And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of … Continue reading Be not conformed to the world (the present age)
Faith and life
Anabaptism is not a warm fuzzy experience
Anabaptism is about having a relationship with Jesus: a relationship that has a beginning but no end. We cannot simply grow into this relationship, not knowing just how or when it began. We may have had warm, fuzzy feelings about Jesus when we were little children, but we lacked the maturity then to make a … Continue reading Anabaptism is not a warm fuzzy experience
Anabaptism is not a lifestyle
The bishop got up to preach one Sunday morning and proclaimed to us that when a person wore plain clothes, that was proof that he or she was born again. An unconverted person could not get himself to wear such clothes. By “plain clothes” he meant the form of clothes that was mandated in his … Continue reading Anabaptism is not a lifestyle
What has happened to tolerance?
George Orwell’s dystopian vision, expounded in his novel Nineteen Eighty-four, appears to be slowly and inexorably taking shape around us. The thought leaders of our society have constituted themselves into an unofficial Ministry of Truth, changing the meaning of words and inventing new words. The result — and make no mistake about it, this is … Continue reading What has happened to tolerance?
It is no secret
I confess that I avoid books that promise to reveal a “secret” about Christian life. I’m afraid of them — afraid of being deceived — because I don’t read anything in the Bible that speaks of a “secret” to Christian life that is only revealed to an inner circle with special enlightenment. In New Testament … Continue reading It is no secret
The saint of the neighbourhood
[This is an excerpt from When I Was Thirteen, copyright the estate of Christina Young Plumb. It is the diary of a thirteen year old girl in south-western Ontario at the end of the nineteenth century.] April 12, 1897 - This is Good Friday, so we had no school today, and Monday will be a … Continue reading The saint of the neighbourhood
Problematic behaviours in children and adolescents – Our family’s experience
I listened with bemused interest as my daughter described racing the Moose Jaw city bus to the end of the block. There was a bus stop in front of the second house on our block and she would wait there on the sidewalk with her trike until the bus left the stop and then pump … Continue reading Problematic behaviours in children and adolescents – Our family’s experience
Problematic behaviours in children and adolescents
Georges P Vanier was a distinguished Canadian military officer in the First World War, being decorated by both Great Britain and France . He was seriously injured near the end of the war, losing a leg as a result. He eventually attained the rank of Major-General. Later he served as Canada's ambassador to France. He … Continue reading Problematic behaviours in children and adolescents
Can anyone join the Church of God in Christ Mennonite?
The above question was typed into a search engine and brought someone to my blog yesterday. It seems to me this is a question that merits a straightforward answer, so here goes. Perhaps the best place to start is with the questions asked at baptism. The first three questions deal with belief in the Father, … Continue reading Can anyone join the Church of God in Christ Mennonite?
Book Review: Embracing Obscurity, by anonymous
There's no end to the amount of good a person can do, if they don't care who gets the credit for it. I presume the person who said that doesn't mind that I don't remember who he or she was. I aspire to be a person such as this sentence describes. Or do I? There … Continue reading Book Review: Embracing Obscurity, by anonymous