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Winds of Renewal

About Us

There’s a touch of irony in my title in light of the fierce windstorm that recently wreaked havoc across the lower mainland, leaving thousands without electricity and our office without email for several days.

There’s growing evidence that President Dave’s vision is getting traction throughout the Alliance in Canada. Numerous pastors are setting aside, or at least modifying, ‘business as usual’ scheduling in order to facilitate special times of prayer and seeking the Lord’s renewing, empowering touch.

Dave Hearn reports strong response to altar calls across the country as he invites our people to pursue Jesus for a fresh anointing and infilling of the Spirit, an infilling that renews our joy, inflames our hearts with ‘first love’, and empowers our witness. In many cases dozens, even a hundred or more, of our people are streaming to prayer altars to ask, seek, and knock on heaven’s door for fresh Holy Spirit fire.

I sense growing hope that God is stirring us up to pray and seek his face in anticipation of doing something new in our day and in our ‘tribe’. Collectively, our leadership across Canada is incubating pathways toward relational and spiritual renewal in each of our districts.

Here in the Pacific District, we hope to offer catalyzing opportunities for all of our workers to experience anew the fullness of Christ through the presence and power of the indwelling Holy Spirit over the next two years. Wherever doors open for us, we will encourage and equip all our official workers to be able to mentor and disciple others in our churches into the truth and experience of the Spirit-filled life.

We’re all aware that no one can manipulate the Spirit of God and that the timing of renewal is in his hands, not ours. We also know God’s promise to respond to his people when they humble themselves, seek his face, and express to him their deep longing for more of him.

In our district, we’d like to hoist three separate but complementary sails with the hope that the wind of the Spirit would fill them, and us, again in new ways. First, Brian Derksen, Morris Dirks, and some of our Academy of Soul Formation grads are launching One to One: Experiencing Sacred Space with God Retreats this fall. These 24-hour facilitated retreats are designed to help participants withdraw from routine and focus intently on Jesus in order to hear his voice and heart for them. You’ll find detailed information about these retreats here on our website. Registration is filling up quickly!

Second, many of you are aware of the unique things that Jesus is doing in and through the ministry of Southland Church, Steinbach, MB and Church Renewal Ministries. Along with hundreds of other leaders, scores of our C&MA pastors and district/national leaders have attended Renewal Weekend experiences at Southland and are reporting positively on what God is doing throughout.

The leadership community at Southland has a simple but profound philosophy of ministry and takes seriously the responsibility of training Christ-followers to hear his voice and walk in simple obedience. Stories of God’s frequent, and at times dramatic, intervention into lives and circumstances are multiplying at Southland. Brian Derksen and I will participate in the upcoming Renewal Weekend in October. Check their website for the dates of the January weekend. Long-time friends of our district John and Lorraine Baergen are deeply involved in Church Renewal Ministries.

Finally, some of you are aware that the Western Canadian District (WCD) next door has been hosting Holy Spirit Encounter (HSE) experiences for about two years now. I’ve participated in two Encounters and was strengthened, challenged, and warmed by very specific things the Lord said to me at those events. We hope to collaborate with some of the WCD facilitators in bringing HSE to the CPD in 2016.

Carmen Kinniburgh

District Children’s Ministry Partner

Children’s ministry involves developing leaders, discipling children and families, exercising creativity, with an emphasis on fun and building relationships that help others to experience God’s love as they are loved by people who know God’s love. Carmen has served in children’s ministries as a volunteer, coordinator, curriculum writer, camp speaker, and pastor. Her desire in ministry and life is to help others (whether they be children, youth, or adults) to hear God’s voice and to experience the freedom and fullness of love found in knowing Jesus and living kingdom lives. Whether your children’s ministry is led by volunteers or a pastoral leader, Carmen would love to connect, build networks, support, resource, pray with, and provide care in whatever areas are needed.

Carmen lives in Vernon with her husband, Jeremy, and their two teenage kids. She loves playing soccer, hiking, camping, and theatre. She and Jeremy have founded two new ministries called Threshold Initiatives and Contributing Pastor.

Terry Ann Opperman

Official Worker

David has served at Lakewood Alliance Church since the fall of 2002, first as an associate, then as Lead Pastor starting in November 2005. David has been on various committees including DEXCOM, District Nominating Committee, a few General Assembly Committees, and the Rules Committee for District Conference. David has an interest in church governance and seeing healthy leaders serving on healthy boards in order to better equip and serve the church.

David and Tara are in the process of launching their three young adult sons and enjoy seeing the trajectories their lives are taking. David enjoys woodwork and getting out cross-country skiing in the winter.

Steve Schneider

Lay Person

Steve is a layperson and a member of Peace Portal Alliance Church in Surrey. He has been married to his wife Brenda since 1984. They have two adult daughters. He is an engineer by background and holds an MBA from Heriot-Watt University. He works in the paper industry and is also the President of SGS Consulting Ltd. He has recently become a licensed worker in the CPD.

Steve has served in varied ways over the years but has more recently been focussed on church board work. He served on his first church board 36 years ago. Since that time, he has served on four different church boards and the District Executive Committee of the CPD. Over the last 12 years Steve has actively been teaching and consulting with church and not-for-profit boards within and outside of The Alliance Canada to help them develop healthy governance practices.

Keith Cheung

English Lead Pastor at Burnaby Alliance Church

Keith was also an active member at Westside Calgary Chinese Alliance Church before moving to Vancouver to begin full-time pastoral ministry. After a brief stint pastoring in a church from another denomination, Keith began serving as the English Lead Pastor at Burnaby Alliance Church in 2017 where he continues to serve today.

Keith is married to Cecelia (20 years this year!) and they are raising 2 beautiful daughters (11 and 6) who they adopted from Taiwan and Korea respectively. He loves, in no particular order, cooking and eating and conversations, the Saskatchewan Roughriders, road cycling, family reunions, and good movies and music.

Carol Goh

District Chaplains Committee Chair

carol@mycac.ca

Carol Goh has chaired the District Chaplains Committee and served on the Association for Alliance Chaplains (AAC) National Committee since 2018. She completed her Masters degree in Chaplaincy in Spiritual Care from Trinity Western Seminary and is the Neighborhood Chaplain and Pastor for Seniors at Chilliwack Alliance. As a chaplain, Carol invests in the neighborhood (parish) around the church through connecting with those who live, work, and go to school there. She intentionally supports the local public elementary school and other local organizations so that together they can weave together the fabric of care for the inhabitants. The Goh household includes her husband Andrew, their three teenage sons, Andrew’s mother, and their golden doodle.

David Driedger

Board Leadership Training Partner

dave@lakewoodalliance.com

David has served at Lakewood Alliance Church since the fall of 2002, first as an associate, then as Lead Pastor starting in November 2005. David has been on various committees including DEXCOM, District Nominating Committee, a few General Assembly Committees, and the Rules Committee for District Conference. David has an interest in church governance and seeing healthy leaders serving on healthy boards in order to better equip and serve the church.

David and Tara are in the process of launching their three young adult sons and enjoy seeing the trajectories their lives are taking. David enjoys woodwork and getting out cross-country skiing in the winter.

Daren Wride

Transitional Pastors Network Coordinator

dwride@shaw.ca

Daren Wride has been serving in transitional roles since 2011. He has been on the ground as Transitional Pastor in multiple churches around the province and has engaged as a Transitional Coach with several other churches. Prior to his transitional work, Daren pastored three churches in Alberta and BC for a total of nearly 20 years. Daren has also spent time in the professional speaking and internet marketing worlds and usually has a related project on the go.

Geoff Stewart

District Youth Ministry Partner

geoffs@peaceportalalliance.com

Youth ministry is among the most demanding ministries in the church from a relational standpoint, serving young people who are defining the ever changing culture we live in. Leading in youth ministry is best not done alone, and Geoff desires to help our youth pastors serve and encourage one another through the sharing of resources, wisdom, experience, and perspective. In the ever-changing world of today’s high school student, it is vital for us as youth pastors to be changing with them to understand the world they are navigating and share with them the life changing truth of the Gospel.

Geoff has been a youth pastor for 6 years at Peace Portal Alliance Church and volunteered for 10 years before that in the same church. He is passionate about seeing young people transformed by Jesus and becoming leaders in their school and community. He and his wife Lavonne live in South Surrey with their cats Norman and Puff Daddy.

Andy Lambkin

Team Lead - Property Development & Nest Housing Society

andy.lambkin@gmail.com

Andy wears two hats in the Canadian Pacific District. He serves as our New Venture implementer, helping new communities of faith emerge across our province, and he also leads the Nest housing Society, a non-profit affordable housing society working with local churches to utilize their land for social good while fulfilling critical ministry priorities. If you have questions about either of these areas, please reach out.

Personally, Andy is married to Jolie and they have four kids. Residing in North Vancouver, they call simplechurches, a network of house churches, their church home.

Carmen Kinniburgh

District Children’s Ministry Partner

jckinnib@telus.net

Children’s ministry involves developing leaders, discipling children and families, exercising creativity, with an emphasis on fun and building relationships that help others to experience God’s love as they are loved by people who know God’s love. Carmen has served in children’s ministries as a volunteer, coordinator, curriculum writer, camp speaker, and pastor. Her desire in ministry and life is to help others (whether they be children, youth, or adults) to hear God’s voice and to experience the freedom and fullness of love found in knowing Jesus and living kingdom lives. Whether your children’s ministry is led by volunteers or a pastoral leader, Carmen would love to connect, build networks, support, resource, pray with, and provide care in whatever areas are needed.

Carmen lives in Vernon with her husband, Jeremy, and their two teenage kids. She loves playing soccer, hiking, camping, and theatre. She and Jeremy have founded two new ministries called Threshold Initiatives and Contributing Pastor.