Like most churches, our congregation has a time of silence during the prayers of adoration and confession. It is a holy moment when we humbly approach God quietly to seek individually His pardon for the mistakes, faults, and sins that we … Read more

Recently, I moved to a seniors' residence. I am trying to make the adjustment to living in a different setting without my wife of over 60 years and with daily mingling among people that I never knew previously. Drawing on my personal … Read more

One Sunday when I was driving to church, I was stopped by the police … so I thought. I saw those familiar flashing lights and pulled over. Another car pulled in behind me, followed by the cruiser. As I reached for my insurance form, the … Read more

A few years ago, several churches in my area participated in the Finding the Hope campaign. Dozens of Christian volunteers went door to door and blitzed the whole city with a small booklet about salvation and an invitation to church, … Read more

What is it that makes us feel like we are not capable of doing anything for God? Is it our own lack of confidence, or do we think that someone else could do a better job? Has anyone in your church ever told you to stop doing something … Read more

As gardening season is upon us, I am once again amazed at the tenacity of the weeds. In northern Canada, growing things can be quite a chore due to the short season, poor soil, and chilly nights and mornings, as well as scorching, sunny … Read more

It's that time of year again: time to go through drawers and closets, sorting out, downsizing, and organizing. It's something that I like to do about this time each year, before the good weather comes when I would rather be outside … Read more

Violence, suicide, shootings, racial slurs, and bullying are rampant, and it seems that these are occurring more and more. One just has to watch the news on television, read the newspaper, or hear it in the streets. Children and young … Read more

One of the first songs that I ever learned in Sunday school was an old spiritual called "Who built the ark?" It tells the story of the animals going into the ark in different numbers, and the fun part of the song came in the motions that … Read more

For decades now, I have always had a pocket knife in the left-hand pocket of my trousers. In my work pants, I have a regular-sized pocket knife to work in the garden, or to do minor repairs in the house or in my little workshop. In my … Read more

Walking in the garden was a Sunday afternoon tradition. Edisto Gardens is located in Orangeburg, South Carolina, USA — the only town that the 250-mile-long Edisto River passes through. The river is one of only a few blackwater rivers — … Read more

For those darkest hours of the night when I am too tired to see anything clearly, I keep a small night light burning in the kitchen to guide my steps. At that time of night, I'm half sleep walking. Sometimes, I feel like that during … Read more

Zoë is my eldest daughter from my second marriage, and she will be ten years old in the summer. Along with her younger sister Sophia, they are at a Church of England primary school where I am a Vision and Values governor. Every term, we … Read more

I was busy at the computer one morning, and I got tired of listening to the aggravating buzzing of a fly around the room. I was tempted to go and get the fly swatter, but as we all know, as soon as we get that in our hand, the word is … Read more

I have mobility issues, and getting up and down the two front steps outside my townhouse is a challenge. Recently, I realized that every time when I planned to go out, I was getting anxious ahead of time about getting up that second … Read more

My toddler granddaughter loves prune plums. My daughter buys the canned ones, as they are much softer and easier for the baby to eat. Not long ago when I was minding the baby, I had to open up a new can of plums for her breakfast. I … Read more

A broken cup. That is what I saw when I asked the Lord to show me what had happened to my life. Sick with an illness, possibly a viral attack, which robbed me of my life and for which doctors had no answers and no treatment, I was able … Read more

I am the proud owner of a Global Positioning System (GPS) navigational device for my car. I just punch in an address and it will direct me which way to go. But sometimes, the GPS will take me down roads that I've never driven before, and I … Read more

The title for this devotional might seem strange. I believe, however, that we can occasionally use a reminder to be ordinary. That's not so easy, after all. The soul instinctively craves to rise above ordinariness, lest we merge into a … Read more

On the morning of the 27th of January, I woke up early, and I was teary-eyed. I had been dreaming about the birth of our first child, stillborn on January 29th, 1957. I think about her quite often, and certainly around that time of the … Read more

I love to receive my grandchildren's annual school photographs. I can see how they've changed and grown. They often stand back to back with each other — and me — to see who is taller. The younger ones stand straight as their height is … Read more

How many of us know couples who always did holidays together or got together for fun nights? Then the unthinkable happens: one of them passes away. We find ourselves feeling awkward when it comes to planning that next holiday or getting … Read more

Lately, I've been googling everything. If I need a recipe, I can google it. If I want to know how many calories or carbs are in a certain food, I can google it. If I want to find out where a restaurant is located in a city when I'm … Read more

I'm not blind, but I fear being that way one day. As a young, elementary-age student, I received the news that my eyesight was poor. I needed glasses. Since then, my eyes have progressively deteriorated. Every four years, the optometrist … Read more

Sometimes, I wish that I had a time machine and could go back to the days when Jesus was teaching in the Jerusalem temple. His lessons and stories must have been captivating. His understanding of the mysteries of God and what life is all … Read more

Last summer, my daughter and her husband came to a momentous decision. They purchased a business here in our small town, and decided to move in with me. Along with them came my six-month-old granddaughter, their two cats, and two dogs. … Read more

I couldn't believe it. I had just recovered from being sick, and now, I was flat on my back again. I could have picked up this virus anywhere, as there is so much of the flu going around. Mentally retracing my steps, I remembered that I … Read more

Last year, I suffered from a concussion. As a young mom with a busy life, I did not give my brain the time that it needed to heal. In turn, this caused the concussion symptoms to drag on much longer than needed. I wasn't able to care for … Read more

Early this year, a friend asked me to share a devotional for the ladies' conference at her church. She asked me to speak on the theme, "Sisters in Christ" and what it means to be a family of believers, encouraging one another, … Read more

Twice a month, I lead a spiritual talk at the local Long Term Care Centre. Studying for those sessions and talking to and with the people gives me insight into how people cope with living in a long-term care facility. Some are unhappy, … Read more