God in His mercy and love has answered many of my prayers. Some situations required an urgent answer; others not so much. When my children were very small, I was at death's door. I was quickly slipping away. I cried to the Lord in …( read more )

I opened the door and let the dogs out at 6:30 a.m., the same as any other morning. As I was coming back into the house, however, I noticed through the living room window that the livestock were going berserk in the corral. At the same …( read more )

I awoke on Saturday night close to 12:00 a.m. with sharp pain in a tooth. After forcing aspirin chips into a tiny cavity that I had previously not known existed, I slept until 6:00 a.m. when pain awoke me. More aspirin chips got me active …( read more )

Today's devotional title may remind you of a bad dream: the nightmarish experience of losing control. What I have in mind is no dream. It's the actual world that we experience: the horrifying absence of brakes on sinful desire — like …( read more )

People were thrilled when we finally got a much-needed dump of snow over a three-day period. It had been so cold and all our previous snow had melted during a warm period, leaving the ground exposed before the temperature dropped almost …( read more )

During the summer, out the window, I watched my three friendly squirrels racing about the yard and up and down their tree. The Lord has used them to teach me many important lessons. Tippy arrived just recently, and is so named because of …( read more )

The first thing that I do every morning is to look out my large bay window to check on the weather. Today, the sky is blue, and the sun is shining brightly. It promises to be a pleasant day, so I head out to walk my dog. It is then that …( read more )

From my kitchen window, I enjoy the heavy, low-flying, distinctively coloured, quiet, slow-mannered pair of wood ducks that like to rest on their webbed feet awhile on the horizontal branches of my big, old maple trees almost every morning …( read more )

I'm terribly allergic to black fly bites. My first encounter with them not only made me itch, but caused me to be bedridden with a low-grade fever for about two weeks. That Sunday, after I climbed from the covers and dressed to do the …( read more )

The sun's rays illuminated the freshly fallen snow outside my living room window. Thousands and thousands of miniature diamonds glistened in the sun. There's nothing like freshly fallen snow. It is pure white, soft, and fluffy as it falls …( read more )

Last year, my friend was the victim of identity theft. A dozen new credit cards were issued, but rarely did the credit card companies call first to confirm. The way identity theft works is that the perpetrator provides a false address …( read more )

After completing my coffee time with the Lord the other morning, I was enjoying the ever-changing panorama that my bay window greets me with every day. Suddenly, my attention was grabbed by the sight of a huge, black crow gliding down to …( read more )

Can you imagine the sorrow that Florida is feeling as they go through an epidemic of violence? Do you recall the promising young singer shot, the mass shootings at a nightclub, and a two-year-old child snatched by an alligator in a lagoon? …( read more )

In 1972, while studying at Montpellier in the south of France, I played tourist one weekend and went exploring the countryside farther east. On that trip, I discovered the ruins of an old town, perched high on a rocky promontory. During …( read more )

Many years ago when I was a young man and a Christian, but not living for the Lord, my life was not what it should have been. Driving from south-western Ontario to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, I picked up a hitchhiker in northern Ontario. …( read more )

"Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles; it takes away today's peace." (Author unknown) My oldest daughter has been undergoing severe back pain for quite some time now. The pain in her lower back is so excruciating, that it has …( read more )

During the week between this past Christmas and New Year's, two white, pea-size eggs were carefully deposited in a nest the dimensions of an enlarged, thumb-sized thimble. The nest had been painstakingly constructed from spider webs and …( read more )

As I was perusing an article in my monthly health magazine, I was astonished to read that 500 to 1000 species of bacteria inhabit our intestines, and that equates to roughly 100 trillion micro-organisms, all prepared to defend our bodies …( read more )

When I was very young, we lived in a small cabin out on the family homestead some miles beyond the small village of Forest Grove here in the Cariboo region of British Columbia, Canada. There was no electricity or such utilities back then. …( read more )

I watched anxiety darken her face. Where would the money come from? Our family budget has taken a severe hit over the last five years. Recently, we struggled through a summer without the income my wife was receiving from keeping an …( read more )

I love my dog Sparky very much, but sometimes, he nearly drives me crazy with his endless barking. He seems to bark at anything that moves: people, squirrels, cars, anything. Half the time, when I look outside, I don't see what he is …( read more )

I have become accustomed to a ritual in my life, which has become a must in order for my mind to function: drinking my daily coffee. My doctor is not very fond of this practice; it has just become habit. The rush that I receive from my …( read more )

My wife and I, along with her dad, decided to visit her mother in the hospital following her surgery. Before I left home, I pulled out a couple of frozen prime steaks and placed them on the kitchen counter to thaw while we were away, …( read more )

Almost 60 years ago when I was a young child, my father supported our family by working shifts in an auto parts manufacturing plant. When my dad worked nights or afternoons, he slept during part of the day. I internalized a rule, "Don't …( read more )

Every day, I walk my dog, Sparky, down a long trail with woods on both sides. It's good exercise for both of us. He loves to sniff around and run back and forth while I just sort of plod along, … (read more)

Once the snow has melted and the ground has thawed, I stop filling the bird feeder on a regular basis. It is during this early window of springtime when the mother squirrels are fattening themselves up that they commandeer the … (read more)

Imagine a terrified cat trapped in a tight space — the space between a ceiling and the floor above it. That's exactly where we found our cat one day. Now this is not the contented cat that I wrote about … (read more)

We all have things every day which cause us concern or worry — from big things, like how to pay the bills — to small things, like a child who sometimes worries about going to sleep in case of bad … (read more)

The book, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, indicates that one way a shepherd tends sheep is to place pesticide on the animals to prevent parasites and insects. Sheep may worry to death or experience disease from such sources. W. … (read more)

The quiet of early morning was broken suddenly by numerous loud distress calls from robins at the back of our house. The usual calm of their early morning routine — feeding, bathing, and teaching their young — had been disturbed … (read more)

Jesus calls us! By Thy mercies, Saviour, may we hear Thy call, Give our hearts to Thine obedience, Serve and love Thee best of all. Cecil F. Alexander I have been living in a retirement community for the past eighteen … (read more)

Simon was a rascal, a great big handsome brute of a dog who loved to get the best of you. He was gentle with children, wily with adults. My pride often took a fall while walking him, as I never … (read more)

In the southern United States, we are in the time period known as Hurricane Season. At this time, we are more likely to have devastating weather. But even if some areas of the land, the coastline, and the Caribbean receive … (read more)