Last Sunday, I had an opportunity to visit Mississauga LifeSpring with Ada and her family to share about our mission trip to Greece. I always enjoy visiting MLCF; along with the much shorter commute, getting a chance to see family friends and worship with the LifeSpring family at MLCF is great. One thing I always appreciate when I visit is the unity at LifeSpring, and the same sense of the Holy Spirit at both Toronto and Mississauga sites. Though we worship in two different places, we share the same heart and the same spirit.
Another important thing we share is the same vision–we share a heart for others, and a heart for missions. As we prepared for the Greece missions trip, a passage that came to mind is one of Jesus’s first statements as he began his ministry. After being tempted by the enemy, Jesus returns to a synagogue in Nazareth. He stands up to read from the book of Isaiah that says (Luke 4:18-19):
The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
From the very beginning, Jesus’s heart is for the poor, prisoners, blind, and oppressed. At LifeSpring, I think ministry among refugees puts us right in line with God’s heart in this area.
The church family at MLCF was such a wonderful support for our trip. As I shared on Sunday, I find it interesting how God used food on this trip to minister to people. One of the ways that MLCF supported us was through fundraising and selling food. The proceeds from those food fundraisers went directly to purchasing ingredients to prepare meals for the refugees. It’s as if food became finances to provide food. As we heard during our time at Peace House, as the refugees travel away from their homes, many of them miss the comfort and familiarity of home cooked food. What a way to provide care and show love to others, through the ministry of food.
After we spoke, I also had a chance to connect with some of the people at MLCF about our ministry during the trip. One person I had a chance to speak with had a background in mental health. As we shared about our work in providing care through the tools we had learned at Family Weekend, she affirmed how valuable such care can be in the context of mental health. The burdens that refugees carry are heavy. The ability to share about those burdens with someone else, knowing that the other person will listen compassionately, can be so helpful in lifting some of the weight of those burdens.
To end off our worship service, we sang a closing song together. The song that Uncle Eric picked was “Make a Difference.” It’s interesting–the first time I had heard this song was maybe 25 years ago, when I was a teenager. I’ve heard it only a handful of times since, but for some reason, the song has always stuck with me. In fact, earlier this week while I was on my way home, the song came to my mind. What a surprise to have it as our closing song. As we sang together, a sense of unity and purpose was so evident.
Listen to the song here: https://youtu.be/FrPMxtUeONE?si=P3LqEjvKeJqe0ccO
In a couple of weeks, we will be closing 2025 and looking forward to 2026. Let’s keep in step with the Holy Spirit, and in a spirit of unity, as God continues to move us as one.