Emmanuel Orillia Ministry Report
2019/2020
A Message from Pastor Randy Roebuck, Emmanuel Lead Pastor (Interim)
The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom…
but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
Isaiah 40:28b,31a
In times of change and uncertainty, in a world of new challenges every day, it is reassuring to know that God is unchanging. It is reassuring that our hope is not misplaced. We acknowledge again our utter dependence on the One who is our strength.
We began the year and end the year with our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus and our mission to know Him and make Him known through the power of the Holy Spirit.
That focus on Jesus and mission has served us well as Emmanuel has experienced a sea of change.
Emmanuel witnessed the closing of a beautiful chapter in the life of the church this year. Pastor Rick and Jo Buck, after nearly 24 years of passionate leadership, shared with us that God is calling them to a new thing. It was with heavy hearts that we released Pastor Rick to be the new Regional Director of FEB Central Region, but we are confident that God has uniquely equipped him for this new role. We rest in the knowledge that we gain by losing. In the interim, our Elders have put in place a leadership team who will press on with our commitment to faithfully carry out the mission that God has given us.
With growing excitement this year, we have anticipated the planting of our third campus in North Barrie. Pastor Jordan and Olivia Wilcox, together with their launch team, look forward to being a light to the community of North Barrie in the fall, God willing. Again, the spirit of Emmanuel is that we “gain by losing.” We are sending many of our best as we live out our strategy “to gather and go.”
Emmanuel witnessed a wonderful series of miracles from God that culminated in the arrival of the Salloum family from Lebanon last fall. As the family has settled in Barrie, we have been blessed to witness God’s plan unfolding as Fatih and Kifah begin to build relationships among the Arabic speaking community of Simcoe. So many changes have brought us closer to realizing our vision to see Arabic speaking members of our community come face to face with Jesus.
We have enjoyed another wonderful change this year at both of our campuses that often goes un-noticed. It has been our joy to welcome so many new people to worship with us and serve with us. Some have come from other churches and others because they have been invited by Emmanuel families. Some have come through our doors out of a sense of missing something and the hope that they would find it among God’s people. It has been a privilege to see many people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Over this past year we have witnessed 19 people be baptized in obedience to Christ’s command.
When we think of change and uncertainty, none of us could have anticipated COVID-19 and its devastating effects. But even amid something so terrible that none of us would have chosen, we are seeing God work. The irony is that in being forced into isolation we have experienced God drawing us out to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those around us.
God willing, soon we will be able to begin meeting together once again to worship and experience community together. We have in the spirit of loving our neighbours temporarily set aside the joy we have in coming together physically to worship, and instead we have found new ways to continue to lift up the name of God and proclaim His worthiness.
In times of change and uncertainty, in a world of new challenges every day, it is reassuring to know that God is unchanging.
Our hope is that through the many reports in this document that you will see the hand of God working in and through Emmanuel and that you will give God all the glory.
A message from Pastor Dave Whitelaw, Orillia Campus Lead Pastor
It has been such a great privilege to be able to work with and lead our staff over this last year. I am so proud of their love for God, their love for our church family and their love for each other. As you know, this past year has not been an easy year for our staff. It has been riddled with personal pain, loss, and emotional turmoil. We lost two of our staff members because of cancer. One of our staff members unexpectedly lost their spouse. And others have gone through their own personal difficulties and pain. However, I have to say that God has NOT wasted these events, as hard and difficult as they were. Rather He has both used them and transformed them into something useful. This does not diminish the pain, but it highlights God’s redemptive work. He can truly make beauty from ashes. In many ways, God has used these times to help us care for and reach people. In 2 Corinthians 1:3 we read, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.” Our staff presses on and has not wavered. Their eyes are locked on CHRIST and they have a burden for people. They want people to know that there is HOPE in Jesus and that the CHURCH is a people created for COMMUNITY and not simply a building or a place to attend. They have finished this year strong, and are looking forward to this upcoming year. Once again, it is such a privilege to serve and work with our staff. Thank you, Josh Gray, Matt Maw, Jackie Torrie, Amanda Henderson (Interim KIDS//Community Director), Elaine Campbell, Chantel Whitelaw, Erica Buck, and Susan McLeod (Staff Volunteer).
We are going to truly miss Julie Leis. She has faithfully and energetically served on our staff for 2 years as our KIDS//Community Director. But after much thought and great difficulty and due to the loss of her husband, she will be stepping away. However, she will not be leaving Emmanuel. Thank you, Julie, for your love for KIDS, your love for FAMILIES and MARRIAGES, and for teaching us and showing us JESUS.
Church Life
Elders
It has been my privilege to serve as the Chairman of Emmanuel’s board of Elders this past 2 years. The heart of our team of Elders is to be faithful shepherds to the Emmanuel family. Currently we have 13 elected Elders who are charged with the responsibility to give general oversight to the ministries of Emmanuel to accomplish our mission. They do this by empowering and holding accountable the Lead Pastor.
This past year, Doug Grant, one of our Elders at the Orillia campus, went into the presence of the Lord after a long battle with cancer. His tender heart for the Lords’ people is sorely missed.
Some of the many duties of the Elders each year include approving Emmanuel’s annual budget and audited financial statements prior to them going to our membership for approval at an Annual General Meeting. The Elders meet monthly, and more often as required, to review Emmanuel’s monthly financial statements and to review reports from our pastoral team on the various ministries of Emmanuel. The Elders approve all pastoral hires and manage the process for the nomination of new Elders. Elders serve communion, interview prospective members, anoint the sick with oil and pray over them as prescribed in James 5:14-15, serve in other ministry areas of the church, pray for congregants, and attend Emmanuel events. The Elders particularly enjoy hearing the testimonies of congregants when they apply for membership.
Elders’ meetings always start with a devotional and the meetings are always punctuated with prayer. This ministry year the Elders faced the challenges of the departure of our beloved Pastor Rick, after almost 24 years of service with Emmanuel. The Elders approved an interim leadership structure, approved Pastor Jordan as the Site Lead Pastor for our Barrie North campus and monitored the transformation of Emmanuel to a virtual church on March 15 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
We praise God that He has been active and alive in the hearts of the Elders this ministry year, maintaining a wonderful sense of unity among the men and giving the Board wisdom in the midst of uncertain and rapidly changing times.
Our trust is in the unchanging God! – Hugh McIntosh, Chair of the Board of Elders
Worship
This year our Worship Ministry has focused on providing our church with opportunities to engage Christ in daily patterns of worship. Through initiatives like our monthly Spiritual Discipline focuses, Worship Nights with Cornerstone & Redeemer City Church, and the Emmanuel+ YouTube page, we have seen many in our church deepen their adoration and expression towards our Lord. Our volunteers (38 in this past year, 4 being teens) have grown, some experiencing the recording process for the first time, and our tech teams learning alongside our improved systems. We’ve experimented with more creative elements throughout our services, such as videos, testimonies, and special services (Lord’s Table, Christmas, Easter), and will continue experimenting in the future. Thanks be to God for the ways He is engaging our people as we gather to lift Him up!
Our response to COVID-19 remains in process. We can praise God for the ways He has sustained us over these past months. We have developed a system to enable us to live stream reliably so that we can continue to meet around the Word and in song. Tyler Knegt has been an amazing servant of the Lord and His people, offering his videography competencies and guidance through this process. Because of this, we have been able to stream our Sunday services, stream and meet over Zoom for our Journey to the Empty Tomb gatherings, and have regular mid-week Worship Nights. While our response has been adequate, we will continue to try to find ways to include and encourage our many volunteers to continue serving the Lord in a time where this can be a challenge. – Pastor Matt Maw
Prayer
We have seen quite a few changes in our Prayer Ministry this year. While we see a future for our Unceasing Week of Prayer ministry, we have moved to more gathering–based meetings. This has been a huge encouragement, and a real time of learning how to pray. Whether this is in our pre-service prayer times (3-6 persons per week), our Monthly Prayer Nights (15-20 persons per month), or our current Zoom based 30 Days of Prayer (3-6 persons per day), God has blessed us time and time again as we see the surpassing greatness of His power for those who believe (Eph 1:19).
Our present operations during COVID-19 press ahead with our 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World (a first in Orillia!) and our Monthly Prayer Nights. Let’s gather to pray for revival in our city, in our nation, and throughout the world! – Pastor Matt Maw
Missional Communities
We currently have 10 Missional Communities at Emmanuel Orillia!
We ran our first Big MC, a night set aside to cast vision, share stories, and encourage others in our church family to participate.
Leadership development has been a big emphasis for this year, with a lot of room to go. We’ve met monthly with our leaders to try to bring support and continuity to the groups. Dan Henderson has stepped in alongside Josh as co-director over missional communities. His experience with discipleship is invaluable; we’re thankful to have an elder step into this role!
We had plans with Emmanuel Barrie to have a training seminar with Precepts Canada; unfortunately, due to COVID-19 it was postponed. We’re committed to prioritizing this kind of training.
Our groups have all studied through 2 Corinthians. We have been trying to move away from “plug and play.” Our heart is that we would help people study the Word themselves, so that they could do the same thing with others (disciple-makers).
These groups are not primarily Bible studies—there is a communal dynamic that should include hospitality, recreational activities, and benevolence and serving.
Benevolence & Serving—One of the great blessings is to see the expression of God’s love within these communities. Often benevolent needs are met internally, and groups are always caring for one another. These groups are also quick to offer support to our Serve Orillia initiatives (i.e. the Carnahans helping with the distribution night, the Flemings taking care of CJG).
Prayer requests (Issues we are working through)
- Increase our intentionality in “mission.” We had a plan to have a hospitality emphasis this spring that had to be put on hold because of COVID-19. We need to do a better job at establishing continuity.
- Intergenerational groups are something that we value. We are going to continue taking steps toward this in the fall with all new groups or participants.
- As our programs increase, the number of new participants in Missional Communities is stagnant. Our Missional Communities are not growing with the trajectory of the church. Pray for wisdom as we navigate this trend and try to encourage our people to prioritize being in a Missional Community!
— Pastor Josh Gray
Care Ministry
The care of the young and old at Emmanuel Orillia is so very important. Emotional, physical, and tangible needs have been met here at Emmanuel. Cards, flowers, and fruit baskets have been sent, and phone calls and visits have been made. With four of our members losing their husbands this year, it has been evident how crucial the Care Ministry is to the church family. The staff at Emmanuel take the care of their church very seriously. When needs are presented, the staff, Missional groups, as well as many of our church family jump into action—they are all involved in the Care Ministry.
Our goal at Emmanuel is that not one person or one need be overlooked. It is important for everyone in our church family to know that they are loved and that we are here for them! – Susan McLeod
Adult Ministries
Women’s Ministry
Last year the Women’s Ministry team consisted of Carol Weening, Linda Hall, Jessica Shaule and Diane Calverley. We recently added Heather Cantin to the team although we have not had the chance to meet with her.
We started the fall with a Coffee Social in October 2019. The attendance was low but all who were there enjoyed a sweet time of fellowship and refreshments. In February 2020 we hosted a Saturday morning Ladies’ Tea. Along with tea and scones the ladies who attended were able to make a prayer journal. It was a fun morning of fellowship and creativity. A Ladies’ Worship Night was planned for April 24th. This had to be postponed due to COVID-19. It is our prayer that this event will take place once groups are permitted to gather once again.
In addition to hosting four events per year, Heather has proposed the idea of starting an Emmanuel Ladies’ Facebook page as well as a monthly or bi-weekly ladies’ devotional meeting. We have not been able to meet to discuss the details, but we look forward to doing so soon. — Diane Calverley for the Women’s Ministry Team
MEN’S//Community
This year we changed the structure of our MEN’S//Community. Rather than holding a few events throughout the year, our men gathered once a month for breakfast and a chat. We saw roughly 30-40 men regularly attend these meals. The men would eat, hear from a guest speaker, and pray together as a group. Thank you, Fred Weening and his team who hosted, organized, and ran these mornings. — Pastor Dave Whitelaw
Young Adults
This year in young adults, we have tried to intentionally shift towards a “missional community model.” The idea here is to have synergy with the overall focus of the church. This has led to a few changes. We’ve been intentional to have monthly meals together (whether on a Wednesday or Sunday after church.) We’ve also engaged in different service projects such as organizing and serving the Halloween outreach, running the rest stop for Coldest Night of the Year, and putting care packages together for fight4freedom.
So far this year we’ve studied through 2 Corinthians (in alignment with other Missional Communities), Psalms during COVID-19, and 1 Peter. We’re trying to develop basic hermeneutics through observation, interpretation, and application. Our leaders have done an incredible job of facilitating conversation and would be more than prepared to step into a different leadership role (i.e. women’s ministry or Missional Community leaders.) The commitment of the leaders (Jessie and Katelynn) has been a vital part of our group’s growth this year. God has used them in really neat ways, and I am so thankful for their wisdom and guidance for the group.
Another neat thing about the “shift” to Missional Communities is that our group has been less transient this year compared to other years. While we have fewer numbers (14-18), we have greater commitment from those who are coming. During COVID-19, our attendance is at 12 on average; the majority of this group are a part of the Emmanuel Orillia family. Traditionally our group has been pretty transient, and it has also been significantly made up of young adults from other churches in the community. We are seeing a positive shift; people that come to young adults are being connected to Emmanuel beyond this program.
Events: Monthly meals, camping trip, Christmas dinner, (Spring-trip on hold) — Pastor Josh Gray
Forever Young
2019 Forever Young Ministry, age 55 and up, has been very successful. The attendees have totalled 40 to 55 people per event. The age group of the men and women who attended were 60 years of age up to 100 years young! We have had a total of three delectable luncheons followed by hymn sings as well as the entertainment and involvement of an amazing men’s quartet. We have found that the seniors enjoy and find it very convenient when the luncheons are being held in our Community Room at Emmanuel following our Sunday church services. This year one of our goals was to have the lower end of our seniors age group join in with our 80, 90, and 100-year group of people. We have found that it is important for the younger group to connect with those who are older. It helps the older people to know how much they are loved and cared for.
At Christmas, the seniors were encouraged to join in with our Christmas all–church dinner. Thumbs up on that one, as we had a great turn out.
We are looking forward to what 2020 has in store. – Susan McLeod
GriefShare
This year we launched our very first GriefShare, a program where those who are experiencing and facing grief can come and find healing or begin the journey to healing. We had 7-9 people attend but due to COVID-19 we needed to postpone our meetings. Please pray for those who attended. Grief is real and is difficult to experience. But we know that God can provide both inner peace and emotional healing. Praise God for his healing power. — Pastor Dave Whitelaw
Family Ministries
KIDS//Community
We love KIDS and FAMILIES here at EMMANUEL. Their simple faith, their expressions of love, their joy of life, and their desire to worship Jesus is infectious. We saw some changes this year. Amanda Henderson joined our KIDS//Community team as Interim Director and has done an incredible job leading our volunteers and kids. We have THREE areas that fall under our KIDS//Community: 1) Sunday Morning KIDS//Community, 2) Family nights, and 3) Day Camp.
This year in our SUNDAY KIDS//COMMUNITY we continued in our GOSPEL PROJECT curriculum where kids learn about GOD’S BIG STORY and see how everything comes back to JESUS. Once again, we saw numeric growth in in this ministry, and at the same time saw kids grow spiritually.
This year our FAMILY NIGHTS looked a little different. Due to unexpected circumstances when we needed to cancel a few nights (personal loss, snow days, and pandemic), we were only able to host two Family Nights. However, at both of these family Nights we saw many families come out and attend. Thank you to Jil Hayden for organizing this ministry and for all the volunteers who gave up their time and passion to serve in extraordinary ways.
This year we had a sold-out Day Camp where we had to place kids on a waiting list. We want to thank Dave Chantler and his team for their partnership and support. Without the help from our Emmanuel Barrie family, we would not have had the opportunity to hold such a high energy and spiritually impacting camp. We were able to see many new families send their kids to Day Camp and we made partnerships with local organizations to provide camp for kids who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to attend. And God once again showed up! We saw kids place their faith in Jesus Christ and many return to either our True North Basketball program or our Family Nights. Praise God. — Pastor Dave Whitelaw
True North Kidz
We’ve had an exciting year:
We ran our first ever True North Basketball camp. This was a high energy week where we were able to strengthen our relationships with the kids and increase our intentionality in sharing God’s message of salvation.
We also ran two separate 8–week basketball leagues, one in the fall and another in the winter. Because of basketball registration and sponsorships, we were able to expand our programming and launch True North Creative Dance. Our first round was amazing! Due to COVID-19 our plans to run spring programs have been put on hold, but we’re excited for the upcoming year. — Pastor Josh Gray
Youth
This year in our youth ministry, God has answered some prayers we’ve been praying since our kickoff in the fall of 2017. We welcomed the addition of four new Jr. High leaders this past fall, one of whom is gifted in teaching. Prior to COVID-19, we frequently saw between 25-30 students, with one week maxing out with a gathering of 40.
Both our Jr. & Sr. High students have seen from Scripture what it means to have godly life-views in a series called REAL. Our Jr. Highs have seen through Scripture what it means to be All In, and are now in a series called the Foundations of our Faith. Our Sr. Highs have discussed what it means to live Like Jesus and saw what it means to have a Heavenly Perspective from Revelation. Since COVID-19, we’ve worked through a study in 1 Peter called Standing Firm, and we’ve started a series in Genesis called Rooted.
Some of these students have been committed in following Jesus in incredible ways, meeting regularly in mid-week Bible studies, speaking with their friends about Jesus, and purposefully dealing with difficult issues while remaining rooted in Christ.
We continue to enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship with Emmanuel Barrie’s Youth Community. Our Jr. & Sr. High fall retreats were fantastic, especially as we saw increased involvement with our Jr. High. In the winter, we saw great involvement at our Super Bowl event and Sr. High winter retreat. This relationship has really quick-started our youth ministry and continues to be a great encouragement especially during these difficult times.
At the present, in response to COVID-19, we’ve moved our Friday night gatherings to Zoom, where we play some games, watch a lesson, discuss, and pray for one another. We also have traction throughout the week with posts on various social media platforms, intended to encourage students and equip parents to disciple well. We are so thankful to God for the ways He is carrying us through this time, using it for His glory and our good! – Pastor Matt Maw
Outreach
Alpha
This year we partnered with ALPHA Canada to provide a place where people, who have QUESTIONS about LIFE and FAITH, could come and explore in a safe environment. We had nine people attend and many were touched and impacted by this program. God continues to use ALPHA to reach people and spark a spiritual curiosity in them. We have even seen some switch from coming on a Monday night to joining us on a Sunday morning. Praise God. — Pastor Dave Whitelaw
Serve Orillia
Our aim continues to be to love our city and to mobilize our people to live on mission in Orillia.
Love the City 2019: Our first Love the City “local mission trip” was a wonderful experience for all who participated. We had 15+ people each day commit to helping with projects and meeting different needs in the community. We worked with many local organizations for this initiative (i.e. Canada Day planners, Lighthouse, Victim Services, Empower Simcoe, the City of Orillia, CAS Rama, and others.) This fast tracked many relationships with organizations in our community, and over the course of the year we’ve continued to connect with each of these groups.
Local School Partnerships: Our relationship with Lion’s Oval Public School has continued to strengthen. This year we were able to do a “back to school” shoe campaign, Christmas gift program, a Christmas meal for staff, and we provided food for families during COVID-19. The Lion’s Oval partnership has opened up opportunities for us to support other schools as well. At Couchiching Heights Public School, we participated in Christmas gift and food hamper sponsorship.
Events:
- Distribution night for food and gifts for Lions Oval (at Emmanuel)
- Halloween outreach (organized by young adults)
- Coldest Night of the Year ($2000.00 sponsorship). Rest stop organized by Serve Orillia and Young Adults. We had 29 people on our Emmanuel team, along with several other teams organized by members in our church family! Great representation and support.
Love the City COVID-19
- Sponsored four Lighthouse lunches during their “shut-down”
- Raised benevolence for Green Haven – providing fresh food for a month
- Purchased and distributed food for 10 families from Couchiching Heights
- Contacted by Lion’s Oval to purchase groceries for three families
- PRC hospital bag and formula drive (in lieu of annual Baby Bottle Drive)
- Meals for front-line works at long-term care centres in close proximity to the church
— Pastor Josh Gray
Global Missions Outreach
EMMANUEL//Orillia continued to partner with our Barrie Campus this past year so that we could have a thriving missions program. However, we have begun to make plans to foster and develop our own MISSIONS TEAMS here at our CAMPUS! Soon we will be forming our own missions team who will care for and lead our Missions Strategy. Currently we have 4 missionaries that our campus supports. And we have 3 FOCUS AREAS to which we feel God has called us to invest the most of our time, talents, and resources. (Emmanuel affirms and supports the work of missionaries around the world, but chooses to focus on three strategic areas.) As the majority of the Christian Church’s resources go to groups that have been reached with the Gospel, we value work among the unreached people groups, leading us to adopt three focus groups among unreached peoples. We define an Unreached People Group as an ethnic group without an indigenous, self-propagating Christian church movement sufficient to evangelize the rest of the group. Emmanuel’s focus areas among unreached peoples are: West Bengal, India, The MENA (Middle East North Africa) region, and Quebec.
India
We have chosen India as a focus area because of the sheer number of unreached people groups (Joshua Project states that of the 693 people groups in India there are 633 people groups that remain unreached.) We are currently partnering with several initiatives in India.
- G and S work in some of the poorest areas providing tutoring centres for children, vocational training for women, and church services. The tutoring Center in Rupamari works with 57 children and is held in a converted cow shed. These children are supported solely by sponsors at Emmanuel. This year we were able to provide $9,000 to build a boundary wall around a new property that was purchased for the tutoring centre.
- Mahima Home is located in Kolkata and works to rehabilitate survivors of sex trafficking.
- Adult Literacy Classes in India are Bible-based and are transformational both on a personal and spiritual level. Emmanuel supports five adult literacy classes in West Bengal with the Bible League.
- Church Planter B works in the Sundarban islands. He runs a children’s tutoring centre and has two house churches and facilitates Bible studies.
- Jack Chen overseas LeadersFormation in India. LeadersFormation is a training module that resources national church leaders to train other church leaders. In addition, he oversees a ministry in the Kolkata slums called K.H.R.I.S. which helps selected children who live in the slums through high school and college with the aim of helping them secure good jobs, which will then help get their families out of the slums.
- P is a Bible translation consultant who coordinates several translations in India.
MENA Region
The MENA (Middle East North Africa) region is home to some of the hardest–to–evangelize people groups in the world. As long as we can maintain partnerships in this area, we will continue to consider it a focus area.
- B and R use Lebanon as their base while training leaders in the MENA region for ministry. Through B and R’s ministry, we support the Clementia Learning Centre, a school for Syrian refugee children. We also support church planting efforts among the Syrian refugee population.
- Church Planting Movement. In this upcoming year, we are going to further our support by partnering and giving to a church planting movement under the leadership of B and R above.
Quebec
Less than 1% of people in Quebec call Jesus their Lord and Saviour. Besides being the largest unreached people group in all of the Americas, they are also our neighbors. Close proximity allows us to send frequent teams at a lower cost.
- Matt and Kristen Fraser currently work in a church that is the only Evangelical church of any denomination for up to 50,000 people.
- Chris and Sarah Middleton work with The Fellowship to recruit missionaries to Quebec, tracking with them, then strategically placing them in areas of need.
- Ecclesia is a church strategically placed in downtown St. Jerome, Quebec. Emmanuel partners with Ecclesia by monetary donations as well as sending short term teams.
It is important to note, that while Emmanuel seeks to increase its influence in these three focus areas, we continue to affirm and support the work of missionaries around the world. Below is a list of our Campus’ missionaries whom we support.
Lucas and Sara Gabrielson are based in Big River, Saskatchewan and are serving with Northern Canada Evangelical Mission. Lucas’s primarily role is with Big River Bible Camp. However, he also helps out at a local church within their Awana club and is active in the community reach people. Sara is actively engaged and involved in ladies lives throughout the community.
Steve & Lisa Twinem are serving with Pioneers. In the past they served in Peru, but they needed to make a transition to Canada due to health concerns. Steve continues to serve with Pioneers but has also taken a part time role at Truth Community Church in Thamesford. Lisa also serves with Pioneers as the Child Safety Manager.
Tahlia Knight. For the past two years Tahlia served with Fellowship International in Wroclaw, Poland where there are over 100,000 university students. She served the Lord by reaching and discipling students from the university and working alongside a Polish Church to reach other students. She returned to Canada in May.
Shirley Abbot is a retired missionary. She is currently at Trillium Manor and faithfully attends Emmanuel.
Short Term Teams
Emmanuel Orillia was able to partner with Emmanuel Barrie to send out one short term trip this year.
Lebanon Medical Trip—From September 25 to October 3, 2019, doctors (including Sandy Tigchelaar) and nurses (including Amanda Triemstra) from both Emmanuel Orillia and Barrie, along with Pastor Dave Whitelaw, provided free medical care in the name of Jesus to Syrian refugees in Lebanon with our missionary “B”. — Pastor Dave Whitelaw
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us,
to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus
throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21
