Here is the second installment of a two part interview with Norm Funk, Lead Pastor of Westside Church, Vancouver. If you are interested in more Q and A with Norm and myself around ministry, preaching and church planting, listen to this Westside Roundtable podcast: http://www.westsidechurchvancouver.com/Leadershipaudio in which I may or may not do an impression of theologian and living Puritan saint J.I Packer.

1. What are you passionate about? What are you hopeful about?

Family: I want to be a good husband. I have good days and too many bad days still where my anger, pride and selfishness rules. I have such a great wife and am so blessed. I want to “husband” her better and I’m passionate to do so. My passion for my kids is wrapped up in the prayer that I pray for them often: I pray that they fall in love with Jesus more, the Bible more, the church more and leading others to Jesus more. I really like spending time with my boys who are very different – one an athlete, the other more artistic and creative. So I spend a lot of time at ballfields or bookstores and artisan exhibits.

Vocationally: without meaning to sound too pious or “pastory” I am most passionate about making Jesus known and teaching the Bible that the Holy Spirit wrote and empowers today. I am committed to planting churches and will seek to plant and support as many as God allows me/Westside to.

Personally: I like to golf – alone, with my buddies, or my sons and wife when time allows – and enjoy a cold beer once in a while. I like the sun and hot weather and when I can incorporate all of these together I consider that a good day.

2. You planted Westside 8 or 9 years ago now. What were/are some of the biggest challenges to church planting?

Spiritually, we have an enemy who is a blinder, liar, accuser, and destroyer seeking the new and old to devour. Therefore, the challenge is to not buy into the belief that we can do by way of the physical what only the spiritual can achieve. We all too often think and act contrary, however. As Jesus said, “these only come out by prayer and fasting.” Our battle is not against flesh and blood but the principalities of the heavenlies.

Sociologically, “religion” is a non-starter and irrelevant for most. People don’t think with church and faith in mind and therefore, it doesn’t really matter how many people live where if none of them are thinking “church” anyways. Whenever I hear about planters wanting to plant in certain areas because so many are moving there it makes me chuckle. There is no such thing as “supply and demand” related to church planting in Canada.

Practically, space is hard to find and it’s expensive. Additionally, too many existing churches are territorial and far more interested in “keeping theirs” than reaching others and are far too fearful of new things – i.e. new plants coming into “their” area. As I have said to many planters over the years, “you need to be respectful of existing churches as you seek to move nearby, you need to seek their blessing too but at the end of the day you do not need their permission to plant.” When an existing church and their leadership resists a new thing, it’s simply evidencing that their time is nearing an end and they’ve lost their way. That may seem harsh but don’t allow the harshness to cloud the truth behind it. As Pastors our call, many times, is to be a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of another persons/ministries faith.

3. What are you reading?

A high majority of my reading is sermon series based. Therefore, at this point I am reading and re-reading books on the resurrection. N.T. Wright’s, Surprised by Hope and Raised with Christ by Adrian Warnock, for example. I am also reading God Wins by Mark Galli in the mornings and just finished God in the Whirlwind by David Wells.

At night before I sleep I generally read fiction and anything sports or pop-culture based. Most recently: Steve Jobs bio, Michael Jordan bio, and I’m just finishing the story of Saturday Night Live. I’m a big Grantland website fan.

4. What is a specific challenge / opportunity to being a church in Canada specifically?

It is important to note that Canada isn’t the U.S. – for all U.S. Planters coming to Canada I’ll repeat that, Canada isn’t the US! Canada is much closer to Western Europe than the U.S. in regards to it’s take on spiritual issues/religion. Whenever I heard Driscoll talk about how hard it was to do church in Seattle I wanted to shout out, “you should try Canada you little pugilist”:)

However, I am more encouraged today than I have ever been. I am encouraged about the stories I am hearing about things going on here close to home but I’m over the top excited about the things getting off the ground in places like Montreal and Atlantic Canada, I pray that this is just the start of a grand season of God’s outpouring, through the church and by way of His Spirit.