Birthdays have always been important to me. When I was a child, birthday parties were few, so as I grew up, I have always tried to get involved in a party somehow. Maybe that's why I am so enthusiastic about Canada's 150th birthday … Read more

The woodpeckers are back. I hear their insistent rat-a-tat-tat from morning until evening. At home or in the bush while I am walking, they are hard at it, looking for the fulfillment of nourishment as they drill into trees in search of … Read more

We moved into the house that we are living in now just over three years ago and we saw that there were smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors in various places throughout the house. Due to the fact that our minds were totally set … Read more

As a pastor, I have seen many people do wonderful things for God that are remarkable, as well as effective. Their faith is both enthusiastic and energetic, as well as considerate and compassionate. Some people think that churches are full … Read more

The story of Jonah spending three days and three nights in the belly of the fish is one which many people find hard to swallow. For them, it seems like the biggest fish story ever. Today, I'd like to highlight an element in the story 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

Why is it that here in North America, a gift of flowers is reserved for Mothers Day, romantic occasions, or perhaps a sick female friend? We rarely give flowers to a man, except at his funeral — unless he's a horticulturist by trade. In … Read more

With most of the world's rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans too polluted to safely drink from without purification, we were looking at one that was 98 percent pure. While on vacation, my wife and I visited Forbidden Caverns near Pigeon … Read more

I hear God speaking to me most often when I am walking. Perhaps, that is because my feet automatically go one in front of another, almost like involuntary action, and my mind is freed to enjoy the display of God's creation. During these … Read more

A lonely pine cone was lying on my driveway. I looked around to see if there were others, but I couldn't see any more, and I wondered where it had come from and how it had got there. As I thought about this solitary pine cone, the song, "I … Read more

I enjoy watching the ducks and geese that frequently visit the pond across the street from my home. This year, I took the cutest picture of four goslings all lined up in a row following their mother as she led them into the water. For a … Read more

Working with stained glass has many joys associated with it, but also pain. As I work cutting and clipping and shaping the pieces, tiny fragments, shards of glass, fly here, there, and everywhere. Sometimes, those miniscule bits end up in … Read more

I am so glad that my late husband, a Canadian, loved holidaying in the United Kingdom and Europe. We usually began in England by visiting a Christian couple in Norwich. Every time we went to that city, we always visited the Norwich … Read more

"My head is full of broken bottles" is an old Glaswegian saying from Scotland that I sometimes experience and express. To me, it means that I can't really concentrate on what I need to do and that my focus is all out of whack. It usually … Read more

Few verses reach me as deeply and as often as this one today. Most of us in the rich "first world" countries are well fed, but God says that the rich may well be sent away empty. Ouch, that hurts, for unavoidably, though we are not as … Read more

In this claim, Jesus summarizes the epitome of all promises. We proclaim it through countless songs, testimonies, sermons, poems, plaques, cards, and much more. Yet, there's that ever-present risk: over-familiarity can dull us to the … Read more

I always seem to have had a far-flung circle of family, friends, and colleagues. I grew up in Ontario and still have two sisters nearby, but two siblings and both my parents moved to the west coast many years ago. My parents emigrated … Read more

A much-needed vacation took me to the mountains of Tennessee, USA. Along with my wife and another couple, I found myself nestled in a cabin high in the Great Smokey Mountains. Each morning witnessed me sitting on the porch, admiring the … Read more

I used to want my life to be like squares — everything (including myself) neatly fitting together and lining up perfectly — and I wanted people to respond in that way as well. I wanted to know exactly what to expect, when to expect it, … Read more

Have you ever had a day when it seemed that everything went wrong? One Saturday, my husband and I attended an information session at the Huronia Museum, where we listened to an elder share her story of the indigenous way of life. We also … Read more

I saw the notice on the community bulletin board, and I knew that reading it was risky, but I read it anyway. They wanted to give away three Siamese kittens. I thought, Oh, my! They will go quickly! and willed the ad out of my mind. A … Read more

My girlfriend served up these words to me about her boss the other day at lunch: He called for magic but I was out of practice. In order to meet the short-time turnaround deadline I have to use a little flimflammery and deceive him with … Read more

I grew up in a large family with three brothers and two sisters. Usually, we all got along very well, but sometimes, a fight would break out, and we would end up pitching fits against each other. My poor mother had to come in and stop the … Read more

This passage is familiar to most of us who went to Sunday school. It is taught to children to instill in them the importance of children to both our heavenly Father and to Jesus. To me this passage is akin to learning the alphabet… just … Read more

"Come and see! Come and see!" pleads the child as he tugs on your sleeve. You see the floor where he's pointing; it's a clutter of scattered Lego®. You keep looking because he insists. Finally, you see it. Why, there's an entire Lego® … Read more

A buzzing blur zoomed toward the hummingbird feeder outside our kitchen window. Wings beating about 52 times per second, the ruby-throated hummingbird hovered near the food site, snatching only short sips of the sweetened water. Hover and … Read more

If someone deposited a large amount of money in your account but didn't tell you, would it be of any use to you? Only when we know that the money is there does it become a game changer: it changes our life. Every new mother says that she … Read more

Have you ever wondered how robins know when to leave their seasonal homes before the weather gets colder, or when to return again? When they return, how do they know to build a nest, and how? What drives juvenile sockeye salmon to remain … Read more

When my husband and I began to travel by boat up the inside passage on the west coast of Canada, there was one stipulation that I made, and that was that we would never travel at night. However, there was one occasion when we were … Read more

What is understandable to one person isn't necessarily understandable to someone else. Our good friends had moved to South Carolina from Colorado. The wife, Jan, was a native Coloradoan, and the husband a native South Carolinian. When … Read more