Having to Leave

I apologize upfront for those I have not contacted personally about the latest in my life. This is the easiest way to let all of you know what is going on with me. As most of you know, I have been waiting to hear back from immigration concerning work visa renewal. I found out last night (Thurs) via a letter in the mail that my work visa application has been rejected and I must leave the country immediately. This is all similar to what happened in 2008 when I came to Alberta to work. Had to go home and wait on the proper document in order to get a work visa. That visa has expired so I had to renew. The appropriate paperwork is still in process or having to be redone, so that's why the application was denied.

So, needless to say I will be leaving Calgary on Monday...driving south and thank the Lord that He has met my need for someone to ride with me and help me drive. My sweet friend and "daughter" Jenna will travel with me, get to visit family in North Carolina and will fly back to Calgary. Her dad is a student at our seminary; her mom and I share an office and have become the best of friends; and we attend the same church. Sometime last year, I realized that if I had had a child at 16, that child would be Jenna's age (18)...so she often calls me "mom" and I call her "daughter". Her younger brother often calls me "mom" as well and even got our kids' Sunday School class started on it last week. Too funny! Anyway...

I will be in the Nashville, TN area and Mississippi until the convention office receives the paperwork needed, mails it to me in MS, and I can head back and hopefully get a new work visa.

I was wanting to be with my family for Christmas and attend the national WMU meeting in Alabama in January. Because of immigration issues, I thought I wouldn't get home. I was bummed about all that but had pretty much accepted it and would make the best out of Christmas here and then 10 days in Prince Edward Island, where I lived for 18 months. As folks have told me today, take all this as a blessing and your way to do those things you were wanting to do. That is what I am doing. God is good through all of this and He is already showing Himself faithful.

I have a range of emotions right now. I was pretty much able to leave the office Friday with things done that needed doing. I have my "to do" list as far as packing and things to take care of before I go. Thankfully I had my car serviced and new winter tires put on a few weeks ago. Just need to get jumper cables and those 'winter preparedness' things one needs on the road in the winter! I've made the trek south in this time of the year before and that went pretty smoothly. Still have to plan out the route, check the extended forecast, etc.

It's somewhat strange preparing to leave when I don't know when, or maybe if, I will return. I feel fairly confident that I wll be back in due time...this is just a season...God showed Himself faithful before. I also am holding onto His Promises and that how I still have a peace about being here doing what I'm doing. I know that can change, especially when it comes to immigration...

So, that is what's going on and I covet your prayers during this time. Many of you have been praying already and ask how the process is going. Thank you! Pray for me to have a calm spirit and that I can think straight when packing and doing all those necessities. Pray for me as I continue to say 'see ya later' to those so dear to me here. Pray for Jenna and me as we travel (car, clear roads, good weather, good health, safety...). Pray for my family as I know they will be concerned wtih us traveling. Should take no more than 4 days. Also much has been going on in the lives of people my family knows...Pray for peace that surpasses all understanding in everyone's lives. Please lift up the convention and application that will soon be sent off for the document I need. Pray for officers reviewing the file.

I will be checking email periodically and recently set up a new email. Yahoo account is becoming overwhelming! You can email me at ellen.cone2001@gmail.com. Of course, Facebook is great and I'm able to access from my Blackberry. I have unlimited texting in North America, so feel free to text me at 403-671-1046. I will try not to talk on my cell much in the States as price goes up. If you'd like to talk on the phone, wonderful! I can send you numbers of where I'll be in the States.

I pray you and your family have a blessd holiday season and all the best in 2011! May we keep our focus on Jesus---THE Reason of the Season! He continues to change lives...including mine!

Thank you for being such a source of support and encouragement to me. You are a blessing!

Our Katie is now 5!

Wow, where does the time go? To think that our Katie is now 5 years old and started preschool this year! Of course, "our" Katie is my sister's middle child...She brings such joy to my life, even with the time and distance separating us. I love talking to her on the phone!


I remember when she was born and the calls coming from my mom that October 4th, 2005 day. It was an exciting time as I waited to hear how things were going. There were a little bit of complications, but everything ended up just fine. We praise the Lord for our precious Katherine Noel!
She had a rainbow party today. How fun is that! When I talked to Katie this morning and she told me the kind of party she was having, I thought "I needed to hear that today"...a rainbow...just another reminder of God's promises! I called her tonight to see how her party went. My sister, Christy, had misplaced my birthday gift to Katie that I had sent along with Mom and Dad. She found it while I was on the phone, so got to open it with me! I can't wait to see her in person and spend tons of time together!

Thank you, God, for Katie and the special little girl she is! Watch over her in a very special way as she grows into the person you want her to be!!!

Continued Prayer for Immigration Process

I'm continuing to ask prayer for my immigration process. Both my permanent residency application and extension of my work visa have been mailed off. Pray that things go smoothly and quickly! Pray that I can trust God completely and know He has a perfect plan for my future. He has been revealing Himself to me in so many ways lately and especially through His Word. May I not forgot His promises!
Thanks for standing in the gap!

A Highlight of What I Do

One of the coolest parts of what I do is getting to connect with our missionaries and be the 'connector' for them and our churches. Some weeks, I am in touch with missionaries daily. Maybe I've received their latest newsletter or prayer requests. Maybe I'm needing to contact them for stories. Maybe we have pastors/leaders interested in an international missions trip, so I am connecting the missionary and the pastor. Maybe it's their birthday! Maybe I am just emailing to say, "how are you? You are being prayed for." I love rubbing shoulders with missionaries in this way!

I am finally going to begin to introduce you to the missionaries that are appointed by our convention in partnership with the IMB. We have 3 appointed, but a total of 17 units that have Canadian connections! It is these 17 that we keep before our churches - sharing their stories, needs, and making prayer cards available.

My friend, Jess, will be leaving on Thursday to go to a country and people group that is very unreached. She will be there for 2 years. God knows where she is going, so as you pray for Jess, He knows her needs and where she is! Jess is a recent university graduate who has already spent time overseas. She is a former youth minister in one of our churches and has a heart for reaching others. She will be leading teams that come into her city to reach the people in her area.

I have the privilege of being Jess' "gatekeeper" while she is away. If you would like to hear more about Jess and her work, just contact me at econe@cnbc.ca and I will add you to her newsletter list.

Pray for Jess as she prepares to leave on Thursday, as she travels, and transitions to a new country.

Standing in the gap...

Pray for Immigration Process...again!

Well, it's that time again...to renew another Canadian visa so I can remain here. My current work visa expires at the end of September. I still feel led to stay here and the convention staff isn't tired of me yet (HA!), so I must send in my extention application. Without going into all the details and what that entails, just pray for this process and that all will go smoothly.

I continue to feel that God would have me here. God continues to show me that in a number of ways. If you had told me in August of 2001 that I would still be in Canada, I would not have believed you. It's completely God! A couple of months ago, I finally sent in my permanent residency application. Now, before some of you gasp, let me clarify that this does not mean I will not come back to the US. I'm here until God says otherwise. I just know this was a huge step I needed to take. I should have started it earlier...I know my application has been received, so it is being reviewed. There's a number of steps before it is final. I am praying that it will be a quick and easy process.

I ask your prayers for both of these things. It's nerve-wracking having to do all this, but it must be done. Pray for the ones reviewing my PR application and for the ones who will review the work visa extension application. Pray that I can trust God completely.

Thanks for your continued love, support, and prayers!

Convention Video 2010 now online

Convention 2010 meeting in Toronto is now online! Click here to see what we as a convention of churches are all about and how our annual meeting it's not just 'another yearly meeting'. If you want to get a peek into what part of my position with the CNBC consists of, check out the Thursday evening Global Missions Celebration. I still need to blog about our wonderful time in Toronto and how God showed up. Enjoy!

I Love Calls Like This

I often answer our phone at work and never know who will be on the other end. Will it be for me? Will it be a pastor needing to speak to someone specific in our office? Will it be someone I know and I get to catch up with them before transfering the call? Will it be someone calling about missions related things? Well, today I got a call from my mom! I love calls like this! That was exciting as I was away for almost a week on a mission trip and didn't get to talk with my parents. But I would have to say that the highlight (sorry, Mom!) was when I answered a call about missions related things in Canada. I love calls like this!

When our Partnership and Volunteers Ministry Leader is not in the office, I will often talk with the person to see what info I can give them and then pass the information along. Today's call was from a missions leader in northern Arkansas. Their committee had recently met and felt led to contact our office to see how they could be on missions up here. I love calls like this!

I could hear the excitment and passion in this gentleman's voice as he shared with me what he and others would like to see happen over 3-5 years. They would hope the partnership could be reciprocal. This is what we are aiming for in all partnerships. I told him that we could definitely make a partnership happen in some way and in some area of Canada. I was able to share with him a bit of my journey. He didn't know about our seminary up here. I love calls like this!

What I was most surprised about was when the call was coming to an end and this gentleman said, "Let me pray for you"! Wow!!! I usually expect to be the one to minister to others in some way, but God sent this man my way. He said the sweetest prayer for me...
I love how God does things like this when least expected...especially from someone I don't even know. Like he said in his prayer, "I look forward to when we can meet face to face." I can't wait to see what God is going to do as a result of the phone call today.
God is good and I thank Him for smiling down on me like that today.