“The goal is to show people that there is a place for everybody in the Kingdom to have a space within ministry.”

Ilana Reimer
Special to Spur Ottawa

Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) is hosting a free citywide missions conference, called “A Heart for Asia and Beyond”. The event aims to equip Ottawa believers with tools to serve and share the gospel in their own communities.

“The ‘and beyond’ part is actually quite important,” says Eileen Lawler, one of the event’s organizers. “What we’re looking for is anybody who’d like to learn more about the world, pray for the world, or reach out to the foreigners in their community.”

In the past, the annual OMF event centred on prayer and stories of mission work in Asia. However, this year, OMF is bringing in members from local churches and ministries to help broaden the focus.

“The fact that they wanted to make that larger and step into other Christian communities, not just within their own OMF community, I felt, was amazing,” Lawler says. “A lot of times, within churches, we don’t want to hand over the reins.”

“The commission is just ‘Go.’”

Unlike many missions conferences, A Heart for Asia and Beyond is not promoting a particular location, organization, or trip. The event aims simply at raising awareness for world missions and encouraging and equipping Ottawa’s Christian community to share the gospel with their neighbours.

“Our goal is to see people reaching out,” says Lawler. “The goal is to show people that there is a place for everybody in the Kingdom to have a space within ministry.”

Lawler wants to encourage people to get past their comfort zones and use their abilities to advance the gospel.

“For each person that looks different, and we don’t always validate that in the Church,” she says. “But the commission is just ‘Go.’ It’s not a specific amount of space, time, or cost. We’ve added those as a culture as time goes on. But in actualization, it’s just ‘Go.’”

Lawler hopes that by joining together and stepping outside of their normal boxes, the city’s churches will share resources and work together.

“I think that one of our goals would be to see people come together and learn and pray together,” she says, “but also to create links across the boundaries of churches and denominations.”

“It’s time we work together and see what God has for this city.”

The conference takes place May 5, at St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church and includes six seminars: three with a global focus and three with a local focus. Two of the sessions delve into building relationships and sharing the gospel with Muslims. Participants can also bring their questions to a panel of Christian workers who have lived and served in Muslim communities.

Other sessions practically explore how Christians can extend hospitality, pray for their world, and share their faith testimonies. Another seminar is more interactive, enabling participants to pray for East Asia and hear OMF missionaries talk about their work.

While Lawler is excited about the conference, she sees it as a starting point. She says the bigger goal is to evaluate what Ottawa needs in the future, help churches link together, and equip people to find their place within the Great Commission.

Lawler emphasizes that collaboration is crucial in moving forward. “It’s time we work together and see what God has for this city.”

To register for A Heart for Asia and Beyond, visit the conference website.