Categories
Intercultural Compentencies Mission & Outreach

Introducing CultureCross, a Training Resource for Newcomers’ Ministries

TWR Canada has recently completed a 12-week video-led small group curriculum for groups wanting to expand their cross-cultural skills. Twelve different missions ministries from across Canada contributed teachers, and it is now available without cost through an online portal. You can access the full course by signing up here or view all the videos by visiting […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach

Ottawa ESL Prayer Network

By Carey Jo Johnston The need for ESL ministries is growing in Canada as the number of newcomers increases each year. More Christians and Churches are realizing that they have an amazing opportunity to share the love of Jesus with newcomers through ESL ministry. Sometimes trying to start and keep an ESL ministry going seems […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach

Reflections on a Unique ESL Ministry Opportunity

By Mary-Jane Davison Fight4Freedom (F4F) is a Christian ministry that outreaches to and journeys with individuals impacted by the sex industry and trafficking. F4F outreach teams visit locations known to have sex industry activities and seek to build relationships with the individuals at those locations. When they express interest to receive support and/or would like […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach

An Article on Church-Supported ESL Ministries in Canada

In the Fall of 2022, some of you participated in a survey for volunteers working in church-based ESL programs. A summary of the result was published in The ESL Link Volume 14.1 in February 2023. The author of the survey, Gordon Moulden, has written an article based on this survey with additional information. The article […]

Categories
ESL Program Ideas Mission & Outreach Newcomers, Refugees & Internationals

Common Ground

By Allan Pole We want to help new Canadians communicate in English so that they can thrive in a community. We do this by establishing common ground, where our lives intersect, and we recognize we are alike in more ways than might first appear. The Latin word “communis” and the Old French word form “comun” […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach Newcomers, Refugees & Internationals

Ask Your Cucumber How It Got Here?

By Lorna Tatomir, Literacy and Evangelism Canada Strolling down the streets of downtown Leamington on a Friday afternoon, you’ll notice shops full of luggage, running shoes, lineups of Mexican and Caribbean workers at the banks and grocery stores. Spanish/English signs, multiple Taco-serving restaurants and a hum of Spanish language and music brighten the main street. […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach Newcomers, Refugees & Internationals

Look to Jesus, Endure Trauma

By Jenny Zhang “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 Immigration is a life-altering experience that involves leaving everything behind in the home country to seek […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach Newcomers, Refugees & Internationals

ESL for Temporary Foreign Workers in Canada

By Albert Janzen We seldom hear of churches that teach ESL to Temporary Foreign Workers (“TFWs”), and it probably stays below the ministry radar of most churches much as the workers themselves are well below the radar of Canadian multicultural diversity. After all, they are only here temporarily, why should they need good English? There […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach

Ottawa ESL Prayer Network Forming

By Carey Jo Johnston, for the Ottawa ESL Prayer Network Team The vision for networking people in Southern Ontario who are doing ESL ministry started with SOCEM. However, since most of the SOCEM events are in the GTA area, some of us in the Ottawa area thought we might have a subset of SOCEM. It […]

Categories
Mission & Outreach Newcomers, Refugees & Internationals

Latino Temporary Foreign Workers in Canada: Suspended Identity and English

By Albert Janzen God has placed His love in my heart for the young men from Central America who regularly come north as Temporary Foreign Workers to work on our farms. This is like winning the lottery for them because it allows them to assure their family back home with a better life while they […]