During the year 1999, we experienced the Y2K scare, when the media proclaimed that a great Millennium Bug was waiting to destroy our future. My husband worked for hours preparing for the long-awaited countdown. In mid-afternoon of New Year's Eve, … Read more

The Word says that the rain falls on the just and the unjust. Strange as it may seem, this reminds me of a man from my youth. I never knew his name; we just called him "the cleaner man". Once … Read more

One Sunday morning, as the Junior and Senior Choirs were gathering for their pre-service practice, we were greeted by an unusual noise. After much searching, we discovered that it was emanating from behind the large pipe organ. A further search … Read more

As a kid, I hated to see spinach on my plate. "Taste it and see; it's good for you!" my mother would say, to persuade me to eat it. At age eight, I saw no good coming out of a … Read more

Being on a canoe trip in Killarney in northern Ontario, Canada, surrounded by the majestic scenery of silver peaks, stone-front campsites, and clear blue waters, is quite possibly one of life's most exquisite experiences. As my friend and I paddled … Read more

It is an ordinary afternoon and a time to rest after the busy Christmas season. I sit by a window looking outside at snowflakes gently falling from the gray sky as they make their way to earth, whirling and dancing … Read more

Can you remember what gift you received at Christmas twenty-five years ago? I can! When our son was quite small, he saved up about two dollars to buy Christmas gifts for his mother and me. I went with him to … Read more

One advantage of country living is being able to choose and cut your own fresh Christmas tree. That Christmas of 1959, brother Lorne and I had been commissioned to "get the tree." Dutifully, we set out for the bush on … Read more

It was December 24th. Everyone around me was ready for Christmas, but I wasn't. As a child of seven, I'd been in the hospital for two months with kidney problems, and I arrived home in time to spend the holiday … Read more

When I was a child, my father and I always said a Bible verse at night before I went to sleep. His favourite verse was John 3:16. After more than fifty years of Bible study, church going, teaching, and searching … Read more

Transitions can be difficult, as anyone who has recently moved can attest. It's a time of rapid change, all faced while tired from packing. Feelings of dislocation, loss, and confusion abound in the heart. Where do we find a doctor … Read more

My grandmother was from a God-fearing family of parents and children, nurtured in the admonition of the Lord. I was the first grandchild for my grandmother, visiting her often. She continued to carry on the faith, and would take me … Read more

A young boy was taking part in the Christmas concert. He was to learn the words of the angel: "Behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people." He tried earnestly to memorize his … Read more

Our neighbours have a dog named "Fluffy". This sounds reasonable, until you know that the dog is not a poodle, but a dachshund! If one dog is named "Fluffy" and another "Killer", of which would we be more afraid? Names … Read more

Christmas Day is celebrated on December 25th, and this year it will fall mid-week, on a Wednesday. However, like so many others, our family is spread out, living in many different places, and we aren't always sure who will get … Read more

It has been over ten years since we have spent the whole of the winter months here in the north. This year, not traveling to Florida, I discovered the thing I had forgotten that bothers me the most, and that … Read more

When I was a young girl, I went shopping with my grandfather. It is the only time I can remember going on a shopping trip with him. I saw a lovely Christmas wreath, and my grandfather, knowing that it would … Read more

During December, as I go through the prayer requests, I notice how many of them deal with family breakdown, financial need, confusion, and loneliness. There is a lot of hurting out there, and it all surfaces during this season that … Read more

The Christmas season seems to call out all the cleaning products we haven't used in months. We wash knick-knacks, scrub under counter edges, and clean out bathroom vanities. We scrub corners that we have never seen, terrified that a stern … Read more

Caroline, my wife, reminded me the other day of a car sticker from the past, which proclaimed: "A dog is for life — not just for Christmas." This was promoted in an effort to make parents stop and think about … Read more

The other day, I was going to a place I had never been to alone. My brother-in-law had carefully written down the directions, so that I would not get lost as I manoeuvred the back roads of Kentucky. I was … Read more

Some people like to trudge through the forest in waist-deep snow to cut the perfect spruce tree. Others are content to pick a pine at the local market. Still others buy an artificial one of indescribable content and put it … Read more

"Wait! Watch! Pray for the One…" the choir sings. It's an anthem for Advent, and we have been practicing hard to perfect it, along with many others, all new to me. My problem is, I miss the alto note for … Read more

When I think of Christmas, I think of giving. God gave His only Son that we might have joy and peace in this life, and in the life to come. I cannot give the same kind of gift that God … Read more

In the rush of December, the world calls us to scurry. We are called to claw out precious time to buy "perfect" gifts for difficult people. Our wrapped presents are to have designer-like qualities. The politically correct "holiday tree" must … Read more

Several weeks ago our pastor asked me to play a very special role. I was to be Saint Nicholas and to be introduced to the children during the children's time in the morning service. It is sad that most people … Read more

Last winter was one of the warmest on record here in southern Ontario, Canada. Usually we are shovelling snow by mid-November. That particular year, however, our first snowfall of the season didn't occur until the middle of December. My children, … Read more

Where or when does Jesus come in our holiday festivities? We invest a lot of creative energy in getting the right presents for the individuals we buy or make gifts for, and that is good. If we stop to think … Read more

Well, it's charge card season again! I shudder when I remember some of my previous Christmas bills. Perhaps I was trying to buy affection. For whatever reason, I gave too many presents, too often. January is too late to count … Read more

Christmas is a time of anticipation, and a time of travel, like that very first night, awaiting the birth of the Christ Child. Parents and grandparents anxiously await the time they will be reunited with their children and grandchildren, sharing … Read more

"Will Christmas come this year?" I remember asking my mother this question the year I turned nine. My father had had an accident earlier that year, and, for eight months, the family's only income was what God had provided through … Read more