By: Chris Cooke
The Coldwater New Venture has now been up and running and experiencing the grace of our Lord as the foundation is laid for what God is calling us to do.
It was in summer 2014 when the Lord brought together a core team of four families to be partners in the Gospel for the purpose of reaching the unchurched and alienated from Christ in the area.
The first activity we participated in was a spiritual retreat in August that was designed to build trust and teamwork, as well as to seek the Lord’s guidance for the values that will shape our mission going forward. The Lord was truly present with us that weekend as our team departed more closely bonded in Christ.
Coming out of the retreat, the core team sensed God calling us to regular gatherings, and for the last few months, we have been meeting, worshipping, praying, and engaging in mission in the heart of Coldwater, Ontario on Sunday afternoons. As word of our gatherings has spread, we have seen new partners join us for fellowship.
The purpose of our Sunday afternoon gatherings has been to send out workers into the “harvest field” of Coldwater, equipped and prepared to share the love of Christ. We have made two dozen new connections with individuals in the area so far! We are now actively seeking the Spirit’s sanctifying power to be unleashed on these individuals so that the fruit of the Gospel will grow.
I would like to especially thank each of those who have been supporting and praying for the Coldwater New Venture. The Central Canadian District (CCD) have been tremendous encouragers during the initial steps of this new venture, and without their vision and insight, none of this would have been possible.
A special thank you goes to the Georgian Bay Network of churches, in particular Orillia Alliance Church and Midland Alliance Church for their partnership, counseling, mentorship, and coaching as this work for Christ continues. I would also like to thank our individual supporters, prayer partners, and core team members that have become a new and extended branch of our family in God.
Our prayer requests include asking Christ for a growing and ever-deepening bond of trust to form within our core team. When God brought us together, we were brand new to each other. We are looking forward to God guiding us into a growing friendship with each other. A second prayer request is for the unsaved, the lost, and the unchurched within the region and town of Coldwater. Our passion and heart is for these individuals to enter the Kingdom of heaven. May the Lord’s will be done!