Pastoral Letter: September 2026

Pastoral Letter 
September, 2026 

Dear friends, 
As we approach September, we will be relaunching a lot of the pre-summer ministries.  ESL will start 
again, small groups, Friday night ministries, seniors, …and many others that I am not even aware of.  
Some churches have a kick off Sunday, where all the new programs that are about to start will be 
announced and members can choose where they want to get involved. 
It is a busy time for most churches. But for Trinity Baptist Church, there is an additional challenge—and perhaps an 
additional opportunity—before you: as you consider God’s leading  as you prayerfully discern the senior pastor to 
shepherd you.  You are living through a season of transition, moving from where you have been toward where God 
may be leading you next. It is that interesting place in our spiritual journey that we sometimes describe as the “now 
and not yet.” We know where we are, but we do not yet fully know what lies ahead. 
That can be an uncomfortable place to live. Most of us would rather know the plan. We would rather know where 
we are going and how we are going to get there. But these in-between places can also become some of the richest 
places for spiritual formation. They teach us to trust, to listen, to pray, and sometimes simply to wait. 
The people of God have been in places like this many times.  And each time they have overcome and 
emerged more healthy spiritually than whence they started.  Remember the Exodus from slavery to 
freedom, from Egypt to Canaan, from Israel to Babylon and back.  Remember the rise and fall of many 
good and not so good leadership.   Through times of plenty and times of famine, through times of peace 
and times of persecution, through it all, we are still here.  St. Paul makes this extraordinary claim in his 
letter to the Romans:  
38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love..… 39 No power in the sky 
above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love 
of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.  - Rom 8:38,39 
So my encouragement to the people of Trinity is don’t worry.  Don’t be anxious, don’t be afraid, God’s 
people have been here before and we are still here.  
I want to close this letter with an experience I had while serving with friends in China.  As our Masters 
program came to a close, two of our students came with us to Northern Thailand to learn about mission 
and work cross-culturally with the Thai people. Towards the end of the program, I was sitting with one of 
my students who was a minister in a small city where we served.  It was a difficult time for the church as 
the government was cracking down on outreach ministries a church could be involved in. . They were 
forced to close down church organized and managed students centres that our Canadian churches had 
helped in support and training.  These centres ministered to “left-behind” children, whose parents had left 
them back in the villages to work in the many growing cities of China. 
Their sermons had to be scrutinized, their ability to share minimized.  Later, his senior pastor will be 
arrested and jailed for over two years.  I asked him, with all the pressure they were currently facing how 
he was feeling.  He turned to me and concurred that ministry was getting more difficult, even dangerous.  
But…I’ll never forget his reply as He turned to face me with a smile on his face and said “…but we are not 
afraid!”  I get pretty emotional when I think of that moment - “We are not afraid.” 
Those words have stayed with me because they were not the words of someone who denied the difficulties 
around him. He knew exactly what was happening. He knew the risks. But he also knew that God was 
with them, and that gave him courage.And that is what I want to say to you, the congregation of Trinity 
Baptist Church, as you enter this season of discernment: **do not be afraid.** 
The God who was with Israel through the wilderness is with you. The God who has sustained His people 
through generations of uncertainty and change is with you. The God who strengthens our brothers and 
sisters in places where following Christ can be costly is the same God who walks with Trinity today. 
You may not yet know exactly where God is leading you. You do not need to have all the answers today. 
Be still. Listen carefully. Pray together. Trust one another. And above all, remember that God—our 
God—is with you.
Joy and Peace, 
Pastor Tom


牧者家書 
September 2026 
亲爱的弟兄姊妹： 
随着九月的到来，许多暑假前暂停的事工又要重新开始了。英语班（ESL）、小组、星期五晚上的事工、
长者事工……还有许多我甚至不完全知道的服事，都将陆续恢复。有些教会会举办一个“事工启动主日”，
介绍新一季即将展开的各项事工，也让弟兄姊妹有机会思想自己可以在哪些方面参与服事。 
对大多数教会来说，这已经是一个忙碌的季节。但对三一浸信会来说，你们还面对另一个挑战，就是在寻
求和分辨的过程中，明白上帝正在怎样带领你们，并且祂要把这个群体带往什么方向。 
这是一个过渡的季节——从你们现在所在的地方，走向上帝将要带领你们去的地方。这也是我们属灵旅程
中一个很特别的阶段，我们活在“已经”和“尚未”之间。 
这样的地方有时候会让人感到不安，但同时，它也为我们提供了很大的空间，让上帝塑造我们的生命。 
上帝的百姓过去曾经无数次走过这样的路。而一次又一次，他们走过来了，并且在属灵生命上变得比以前
更加成熟、更加健康。 
想想以色列人从奴役走向自由，从埃及走向迦南；后来又从以色列被掳到巴比伦，再从巴比伦归回故土。
想想上帝百姓经历过多少领袖的兴起和衰落——有好的领袖，也有不那么好的领袖。 
他们经历过丰盛，也经历过饥荒；经历过和平，也经历过逼迫。 
但经过这一切，我们仍然在这里。 
使徒保罗在写给罗马教会的信中，作出了一个非常有力量的宣告： 
“因为我深信，无论是死，是生，是天使，是掌权的，是有能的，是现在的事，是将来的事，是高处的，
是低处的，是别的受造之物，都不能叫我们与上帝的爱隔绝；这爱是在我们的主基督耶稣里的。” 
——罗马书 8:38–39 
所以，我想给三一浸信会弟兄姊妹的鼓励就是：不要忧虑。不要焦急。不要害怕 
上帝的百姓以前走过这样的路，而我们今天仍然在这里。 
在结束这封信以前，我想与你们分享一段我曾经和朋友们在中国服事时的经历。 
当我们的硕士课程快要结束的时候，有两位学生跟我们一起前往泰国北部，学习宣教，并亲身体验如何在
不同文化中与泰国人一起生活和服事。 课程快结束的时候，我和其中一位学生坐在一起谈话。他是一位
牧者，在我们曾经服事过的一个小城市里牧会。 
那时对当地教会来说，是一个非常艰难的时期。政府正在加强对教会外展事工的限制。教会所组织和管理
的一些学生中心被迫关闭，而这些中心过去曾经得到加拿大教会在资源和培训上的支持。 
这些学生中心主要服事那些“留守儿童”——他们的父母离开农村，到中国不断发展的大城市里工作，只能
把孩子留在家乡。 
他们的讲道受到越来越严格的审查，他们能够公开分享信仰的空间也越来越小。后来，这位牧者的主任牧
师甚至被逮捕，并被关押了两年多。我问他，在面对这么大的压力和困难时，他心里有什么感受。他告诉
我，服事的确越来越困难，甚至越来越危险。但是…… 
我永远不会忘记他接下来所说的话。他转过身来看着我，脸上带着微笑，说：“但是，我们不害怕”. 
这些话一直留在我的心里，因为这并不是一个否认眼前困难的人所说的话。他非常清楚正在发生什么，也
知道自己所面对的风险。但是，他同样知道上帝与他们同在，而这给了他勇气。 
所以，我也想这样鼓励三一浸信会的弟兄姊妹：当你们进入这个寻求和分辨的季节时，不要害怕。那位曾
经陪伴以色列百姓走过旷野的上帝，那位在历世历代艰难的岁月中与弟兄姊妹同行的上帝，那位今天仍然
与那些在逼迫中持守信仰的弟兄姊妹同在的上帝——祂也与你们同在。 
所以，只要安静下来。聆听祂。并且知道：上帝——我们的上帝——与你们同在。 
愿你们满有喜乐和平安， 
梅牧师