The Faith@Work Forum provides an opportunity for those interested in bible study and/or prayer groups in the workplace to get together and share the joys and challenges of being a Christian in the workplace.
Each year a keynote speaker is invited to encourage us in our daily walk. Audio recordings of the verious talks are available from 2011 back to 2006.
2022: "Celebrating God at Work"
On January 19, 2022 One Way Ministries hosted a "Workplace Summit" online, on the theme "Celebrating God at Work".
The event was organized by a team that included several leaders from the PSCF.
Originally the plan was to have an in-person event at Landsdowne Park, but COVID restrictions prevented that and the event was helf online, with over 200 attending.
It consisted of short addresses from
Terry & Jordi Wills (Wills Transfer Ltd.),
Ernestina Francois (PSCF),
Isaac Gimba (International Pastors and Leaders Forum) and
Rebecca Van Noppen (More Than Enough Financial Fitness).
You can watch the video here.
Some written resources available are:
Two Workplace Prayers
Quoteable Quotes
a 5-point Workplace Summit 2022 Challenge
2011: "Dancing with the Star":
Discovering your purpose and your destiny by staying in step with the Music Maker!
The 11th annual Faith@Work Forum took place on Saturday November 26, 2011 at Parkwood Presbyterian Church, 10 Chesterton Drive in Ottawa, with approx. 36 persons in attandance.
The theme speaker was Gerry Organ, who spoke on ""Dancing with the Star": Discovering your purpose and your destiny by staying in step with the Music Maker!".
Gerry coordinates the Marketplace Ministry initiative of One Way Ministries in Ottawa, encouraging and gathering leaders from both churches and the marketplace to foster greater unity and warmer synergy.
Along with his extensive career in the CFL, he co-founded The Ottawa Athletic Club, served as a Family Therapist in Guelph and was a Director with Focus on the Family.
After pastoring at The Peoples Church, Toronto, Gerry served for 10 years as Executive Director of Christian Business Ministries Canada.
Gerry's address is now available on our site (mp3 format, 43 minutes, 39.5 MB).
2010: Your Work is Your Ministry
The 10th annual Faith@Work Forum took place on Saturday November 6, 2010 at Parkwood Presbyterian Church, 10 Chesterton Drive in Ottawa. Approximately
45 people gathered to hear guest speaker Dr. Barry P. Boucher on the theme "Your Work is Your Ministry". Barry
is former lead pastor of The Life Centre, and was previously employed in the Printing & Publishing industry and with the Federal Government (Indian
and Northern Affairs, Parks Canada and National Museums of Canada). Barry has also been the Team Leader for Mission Ottawa/Outaouais (a ministry to
ministers) for the last ten years.
Those present enjoyed a meal of Chinese food together. The afternoon session consisted of five "breakout" sessions:
- Evangelism in my workplace: Why, how to do it well, what not to do.
- Christian integrity in the workplace: What does it look like? How to have it, keep it, and encourage it in others.
- How to make my existing workplace small group more seeker-sensitive
- Creating bridges with non-believers: Discuss whether there is a need to create or join existing groups that are not specifically evangelistic,
but provide an opportunity for people of with different points of view (including Christians) to dialogue together over common-interest topics and issues affecting our society today.
- How to start a new group in my workplace.
The gathering was productive. Those present were made aware of two workplace bible studies that most had not previously known about, some present became
aware of bible studies in the vicinity of their workplace and needs were prayed about and folk encouraged to simply be Christians in their place of work.
The audio file of Barry's address is now available (59 minutes, 13.8 MB).
2009: Religious freedom in today's workplace:
challenges and opportunities
The 9th annual Faith@Work Forum took place at the Ottawa Citizen building, Baxter Road, Ottawa on Saturday November 14, 2009 with some 40 people in
attendance. The guest speaker was Janet Epp Buckingham, associate professor at Trinity Western University and the
Director of TWU’s Laurentian Leadership Centre. Janet is the former Executive Director of Christian Legal Fellowship (1991-94) and general legal counsel
with the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (1999-2003) and EFC’s Director, Law and Public Policy (2003-2006). She is also a regular columnist in the
periodical ChristianWeek.
An audio copy of Janet's talk (53:05 minutes, 12.5 MB) is available on our site, as are
Janet's notes (in the form of handouts from her PowerPoint presentation). Also available
is a handout based on the presentation given by Promise Sanipe of CCRI. To download either file, right-click on the link and choose "Save target as".
2008: Here to Help:
an assessment of the many groups around Parliament Hill
that try to bring a biblical perspective to bear on public policy issues
The 8th annual Faith@Work Forum was held Saturday November 8, 2008 in the conference room of the Ottawa Citizen Building on Baxter Road in Ottawa.
The speaker was Lloyd Mackey, a publisher, author, analyst and journalist working out of the Parliamentary
Press Gallery. Lloyd's most recent book is Stephen Harper, the Case for Collaborative Governance (ECW Press, 2006). He writes regularly for
ChristianWeek Ontario and BC Christian News. When he was based in Ottawa, Lloyd produced a weekly blog providingh a Christian perspective
on events in ht enation's capital. OttawaWatch, no longer available. You can read some of his more recent work on the Convivium website
here.
An audio copy of Lloyd's talk (51:26 minutes, 12.1 MB) is available on our site, as are his notes.
2007: A Life of Faith in the Workplace:
the Challenge of Personal Integrity and Pluralism
The 7th annual Faith@Work Forum will took place Saturday, November 3, 2007 from 9:30 to noon at the Laurentian Leadership Centre, 252 Metcalfe Street
(at Maclaren) in Ottawa, with 55 people present. The speaker was Ian Shugart, a public servant with over 25 years experience
on Parliament Hill and in the public service. Ian is a husband and father, church elder, and student and teacher of the Scriptures. He spoke from life
experience, with many references to the book of Daniel. The forum was sponsored again this year by CCRI, Government Professionals Exemplifying Christ,
the Ottawa Canadian Chinese Christian Professional Fellowship and the Public Service Christian Fellowship.
An audio copy of Ian's talk (1:07:24 minutes, 16 MB) is available.
2006: Living out the life of Christ in our bland consumer society
The 6th annual forum was held Saturday November 4, from 10:00 a.m. to noon at the Laurentian Leadership Centre, 252 Metcalfe Street in Ottawa, with
over 50 people in attendance. Guest speaker was Roland Priddle, who recently retired as Chair of the National Energy
Board (NEB) where he served two five-year terms. He spent the previous twelve years at the Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, where he was
latterly Assistant Deputy Minister, Petroleum. Mr. Priddle holds an M.A. in Economic Geography from Cambridge University and an M.A. in Economics from
the University of Ottawa. He has done graduate work at the University of California, Berkeley. Roland will guide us through these questions: "Is Christ
truly in me (Colossians 1:27b)? If so, how is He reflected in my work life, home life and, above all, in my thought life (2 Corinthians 10:5)? Is the
society I live in a bland one seen from a Christian perspective? How can I escape the spiritual trap of hedonism?"
We welcome as co-sponsor in 2006 (along with CCRI, the OCCCPF and the PSCF), Government Professionals Exemplifying Christ (GPEC), a group working out of the Metropolitan Bible Church.
An audio copy of Roland's talk (44:52 minutes, 8 MB) as well as his notes are now available.
2005: Following Jesus into the workplace...
Reflections from Matthew, the urban civil servant
Ottawa's fifth annual Faith@Work Forum was held Saturday September 17, 2005 from in the conference room of the Ottawa Citizen Building.
The theme speaker was Glenn Smith, Executive Director of Christian Direction
in Montreal (www.direction.ca) and former Ottawa resident. Christian Direction is a ministry
of evangelism and discipleship in the province of Québec, with roots going back to the Sermons from Science pavillion at
Expo '67. It was founded by Keith Price, and Glenn has been its Executive Director since Keith's retirement in 1983.
For 2005, the usual sponsors, CCRI, the PSCF and the OCCCPF were joined by ACTs (a Cluster of Tentmakers), a group that at the time held monthly meetings
of business people in the Ottawa area aimed at encouraging faith at work among business leaders.
2004: Experiencing God at Work
The fourth annual Faith@Work Forum was held Saturday September 18, 2004 in the conference room at the Ottawa Citizen building. It was again
co-sponsored with the PSCF and the OCCPF. Theme speaker Kari Yli-Renko, Executive Director of the
Ottawa Christian Leadership Centre, a division of Ottawa-based One Way Ministries spoke on the theme
"Experiencing God at Work. Kari, a former Ottawa Rough Rider, shared his experiences as a Christian in the workplace and was an encouragement
those present. This year 42 persons attended, representing many bible study and/or prayer groups in the public and private sectors.
At the end of the morning many people shared what God had been doing in their place of work. Also, Dr. Frank Jones gave a summary of
new Faith@Work initiatives he has been involved in and some biblical background for the work in general.
2003: Being Salt and Light in the Workplace
The third annual Faith@Work Forum was held Saturday September 20, 2003 in the
conference room at the Ottawa Citizen building, 1101 Baxter Road in Ottawa. The event was again co-sponsored by
CCRI, the Public Service Christian Fellowship and the Ottawa Canadian Chinese Christian Professional Fellowship.
There were some 30 people in attendance, representing several different workplace faith groups and churches. A
number of other groups sent written reports.
The purpose of these annual gatherings is to encourage workplace spirituality. We feel that it is important to
connect with and encourage one another annually in the Lord. Dr. Frank Jones gave a brief address on the theme
"Being Salt and Light in the Workplace", based on a larger piece of research on the same topic, entitled
"A Manual of Classic Guidelines and Prayers" (pdf format, 152 KB, 48 pages).
Dr. Jones provided the audience with several handouts (all 8 pages, in pdf format):
2002: Faith@Work: opportunities and challenges
CCRI along with the Public Service Christian Fellowship and the Ottawa Canadian Chinese Christian Professional Fellowship sponsored the second
annual Faith@work Forum on Saturday September 21, 2002. The event was held at the Laurentian Leadership Centre, 252 Metcalfe Street in Ottawa,
a building that formerly housed the Laurentian Club and at one time was the home of Ottawa lumber baron J. R. Booth. The theme speaker for the day
was Dr. Don Page, the Executive Director of the Centre. Don used the life of Daniel as an model of how we as
Christians can serve God better in our places of work. Don was well-suited to address the group, being a co-founder of the Public Service Christian
Fellowship. Don's history of the PSCF
is available on the PSCF website.
The event was attended by some 50+ people, most of whom are actively involved in workplace bible studies or prayer groups. Represented were a cross-section of
public and private sector groups. Most of the public sector groups are also listed on the
PSCF website. Groups from the public sector (at the time) included the Downtown Prayer Group, Statistics Canada,
the Military Christian Fellowship, the Communications Security Establishment, and from the private sector groups from Nortel, Cognos, Telesat, Alcatel and the
Chinese Entrepreneurs Association as well as local Alpha representatives. Several local individuals and a couple of pastors attended as well. See the
detailed group reports on a separate page.
The morning of fellowship was led by Edward Ng. Gord Walford led the group in a number of songs and choruses, as well as prayer. After the theme talk the group were encouraged to
make known prayer needs, both for praise and intercession. Several groups had submitted theirs ahead of time. The needs were lifted up in prayer led by Promise Sanipe. A time of
fellowship followed, and interested parties were led on a tour of the building by Dr. Page.
Dr. Frank Jones prepared a a paper for the forum based on his experience with study groups at the University of Ottawa, entitled
One Route to Encouraging Faith in the University. It is available on our site in PDF format.
2001: First Annual Faith@Work Forum
Ottawa's first Faith@work Forum was a great opportunity to meet others and hear about a variety of faith groups in workplaces of many types,
including prisons and the military. Some 32 people gathered on Saturday morning, 29 September, in the Ottawa Citizen Community Conference Room, and ten gave
presentations on their faith group. Chaired by Edward Ng of the Ottawa Chinese Christian Professional Fellowship, the celebration and presentations flowed
natually and joyfully. Perhaps the greatest result of the Forum is that we got to know and love many of our fellow ambassadors
for Christ who we previously had not met. Mostly positive stories were conveyed and the problems raised, the Hill faith groups, stress in the high
tech sector, for example, were well handled in the time available. We learned from Gord Walford and others the importance of sticking with a
group through the rough patches; if two or three are gathered in His name, that is enough. We learned of people accepting Christ and helping out in
the faith group activity in more than one faith group, of several conversions and wonderful stories in the military and in prisons. The music
and prayer added significantly to the celebration - we thank Gord and Graham Walford heartily for their music ministry. The priority of prayer in
the planning of faith groups, their operation, and especially during the hard times was stressed. We owe Edward, Promise Sanipe and Gord a big
thanks for their prayerful planning and leadership of the whole Forum. The Forum was certainly a success and it will be great to repeat it.
