A January Trip

A couple of weeks ago, we (Jared and Clay) took a trip to Edmonton to meet up with some new friends, pastors, and potential ministry partners and also met with a realtor to look at a few houses to get a sense of some of the neighbourhoods we've been praying about moving into.

After months of beautiful weather, clear roads, and sunny skies, of course it would just so happen that a giant snow storm along with lovely -30C temperatures would come in right on the day we chose to travel. But in the Canadian Prairies, that's just how it goes, and you can't really expect anything different in January.

We went into the trip hoping to maybe get some more clarity on potential funding, official ministry partnerships between churches, and perhaps even nail down a specific neighbourhood or house that one of our families would move into.

And while none of our questions were answered - nobody wrote us a giant novelty sized cheque, we didn't get a church building donated to us, and none of the houses we visited screamed, "the one" - somehow we still drove home with greater clarity and a sense of call that the Spirit is at work in Edmonton, calling people to himself, and inviting us to play a part in what He's doing.

We had four meetings that spanned across denominational, theological, and demographic lines, and yet there was an amazing sense of unity and consistency between each of the meetings. Each group of people emphasized that the need for churches and church planting in Edmonton is increasing. 

Population growth over the past 5 years in the city alone, not to mention the surrounding suburbs, has resulted in nearly 200,000 more people coming into Edmonton, and yet there's been merely a handful of churches planted in that time. And in these new citizens of Edmonton, there seems to be a hunger for the Gospel. There's a curiosity afloat. The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.

Because the need is so great, and there are relatively few churches per-capita, there has also been an increase in desire for pastors to join together in reaching the city for the sake of Jesus, regardless of their denominational ties and secondary theological issues. There's a real spirit of unity (not just for the sake of unity, thankfully). Cooperation, rather than competition, was a common thread and something exciting to hear. 

This gives us a real excitement about what God is doing in Edmonton. There are so many lost people, and yet Jesus has for himself a people that he died for, and who he is calling us to reach with the good news of the Gospel. His death was not merely an example or potentially effective. No, it was sure to save all those who would believe. The Spirit is at work, stirring the hearts of his people. And we want to take part in what He's doing.

So we continue to pray, evaluate, and look at neighbourhoods from afar. And we'd love it if you, dear reader, would also be praying for us too.

After speaking with our local realtor, we're currently leaning towards listing our houses for sale in mid-to-late March, with the hope of possession dates sometime in Summer. We're told that listing any time earlier, people won't want to wait that long to move in. But if you list in March, there's more of a common understanding that people would want their kids to finish their school year before moving out.

So we're praying that as we list our houses for sale, that those who buy our houses would be blessed to live in these homes that have provided so well for our families these past 9 years.

We're also praying that God would already be at work in the hearts of those who will become our neighbours in Edmonton. We don't know where we're going to move yet, but, thankfully, Jesus does. And he has plans and purposes for us and for the people in Edmonton that we'll be close to. So we're praying for soft hearts, open eyes, and listening ears and that we could be a light to the street and neighbourhood that we're moving into.

Another thing we're praying for is to find the right houses for our families. As you can imagine, for the Bitners, it's not super easy to find a house at an affordable price that fits 8 people and has room to be hospitable. But we also know that God is a God who loves to provide. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. And he's provided for both our families repeatedly, so why would we doubt him to provide with his generous providential provision again?

And speaking of provision, we're also still trying to build our business, Digital Indoorsmen (https://digitalindoorsmen.com/), as a secondary means of financially floating the whole operation. So if you know of anyone with a small business, or who is hoping to start a small business, and they need a website or a website refresh... send them our way. It's another way you can help us be able to ensure that this missionary journey is a success.

Thanks for coming along on this journey with us. Thanks for praying for us. And as a reminder, if you feel the Spirit of Jesus tugging on your heart to really be a part of this, consider a move to Edmonton (if you don't already live there) or secondarily, we'd love it if you'd be willing to support us financially as well. You can give easily on the website (https://graceyeg.com/)

If you'd like to read previous editions of the newsletter, you can do so here: https://graceyeg.beehiiv.com/

On behalf of our families,

Clay Bitner and Jared Klassen