By Anne Sim
The ESL Ministry of our church, Oak Ridges Church in Richmond Hill, started as an outreach effort involving a local Retirement Community. While praying for ways to grow and revitalize the church, our pastor encountered a chaplain who asked if church members could participate in ESL ministry alongside some of the elderly residents. Very soon we saw congregation members working alongside these seniors, engaging together to provide conversational English experience to new immigrants who came in from the larger Oak Ridges community. Conversations were lively, as the residents really enjoyed this opportunity to share their life experience and wisdom. In fact, one of the residents, a man in his late 80s, became a Christian during our experience there.
In time, this ESL ministry outgrew its surroundings and it became clear we would need to move to the church. At the same time, an ESL class was added to the Sunday morning Christian Education program, providing greater understanding of the Pastor’s message to non-English speakers and a safe place for newcomers to ask questions and request prayer for their struggles as new Canadians.
The weekly ESL ministry, a daytime conversational English program held twice a week, drew in many nationalities—Chinese, Korean, South American, Russian, Iranian and Israeli, to name a few. We provided beginner, intermediate and advanced classes, with each class finding its own focus. At the advanced level, one facilitator used the daily newspaper to discuss world affairs. Another used conversational English questions available from the SOCEM website. An intermediate class explored issues relating to Canadian life and behavior. The beginner class used a picture dictionary and an occasional interpreter to grasp basics of English.
One of the highlights of our ESL ministry is that we go on regular ‘outings.’ To augment their learning, we have taken students to the local library, the fish and produce departments of local grocery stores, a local mall and the nearby Adult Education School. Sometimes just a trip to the church kitchen is a real learning experience for our beginners! A large number of students went to a Canadian home to experience Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, while many attended a potluck dinner at a local farm. Every holiday is an English learning experience, whether that means eating Canada Day cakes or hearing a gospel presentation at Easter or singing Christmas carols. In the summer it has been a welcome change to go to the local park where we can sit in the sun and enjoy a lovely view of Lake Wilcox. Students were very engaged when a police officer visited to give advice on winter driving and road safety.
On Sunday mornings, many newcomers to Canada have begun attending church. The church is known as very warm and welcoming, to the credit of long-time residents who had little experience with new Canadians. There were other possible roadblocks too. Only one facilitator had formal ESL experience. Others moved or aged out of the program. However, a few faithful facilitators continued to commit to the program, and did not give up even when it seemed there would not be enough resources to support the work.
At the same time as the ESL ministry was provided, prayer times increased in the church. Along with a weekly prayer meeting addressing the needs of the church, a second prayer meeting began in the evening, every two weeks. This meeting addressed global, local and personal concerns. As prayers were answered, more prayer was requested. Very recently, we have also started a monthly all-church potluck followed by prayer. This has emerged out of the growing relationship with God that new believers are experiencing. In addition, one church member felt especially called to outreach ministry, sharing and inviting newcomers to come to the church. We have had an influx of people, including many Iranians. A Chinese and a Farsi translator ensure Powerpoint messages and Scripture texts are available in other languages during the Pastor’s sermon. We are providing Bibles, both in Farsi and Chinese/English.
There are lessons to be learned from this experience. First, God hears and answers prayer. He knows the needs of our communities and longs to meet them. And secondly, God needs his willing volunteers to partner with Him in the work He wants to do. Finally, as long as we are responding to the Holy Spirit’s leading, His work is unstoppable!