dedicated to First Nations. (The vice-principal attends Redwood.) A First Nations presence is growing in the Sunday
evening student ministry service. Doyle
dreams of offering an aboriginal worship
service at the Opportunities Centre.
Grand Chief Stan Beardy of the
Nishnawbe Aski Nation believes the
African proverb “It takes a village to
raise a child.” Born and raised on a trap-line at Bearskin Lake, he attended high
school in Thunder Bay. Now he invites
the “Redwood Village” to step over culture into First Nations reserves to assist
with medical work and to train young
people to become difference-makers.
Farther Beyond Themselves
Doyle has shared his city-wide vision
through mentoring relationships with
other pastors for several years. That vision spilled out from Thunder Bay to Barrie when The Christian and Missionary
Alliance church there experienced rapid
decline. Barrie is now a satellite campus
using video of Doyle’s preaching, which
allows commissioned pastor Nathan
Barnes to develop local relationships.
During the summer, sermons travel in the
opposite direction from Barrie through
DVD video back to Thunder Bay.
“Technology today allows larger
churches to mentor smaller groups” says
Doyle. “It multiplies God’s resources.”
Internationally, Redwood Park partners with a member serving in Spice Island [pseudonym] where 95 per cent of
the population is Islamic and many are
militant. A few years ago every church on
the island was burned to the ground. Now
Redwood Park teams give one month
each year to come alongside a church that
has been weakened through persecution.
The teams work on water pumps, teach
English as a Second Language, offer holistic education trying to reverse the hostile
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a worker gets things ready for the
food bank.
environment through caring action until
the face of Jesus is revealed.
Transition and Risk
While some shy away from numbers,
this community of passionate, adventurous believers has grown from 200 to
900 at some services, with 1,600 identifying Redwood Park as a place to call
home. At least half bring no evangelical
background, which perhaps explains
why regular attendance is not growing
at the same rate as adherents.
There are those who are excited
and those who were aghast as Redwood Park transitioned its vision over
the past decade.
“It takes time to become missional,”
reflects Doyle. “Our environment is always in transition. The culture changes.”
He tells the congregation: “Forms are
expendable. Don’t get too comfortable.” Doyle believes it’s unhealthy to
live in a protected Christian environment. “We throw them out into the
world and the kingdom advances. Following Christ is not risk-free.”
Charlene de Haan is a freelance writer in
Toronto. She is also manager of educational
services for The Evangelical Fellowship of
Canada. Read all the profiles in this ongoing series at www.faithtoday.ca.
