Photo cred: Padli Pradana

Written by: David Hood

In May of 2016, Diana and I left a small discernment gathering in Montreal excited, nervous, a little terrified, and quite frankly surprised that we had received the green light to plant a church in Ottawa with the full support of the C2C Network. I think there was a part of us that thought we would never get picked to do something like this, picked by God or by anyone. You have to understand I don’t seek out risk and uncertainty and lack of structure. This was a call, and there was a part of me that knew that if we didn’t do this, if we didn’t enter into this adventure with all of its unknowns, if we didn’t trust God in this way and follow Him into this, something would die in us. But there was also a part of me that thought I was crazy and the C2C guys would figure that out and put a stop to all of this. They didn’t, and I couldn’t be more grateful because as stressful and stretching as this has been at times, and as painful as it has been at times, I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else and I can’t imagine my life without the beautiful people, culture, and mission of Southeast City Church. We have experienced God in profound ways together and seen Him move undeniably in our lives and neighbourhood.

In September 2016, after that green light, Diana and I started our internship at Sequoia Community Church. We were blown away by the love, generosity, and support of total strangers who we had no history with. The people of Sequoia are truly some of the most encouraging people on the planet and Ryan and Vanessa are two of the most encouraging leaders. One thing we knew we wanted when we left Sequoia was for our church to be a place where people feel loved, seen, and cared for.

Throughout that year we had prayer meetings in our basement, prayer walks through the neighbourhood, and vision nights. In August 2017 we had our first Jesus 101 Bible study in our home, and in November 2017 we held our first preview service to give people something of a taste of what our church’s Sunday expression was going to be like. We crammed 70+ people into a small overflow room at Emmanuel United Church. We could barely move, it was hot, and when it came time to take communion, people couldn’t maneuver to get to the table. It was messy but beautiful. We held 5 of those services at Emmanuel over 5 months and eventually, we went to bi-weekly services to build our team and momentum. In September 2019 we finally felt ready to invite the neighbourhood to come meet Southeast City Church and the rest is history.

As I think back over the last 5 years, the verse that keeps coming to mind is from David’s prayer in 2 Samuel 7: Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house that You have brought me this far? Who am I and who are we that God has brought us this far? And He has brought us far. Here are just a few examples:

• When Diana and I first announced we were planting a church, we had only one other couple join us and we had no sending church. At times it felt like a fool’s errand and a pipe dream and like nothing was actually going to come of this. But along the way God kept drawing more and more into our circle, many of whom are still with us today. We slowly grew and now we’re about 70 people, and as I look back I’ve realized that at no point did we ever not have who and what we needed at any given time to do what we had to do.
• When we started, our kids were the only kids. We prayed for a long time for more kids and now we have a bustling Children’s Church and an ever-growing nursery. Our family services are full of noise and at the end of dinner at our house on Sunday nights Diana and I are picking up Thomas trains and Paw Patrol vehicles all over the house.
• When we started, we had no idea that a global pandemic was going to upset a lot of our plans. When COVID hit, we were like a toddler, barely able to stand or walk, still needing a lot of help, and we shouldn’t have made it. But here we are. Not only are we still here, I believe we’re stronger than ever.
• When we started serving at Russell Gardens, people were suspicious of us, but we chose faithful presence and the long burn. We didn’t try to make things happen, insist on our own way, or give up because things weren’t moving fast enough or weren’t dramatic enough. By taking it slow, not making it about us, and simply showing up consistently with no agenda other than to help in whatever ways were needed we have come to be seen and valued as reliable partners who bring something unique and important to the table. Not only were we able to build a Food Bank on site that has never once failed to open its doors since 2021, we are now even able to go in and offer direct spiritual care to people through prayer. I am grateful that we have not just served but have developed meaningful personal connections and friendships with our neighbours who are experiencing poverty, addictions, mental illness, trauma, isolation, and loneliness, and that we have been able to be consistently present with them in their community. For many people there we are their church and I am their pastor.

It has been a wild ride full of ups and downs, highs and lows, high highs and low lows, but I can honestly say all my life God has been faithful, all my life He has been so, so good. There’s a lot to be proud of, not for our own sakes but because these things are evidence that God is at work in us!

Who are we? We’re nobody, but our God is somebody and He has delighted to grow us and use us.

These are a few of the verses that have encouraged me over the years on this journey:

Zechariah 4: Do not despise…small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin- God is glorified in humble starts and slow, deep growth.

Matthew 13: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree- something small can become something significant.

Galatians 6: we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up- it is worth it to keep going because God will never fail to do something with our faithful efforts.

Happy 5^th anniversary Southeast City. May God make His face shine upon us for many years to come. All glory be to Him forever and ever. Amen.