Toronto Trip

Tracey and I are excited about our up coming trip to Toronto! We are coming up there in June to "pee around the tree" sort of speak. We will be marking our territory for a church to launch. This trip is necessary for those who may join us in this mission. We all need to find places to live, near jobs, etc... Keep us in your prayers. We want to be in the town God would have us build a church and start talking to families in Toronto about this exciting adventure.

So...what can you pray for? When I pray about Toronto, I think of what Paul instructed the Thessalonians to pray when they were going to a new place.

2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

1. Pray that the Word of God would spread rapidly and be honored. I cannot stress enough the importance of getting the Word our quickly so we can gather many families in establishing a strong church. It takes resources and rapid, honored responses
2. Pray that we are delivered from wicked and evil men. It is no secret that there will be resistance. We expect it. But...we need to pray away those who would make it their mission to sink a church and discourage those who want to build a church for His glory.
3. Pray for strength and protection from the evil one (Satan). Satan is the enemy of Christ and His church. We know this and feel his attacks even as we are still living in Fairfax, VA.
4. Pray that we will continue to do His commands. It is easy to get side tracked when things get hard in ministry. We know there will be hardship and we know there will be many distractions. Even good ministry ideas could distract us from the mission of the church. Lord help us to keep focused on You and the calling!
5. Pray that God will direct our hearts in His love and persevere. I probably don't need to make comments about this one. It is "where we live" and need to remain throughout our entire ministry.
   

Thank you for praying specifically for the Dowdys!

Hello Toronto!

I just placed myself on a list of blogs for Toronto and Ontario residents.  Thanks for taking the time to read this blog. I hope you will sign up and get to know me.  I'm coming to Toronto to start a church next summer, 2010. This is an important step for our family.  

I grew up in Windsor and have a lot of fond memories. My father pastors a church there - I loved growing up in Canada and in church. I look forward to coming to Toronto and being re-introduced to Canadian culture - especially looking forward to being near restaurants that serve good poutine, Tim Horton's and other distinctly Canadian foods. I love hockey and catch the games when I can. By the way, the Red Wings and Ducks game was great yesterday! Wish Detroit had won but enjoyed 4 1/2 hours of hockey! It was a good day, eh?

Tracey, my wife, grew up on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. Her maiden name is Mac Lean and I am convinced that she is related to most of Cape Breton Island. She is a awesome cook. She grew up learning highland dances and and admitted to eating a few dinners that included haggis.  Scary, right? Better yet, several of her family and friends are crab & lobster are commercial fisherman and I get to go on the boats with them when we vacation. If you've never visited the east coast of Canada, you have to do it. Very beautiful and perfect seafood.

Above all, we look forward to reaching a community with the Gospel. We hope to confirm our location this summer so keep up in your prayers. We want to be where God would place us and establish a grewing church for His glory! We will need a lot of support and help once we get there. If we end up in your community, please let us know!

I will continue to write, hope you will continue to stay interested.

Roy & Tracey Dowdy