Church Planting News A New Church for Saskatoon


by Darrell Derksen, Prarie West Extension Member


Our Fellowship has a cluster of churches quite near to Saskatoon, Sask. In 2012 the evangelical churches in Saskatoon were contact- ed to learn what actual attendance figures were. What a surprise to discover that on any given Sunday, less than five percent of the people Saskatoon actually attend an evangelical church! Since 2012 several churches have been planted in Saskatoon, but by now the population has also increased by 12% to 262,900. Yes, Saskatchewan’s largest city has a spiritual need. Te Canadian Church Planting network C2C (c2cnetwork.ca)


reported that when new churches are started, the gospel is shared with many people. Effective church plant initiatives propel our Fellowship to act on the vision we have set out “To Be a Proclaim- ing People.” As followers of Jesus, we are clearly called to be part of some-


thing that is beyond our capacity to accomplish. Jesus’ charge to his disciples set in motion a great evangelistic story which contin- ues to this day. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.


Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20 ESV). Te promise Jesus leſt with them matched the magnitude of


the task he gave them. As a fellowship of churches, we find ourselves compelled by


this commission. It provides the very purpose for our existence. It leads us and drives us forward with a desire to present the nev- er-changing good news of Jesus Christ to people living in today’s ever changing culture. One of the ways the 11 FEBC churches in Saskatchewan have chosen to fulfill this commission is through church planting. Tese churches know that they can accomplish more together than any one church could accomplish alone, so they created Prairie West Extension (PWE).


For several years PWE had been faithfully encouraging past


church plants and setting money aside with the expectation that God would bless them with another opportunity. In 2014 PWE formed an Ad Hoc Committee to develop a plan for its next church plant. Te time had come, and this committee worked hard to create a step-by-step plan. In an act of faith PWE accept- ed this plan at its May 2015 meeting. What had been discussed, considered and prayed about for a number of years was one step closer to becoming reality. Te FEBC Commission on Church Planting has strongly


encouraged a policy of having potential church planters be vetted by a church planting assessment center. So this past May, I had the privilege of accompanying our prospective church planters through the assessment process. Tis was an intense process involving a variety of tasks and suitable evaluation tools. Tis assessment is not intended to assess an individual’s suitability for ministry, but rather to provide an honest recommendation as to the person’s potential for success in the specialized activities needed for church planting. Early in July the PWE took the bold step of hiring Dave


Cornelius to be the Saskatoon church planter. Tis was done in consultation with the Dalmeny Bible Church Elder Board where Dave currently serves as Youth Pastor. What a giſt from God to have a couple from within our Fellowship called to this specific role! Beginning in January 2017 Dave will give one day a week to church plant preparation before coming on full-time mid-year. One of the early action steps for Dave and Larisa will be to


visit FEBC and other interested churches to provide updates and invite people to pray. Church planting is a spiritually intense experience that fully relies on Jesus being with us to the very end of the age. Te next step for PWE is to establish a steering com- mittee to provide elder wisdom and leadership. We are excited to join with others to meet the real spiritual need in Saskatoon.


Fellowship Focus, January/February 2017 11


Photo by Trevor Pritchard


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24