Devotional

Amen! Amen!

Sunday, August 19, 2001

How should we be led to worship God? In today's passage from the book of Nehemiah, we are told of the thirsting of the people for the word of God. In our churches today, do we have that same thirsting … Read more

The Potatoes

Saturday, August 18, 2001

Some years ago I was cleaning out a drawer of pots and pans. I got everything organized and straightened out, and the drawer had room to hold more without spilling over. I thought to myself, "Now I can even put … Read more

Tiger-Striped Bird-Eating Tarantula Spiders!

Friday, August 17, 2001

A man was an avid cactus collector. He bought a meter-tall cactus plant. He brought it back to Australia for his collection and planted it in the back garden after it had passed all the quarantine regulations. One day, when … Read more

The Challenges Of Life

Thursday, August 16, 2001

Within walking distance of our house was a very large amusement park named Sunnyside. It sat nestled on the shores of Lake Ontario in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I used to go there often. My chief ride was … Read more

Shopping

Wednesday, August 15, 2001

In my youth the world finished at the end of my nose. The impact of love, healing and time have taken their toll and so rounded the edges. At least the edges have become rounded anyway. My wife and I … Read more

Two Heads Are Better Than One!

Tuesday, August 14, 2001

The old saying is that two heads are better than one. And, unlike many proverbs and sayings, this one is actually confirmed by the scriptures. We discussed these verses in my Sunday School class recently, and I came across them … Read more

Search Me, O God

Monday, August 13, 2001

Over the years, I have been the chief cook and bottle washer. I cleaned, cooked, did the laundry, cut the grass, did the gardening, shovelled snow in winter, looked after the children. You name it; I did it — even … Read more

Babies In Christ

Sunday, August 12, 2001

The other day in church, I was observing a young child playing with a very unusual toy. The child had a candy-cane-shaped container, filled with chocolate candy, and he was using it as a hook. All throughout the service, the … Read more

For That Which We Behold Is Not Ours

Saturday, August 11, 2001

I had been corresponding with a young woman whose heart was breaking. Her little one was suffering with a cancer that had spread into his spine. This had left him crippled. The tumour in his brain had grown once more. … Read more

Why Do Tears Come?

Friday, August 10, 2001

On May 19, 2001, I received a telephone call to tell me that my friend, Patrick, had just passed away. I had last talked on the telephone with Patrick exactly a week before, and he had assured me that, though … Read more

Making Time To Take Time

Thursday, August 9, 2001

Just as we've been given the ability to share our joys and happy experiences, we were not meant to face our challenges and sufferings alone. We have all been given the choice both to ask for and to offer help … Read more

Mulchin' The Plants

Wednesday, August 8, 2001

One day recently as I was out watering the plants, I noticed that our pine tree had dropped plenty of needles in the street. I decided to clean them up so the entire yard would look nice. As I was … Read more

Don't Neglect The Good In Our Lives

Tuesday, August 7, 2001

Not too long ago I wrote about how we had neglected the clocks in our house [ Clock Chime — Tune Out, Tune In , May 8, 2001]. We finally got them fixed. The grandfather clock required a house call … Read more

Hungry Travellers

Monday, August 6, 2001

In my morning prayers, I had prayed for God to use me in his service and to set an appointment where I could help one of his lambs or witness in his name. On the way into the city, I … Read more

Blessings In Disguise

Sunday, August 5, 2001

How many blessings do we pass up just because something looks different or is unfamiliar to us? Recently our family had the opportunity to host twelve youth overnight in our home. They are in two Christian bands on tour this … Read more

Rainbow: Promise With Peace

Saturday, August 4, 2001

Recently it was time for my six-month check-up with the dentist. To have this check-up I must travel many miles. Why? Because I have a hereditary gum condition that is very rare, and treatment for it is only experimental. Trips … Read more

A Time Of Frustration

Friday, August 3, 2001

Has there ever been a time in your life when you were so frustrated because you did something and, after having done it, regretted it? I have. At such times, the days, the months, and sometimes years, become dark, and … Read more

Picking Up The Pieces

Thursday, August 2, 2001

Several years ago, a friend of mine who had immigrated to Canada from Europe had asked a mutual friend of the same heritage who was travelling to their homeland if it would be possible for her to bring back some … Read more

Tornadoes

Wednesday, August 1, 2001

Recently a friend forwarded an e-mail message containing two photos of a funnel cloud and a tree that had been blown down. One photo was in its normal, upright position; the other had been rotated to its side. … Read more

Just Checking

Tuesday, July 31, 2001

Was it the wind or the kids across the road having come home from a night of celebrating the last day of school? Something had ushered us out of our sleep in the wee small hours of the morning. Perhaps … Read more

A Tangled Web

Monday, July 30, 2001

Upon getting into our van for a recent trip to the city, I noticed a spider web. It was an orb web, but the spider that had spun it couldn't have been very large. It was attached to the van … Read more

Preparing Ourselves For Worship

Sunday, July 29, 2001

How should we be led to worship God? In today's passage from the book of John, we are told that the true worshipper will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Let us draw near to God with a … Read more

Chosen

Saturday, July 28, 2001

We could only choose one out of all the needy dogs at the animal shelter and we chose Grace. Tied up, pregnant and abandoned, left to die before the age of two, she had been discovered by a shelter worker … Read more

Paying The Mortgage Off

Friday, July 27, 2001

One of the scariest things I have ever done is to buy a house. The reason I say it was scary is on account of the cost that was incurred. When I signed the loan, I felt a very heavy … Read more

The Sin Experiment

Thursday, July 26, 2001

Have you ever heard of the computing acronym "GIGO" (garbage in; garbage out)? I once did an experiment to prove it. I learnt, from one of my programming lectures, that if the computer's memory is supplied with an alphabetic character … Read more

Washed Ashore

Wednesday, July 25, 2001

We recently spent a very warm day at our local beach. It was unfortunately extremely windy, and the large whitecaps on Lake Erie made swimming impossible. The threat of an undertow was too great. Still, we had a wonderful time … Read more

The Gift From "The Gift Of The Hoya"

Tuesday, July 24, 2001

The modern versions convey much the same as today's text, except to change "shall men give into your bosom" to "will be poured into your lap", and to say, "whatever measure you deal out to others will be dealt to … Read more

This Little Light Of Mine

Monday, July 23, 2001

As a young man, I worked for some time in a men's correctional institute. Actually, the institute could have been better described simply as a prison, as any serious attempts at institutional rehabilitation were at the time still in their … Read more

God's Real Home

Sunday, July 22, 2001

This past week people were devastated when one of the oldest and most beautiful churches in our district burned to the ground. Everything perished. The one-of-a-kind inscriptions of the creed, the Lord's Prayer and the Ten Commandments, lovingly hand-carved by … Read more

He Heard My Voice

Saturday, July 21, 2001

A number of years ago, I had what many would call a "nervous breakdown". An entire generation of my family had died over the course of that year. My job as a family counsellor for a local mental health agency … Read more

Grow In Christ And One Day Produce For Him

Friday, July 20, 2001

My daughter dropped by for a quick visit. We both love and admire our gardens. She talked for a moment about how severely she had pruned back a certain plant and how it was producing many more flowers. I agreed … Read more

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Thursday, July 19, 2001

Every spring, we plant a large garden in our yard. We plant tomatoes, peppers, beans, peas, corn, and an assortment of other vegetables. My two children have always loved playing and digging in the dirt and helping plant the garden, … Read more

Cleaning Mr. Turtle's Pond

Wednesday, July 18, 2001

A couple of weeks back, after the church service, there were some young people who wanted to come to my home to see my animals and yard before the next service at 6:00 p.m. I gladly said yes, as I … Read more

 



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