For awhile recently, the Holy Spirit has impressed upon me Isaiah's experience of seeing God in the temple, and with Christmas being the time of Immanuel — "God with us" — the two just came together. So wrote Isaiah about the day when … Read more

How few of us have ever tasted the bitterness of war or stared despairingly into the empty cup of poverty — though some might suffer minor bruising as shoppers edge to the front lines of overcrowded megastores, or experience cramped … Read more

When we toured Israel as a group, our faith was reinforced as our experienced leader, a Christian minister, many times supplemented our Jordanian guide's orations of what we were seeing by telling us of further connections between these … Read more

One Christmas season, our church's Celebration Choir was introduced to a song entitled, "Mary, Did You Know?" which became very popular in both the spiritual and secular worlds. The words were written by Mark Lowry in 1984 as part of the … Read more

Years ago, the pastor of my church invited a rabbi from a local synagogue to host a traditional Passover meal for our congregation during the Easter season. It was an interesting experience, tasting various ritual foods, such as matzo, … Read more

I learned to text, only to discover that the cell phone fancied itself a prophet. This is called predictive texting. Whenever I punched in a letter, it finished the word for me. Thus, I sent messages full of words like "spzxq". The last … Read more

Having for many years taken part in a number of Christian activities at the local Long Term Care Centre, I have gotten to know a considerable number of people on a quite personal basis. Some of them tell me about their hopes and … Read more

I often think of the story about the farmer who went to borrow a shovel. My children and I refer to this story often, when we see a similar situation building and we or others are taking on a negative attitude. The story goes that a … Read more

As I see Christmas approaching, I am reminded of the preparations that have made the season special in our home. One such preparation was to go to a Christmas tree farm where we would choose our tree, and have it cut down and mounted on … Read more

In our second year of marriage, my husband and I discovered that we were going to have a child. Despite there being no angelic announcement, that was a truly joyful occasion. We expectantly counted the days until our firstborn would … Read more

The Christmas season may be the busiest time of year for many of us, involving much time in planning, preparation, working, and spending money. If we are very blessed, it may also involve family and friends gathering for feasting and … Read more

One of the things I enjoy most about Christmas is the traditional tree. Last year, my daughter and I drove miles before discovering the perfect specimen. Hiking through deep snow, I was eager to reach and take home my prize. … Read more

When people walk the same route each day, they often see the same individuals in about the same places each day. As a friend and I walked day after day and then into the next month, we would pass the … Read more

Having five dogs is always interesting! In fact on any given day, there is seldom a dull moment in our home. As Christmas approaches, however, the term "interesting" rises to a brand new level. Once the dogs' Christmas presents are … Read more

Last night was Sunday School Pageant night. My daughter, Maggie, played Mary. It was her second year in the role! It made me think of a Christmas Eve 12 years ago, when her mother, "great with child", was a last-minute … Read more