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On a recent farm call, I was introduced to a visitor (a Christian foreigner) and 
one of the farmers told that the foreigner was a good man – if only he would
become a Muslim then he would be fine. I asked the farmer why the foreigner
should become a Muslim and he replied, “So he can pray to God!” “He already
prays to God” I replied. Then I asked the farmer a leading question: “Can you
think of any reason this foreigner would want to become a Muslim that would
benefit him over being a Christian believer?” There are quick and easy answers
to that question for Muslim evangelists, but the farmer said he would think
about it and we would talk again the next time I came to his farm. I look
forward to that.

Reflecting on the question I asked, however, I wonder – was I insinuating  that a valid reason for being a Christian was personal benefit? Was I to some degree preaching Christ because it benefits me and do I desire others to become like me so as to share in the benefits?

Serving in the mission field does not necessarily mean leaving your country and travelling to some 3rd world country, bringing your “foreign” culture and clothes with you, preaching from your own variety of theological background and asking people to repeat the same words that you did when you became a Christian. It’s not necessarily helping others to memorize your “Christian phrases” and to mimic your style of worship.

We can tend to preach a type of Christianity that satisfies ourselves. Living in other cultures and places with mind-sets very different than ours (and I presume in North America too) we risk reaching a point when we put our head on the pillow and look back over the day and can identify moments when we showed other people that they were wrong. We can tend to spread a gospel that makes us feels right and other people wrong! We may corrupt Jesus’ teachings by promoting a Christianity that makes ourselves feel comfortable and yes, maybe even a little superior.

I used to think that a goal of my Christian faith was to make me feel good  and to help me live in such a way to increase my understanding and give me ways to improve myself and be satisfied with growth in spiritual knowledge and action. I was, however, forgetting that the central message of Christianity is abandonment of self!

Preaching the Gospel rarely leads to fairy tale endings such as a whole village turning to Christ. Spreading the good news is not simply telling an emotional or romantic story about some poor humble guy had nothing else to do but live a moral life and then give it up for some sinners. It is not primarily a means of self-improvement. It’s not a ‘Once upon a time’ and ‘lived happily ever after’ type of guarantee.

Two months ago, something happened that challenged my view of mission work
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I am sitting at my desk near an open window in my room in the SCHDO (Sierra
Canadian Humanitarian and Development Organization) guesthouse. Outside, the rain is pouring buckets straight down from heaven. This is a typical downpour in the rainy season of Sierra Leone.

We arrived three days ago. Cautiously, I want to share that exciting things are happening in Sierra Leone and with our organization, SCHDO. With me on this mission trip is Bill Boston a farmer from Illinois. We have known each other since 1969 when I arrived as a greenhorn in Sierra Leone and he was the head of the Animal Science Department of what is now Njala University, and also my boss. Besides lecturing at the university, we operated a small for profit Agribusiness in the Animal Science Department consisting of a feed mill, slaughter house and raising pigs, poultry and cattle. We produced the best meat in the country at that time. Things have changed since then. During the civil war of 1991 to 2002, Njala University College was destroyed and evacuated from the country into Freetown. Three years ago students and staff were being moved back in and the rebuilding process has begun.

Bill and I have two main goals, we want to help the local pig and poultry farmers by expanding our feed mill to supply feed. Secondly, we want to help the Animal Science Department of Njala University to become a profit center again as it was before..

My cautious optimism is that the progress I am discussing here is broader in the country as whole. Roads are starting to be built. Mining companies are much more active. Outside of Freetown many houses are being built. How is the population as a whole? They are still suffering. Fuel prices have gone up. Inflation continues. There is still an extremely high unemployment and underemployment rate. But there is a flickering light at the end of the tunnel.

We are continuing our work with subsistence farmers both in poultry and corn. We have 125 water filters that we want to distribute to needy women with young children. Our container is in the port and besides poultry feed premix and poultry feeders, we have a variety of goods, including Ontario Gleaner soup mix for two orphanages and polio victims, some sewing machines, tools, medical supplies, and much more to distribute to the neediest people.

Please pray for our work, for the alleviation of poverty in Sierra Leone, that the gospel be spread, that the captives of poverty and spiritual oppression be set free. Pray for the SCHDO staff and workers and that the Lord will provide the resources to carry out the work.

-Conrad Van Dijk
July 10, 2011 (early morning)

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Jeremiah 29:9-11

God has plans for you and for CVMCanada! We are seeking His will: that it may be done and that we are available to do His bidding. With this in mind, our AGM was held in Bulington recently. All of the Directors attended from across Canada, and we believe the Lord blessed our time together.

Some highlights included celebration of the Lord’s blessings in putting the Canadian office in the position that the board has been working toward for a year now. We are now in a solid debit position and are planning new work. Some of these include extending funds from our Canadian Ministry funds to be budgeted to encourage students to plan short term missions.  This would include grants toward their STM costs. We can also use this budget to investigate a mission to answer a call from Armstrong in Northern Ontario.

We celebrated with our friends heading to Rwanda in July and prayed with them for their vision and efforts. Please do pray for them as well— for safety and work in the Udder Project as they are in Rwanda now at time of writing this article. May the Lord protect them and guide them and use their labours to bring others to Him.

Much more transpired as we even made new friends at the barbecue and were challenged by Dr. Louis Kwantes and  Dr. Tom Mulder. There are great challenges to step out for the Lord here in Canada and all over the world. He has plans for you! Be at the AGM next year, you will be blessed.

As we write this we are at CVMA in Halifax. We have met some interesting and special people, please pray that they will join our cause and use  their special gift of veterinary medicine to tell others of our Lord. We have been given much and have a special platform from which to tell of Jesus, may we use it well. To whom much is given, much is required.

- Dr. Len Carr (Interim Executive Director)
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Each year our friends at CVM US hold a workshop for Christian Vets interested in missions and ministry. This conference/workshop is one that members of CVMCanada attend each year, and those who have gone in the past have really learned a lot. The conference has a lot to offer, not only for Vets interested in long-term missions, but also those interested in building their faith, and learning great tips for their practice. It is also a great time of fellowship and networking with other Christian Vets and their spouses.

The Annual CVM Short Course session is designed for those seeking God’s will in discovering the role full-time missions will play in their lives. The session will be seek to answer the following questions:
o   How do you know if God is calling you?
o   Where could you serve?
o   How can God use a Vet?
o   Is CVM the best agency for me to serve with?
o   How is a vet missionary funded?
 
If you are interested, come join CVM staff  and Veterinary Missionaries at the CVM Shortcourse in Kansas City Missouri August 24 to 26th.
 
Register now to get the early registration rates at Shortcourse 2011.
 
If you are not interested in the learning about long-term missions, there are other sessions which might interest you still. Other topics include:
o   How to do effective Short Term Mission
o   Disaster preparedness Training
o   Using God’s word to address interpersonal relationships at work and at home to address life the way God intended 

A great highlight of the conference is the great worship, sharing and fellowship. Hope to see you there!
email shortcourse@cvmusa.org for more information.
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Mongolian Veterinary Students who attended the games and Bible study night held every Wednesday.
In the fall of 2010 and 2011, I worked as a shuttle veterinarian in a small animal
veterinary hospital in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The hospital was operated by V.E.T. Net (Veterinary Education Training Network) of Mongolia.

On my first trip in October 2010 I was immediately put to work assisting in surgery at the small animal clinic. After dropping off my luggage at my apartment my Mongolian guide took me to the small animal clinic. Within an hour I was assisting a young Mongolian veterinarian in surgery to correct a foreign body blockage using multiple enterotomies to retrieve a cloth bag that a dog had eaten two days before.

Mongolia is a developing country bordered by Russia on the north and China on the south. It became a communist country, aligning itself with the Soviet Union after breaking away from China in 1921. In 1992 it became a parliamentary republic with the introduction of perestroika and glasnost in the USSR. (Click below to continue reading)
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The following is a Sierra Leone Missions update from Conrad Van Dijk, taken from our Sierra Leone e-newsletter.

"This trip was a journey of faith and we tried to live out Proverbs 3: 5 and 6  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…and he will make your paths straight” The Lord surely blessed us and allowed us to get a lot accomplished, for which we are very thankful... (Please click below to read the rest of this post).
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CVMCanada had the privilege of attending the 2011 AAHA/OVMA conference in Toronto with our American counterpart/sister organization, CVM (Christian Veterinary Mission). The event took place over the weekend of March 24-27, and proved to be fruitful in advancing our ministries and building fellowship amongst Christian, Canadian vets. CVMCanada board member, Becky Holvik, wrote an update on her experience at the conference:

"As many of you know the OVMA conference was a combined event with the AAHA conference and it all occurred in Toronto.  There were good things (quality of conference) and bad things (crowding) about a large event like this.  But, for us at CVM/CVMC it was a good thing.  We had a unique chance to meet and share our message with veterinarians from all over North America right in Toronto and we made some new contacts.  We had a seminar on the Friday night led by Dr. Wendell Cantrell from CVM USA (I did not get to attend this due to my work schedule, but I am sure it was excellent).  We also had a very well attended fellowship breakfast on Saturday morning with a devotional from Dr. Cantrell followed by a time of sharing and prayer.  I left wishing I could have spent more time with our American brothers and sisters and it increased my desire to make a trip to their "Short Course" or other events."

Were you at the AAHA/OVMA conference this year? What did you think?
We're gearing up for the CVMA convention in Halifax in July. See you then!
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Here are some of the highlights from the latest Hope for Nigeria Newsletter. For the full newsletter, see our Overseas Missions page.

Hope for Nigeria is working together with the Mennonite Brethren Charity Organization of Nigeria in the organization and operation of successful poultry operations for beginning poultry farms in Nigeria. Our ultimate goal is to portray Christ’s loving by helping the poor people of Nigeria in this material way.

In early November, Charles and Dennis, together with their wives, traveled to Nigeria to visit the four farms and meet with our contacts in Nigeria. We inspected the existing farms, and Dennis gave training sessions in basic bookkeeping. The farms have become profitable, and the loans to the farmers are being paid back. However, some improvement was needed in the record keeping, both to satisfy our government’s requirements, and for the farmers’ own benefit in managing their new businesses.

Charles and Dennis also met with Dr. Gbenga Idowu of the Christian Veterinarians Nigeria organization. Dr. Idowu has been invaluable in providing direction, advice and oversight for the farmers. It was good to meet with him and discuss the current issues affecting the project in Nigeria. Two of the farmers have switched to raising layers, and Dr. Idowu had a lot of valuable insight to share with us on raising layers and producing and marketing eggs in the Nigerian setting.

On the ground in Fugar, the Mennonite Brethren Charity Organization (MBCO) oversees the poultry projects, and some members are the first to participate as chicken farmers. By operating their own chicken farms, they in turn can train and oversee other local farmers who are in need of an income to help them out of poverty. Our role in the project is to provide the members in Nigeria with advice, direction and funding. We are excited about this project, but we cannot
maintain this work alone. We need willing participants to provide funding, advice, and other material aid. We earnestly solicit your prayers, advice, and generous donations for this worthy project.

If you want to receive regular updates from the Hope for Nigeria project, contact us to have your name added to the email list.

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     Here we are - March 2011 and CVMCanada is at a very important time in its history. After a couple of lean years financially, CVMC had to make some key changes. Thanks to faithful donors and leaders, it is well and we are ready to move on to even greater things in God’s work, but CVMC still needs you!

     I am an old timer and have enjoyed so much the veterinary profession. Some of the very special blessings of the profession are the great clients, staff, and fellow veterinarians. We have met many great Christian people in the veterinary profession, people who have crossed our paths, touched our lives in a meaningful way – and sadly moved on. Ever sit and wonder where they are?  What triggered these thoughts was a visit to our home on the event of the annual meeting of CVMC - a meeting attended by one such individual. You see when I was a young student, starting to make my way in the veterinary world, there was a professor who invited us into his home – he and his lovely wife cooked us a great meal, ministered encouragement to us in a low key way and sent us on our way. Dr. Barnum ministered in his professional way for so many years to so many students and it was a thrill to see him again on that evening! 

     There are so many more special individuals – people who love Jesus Christ and are involved in the veterinary world. Has it ever occurred to you how great a body of people we could be  working together for His kingdom  if we stayed attached as a body and pooled our unique abilities for Christ?

    I believe that this is the current mission of CVMC - how can we draw back together many of you to minister together – to minister here in Canada – to minister around the world – to help our veterinary college students as they launch their careers – to help one another in business – to offer help to one another’s staff members – we have such unique gifts given to us by our God!

    How can we help one another? Any ideas? Leave us a comment and lets hear those thoughts and move forward helping one another to use our gifts for His kingdom. We can start by continuing in prayer for one another.

- Dr. Len Carr (Interim Executive Director)
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We've been hard at work at the CVMCanada office in Burlington, Ontario, to launch this new site. I hope you have had a chance to look at all the different features that we have added so far. In order to best promote CVMCanada and its different projects, it was time to update our website and make it more user-friendly for our present and future supporters. With our recent office transition from Dundas to Burlington, Ontario, it feels as if we are turning over a new leaf at CVMCanada. Our new website is just one step of many in a fresh beginning.

This blog will be a source of news from our office in Canada, as well as missions updates from our Long and Short term missions trips all around the world. You can look here for prayer requests and maybe some pictures too.

We are excited to hear what you think about the new look of our website! Feel free to suggest any features you think we should add, or give us helpful suggestions on how we can make this site even better. Leave us a comment below, or email at admin@cvmcanada.org

-Rachel, Office Administrator
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