Fall 2000 Newsletter

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. – Acts 1:8

No matter where you travel around the globe, three themes that are universal among Christian believers are worship, discipleship and fellowship. While worship looks, sounds and feels very different across the variety of cultural settings that comprise our world it is always present among believers in one form or another. Even though discipleship may be divided into its component parts of Christian formation, evangelism and service with different congregations emphasizing one or another of the components, discipleship is always present in one form or another. And of course, fellowship takes on a life of its own among people who are truly committed to the Lord and to each other. When you arrive at the NAPCE Conference in Toronto (you are coming, aren't you?) you will encounter each of these dimensions of our faith in a dynamic and fresh way.

Worship
Richard Allan Farmer, a gifted musician and worship leader, will open our conference Thursday evening with a vibrant time of worship as we consider NAPCE as a community of believers at the turn of the century.

Michael J. Wilkins

A graduate of Biola University, Dr. Wilkins earned his M.Div. at Talbot School of Theology and his Ph.D. at Fuller Theological Seminary. A specialist in New Testament theology, Dr. Wilkins has authored a number of books including: Following the Master: A Biblical Theology of Discipleship, Discipleship in the Ancient World and Matthew's Gospel, and In His Image: Reflecting Christ in Everyday Life. Dr. Wilkins currently serves as Professor of New Testament Language and Literature and Dean of the Faculty at Talbot School of Theology. In light of his scholarship, pastoral experiences and personal faith journey, Dr. Wilkins is uniquely qualified to help those of us in Christian education reconcile the act of becoming a disciple (evangelism) with the process of growth in discipleship (Christian formation).

Fellowship
What can I say? Throughout the conference fellowship will abound as we support one another through Thematic and Professional Development seminars,

and encourage one another through Research Presentations. This year we have added some field trips to the conference so that we can witness first hand God's amazing work in Toronto. Our excursions to these exciting ministries will provide genuine refreshment as we rejoice in the good work God is doing through his people.

I pray that you will join us for this amazing time of worship, discipleship and fellowship at this year’s NAPCE Annual Conference in Toronto.

Field Trip Options at the Toronto Annual Conference
Mark Senter, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

NAPCE will be sponsoring several optional field trips during the Toronto conference that will allow participants to explore one of the many multi-cultural dimensions of the city. The cost to participate in one of these field trips will be in addition to the conference fee. Please pre-register for the field trip of your choice so that we may have an accurate headcount for transportation purposes.

Ethnicity in the Church
Michael Blair et al. will lead a round table discussion on the history of ethnic groups in the Canadian church at his downtown Toronto Baptist church. The discussion will deal with the attempt of integrating ethnic groups into the church and the challenges of education. Through this discussion you will come to an appreciation of the mission enterprise within your schools, communities, and cities. From this, you should be able to articulate to future church lay-workers the importance of thinking and working multi-ethnically.

Chin