Canada has an area of almost four million square miles, and has an estimated population of almost 35 million people. It is made up of ten provinces and three territories. The greater majority of the people living in Canada reside within two hundred miles of the United States border. Canada is almost four million square miles, and has an estimated population of almost 35 million people. The greater majority of the people living in Canada reside within two hundred miles of the United States border.
For all these people, there are less than 300 independent Baptist Churches within Canada and many of those either need pastors or have a pastor at or near retirement age.
It is a challenge to take an exclusive gospel to an inclusively minded populace. Many do not know what a Baptist is, and being an independent Baptist in Canada increases the misunderstanding. Church planting within the cities of Canada is expected to be slow and expensive. Reaching smaller communities comes with the added concerns of loneliness and a lack of services or conveniences. Distances between like-minded churches are often hundreds of miles. Fellowship is difficult to find and costly to maintain.
Despite the obstacles, the multicultural mosaic of Canada offers boundless innovative means for reaching people arriving from countries encircling the globe. Many cities in Canada have no independent Baptist churches. Because Biblical authority for ministry is found in the local church, we firmly believe in the need to plant more churches.
Our ministry is centered in the prairie provinces of Canada. These provinces are Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba . The Prairie Provinces are known mainly for their large areas of flat farmland, which produce large amounts of grain and beef. As we think of the grain that is harvested from these provinces, we are reminded of the large harvest of souls needing to be reaped for the Lord Jesus Christ. There are approximately 7.2 million people living in these provinces. We are excited to be here as we seek to plant churches and spread the gospel throughout Manitoba.