Shaila Visser on the Revitalization of Alpha, Providing Coverage to Young Leaders, and Rediscovering Evangelism in Her Life
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Jason is joined by Shaila Visser, National Director of Alpha Canada in this week’s episode to discuss their time together at Alpha, what she is learning about evangelism, and how she has learned to invest in young leaders.
They begin by looking back at when Shaila first joined the Alpha Canada team. She came into an organization with deep roots, a strong program, but also a need for revitalization and change to remain effective for years to come. People like Jason joined the team, and they began to rebrand, shift the internal culture, and launch new programs like the Youth Alpha Film Series. Shaila shares about how working with young leaders like Jason required trust and a willingness to provide coverage so they could grow – coverage from the full burden of decisions, or from criticisms and external challenges. By providing this support, young leaders, like Jason, were able to learn and grow in an environment that encouraged innovation and dreaming.
Alongside her work at Alpha, Shaila opens up about her own journey with evangelism. A professional woman, she can find it hard to take a risk where she might look foolish in front of a friend. God however, has been challenging her and growing a fresh passion for personal evangelism and she shares stories of inviting friends to Alpha online when the pandemic started and how God was so faithful in his partnership with her.
Finally, Jason and Shaila look at the state of evangelism in Canada. Referencing both data from the Connected Generation report by World Vision, and a recent study Alpha did with Flourishing Congregations, they discuss how pastors should be thinking about mobilizing their people for mission. All the data referenced can be found at the links below.
We hope you enjoy this conversation with Shaila Visser.
Shaila Visser
Shaila Visser is the National Director of Alpha Canada and the Global Senior Vice-President for Alpha International. She is the Executive Producer of both The Alpha Youth Film Series (2013) and The Alpha Film Series (2016), and currently holds positions on the Board of the Damascus Road Foundation and on the Board of Regent College-an International Graduate School in Vancouver.