in their video conference prayer time. He also sees it in another way Simon and Asiya have reached out to others. They started a daily online prayer time with their extended family in South Asia. Now, other church members have invited friends and family living in other parts of the world to visit the church virtually.
And South Asian Community Church is doing in-person ministry in new ways, too. They’ve offered drive-through prayer in the church parking lot, drawing in people like Aadesh* and Aashi*, who live in a basement near the church. Maroofa encouraged Aashi to start reading the Bible, and she did. Then her husband did, too.
“Now Aadesh and Aashi have started reading, and we are following up with them,” Shahid said. “Praise the Lord. God is at work.”
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Shahid and Maroofa Kamal (centre) moved to Canada from Pakistan several years ago with their four children. Together, they are planting a church that serves as a place where South Asians can find love and support. NAMB photo by Jono & Laynie Co. |
The Great Commission Offering (GCO) contributes to NAMB which serves our missionaries in the field. The GCO offering is used for training, support and care for missionaries like the Kamals as well as for evangelism resources.
*names have been changed
Thanks for Helping Train Leaders for Tough Places
We continue to see a growing number of men and women join our student body to further their preparation for ministry, and this includes six more students who went through orientation on January 15. All of these students now live in Cochrane, but are from three different countries – Canada, USA and India. God has sent each of these to train and to be His hands and feet among vastly different communities. What a privilege we have to come alongside to train them, and no doubt we can learn much from each of them, as well.
Thank you so much for supporting CSBS&C! Your gift demonstrates your commitment to helping us fulfill God’s mandate for our school – to train God-called men and women for 21st-century leadership in tough places.
Like many of you, we have thought often how glad we are that 2020 has come to an end. But we must remember that even in the midst of the pandemic, God faithfully shows His lovingkindness to His children. So we will endeavour to remember all His ways and be thankful. We pray you will do so also, and here at the beginning of 2021, we will keep our focus moment by moment on the Lord, seeking His guidance and will, and joining Him in His work, whether next door or around the world.
"The LORD bless you
and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace." Num 6:24-26
Thank you again for helping make the training of these current and future leaders possible!
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Dr Rob Blackaby, President |
Barry Nelson, Director of Development |
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Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary & College |
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Donations from Jan 1-20 to Dec. 31-20 |
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Gifts from Churches and Associations |
Amount |
|
15:5 Church |
1,000.00 |
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Allan Baptist Church |
602.64 |
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Bow Valley Baptist Church |
10,111.64 |
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Bridge International Church |
2,671.82 |
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Community Baptist Church - PEI |
2,000.00 |
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Dovercourt Baptist Church |
3,989.24 |
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Edmonton Chinese Baptist Church |
1,200.00 |
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Eglise Evanglique de Pointe Saint-Charles |
200.00 |
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Ekklesia Church |
346.40 |
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Jasper Place Baptist Church |
3,333.41 |
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Midwest Baptist Association |
600.00 |
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Northern Lights Baptist Association |
600.00 |
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Pathway Church at Cambrian |
3,175.20 |
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Saskatoon Faith Baptist Church |
2,435.82 |
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Scarborough Baptist Church |
1,200.00 |
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Sequoia Community Church |
1,200.00 |
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Southwinds Church |
4,254.53 |
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Tapwewin Christian Assembly |
500.00 |
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The Junction Baptist Church |
609.20 |
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The Potter's House Community Church |
795.07 |
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Trinity Baptist Church |
2,975.84 |
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Worsley Baptist Church |
2,400.00 |
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Total giving beyond Cooperative Program funds: |
46,200.81 |
Do you have a story you would like to share? Please contact Lynda Blazina and let her know. We would love to share your stories with our CNBC family of churches.
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CNBC Weekly Horizon |
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CNBC Mission: We are churches in covenant giving ourselves away to advance the Kingdom. CNBC Vision: We see a day when every man, woman, boy and girl has multiple opportunities to see, hear and respond to the Good News of Jesus Christ. |
