Do we think of mission as a structured work of the church whereby we elect a committee, choose a location to do mission work and then choose people to go there and be missionaries? What are the missionaries supposed to do when they get there? The starting point for all Christian outreach is to tell … Continue reading What is Christian mission?
Faith and life
Connecting the dots
In our small town school, there was a two shelf bookcase in the Grade 11 and 12 classroom. That was our library, and I read every book in those shelves during my last two years in that school. During the reading of one of those books, a historical book, I had a moment of enlightenment. … Continue reading Connecting the dots
WASP to Woke
In my school days, over 60 years ago, I learned that anyone who wasn't a WASP was less than the ideal Canadian. WASP stood for White, Anglo-Saxon Protestant. I could check all the boxes, and felt good about it. What I received in school was an indoctrination into the Orange Order perception of Canada and … Continue reading WASP to Woke
Defenceless Christians?
As Anabaptists/Mennonites we call ourselves nonresistant, or defenceless, Christians. Let’s take a moment to examine ourselves in one small aspect of what this means, or should mean. The question is, how should we relate to persons in our congregation whose ethnic, social or cultural identity differs from that of the majority of the members? Do … Continue reading Defenceless Christians?
Without me ye can do nothing
The words of Jesus are blunt; unless we submit our lives, our being, to His control, we are not capable of being a Christian. We can pretend, we may think we are doing a great job on our own, but sooner or later something will happen and whatever is really in our heart will show … Continue reading Without me ye can do nothing
The foolishness of preaching
Singing and prayer have always been important ingredients of worship in the Anabaptist - Mennonite faith, but the focal point of a worship service is that which the apostle Paul called the foolishness of preaching. It appears to be foolishness because there are not many powerful orators amongst us, not many who make a great … Continue reading The foolishness of preaching
Witnesses of the Light
As the apostle John begins telling the gospel story, he identifies Jesus as the Light of the World. Then he says “There was a man named John,” referring to another John, John the Baptist, and says of him, “He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.” Two thousand years … Continue reading Witnesses of the Light
Deathbed repentance
Many a person spends his life being right. He is frustrated that other people just can’t admit that he is right. Contacts with friends and family grow cool and infrequent. Despite his care to protect himself from dishonest business people, he has often gotten the short end of a deal. He is not happy, but … Continue reading Deathbed repentance
What’s wrong with the world?
The spirit of the world tells us: “You’re OK. You’re doing the best you can under the circumstances. Your problems are caused by the people around you, your family, your co-workers, your teachers, the government. You need to do what is right for you and try to get those others to change.” There in a … Continue reading What’s wrong with the world?
The drama of Jesus
Image by santiagotorrescl95 from Pixabay Somehow or other, and with the best intentions, we have shown the world the typical Christian in the likeness of a crashing and rather ill-natured bore–and this in the Name of One who assuredly never bored a soul in those thirty-three years during which He passed through this world like a flame. Let … Continue reading The drama of Jesus
