My husband and I moved from Canada to the Azores in September 2020. We had lived in the same house since our wedding day on October 4, 1996. I couldn't take everything, of course, so I gave much away to a downtown ministry, to neighbours, …( read more )

How many times have you moved in your lifetime? It always amazes me to learn that some people live in the same house their entire lives, perhaps never even travelling more than five or ten miles from the place that they were born. …( read more )

My husband Lynn and I served as missionaries in Madagascar during the 1970s. Though we felt welcome there, we knew that we would never be mistaken for native-born Malagasy! We had to learn to appreciate new foods and new customs, and we …( read more )

Recently in my Bible reading, I have particularly noticed several verses that could well serve us as new year's resolutions: As I was going through my filing cabinet removing old files in readiness for the coming year, I came across …( read more )

When I was five and my brother was four, we'd play church. We dressed up just like the grownups. My brother was the minister, and I was the organist. He'd stand on the kitchen table with a book in his hands (often upside-down) and preach …( read more )

Hector is someone with whom we can all identify, for forgetting the past is a choice that we, too, will face. Hector kept thinking about the pastor's message that morning, entitled "Forgetting the past". Angrily, he thought, "Surely, …( read more )

Recently, I set a goal to write 100 devotionals for PresbyCan Daily before the end of 2018, and this is #100. I wrote my first devotional in 2000. Over the years, I have truly appreciated the feedback that I have received from …( read more )

Throughout my career, I was involved in many projects. Some were small, lasting a few hours or days, involving few people, and having little financial impact. Some were enormous, lasting months or years, involving large teams of people, …( read more )

It's been just over a year since a very dear friend of ours passed away suddenly from cancer. Eight months ago, our daughter-in-law's father passed away within three weeks of finding out that he was ill. And now, another dear friend of …( read more )

As I'm driving down a nearby street, I see two young girls playing croquet in their front yard. It's a simple game involving a wooden ball, a wooden mallet, and some wire hoops. The goal is to get the ball through the hoops in the right …( read more )

Vena Poole was totally British, even though she became a Canadian citizen years ago. I wonder how she is taking to her new citizenship in heaven. I hope that they serve high tea there! At one time, Vena and her husband Ronald sailed a …( read more )

These words by the apostle Paul often come to mind when I help seniors de-clutter their homes. I see a lot of things get counted as rubbish — designated as dispensable. It's exciting to watch how the offloading of accumulations leaves …( read more )

This was the scriptural theme for a new Bible study, the verse to memorize. Later in the same day, as I opened the mail, a pamphlet from an evangelistic association proclaimed the same verse. Coincidence? This is how God gets our …( read more )

The dictionary defines a role model as a person looked up to by others as an example to be imitated. There are role models everywhere. Some portray an example of good and some of evil. We look to movie stars, entertainers, famous people, …( read more )

On several recent trips to the grocery store, I noticed how various shoppers have perfected the art of selecting fresh fruits and vegetables. For example: – A thump for a sweet watermelon – A squeeze for a firm, ripe tomato – A sniff for …( read more )

We've all heard the old "saw" that there is incredible power in setting goals. Paul, the quintessential missionary and apostle, shared a few goals that he had most of his converted life. Can you think where his insightful goal statement …( read more )

Recently, my family went to see the movie "Risen", a film which uniquely depicts the resurrection through the point of view of an unbeliever. As in a detective story, Clavius, a high-ranking Roman official, is put in charge of solving the …( read more )

This weekend, many of us spring ahead in time one hour as we adjust our clocks to Daylight Saving Time. And as we do so, everything will seem a bit out of sync for a day or two. My dogs will give me an extra hour of sleep for a few days …( read more )

Another year has drawn to an end, and we anticipate a new year ahead of us — a brand new year — a time of new beginnings, new opportunities, a time to start over again. Whether or not we make any new year's resolutions, we can still …( read more )

I had to get a new driver's license with a new photo this year. After the new license arrived in the mail, as I was destroying the old one, with each new cut of the old card I kept thinking about the old being replaced by the new. As I …( read more )

Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is presently hosting the Pan Am/Parapan games. Many of the activities are taking place in Toronto, but some are also taking place in the surrounding cities. I have been noticing signs along the highways for the …( read more )

For the first five years of life in our present home, we lived with walls throughout most of the house that sported pink and yellow insulation covered in vapour barrier. At first, this took a bit of getting used to, but over the years, it …( read more )

Recently, my husband and I received news from a friend that her twenty-year-old grandson, Caleb Ryan Ballentine, had passed away. Caleb was born with a disease known as Duchene's Muscular Dystrophy, yet he lived much longer than the …( read more )

I was out on my back deck enjoying the cool air that followed the heavy rain that had just fallen. It was such a welcome break from the humidity that we had been experiencing. As I stood there, I noticed a tiny spider crawling into the …( read more )

Summer is arriving here, and soon, our roads will be cluttered with annoying construction projects — just when we want to go on holiday trips. It means slowdowns, dust, and delays. There's no escape! Yet we know that ongoing road work …( read more )

Earlier this month, I was immersed in watching the games of the Summer Olympics on television from London, England. The athletes marched into the stadium nation by nation during the opening ceremony. All looked proud and hopeful that they would … (read more)

It was a bright, sunny day as I drove into town. As the day progressed, the brightness slowly started to fade, and clouds started rolling in. The sun vanished and was replaced by heavy snowfall and developing winds. All of … (read more)

Frankie Valli is known for a song back in the 1960s entitled, "Big Girls Don't Cry" — remember? Can you hear him whining "cry-yii-yii"? If you're too young, you might not know this one. You can find it on … (read more)

After a few weeks of repeatedly throwing kitchen peelings, food scraps, waste, and various animal manures on the top of the other rotting vegetation on my compost heap, it is frequently necessary to open up the heap to merge the … (read more)

Lent is the season for exchanging old habits with new ones. That could also include habits of thinking. For example, the meaning of being "Christian" may have become so hazy in our minds that it needs to be replaced. Scripturally, … (read more)

Today is a brand new day — a clean slate — a road not travelled before. Where will we allow it to take us? Will we be bound to past mistakes, hurts, sorrows, and brokenness? Will we allow these to … (read more)

This is Ash Wednesday, a day for sackcloth and ashes. Philippians speaks to me loud and clear — everything in my life feels like ashes — I look on my life as garbage. Sin is the cause of our unsuitable … (read more)

Most of us can recall a time when we passed by a school that we attended earlier in life or a house that used to be our home, but is no longer. I have come to think of some of … (read more)