Pastoral Staff Notes: January 2022
Rev. Nick, Associate Minister
Preaching through Mark on Sundays, I’m grateful that so many in the church are reading Mark along with us!
Baptism & Profession of Faith Classes are underway, a couple of people in that class and anticipating more joining the Membership part later in February
Thanks to the generosity of our community, the Benevolence Fund is in a surplus: if any in our community have needs, they are encouraged to talk to a pastor about if benevolence support may be able to help them.
Pray for those joining the church, as well as people new to our community trying to get connected in a strange season
Pray for wisdom as the church continues to navigate the complexities of COVID restrictions and meet the spiritual needs of those who Jesus has entrusted to our care
Pr. Nestor, Local & Global Mission Pastor
Through these brief ministry updates, please join me in thanking God for ongoing provision and praying for those who partake in these good initiatives.
Internationals Ministry - With the continuing pandemic, all international ministries are online. The ESL ministry is every Wednesday, from 6:00pm to 7:30pm. There are around 35 people attending, some literally in their home countries such as Chile, the US, and Japan. The Sunday Bible Study also draws in around 12 attendees also with people attending from their home countries.
Community Outreach - Ministry to vulnerable community members is ongoing, but instead of grocery packs, we are giving out Walmart cards to enable people to choose items they need most. To date, there are 60 cards given every Wednesday. Information and updates will be here through the season.
KWM - The Knox World Missions Committee has now completed the evaluation of missions applications based on the new Strategic Missions Framework. With Session’s approval, a communication to missionaries will be done next month. We continue to invite the congregation to pray with our missionaries through our quarterly missions gathering. The next gathering will be on February 27, 2022.
Alpha - Due to the pandemic, we were not able to initiate both in-person and online Alpha. The online Alpha started last January 25. There are currently 17 registered attendees with students from UofT and Knox church adherents and friends. Around 10 volunteers are serving as facilitators and prayer warriors.
Pr. Temeka, Worship Pastor
I am so grateful that we could celebrate the Advent and Christmas season at Knox with more communal activities. Some of these activities included Choir videos, the Christmas Sing-along and Afterparty, carolling, as well as our candlelight Christmas Eve Service
The worship ministry saw a few volunteers of different ages added on the platform and behind the scenes working with our AV personnel.
This month, the choir had its first Choir Check-In and Devotional night. It was wonderful and a good turn out meant we spent time in prayer for each other with some light-hearted banter and, of course, a dip in the book of Mark.
Join me in praying for our worship ministry as we seek a regular organist and for future volunteers
Pr. Natasha, Congregational Life Pastor
Home Church Highlight
"My home church felt like my one regular connection to people of faith during the pandemic. It was so important to me." I heard this recently from one member of our congregation who was sharing how their home church meetings over Zoom have meant so much in these past 2 years. Home church leaders have done an incredible job adapting to changing restrictions, finding ways to connect deeply, and leading through seasons of uncertainty and weariness. Currently, 6 home churches are active, in various parts of the city, and most are meeting online at the moment. There are spaces available in several and I'd encourage anyone looking for faith-strengthening connection and fellowship to reach out to me about joining one. natasha@knoxtoronto.org
Pr. Frances, Kids, Youth & Camp Ministries Director
Knox Teens - Through September to December our Knox Teens met in-person. We had some really fun events and it was great to be able to safely gather together. In December our youth focused on volunteering through Advent; they made cards, helped serve during our Christmas party, and read scripture. Since the new year we’ve been back to meeting online, but hope that we’ll be able to meet safely in person again soon! If you have a teen who isn’t connected but would like to be, please email me!
Knox Kids - Through Advent we were able to introduce an in-person time for Knox Kids during the service. We saw 2-7 families each week and it was wonderful to be able to provide this time for kids and families. We are on pause, but hoping to be able to start up again soon.
Camp - We are very excited to have Gillian Brouwer as our Knox Camps Director for camp this year! Gillian is a gifted leader. She brings her passion and love for kids to camp and we are so thankful to have her directing camp for Summer 2022. We are planning for an in-person day camp and planning for 45 kids each week!
Please pray with us:
for our kids and teens who are struggling with missing out on "normal milestones," loneliness, and the impacts of the pandemic on their mental health. Pray we would be able to gather safely in-person again soon.
for Knox Camps, that we would receive the funding we have asked for from Canada Summer Jobs, that we would be able to plan for and have an in-person camp this summer.
