CBT and the CNBC: Working Together to Advance the Kingdom
The relationship between the Canadian Baptist Theological Seminary and College and our parent denomination, the Canadian National Baptist Convention, has always been one of mutual support and trust. Our institution was founded by a vote of the CNBC (then the CCSB – Canadian Convention of Southern Baptists) in 1985 – the same year that the convention itself had been founded. As such, the two organizations have been working side by side for their entire existence, with the convention officially owning and supporting the school and the school constantly working to train more workers for the mission field that is the heart of the CNBC, both in Canada and around the world.
Now that CBT and the CNBC have both been operating for more than 35 years, we are starting to see multiple generations of men and women who have been trained at our school take up leadership roles within our convention. In addition to alumni pastors who serve in CNBC churches, the convention leadership itself has seen increasing numbers of CBT graduates filling its ranks, as God calls them to use their training to reach and raise up more leaders within Canada. Following the retirement of CNBC Executive Director Gerry Taillon, the convention moved to hire Jeff Christopherson, a member of the first-ever graduating class of CBT in 1990. We will feature an interview with Jeff in a future article. In the meantime, collected below are the stories of our other graduates currently serving in staff leadership positions within the CNBC. Please enjoy these testimonies, and pray for these men and women as they dream and work towards extending the hope of the gospel in Canada.
Kathy Morales
I serve as Team Leader for CNBC women. One of the miracles after my encounter with Jesus in 1984 was an insatiable desire to read the Bible, a book I had never opened before this. God called me to teach preschoolers His word at Towers Baptist Church in Richmond, BC, almost as soon as I found my way to the church. This church trusted me, a brand-new believer, with those precious little ones. They were my training ground. A few years later I was invited to teach the adult Vacation Bible School (VBS) class at Royal Heights Baptist Church in Delta, BC. Thus began my love for helping women get into the Word. At VBS, I prayed with an adult in my class to invite Jesus into her life. That privilege gave me a spark to ask God to use me to share the good news of Jesus with women. We moved from Richmond, BC to Cochrane, Alberta. While my husband was a student at CBT, I attended classes occasionally, eventually completing a certificate in Christian Ministry Education. My “vocational” pathway also took me to the seminary where I was hired as the bookstore manager. While there, Frankie Falkner, an International Mission Board missionary and wife of CBT academic dean Bill Falkner, invited me to speak at Dayspring, a CNBC women’s conference in Calgary, Saskatoon, and Toronto. After that, I resigned from the CBT bookstore to say “yes” to speaking and teaching. My search for part-time work led me to the CNBC, first as receptionist, then as administrative assistant for Bob Shelton. He recognized God’s call on my life for women and the word and he encouraged me to say “yes” to the opportunity to serve in a very part time capacity with CNBC women. Bob said, “you and God will figure it out.” We did. The end of the story is CNBC Women eventually grew to a full-time role. That was my path to becoming a National Team Leader. To God be the glory.
Peter Blackaby
I currently serve as Send City Missionary for my hometown of Vancouver, BC. In this role, I lead a team that helps churches plant churches in Metro Vancouver, Greater Victoria, and throughout the province of British Columbia. Since graduating from CBT Seminary, I have served in several different roles with Trinity Baptist Church Calgary, the Canadian National Baptist Convention, and, the past 14 years, with North American Mission Board (NAMB) Canada. In 2019, I was serving as the Send Network Canada Director, based in Ontario. Ray Woodard was preparing to retire after years serving faithfully as the Vancouver City Missionary. As discussions started around “what next” in preparation for Ray’s retirement, I began sensing a pull to work more closely with planters, churches, and partners in my home province… a move that the Lord confirmed to my wife long before me (she can tell that story best)! So, in the fall of 2019, Rosemarie and I made the trek across the country. Then, Ray Woodard and I started an intentional 2-year transition plan – right before Covid lockdowns! It has been a ride! But our God is faithful, God is doing great things, and greater things are yet to come. “Now to Him Who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).
Nate Vedoya
I was convinced that I was to pursue my master’s degree at a specific seminary in the States. My parents, recent graduates of CBT, insisted that I first meet with Dr. Richard Blackaby and get his thoughts. Dr. Blackaby simply reasoned and responded, “If you are doing ministry in Canada, it would make sense to study and be trained in Canada” (mic drop!) Having completed an undergraduate degree in theology, my goal was now to complete my Master of Divinity in record time and move on to bigger and brighter things. My journey at CBT started in the fall of 2001, but after a grueling 2.5 years, I found myself depleted mentally, physically, and emotionally. Did I really need four little letters at the end of my name to validate my call to ministry? With only three courses left in my program, I packed up my young family, left the “hill,” and relocated back to Edmonton to do church planting. My MDiv program was conveniently shuffled to the back burner, as I really had no intentions of finishing.
The following ten years were a glorious blur as we found ourselves planting in different contexts. It was while we were in Winnipeg that I received a check-up call from Dr. Steve Booth. Dr. Booth explained that there was an expiration on how long I had to complete my program, and that it was coming close. In all honesty, I was not phased at the thought of not completing my degree, until Dr. Booth appealed to my heart. It wasn’t just simply about adding another “feather to my cap.” It was so much more about my character; about developing tenacity and finishing what I’d started! (mic drop) This appeal, and the fact that my younger brother was about to graduate, spurred me to “get it done.” I am so grateful for our seminary! I’m thankful for the education, but even more for the men and women who were led by the Holy Spirit to give a timely word.
I currently serve as the lead pastor of Church in the Valley, and also as the Send City Missionary for Edmonton. In my role I have the joy of coming alongside fellow pastors, planters, and their families; encouraging them as they minister in tough and trying times. CBT’s vision is “to train God-called men and women for twenty-first century leadership in tough places.” It’s not that ministry in Canada is “tough” – it’s actually impossible if not for the grace of God. Our school, used by God, has taught and trained me in more ways than one to “lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip” (Psalm 121:1-3).
Bo Neal
My journey of faith, as it pertains to CBT and the CNBC, began back in 2004 when I sensed God’s leading to pursue an MDiv degree with CBT. The culture and the community of our school so clearly reflected the heart of God. There was such a sense that the faculty and staff not only worked tirelessly to provide a top-notch education, but also were for the students. They wanted to join God in equipping each student to succeed in life and in ministry wherever God called them.
In my time as a student, God provided the opportunity to serve as an intern at Trinity Baptist Church. It was during that time that God began to move my heart and life toward church planting, which is not something I was anticipating. God raised up a team out of Trinity that would plant Southwinds Church, where I now pastor. As a team, we didn’t necessarily know how to plant a church, but we knew God was calling us so we took a step of faith. It’s now been 15 years since launching Southwinds Church. There have been so many victories, so many challenges, and so many times of discouragement along the way, and through it all, God always has been and always will be faithful.
As a planter and pastor, I asked God to grow me in faith and in leadership. Through the years following that prayer, God provided opportunities to serve within our CNBC region, on the National Leadership Board, as President of our convention, and now as the Associate Executive Director of the CNBC.
What a blessing and what an adventure! In my time as a student at CBT, I could never have imagined that I would be sitting here at this desk serving in this role. But that is exactly how God works. He requires our “yes” first, and then He shows us the next step of faith, and the next step of faith, and the next. We don’t know where we will end up, but we can trust God as He leads and be grateful for the blessing of serving Him and joining Him in His work. It is always for His glory and for the good of His people. I will be forever grateful for the training that I received from our school and for the blessing of every opportunity to serve in a local church and in our convention.
“Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us – to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).
Cesar Parra
I’m the Evangelism/Youth/Missions team leader at the CNBC, and I’ve been serving in this role for five years. God called me to this role when I was on the mission field because of our seminary. Dr. Watson took me on a mission trip when I was a student at CBT, and God spoke to me on that trip and called me to be a missionary in Spain. My wife Mary and I planted a church there, our kids loved it, and we thought we were going spend our whole lives in Spain. But when we were on our first stateside assignment back in Toronto, Salt Jones, the CNBC missions director who was about to retire, and Gerry Taillon both traveled out separately to ask if I would consider coming back to Canada and taking Salt’s place. Gerry said that God could use us in evangelism in Canada, as well as in recruiting international missionaries. We didn’t want to leave Spain. But God spoke to both Mary and me so clearly that we needed to come back, so we called them and said, “Okay. We’re coming back.”
Since then, God has been using me both to get new missionaries onto the mission field and to recruit students for CBT. I think God has given me a gift of convincing people and of being bold and not being afraid. Potential CNBC missionaries will talk to me and say “I’m thinking of going to seminary in Vancouver…or Toronto…” and I say “No. If you’re going to go on mission with us, you come to our seminary. If you want to be part of our team, put on the jersey!” I’m bold because I believe in our school, and I believe it’s the best place for them. I don’t care how hard it is. My time as a student was hard, but it prepared me for tough places. I will give my life to tell people they have to come here. I believe God is using me to develop leaders and start an evangelistic movement across Canada, and I’m convinced that this is the best place for those developing leaders to be.
Hanna Greenwood
I started working for the CNBC as a part-time admin assistant during the final year of my master’s program at CBT. It was the perfect opportunity for me to finish school and simultaneously begin engaging in what God was doing nationally through our convention. As graduation neared, the Lord began to open doors for me to serve in full-time ministry at the convention. I currently serve on the CNBC Women team, the Evangelism/Youth/Missions team, and the Pastor Care team. I am regularly reminded of how vital my education was in prepping me for the role God has brought me to. I am also forever thankful for the partnership and alignment between CBT and the CNBC as we seek to preach the gospel, make disciples, advance the Kingdom, and participate in a movement across our country.