The Eighth Assembly of the World Council of Churches is meeting December 3-14, 1998. The purpose of the World Council of Churches is to come together "as a fellowship of churches which confess the Lord Jesus Christ as God and … Read more

Many people, when they hear an aircraft passing overhead, will idly glance up, wondering who is going where, and perhaps wishing they were up there, not down here. Fewer people are aware of the vast electronic radar blanket that covers … Read more

It always happens at this time of year, as we begin to get inundated with the commercialism of Christmas, that for those of us who follow the Christian calendar year, we find ourselves wishing people "Happy New Year!" Advent is … Read more

Increasingly, I see the use of rubber gloves working into our everyday lives. On two separate ferry trips recently, the people who were clearing the dishes from the tables were wearing rubber gloves, as was a woman collecting the fares … Read more

There is much in our world, which causes us to be anxious. Natural disasters such as droughts, earthquakes, and flooding can be as devastating as the warfare, terrorist bombings and other abuses we inflict upon others and ourselves. Less violent … Read more

To accommodate schedules and family obligations of some of our guests, we usually have our Thanksgiving dinner on Friday. (In Canada, Thanksgiving is the first Monday of October.) This works well, especially for the "twenty-somethings" because they usually end up … Read more

Deuteronomy talks about the tithe, that portion of our possessions that rightfully belongs to God, to be used, according to the passage, to support the Levites (that is, those who serve in the sanctuary), the strangers, the orphans the widows, … Read more

We live in a leftover society. Actually, many of us live on leftovers. We clean out the refrigerator to scrounge a meal from the many that went before. We frequent 'new to you' shops. This is a polite way of … Read more

The New Standard Version writes these scriptures to read as follows: I use both versions for impact because anything worth doing takes patience and perseverance, especially when we are working hard at something such as a bad habit or an … Read more

It has been just a short time since my husband of 24 years initiated and successfully extracted a divorce from me, shattering my life and separating me from my two teenage sons. My youngest child, a multihandicapped daughter, has remained … Read more

My husband is on the road a lot, and when he must make a long, quick trip, I try to arrange to go with him to assist in the driving. So it was this week. There is always a two … Read more

In a Peanuts cartoon, Lucy wrote an essay the first day back at school. She wrote, "Vacations are nice, but it's good to get back to school. There is nothing more satisfying or challenging than education, and I look forward … Read more

Many, many years ago, we sang a hymn called "Count your blessings". The words instructed us: Count your blessings, name them one by one, Count your blessings, see what God hath done. The church played a large part in most … Read more

In 1967 while taking a class in photography at the University of Cincinnati, I became acquainted with a young man named Charles Murray who also was a student at the school and training for the summer Olympics of 1968 as … Read more

The power of prayer is receiving a lot of "press" these days. People in "positions" are sitting up and taking notice that prayer works. Courses are being taught in the "art" of praying. Most people, if not regular pray-ers, do … Read more

Part of our church's ministry is our involvement in the chapel ministry at William Head Prison. Some of our members go to the chapel services every week, and often more than once a week. I don't often go with them … Read more

In the last few months, I've attended services for several friends and acquaintances who were good people, but not regular church goers. When the service is one which includes a minister, they are called upon to perform a duty usually … Read more

Love will always reach out toward the eternal. Love comes from that place within us where death cannot enter. Love does accept the limits of hours, days, weeks, months, years, or centuries. Love is not willing to be imprisoned by … Read more

When I was a little kid, we used to sing an action song that went: Read your Bible, pray every day, Pray every day, pray every day; Read your Bible, pray every day, And you'll grow, grow, grow, And you'll … Read more

This is a story of two men. The first is my father. His name is Grant. Grant was born and raised on a small Ontario farm. In 1939, while he peered into a mirror and carefully scraped shaving soap and a few sparse whiskers from his young … Read more

I was blessed to have been born after World War Two, but as children, we were taught about the war and to remember and respect those who fought for our freedom. Remembrance Day services were a part of our lives, … Read more

When I was growing up I always had a hard time in school with problems, numbers and just basic Mathematics. I struggled and struggled. My wonderful mother, although I didn't think so at the time, would tutor me all year … Read more

While sending an electronic card to a friend the other day, I noticed that besides all the usual birthday, anniversary and other such cards, there was an incredible array of options for other "days": secretaries, grandparents, kids, bosses, lefthanded's… even … Read more

Isn't this like a campfire minute-mystery in the middle of the night? "You are doomed, Nicodemus, unless you solve this riddle." What better way to keep a Pharisee occupied? Nicodemus was certainly mystified at first, thinking that "born again" meant … Read more

When I was a little kid, I was used to this verse saying: "But Jesus called them unto him and said, suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of God". … Read more

I recently had the chance to meet and enjoy a day with a new and dear friend. I met this lady through the daily devotionals she writes for this page and she has become a good friend in the last … Read more

It was raining during our regular group walk this morning, and a friend who had been walking slowly behind with others, said "Did you see all the starfish?! There's so many!" We had to confess that we hadn't noticed, as … Read more

It's coming, and before you realize it, you will be living in a new millennium. That may be something of a yawn for you, but 1000 years ago there were riots, upheavals, uncertainty and fear to mark the end of … Read more

One of the sources of a non-profit society which survives solely on donations and fundraisers, is a Christmas Bazaar. And a popular place to hold them now is in a large mall, with other non-profit societies. This gives the customer … Read more

My 6 year old son loves mazes. Usually these are the pen and paper kind. Yesterday he learned firsthand what it was like to be in a real maze. We arrived at the "maize maze". It was a carefully planned … Read more