Rob Ogilvie became the Executive Minister of CBWC in 2017, and when he first took the position, he encouraged the denomination to pray with him in a structured way in order to establish ministry priorities for the denomination for the next while. People were asked to pray in triads, consistently, and were guided in Scripture readings and time for listening and response. After the responses were gathered, three ministry priorities rose to the top; Cultivating Leadership, Investing in Relationship, and Engaging in Mission. Cultivating Leadership is primarily about developing the next generation of Canadian Baptists. Investing in Relationship consists of providing resources for our churches and clergy to maximize their health and effective ministry. Engaging in Mission is about growing our CBWC family through fresh expressions and intentional implementation of the gospel.
One of the outcomes of this has been the development of a Gap Year Program called Kurios. Peter Anderson has headed this up, and we anticipate a start up in the Fall of 2020. Steve Simala Grant will be giving leadership to the group, and I’m excited about Steve doing the work, because I’ve known him for a lot of years and have seen his various skills and talents at work. I have no doubt that Steve will genuinely love the students, challenge them, and disciple them in their relationship with Christ. Many around the CBWC are excited about this new ministry.
In my mind, the interesting piece about this “new ministry” is that in some ways, it’s not new at all. It is a variation on other leadership development ministries that the CBWC has supported in the past. Interestingly, as I visit churches, as the other Regional Ministers visit churches, it is often very clear that the leadership in our current churches has been influenced by past CBWC leadership experiences, such as the Baptist Leadership Training School (BLTS). That is, many current leaders attended BLTS or something similar, and are continuing to lead in our churches today. Perhaps, then, Kurios is a return to something we’ve known to be true for a long time.
Of course, this means that I am thankful for the leadership ministries that we’ve relied on in the past. Even though we live in a new era for ministry, I am hopeful that Kurios will serve to prepare our young people to serve Christ in their churches, workplaces, communities and homes. Please invest in Kurios especially by way of prayer as the foundation for this ministry continues to be laid over this next year.
-Mark Doerksen
Broadway-First Baptist Church 