“We need to establish ourselves as being for them.”

Craig Macartney
Spur Ottawa Writer

Establishing trust and relevance are two of the biggest hurdles for the Church in 21st century, post-Christian Canada. Starting his ministry in the small town of Almonte, Matt Dyck knew he had to be visible in the community if he wanted to be effective for the gospel.

“The people you buy your groceries from are the people you see at the mailbox. It is all the same people, you see them all the time,” Dyck says of the community. “I figured I needed to get into my community and get to know people.”

Dyck’s ministry philosophy is simple: find something you love doing and use it to reach out. So shortly after he began pastoring Almonte’s Hillside Reformed Presbyterian Church he walked into the local high school and offered to help coach their football team. Twenty years down the road, he still coaches nearly every day during football season.

“Young men are kind of an exposed people group, particularly in small towns, because they don’t have many options or good influences. That was really my motivation. I thought if I can have a good influence on young men and build relationships, then if I have an opportunity to point them to Christ, that’s great.”

Matt Dyck stands with two of his players, including his son Josiah (left). Photo courtesy of Matt Dyck.

When he started, Dyck says he didn’t know what opportunities God would open up. The gospel is about Christ’s unconditional love for the world, so he decided to reflect that by being unconditionally invested in his community.

“I wasn’t looking to recruit kids to come to the church, just to be there for them and be supportive. We are in a truly post-Christian culture. These young men, their parents have no real connection to church, so we become their first real experience of what a Christian is.”

Dyck says it takes a lot of hours, but every fall God finds some way to show him that it is “good Kingdom work”. Through the relationships he forged, he has ended up officiating weddings of school teachers and former players he coached.

“I am able to speak about building a life on Christ,” he says. “I warn them I’m not holding back. ‘You might have asked your coach, but I’m also a gospel preacher. You’re going to get the whole story.’ Because they trust me, I get licence to say those things.”

Other times, Dyck has had calls from parents who have no Christian background whose son is going through depression or other challenges. The youth sometimes won’t speak to a counsellor, but they open up to their coach and he can share with them the hope of the gospel.

“It is not something where they open the doors of their lives unless they know you and trust you. My encouragement to churches is that, as much as we look toward evangelistic programs—and they have their place, they are excellent—but churches need to encourage their people toward these kind of organic ways of being involved in the community. We need to establish ourselves as being for them. Then, when their worldview begins to fray, they will trust us to speak into it. People are dying for community. Just get out there.”