Parents Wanted for Study on Faith Formation
Are you a parent with children under 18? You can help churches better understand how you pass your faith to your children. The EFC has teamed up with 15 other groups to learn about the experiences of evangelical parents and the role that faith plays in the home. Survey participants can win one of three $250 Amazon gift cards. Click here for the survey in English or French.
Join Tomorrow’s Discussion About Christian Character on Social Media
What should Christians be doing about the divisiveness of social media? Sign up today for our April 27 Meet the Author evening with Douglas Bursch. We'll gather online to examine why social media divides people and how Christians can address polarization through a ministry of peacemaking. Bursch is the author of Posting Peace: Why Social Media Divides Us and What We Can Do About It and host of the Fairly Spiritual podcast. He'll make a presentation and take questions live from the audience. We’ll end with optional small group discussions based on his presentation and his book (ivpress.com/posting-peace).
Human Trafficking Penalty Should Not be Reduced: EFC Brief to Government
The EFC has asked the Justice Committee not to allow conditional sentencing, or house arrest, for a human trafficking-related offence. In a short written submission on Bill C-5, the EFC urged the committee to treat human trafficking as the grave human rights violation that it is and not to treat it as a less serious offence.
Bill to Protect Minors from Pornography Gets EFC Support
The EFC submitted a brief in support of Bill S-210, a private member’s bill to protect children and youth from exposure to pornography. The bill would hold organizations responsible for making sexually explicit material accessible online to minors, for a commercial purpose. Find more information and a sample letter of support at www.TheEFC.ca/S-210.
EFC Vice-President in Jerusalem for WEA Meetings
David Guretzki, the EFC’s vice-president, is attending the World Evangelical Alliance meetings this week in Jerusalem, in his role as member and treasurer of its international council. The gathering includes meetings and planning for this global body of regional and national alliances, affiliates, church networks and denominations from around the world who serve the world’s 600 million Evangelicals. The group will visit and lay a wreath at Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Centre. We look forward to hearing and sharing more about Guretzki’s experiences at these meetings in the weeks to come.
Podcast: “What Are You Free to Do Because Your Dream Died?”
We've all had a dream fail to come true or experienced some other kind of deep disappointment in life. In our latest Faith Today Podcast episode, Karen Stiller and her daughter Holly Stiller speak with Austin-based performance artist and author Scott Erickson, author of Say Yes: Discover the Surprising Life Beyond the Death of a Dream. This podcastis full of great advice for aspiring artists as well as anyone making difficult life choices.
New EFC Job Opening
The EFC is looking for an innovative, creative person to fill a part-time position of marketing and community relations coordinator for Love Is Moving, Canada’s young adult magazine. The role involves promoting and facilitating initiatives that network and support the creative and spiritual lives of Christian young adults in Canada. Application deadline is May 13. Learn more at TheEFC.ca/jobs.
Challenged by Climate Change: Faith Today Article
Matthew Schroeder of Tearfund Canada attended the UN COP26 conference in Scotland last November and recently shared his reflections in Faith Today magazine.
Print subscriptions to Faith Today are now free in Canada. Sign up at FaithToday.ca/SubscribeFree.
Christian School Grateful for Quebec City Expansion
A Christian school community in Quebec reports on the remarkable success of its expansion plans in a new blog post at the Faith Today website. Aussi disponible en français
Faith Today Readers, Please Take Our Survey
Faith Today, Canada’s Christian Magazine, wants to hear from our readers. What are we doing well? What would you like done differently? Take our reader survey, and you could also win one of 10 coffee-shop and bookstore gift cards. You can visit www.FaithToday.ca/ReaderSurvey.
This Week’s EFC Prayer Prompts
Prayer is essential to any effective action. Each week at TheEFC.ca/TakeAction we rotate through a prayer request from each of these five areas: Sanctity of Life, Care for the Vulnerable, Church and Mission, Family and Community, Religious Freedom. We also list an EFC affiliate group to pray for.
This week’s prayer request is about family and community. Pray for a culture that respects and fosters faithful, committed relationships; for the marriages and family relationships of the people you know; for wisdom and relevance in teaching our kids; for families in crisis; and for children and youth in government care needing a permanent home.
You can learn more on these issues at TheEFC.ca/Family.
This week's EFC affiliate highlight focuses on HSLDA. The Home School Legal Defence Association of Canada (HSLDA Canada) is a national membership-based organization that empowers, protects, and encourages homeschooling families across Canada.
Covid-19 continues to have a significant impact on our lives. The EFC continues to offer new Friday@4 pandemic-focused prayer suggestions each week at TheEFC.ca/Covid-19.
April
→ Parenting Conference (FamilyLife Canada), online until April 30
→ How to Better Engage Persons with Contentious Differences (Redeemer University), online/Ancaster, Apr. 27
→ Meet Douglas Bursch, author of Posting Peace (The EFC), online, Apr. 27
→ Run Alpha: Q&A Session (Alpha Canada), online, Apr. 28
→ Flourishing Conference (Food for the Hungry), online, April 29-30
→ Missionfest Manitoba, online/Winnipeg, April 29-May 1
→ True City Conference: ReMembering the Body, Hamilton/online, Apr. 29-30
→ Bridges Seminar (Crescent Project), Orleans, Ont., Apr. 30
May
→ Church Hurt and Healing with Christine Hoover (Married to the Minister/Karen Stiller), online, May 3
→ Pastor’s Conference (Ambrose University), Calgary, May 5
→ World Evangelical Alliance Business Coalition webinar, online, May 6
→ Unite 2022 (Jesus Collective), online/Oakville, May 5-6
→ Marriage Enrichment Retreat (FOTF), Huntsville, May 6-8
→ Canadian Christian Communicators Association annual conference, online, May 10-13
→ EFC Prayer Gathering for Educational Institution Affiliates, online, May 11
→ Kentro Relief and Development Forum 2022, Mississauga, May 11-13
→ Beautiful Gospel Conference 2022 (INIM), online/New Mexico, May 11 -14
→ Watercooler Break for Communications Workers (CCCA), online, May 13
→ Ending Poverty Together Workshop (Food for the Hungry), Burlington/online, May 14
→ Perseverance: Moving towards Greater Mental Wellness (Agora Network), online, May 14
In Case You Missed It
→ How to Help Those Affected by the Russia-Ukraine War (EFC blog post)
→ Awards for Faith Today Work in 2021 (Faith Today blog post)
→ Does It Matter if Outsiders Trust Us? (Faith Trends podcast)
→ Bill C-230: Protection of Freedom of Conscience Act (EFC blog post)
→ Indigenous and Christian: Graduate school continues to break new ground (Faith Today article)