The Nova Scotia partnership of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, Spartanburg County Baptist Network and the Canada National Baptist Convention was celebrated Oct. 29 at First Baptist Church, Boiling Springs. Mission trip volunteers and coordinators met to reflect on their work over the past three years in the Canadian maritime province and discussed future plans and goals.
Chapin Baptist Church’s Nova Scotia mission team members inspect a portable baptism pool, which is easy to transport, set up and fill with water.Paul McKee is the missions ministries consultant with Spartanburg County Network and has played a key role in connecting South Carolina mission trip volunteers with churches in Nova Scotia. He has led mission trips there and works closely with the CNBC on the partnership, which is still in its early stages.
“This partnership is a pioneer work,” McKee said. “It will take time investing in Nova Scotia and building relationships there before we see barriers removed and more people being saved.” There were 18 people on the first mission trip team to Nova Scotia in 2009, and this year there have been 130 people on 17 different teams to take mission trips to the area. At least one more trip is planned for December.
Picturesque and historic Nova Scotia is home to an estimated 1 million people, many from different cultures and belief systems. As volunteers shared about their experiences there, some described Nova Scotia as “spiritually dark” and a place where “folks are hungry but don’t know it.” Another said mission work in Nova Scotia was “difficult, but it’s where God is calling our team.”
Chuck Middlebrooks, a member of Chapin Baptist Church, has been on three trips to Nova Scotia and went to the Halifax and Cape Breton Island areas. His mission teams helped local churches with block parties and Vacation Bible Schools. On the most recent trip, he focused on building relationships and contacts within the Inverness community for a new church plant there.
“Ministry in Nova Scotia is rewarding but can be discouraging because it is a slow process and a slow work. The need is there, and mission teams can touch individuals’ lives,” Middlebrooks said. “[It] is inspiring. You see God at work, and it gives you a vision to bring back to your own community. It helps to grow your faith as you practice telling a Bible story, sharing your testimony, or answering questions about the Bible.”
There are a variety of short-term mission trip options to Nova Scotia, including some focused on carpentry needs and prayerwalking. Linda Hite, a member of Red Bank Baptist Church in Lexington, returned from her second prayerwalking trip to Nova Scotia in October. Hite and her team from Lexington Association partnered with Journey Church to prayerwalk the building where the church holds its services, the surrounding community, and a popular local sports facility. She also trained Journey Church members in prayerwalking.
“Missions is a life-changing experience,” Hite said. “I would encourage others to catch the vision and become a part of the work God is doing in Nova Scotia.”
That is also what Derek Jones, a North American Mission Board-appointed lead strategist for the Canadian Atlantic Provinces, would like for more South Carolina Baptists to do: catch a vision for the people of his homeland. Jones was on hand at the meeting to thank the volunteers for their work in Nova Scotia and shared plans that the CNBC has for evangelism, starting new churches, and collegiate summer mission projects.
“I have never seen a partnership state like South Carolina. You are an incredible blessing to me and to our people,” Jones said. He welcomed future mission teams to help in the CNBC’s goal of starting more churches in Nova Scotia and to participate in a new ministry network initiative for the Halifax region.
For his part, McKee said he hoped additional churches and associations will join in the work God has begun in Nova Scotia. “God continues to expand the circle of people involved in this partnership.”
Nova Scotia is one of 10 kingdom connections in the convention’s partnership, “South Carolina Baptists: A Witness to the World.” For more online information about the Nova Scotia Partnership and other partnerships, visit www.scbaptist.org/missions. – SCBC