Fall Presbytery 2022
Winter 2022
The October 2022 meeting of the presbytery of the Free Presbyterian Church of North America (FPCNA) took place in Calgary with several members also joining via Zoom. This was the first meeting of presbytery in Canada since the Covid-19 pandemic. The gathering was marked with thanksgiving for the Lord’s hand upon the work in Calgary, where the Rev. Paul Backhurst has been laboring for over 2 ½ years. The members of presbytery joined the church prayer meeting on Tuesday evening and were so grateful for the opportunity to meet many of the congregation and hear their heartfelt prayers.
There were several matters during the business meeting that were reasons for joy and gratitude to God for answers to prayer. Following examination by the Examination Committee, the presbytery approved that Messrs. Pablo Enciso and Ruben Ramirez (pictured with Rev. J. Boyle) come under care of presbytery. These young men are members of the church in Mexico City and have a burden for the preaching of the gospel. Please pray for them as they study in Geneva Reformed Seminary via Zoom. Pray also that they will continue to be a blessing in the Lord’s work in Mexico.
The Examination Committee also reported that they had examined Mr. Logan Elder and it was agreed that Mr. Elder would be licensed as a preacher of the gospel under the auspices of the FPCNA. His licensing was conducted in Faith FPC (see picture).
Another cause for praise is that the Lord’s work continues to advance in Mexico. A request for constitution was received from Coram Deo Reformed Church, Cordoba for constitution as a member of the FPCNA. This was passed to sessions for their consideration. Furthermore, the presbytery gladly agreed to the request from Word of Life Reformed Church in the Dominican Republic to be constituted under the FPCNA. Revs. Banister, Saunders, Boyle, and Pollock will travel to Dominican Republic in January to conduct the constitution service and also the ordination of its minister, Rev. Ramón Sosa.
It is thrilling to consider the Lord’s hand at work in Mexico and the Dominican Republic. We long for seasons of similar growth in the United States and Canada. The Lord works sovereignly where, when, and how He pleases. Yet He has shown in His Word and in history that He is pleased to move in answer to prayer. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord” (2 Timothy 1:7–8a).
Update on the work of Rev. John Kelly
In the last issue of Current, Rev. Kelly outlined his passion and vision for the preaching of the gospel in New England. After traveling extensively through Massachusetts and Vermont in the summer, it became clear by the end of August that the Lord was not opening doors in those states. Rev. Kelly wrote, “I must admit it was a discouraging blow, but the Lord knows exactly what He is doing, and His providence is always good.”
But a door of opportunity did open! That door was in Fort Kent, Maine—the town in which Rev. Kelly had previously pastored. Rev. Kelly continues, “To me it is not ‘accidental’ that all doors have closed for me in Massachusetts and Vermont. What is more astounding is the fact that the very same day the door slammed shut, the Lord swung wide open the door in Maine. And for that matter, to an area and a people whom I love, know, have wept over, and asked the Lord to save.”
During the first week of October, the Kelly family bade farewell to Greenville, South Carolina and made the journey to Maine. Upon arrival, they have held Sunday services and a weekly midweek prayer meeting with a small core group of people. These meetings have been held in the home of a family, but from the first Lord’s Day of December the group will be meeting in the Fort Kent public library. Rev. Kelly reports, “The Lord has given several opportunities to share the gospel with people in our community. The people coming to our services are excited and very much encouraged. They, too, are inviting people to services.”
Please keep this work in prayer—that the Lord would continue to encourage the church and that sinners would be converted.