While most across Tennessee enjoyed a relaxing Memorial Day weekend, seven Tennessee Baptists were sent on a vision trip to Alberta, Canada.
Our purpose was simple: meet with leaders of the Canadian National Baptist Convention (CNBC), along with pastors and church planters, to explore a potential partnership between our conventions.
The CNBC shares a beautiful campus with the Canadian Baptist Theological Seminary, overlooking the growing town of Cochrane in the foothills of Banff National Park.
Their mission is clear and compelling: “Kingdom. Gospel. Mission. Kingdom is our mission. Gospel is our message. Movement is our mandate.”
The spiritual landscape in Canada is sobering. Out of roughly 41.5 million people, only about 5% identify as Christian. By comparison, California is around 20%, while Tennessee — consistently ranked among the most Christian states — sits near 75%.
To meet that challenge, the CNBC is laser-focused on church planting and disciple-making. In 2000, there were about 200 Baptist churches across Canada. Today, there are around 550. For perspective, Tennessee has more than 3,000 Baptist churches, with nearly 500 in Harvest Field 1 alone.
Our team spent time in Calgary and Edmonton — two rapidly growing cities of more than 1.5 million people each, fueled largely by immigration. Between those two cities, there are only about 90 churches and just 18 physical church buildings.
Space and affordability came up in every conversation. As a result, church planters are getting creative — meeting in community centers, schools, shared church spaces, malls, and even grocery stores.
We met church planters from Eritrea, India, Congo, Rwanda, England, the Philippines, Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Their stories were as powerful as they were humbling.
One planter survived a shipwreck, spending over 10 hours in the sea while others perished. He endured imprisonment and persecution, escaped across deserts while avoiding spies, and eventually arrived in Alberta — where he and his family are now planting a church.
Another survived a near lion attack and narrowly escaped the Rwandan genocide. After building a successful business, he is now planting a church in Edmonton with his family.
One of the most striking stories came from a planter from the Philippines. When a large Filipino supermarket opened in his community, he saw an opportunity.
What started as a Bible study inside the store grew so quickly that employees asked management if they could hold Sunday services before opening. Today, they meet at 7 a.m. — and even hold baptisms in the parking lot.
While in Calgary, we shared breakfast with a group of Filipino church planters. Standing outside the restaurant, their leader pulled out his laptop and walked us through a detailed plan to reach Alberta through intentional disciple-making.
Our team stood in awe. Many of us were moved to tears by the urgency we felt — an urgency we rarely experience in the comfort of the Bible Belt.
That’s when we heard the line that summed up the entire trip. He said, “If a new convert doesn’t show seriousness about their faith after 4-6 months of discipleship, we move on and invest in those who are ready. We don’t have time to dilly-dally.” We laughed — but we also felt the weight of conviction.
God is clearly at work in Canada. These churches need partners — churches who will pray, engage, and stand alongside them in ministry. They need pastors to connect with to combat isolation. But here’s the truth: We need them, too.
They carry the urgency and intentionality we read about in Acts. In a culture where comfort and tradition can quietly take over, we need Canadian partners who will challenge us — who will wake us up.
This November, if our convention chooses to enter a partnership with the CNBC, I encourage you to prayerfully consider your role in what God is doing. B&R — Cliff Marion is pastor of FBC Covington and Chair-elect of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board’s Board of Directors.