I host a weekly lectionary Bible study. Our study is truly ecumenical, with four Presbyterians, one Baptist, one Gospel Church member, and, until just a couple of months ago, one Anglican, a lady whom I will call Susan. She was a recent … Read more

Here is an experiment to try: Fill a cup with water. Estimate its weight. Is it 6 ounces? 10 ounces? That's not very heavy, is it? Now pick up the cup and hold it at arm's length. Hold it there for one minute; now two minutes; now fifteen … Read more

I had a problem. After a long time of wishing it would go away, I finally prayed about it. "Father, I carry an abiding sense of being not good enough, being wrong somehow, and not acceptable to You. I wait upon You, Lord, for an answer I … Read more

I was busy at my job, laminating No Smoking signs and marvelling at what a wonderful invention the lamination process was, when the following Scripture popped into my mind. Once a document is laminated, nothing can separate the plastic … Read more

Once again, a family reunion was arranged, and many of the family journeyed hundreds of kilometres to be together. From the beginning, there was excitement, anticipation, and joyful preparations for the event. The destination property … Read more

All through the years, there have been people who believed in God, others who did not, and yet others who did or do when it suits them or when they think they need God. It has always been like that. Many years ago, there were many … Read more

It was a very warm day in the desert southwest of the United States. My friend and I had just finished lunch after attending church. There we stood in the restaurant parking lot, dressed in our best Sunday clothes, with the engine lid … Read more

There are a lot of For Dummies books available. We have a few of them around our house: – Guitar for Dummies – Digital Photography for Dummies – Scrapbooking for Dummies – GPS for Dummies – PCs for Dummies I must say that … Read more

Now, I'm not suggesting that you all go out and buy a bottle of wine; that sort of thing is between you and the Lord! But years ago, I worked in the field of medical research, and I stumbled on a research paper on a study done at the … Read more

E-mail, texting, Skyping, blogging … perhaps it's time to rewrite Romans 10:15 to say, "How beautiful are the fingers of those who type good news!" The social interaction is missing in today's styles of communicating, and thus some of … Read more

For the past few years, my youngest son and I have helped teach summer Sunday school. As we were leaving church a few weeks ago, we ran into the organizer, and my son offered to help again this year. We briefly discussed what would be … Read more

Philosopher Edmund Burke said, "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." Of all the parental and church instructions I hurled out my youth window, it might seem strange that a rebellious teenager would … Read more

My dear, rescued golden retriever still follows me nearly everywhere I go, but he's getting far better at "chilling" when I clean house, but not always. The other day while cleaning the bathroom, I turned my back for one second, only to … Read more

The latest project that I am working on right now is compiling all my journal entries and transferring them onto a disc, as a sort of memoir for my children. I found one journal entry that I wrote a few years ago that intrigued me: Today, … Read more

The young adults in our church play an amusing game called "Honey, if you love me, will you please smile for me?" The group sits in a circle as each member takes a turn trying to make another person smile or laugh by making funny faces … Read more

My maternal grandfather was a prominent lawyer in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Consequently, my mother grew up with a butler, chauffeur, and maid. My father, on the other hand, lived a humble life to which my mother, after her marriage, … Read more

We all make mistakes, but it's what we do about them that counts in God's eyes. There's a creeping a-moralism in our churches and society right now that says, "It is okay to make mistakes; God understands; so there's no need to repent or … Read more

Sienna, one of our Yorkshire terrier pups, is such a little cling-on. When we get home from work, she runs about madly, following us wherever we go, wrapping her front legs around one of our legs, clinging to us like some sort of living … Read more

We recently put our travel trailer on a church site for the summer. It is only 45 minutes from home. We plan to have many weekends there, both as a couple and as a family. The irony of this is that the site that best fit our trailer is the … Read more

We all have them at some stage in our lives — situations that have the potential to test our faith. Many years ago when I was in elementary school, my parents and four siblings set out on our usual trip to the village to visit with … Read more

Quail are as common to me in the Okanagan as sparrows were in the Holy Land to Jesus. I usually walk blithely past them without so much as a glance as they scurry from bush to bush in the undergrowth. However, a recent encounter with a … Read more

For a while this summer, we saw no hummingbird visitors at our feeder. We wondered whether, with more flowers in bloom, perhaps the "hummers" did not need the feeder. When my husband climbed the ladder to bring the feeder in to refill it, … Read more

Several summers ago, when a friend and I were on a cruise to the Holy Land, everything got changed all of a sudden — a bomb blew up at the dock at our original destination. We all had to go a different way up into Jerusalem by bus. I … Read more

When I first started a Bible discussion at the local long-term care centre, they used a course specifically designed for seniors. There was a lesson for every week with a title, a recommended Scripture passage, some ideas, some questions, … Read more

It was in the days of school inspectors. Inspector Clark, round of tummy and bald of head, strode to and fro on the platform leading a singsong to open the evening session of the Teachers' Convention. We teachers sat before him in long … Read more

Our daughter was born deaf. When she was two years old, we had her hearing tested by an audiologist and were told that she was profoundly deaf. Hearing disability may be ranked as mild, moderate, moderately severe, severe, or profound. As … Read more

On a recent Wednesday, I went to the hardware store to try and get parts for a leaky tub faucet. The man in the plumbing section was very helpful. He took the old part and said that he could try to take it apart so that we could replace … Read more

This is a very familiar passage of Scripture to most believers — so familiar, in fact, that we are in danger of totally misinterpreting it. What if God's purpose, at times, seems almost cruel in our eyes? That is when we must trust our … Read more

I have had a dream to write since I was in grade 5. It all started when I was selected to go on a special trip to Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, for the annual jamboree for bus patrols. As a bus patrol, I was responsible to ensure that younger … Read more

Summer bursts with wonder as flowers bloom and gardens abound with goodness. Children bicycle for the first time, and barbecues tease our senses. Like a hug from heaven, warm and gentle sunshine breezes wash away life's doldrums. One of … Read more

During my years as a pastor, I did many funerals, and one thing, which always struck me amidst the grief of the situation, was the flowers and the effect that they had upon the mourners. The beauty of the floral arrangements dried the … Read more