For your edification, I thought I would give you an idea where all the different towns and cities are, and what we know about them right now.
Starting with the extreme southeast of the province:
Medicine Hat/Redcliff
This was actually the first community we became interested in. Population around 55 thousand, it is out on the prairies, in the valley of the South Saskatchewan River. 3 hours from Calgary. Interesting fact: the city owns its own natural gas reserves, so heating is cheap there.
Our specific interest is actually in Recliff, a small town abutting against the north side of the city. It has a population of 5000 people but only one(!) evangelical church. That makes it a community of interest according to Outreach Canada.
Pros:
- Out of the way, appealingly slow pace of life
- Close proximity to Cypress Hills Provincial Park, a unique area for camping, fishing, etc.
- Growing communities, but not as fast as some others (+17k over the last 20 years).
Cons:
- Far from Edmonton or Calgary, where most of the “action” is. One of the main considerations we have to factor in is how this church fits into Grace Brethren Canada’s vision of creating churches that support more plants. Being further away from where most new churches are needed means less potential impact on the province for God.
- Unclear why Redcliff has so few churches, or if everyone in town is fine with just going to Medicine Hat for church.
- Medicine Hat itself has a good number of churches, and we are in contact with one church planter who is launching in 2009 there, so it may be a bit much to come in and plant again in 2 years.
Tags: church planting, locations, medicine hat
Very interesting Shane,
but one thing I do know, where our God leads, doors will open, and where doors open, if we have courage, God has incredible things in store for us.
Your Friend, and Partner in Ministry,
Randy
rc