Back from the NEFC Conference in Winnipeg. It was very edifying.
Back from the NEFC Conference in Winnipeg. It was very edifying. NEFC stands for the Native Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. There were people from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Duluth MN, Minneapolis MN and me, from DeKalb Illinois. It was a great honor and opportunity to Network with Native Christian leaders and those involved in Christian ministry to Canadian Native people.
This conference was a pilgrimage of sorts for me. I was invited in 2013 but could not come. In 2014 God opened the doors. I looked forward to having fellowship with Native Christian leaders and further networking. To me, the conference was like a great adventure, entering into a world I have never been before.
The theme of the conference is “Moving Forward.” There was news about how the ministry is moving ahead practically. Through messages and the music one can see that the ministry is also moving ahead in the grace of Jesus and in it’s grounding in the word of God, proper doctrine and walking “The Life.” The two speakers were Conrad Flett (President of NEFC and Host of Tribal Trails) and Bill Jackson (Vice President NEFC) The master of ceremonies was Kene Jackson (Executive Director of NEFC). The radio broadcasting was made possible by Dan Hatfield of Nations One For Christ. The band was “By Choice”, a group of four people (Mennonite) who sing Gospel Bluegrass. A guest band came 600 miles from Nelson House in Northern Manitoba.
The conference attendants were a blend of Native and Caucasian people. In the morning sessions I would say that there were 50% Caucasian. They are involved in Native ministry in one way or another. Many were seniors. The morning sessions, each day, might have had 20 people. The evening sessions had approximately 35 people.
From the preaching I could see several different themes. There was an emphasis of trusting Jesus to lead you out of a deep valley or over a high mountain. There is a theme of surrendering your life to Christ and depending on God alone, because you can’t do it on your own. One Gospel song I liked was, “I Can’t Even Walk Without You Holding My Hand.” Once you surrender to Jesus then we need God’s help to walk in the “Good Way.” Bill Jackson talked about the importance of building the church on the right doctrine and upholding the gospel without compromising with synergism and also not being led astray by overemphasizing dreams and visions. We need to be grounded in the teachings of the Bible. I really appreciate their emphasis. They were simply advertising the finished work of Jesus and living “The Life.” It is the pure, unadulterated Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was so refreshing. I realized that our message is to reveal Jesus and what he has done for us on the cross. We are making the finished work of Jesus known, keeping it relevant to the culture we are in.
This conference was a central meeting place for people involved in Native ministry. I met Ed Wood (Les Wills’ teaching partner), Howard Jolly (Native Church Pastor), Joanne Anderson (Indian Life Ministry editor), Tony Angus and Dan Hatfield (Nations One For Christ), Conrad Flett (NEFC President, Tribal Trails host), Bill Jackson (Vice President NEFC, Tribal Trails host), Kene and Milly Jackson (NEFC Executive Director; Freedom River Counseling, Youth Conferences). There was Clair and Clara Schnupp (Northern Youth Program out of Dryden Ontario.) These are to name a few. The singing group, “By Choice” frequents some remote reserve communities to serve in Gospel music festivals.
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