“The refugee crisis desperately needs churches to show up in ways that further hope, healing, and reconciliation in the world,” Danielle Steenwyk-Rowaan, Open Homes Hamilton’s team leader, shared.

With the help of a NewGround grant, New Hope Church in Hamilton, ON showed up to partner with Open Homes Hamilton. This new partnership has allowed New Hope to welcome refugee claimants into communities of belonging and has reminded them of the transformative power of the ancient Christian practice of hospitality.

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When we step into the place of prayer, it is often to ask the Lord to change circumstances. We pray for healing for someone who is sick, comfort for someone who is grieving and for the Lord to change the heart of someone who is walking away from God’s kingdom. Prayer changes things, and the Lord is able to move in people’s lives and circumstances because we pray.

But prayer does not just change a situation…

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The city and region of East Preston, Nova Scotia is now considered a “food desert”. With the help of a Covid-19 grant from Diaconal Ministries and World Renew Canada, John Calvin CRC in Truro is working with the community of East Preston and sharing their community garden expertise.

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STEPHEN – FULL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Acts 6 describes the establishment of the role of deacon within the community of believers. A dispute over meeting the needs of the Greek and Hebrew widows led to the leadership making the decision to find people who could meet the needs within the community.

The leaders looked for people who were described as being full of the Holy Spirit. They found Stephen who is described as being “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5)…
The fact that the apostles specifically looked for people who were full of the Holy Spirit suggests that some of the congregation were not! So were some only half full? Were others empty? Just exactly what did the apostles mean when they looked for people full of the Holy Spirit?

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Over the course of the next 10 months or so, we want to make deacons aware of the realities of spiritual roadblocks that can show up in ministry AND help them deal with these kinds of challenges. To do this, we are producing a brand new set of devotions, which will be rolled out once/month on our e-Quip Diaconal Blog in 2021. The focus of the devotions will be how the Holy Spirit equips and empowers deacons (and all believers) to do the work of ministry and advance the Kingdom of God. We will be building up a ‘spiritual’ toolbox of resources for deacons…

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So far 20 churches across Canada have received funds from a joint Covid-19 Grant Fund, sponsored by Diaconal Ministries Canada and World Renew Canada. Approximately $60,000 has been put into the hands of deacons and churches longing to reach out to their local communities during this pandemic. Churches are finding creative and sustainable ways to…

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This year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Diaconal Ministries Canada will be held TONIGHT – Thursday, November 19, 2020, at 8:00pm EST. This meeting is open to ALL who are interested in the work of Diaconal Ministries Canada. It’s Not Too Late to Register! Every CRC in Canada is asked to send one representative to…

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Two articles have recently popped up on The Network and their timing is perfect. Like it or not, we are heading into the Christmas season, also known as the Christmas “shopping” season. While the global pandemic forges on, it appears that this is one ‘essential’ many of us won’t be giving up on or changing a whole lot.

As Christians, we are already anticipating the 4 weeks of Advent that will begin on December 1st, where we wait expectantly to receive the greatest gift of all – our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!

BUT! We are quick to remember that Christmas is also about giving and sharing! A time when we remember how blessed we are and how we can share the joy of Christmas with those near and far through the simple act of gift-giving.
So, how will we spend our money this year?

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