Nationwide Prayer Gathering on Ukraine and Easter
This Thursday, April 7, at 11:00 AM EDT (8 a.m. Pacific / 9 a.m. Mountain / 10 a.m. Central / Noon Atlantic / 12:30 p.m. NL), please join us for a one-hour Zoom nationwide prayer gathering for the crisis in Ukraine as we also pray for Easter. This will be co-hosted by The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and the Peace and Reconciliation Network of the World Evangelical Alliance.
Our purpose is to pray for peace and reconciliation, de-escalation, and wisdom for the complex humanitarian initiatives in Ukraine as well as the missional advance of the global church during the Good Friday and Easter. Here is the Zoom link to click just before the event starts.
Faith Today Reader 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.
Take Survey for Pastors of Small Churches Before It Closes this Friday
It won’t take long, and we’d love for you to complete our survey. The Canadian Evangelical Small Church Study is gathering important research about the ministry and mission opportunities small churches engage in, as well as the challenges that hinder vitality in congregational life and ministry. Pastors of congregations of 150 people or less are invited to complete the survey. English: www.research.net/r/CESCS français : fr.research.net/r/EPEEC
How to Help Those Affected by the Russia-Ukraine War
To learn about EFC affiliates helping Ukraine and how to support their work, as well as to find prayer prompts on how to pray for Ukraine, see our article.
World Persecution Ranking to be Presented to Parliament
EFC vice-president and resident theologian David Guretzki, will bring greetings from the EFC to the 2022 World Watch List Parliamentary Release event on April 13 at 1:30 Eastern. The World Watch List, presented by EFC affiliate Open Doors, identifies the 50 most dangerous places to live as a Christian, is based on extensive research and considered the most authoritative list of its kind.
Ontario Prayer Breakfast
The 54th Ontario Prayer Breakfast takes place April 11 from 7:30 - 8:30 a.m. This is an annual opportunity for the Christian community to support Members of Provincial Parliament and city councillors in prayer. Special guests this year include Erin Willson, president of AthletesCAN, and Christopher Gordon, a partner at Ernst & Young, who will be sharing Stories of Hope. You can register at OntarioPrayerBreakfast.ca. Virtual space is limited to 1,000.
Faith Today Podcast: How to Create a Prayer Room in Your Church
In the latest Faith Today podcast, we spoke to Nina Schuurman-Drenth, the pastoral intern at Eucharist Church in Hamilton, Ont., who helped lead the creative team that put together Eucharist's prayer room.
Webinar on Social Media Peacemaking
What should Christians be doing about the divisiveness of social media? Sign up today for our April 27 online Meet the Author evening with Douglas Bursch. We'll 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.
Why not order a copy of the book (ivpress.com/posting-peace) from your local bookstore or library to get ready? Sign up (reading the book is not required) at www.TheEFC.ca/MeetTheAuthor.
The Case for Silence in a Noisy Digital World
How do we reconcile the increasingly noisy, angry and frenetic atmosphere of social media with the type of life Jesus invites His followers into? Read more in Faith Today’s latest Thriving in Digital column by Joanna la Fleur.
Print subscriptions to Faith Today are now free in Canada. Sign up at FaithToday.ca/SubscribeFree.
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 prostitution. Pray for those who may be vulnerable to entering prostitution, due to poverty, marginalization, racism, abuse or government care, and for those seeking a way to exit prostitution. Pray also about the Justice Committee’s review of the current prostitution laws (PCEPA).
You can learn more on these issues at TheEFC.ca/Prostitution.
This week's EFC affiliate highlight focuses on Defend Dignity, an initiative of EFC-affiliated denomination the Christian and Missionary Alliance, which has partnered with the EFC in working on issues related to prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation.
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.
→ Nationwide Prayer for Ukraine and Easter (EFC), online, Apr. 7
→ Watercooler Break for Communication Workers (CCCA), online, Apr. 8
→ Personhood and Bioethics with Margaret Somerville (Regent College), online, Apr. 8
→ Ontario Prayer Breakfast, online, Apr. 11
→ The Mediation of Christ in A.B. Simpson’s Teachings (Ambrose University), online, Apr. 12
→ Leadership Webinar with Robert J. Morgan (Women Together), online, Apr. 12
→ Fresh Words with Publisher Larry Willard (Women Together), online, Apr. 20
→ Women in the Holiness and Pentecostal Traditions (Tyndale/Master’s Seminaries), online/Toronto, Apr. 26
→ 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
→ Flourishing Conference (Food for the Hungry), online, April 29-30
→ Missionfest Manitoba, online/Winnipeg, April 29-30
→ True City Conference: ReMembering the Body, Hamilton/online, Apr. 29-30
→ Bridges Seminar (Crescent Project), Orleans, Apr. 30
→ Pastor’s Conference (Ambrose University), Calgary, May 5
→ World Evangelical Alliance Business Coalition webinar, online, May 6
→ Unite 2022 (The Meeting House), online and Oakville, May 5-6
In Case You Missed It
→ New Toolkit on Charitable Status on Pro-Life Charities
→ What Made Gregory Great (History Lesson column from Faith Today)
→ Bill C-230: Protection of Freedom of Conscience Act