In the spring of 2010, while Pastor Larry was new to Chatham he had been invited to participate in a ‘reconciliation’ workshop in Quebec, being facilitated by The Canadian Baptists of Ontario & Quebec (CBOQ). Upon his arrival he was approached by the CBOQ staff regarding an inquiry they had recently received; a Christian business investor had an available facility in Chatham and he was looking for someone with a missional heart towards ministry. The investor flew in and after much prayer the ownership of the historic Pines Chapel was transferred to our newly formed missional outreach work - Joshua Ministries; and all for the unbelievable price of $1. The chapel however had been left in disrepair for quite some time and there were those that thought the cost of renovations and repairs would be out of our reach and they were right…but it wasn’t out of God’s reach. Within days of acquiring the building an anonymous donor came forward with a cheque for $100,000; just what we needed to get going.We were able to stretch those funds by doing most of the manual labour and God worked many miracles as the building took shape.
A few months later our funds were pretty much depleted and yet we still needed to modify washrooms. Pastor Larry remembers sitting in the parking lot and talking it over with God. He knew that God wouldn’t have taken things this far and not see it through. While he was in his car he received a phone call from someone who had heard about our ministry and wanted to make an anonymous donation of $40,000. Praise God!
To date our facility is approximately 80% restored. We have a café ministry on the lower level that reaches out to the high school students and staff just steps from our door. Over the years we have made many friendships and have gained the trust and respect of the school as a whole; because of this trust students open up to us and we are better able to care for them. As we are physically attached to Grand Retirement Community we are passionate and creative in ways to bring the generations together.
Currently we have a group of like minded folks that we affectionately refer to as our JM Family that support the notion that serving opportunities often happen in the ‘cracks” of life and not just on Sundays. We are committed to being relational and connecting with those God puts in our path daily. We have been intentional in choosing to meet in our café on Sunday mornings to encourage a relaxed and comfortable setting that fosters relationship; the chapel is used for larger scale events and services throughout the year. God’s journey with us is relatively fresh and new but oh so exciting.
We would love to hear from you so please drop us a line or feel free to call us at 226 724-7515; we are just friends and family that have yet to meet.
