Never pass up a chance to testify!

It's a rare blessing to be able to testify about God's provision and blessing on Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain on a national stage, but we were able to do so this past week.

The Governor-General's Leadership Conference is a cross-country initiative to help develop leaders. They come from all walks of life -- business, labor, the arts, native groups, immigrants, you name it. It's a huge group to begin with, separated into groups that go to different regions, British Columbia being one of them. The group that came to the Mission is also visiting Prince George, Terrace, Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley (not in that order), studying aboriginal affairs, the Enbridge pipeline, and Vancouver's Downtown East Side.

Their visit to Gospel Mission was actually their first chance to meet the people who live in the area, even though they had gone to InSite the day before -- but there, they were only allowed to speak to the staff and not those who use the "safe injection" location. For us, it was a chance to brag on God a little bit, pointing out the way He has positioned the Mission through history -- keeping it just ahead of the curve of needs in society. (The Mission was founded just before the Great Depression hit; it moved to bigger digs just before the end of World War 2 brought a lot of disabled ex-servicemen into Skid Row; The Lord's Rain was commanded (for want of a better word) just before the Global Economic Crisis caused people to rein in their charitable giving: as I told the group, it's one thing to say, "here's a problem - come up with the solution", but in the case of the Mission, God tends to say, "here's the solution - now, stand by for the problem".)

It was also a chance -- albeit a short one -- for people who come into the Mission to talk to the tour participants. Kim, for example, got to talk to a few of them and share a bit about his own testimony. I think I've mentioned Kim before: a man who used to come into Rainbow Mission half-cut, often arriving just as the sermon was ending and the food was about to be served. Eventually, he came to Christ, beat down his addictions and assorted other demons, and is now a very valued part of our ministry. He's preached at the Mission on occasion and also runs the video camera. When I asked him, a couple of weeks ago, to go downstairs to The Lord's Rain and sit with a disabled woman so she could take part in the service by watching it on TV in The Lord's Rain, he got very philosophical. "What happened," he said, "that the guy who used to wait and slip into Rainbow Mission between the 'amen' and 'pass the food' is now being sent to do 'security' for someone at a Mission?" Of course, we both know the answer.

We only had half an hour and some of the visitors said they wished it could have been 90 minutes. But the early feedback is very positive:

• a man who, among other things, had worked on the judicial review in Rwanda, spoke with one disabled aboriginal man, finding out about the apartment where he lives, and the fact that he does feel safe and cared-for
• a prison warden from Kingston (medium-security, not the famous maximum-security pen), felt "overwhelmed" at the kindness and welcoming spirit of the people she met at The Lord's Rain
• an aboriginal leader who found someone with a mutual friend back home: she'll be taking back word that this person is alright
• the vice-president of the Elementary Teachers of Toronto -- the teachers' union, who is also a Christian and said it was "wonderful" to see faith being acknowledged on this tour. This was the second day of the tour, and she told me there had already been a "lively discussion" about whether "religion [was] the cause of all the ills of the world." She also works with single parents through her church, a large West Indian church in TO.

In general, they came away with a view of the Downtown East Side that's decidedly different from the picture of crushing despair that is usually put forward, a picture that there is still hope and resiliency, regardless of the mistakes one has made and the ways one tries to patch them over. All of it was presented against the backdrop that, when all's said and done, God is present and in charge, blessing all with His indescribable Grace.