ON….RURAL QUÉBEC

I am convinced that almost anyone can build up a church in the city! When you have a large population to draw from, growth can often come quite easily. Create the right atmosphere with the right appeal and people will come!! But it takes something special to build up a church in a RURAL, sparsely populated, community!

Our daughter, Michelle, recently sent us a video and simply said, “It’s you dad!”.  

The video is about a couple who moved out of the city leaving behind a thriving city church and took over an old rural church on the verge of closing with only a handful of people. They weren't there very long until everyone left them!! It was like they were left standing alone! There was only he and his wife and the Lord. But they knew that God had called them to this rural community with only a population of 88 people and they decided to stick with it! Sunday after Sunday they would still go to church and the Pastor would conduct a service as though the church was full! One by one they began to lead new people to the Lord and one by one God began to fill the church again. It took some time but eventually they had 130 people in their church. Then the Lord directed them to replant churches throughout the surrounding rural communities. Today there are 13 churches that have been planted or replanted!! All of them are full!!

It is apparent that Esther and I have been called by God to Rural Québec! And it’s been an interesting ride!! Some, whom we thought were “with us” in the beginning turned away! And that’s okay!!  We have determined that this is where God has called us and we are determined to win people to the Lord one by one!! We covet your prayers each day that God will lead us to hungry people in rural Québec! I told our people this morning in church, “Wouldn’t it be a "first class slap" in the devils face if we could resurrect churches in all these outlying rural communities that have closed in the last 15 years! I began to list rural communities within just a few kilometers from us that have closed churches. Brownsburg alone has closed 7 denominational churches in the past 15 years!! I spoke of Harrington, Grenville, Calumet, Saint-Andre, Montebello. And those are just a few of the surrounding rural communities!! In years gone by, some of these communities had strong spirit-filled churches in them and today they are closed. Would you join your heart with ours as we endeavor to push back the darkness over rural Québec?  RURAL QUÉBEC….HERE WE COME!! IN JESUS NAME!!!!!