During the first few years that we were members of the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite, my wife was often puzzled about why other church members were seemingly unmoved by problems and injustices in the world that moved her deeply. One day a light came on, and she said to me, “Mennonites don’t have … Continue reading Mennonites don’t have a social conscience!
Why wait for spring – Do it now!
I first posted this five years ago. Readers enjoyed it, and nothing much has changed. So here it is again. A few days ago my wife and I got to talking about a catchy advertising jingle of fifty years ago that was heard incessantly at this time of year. My wife even remembered all the … Continue reading Why wait for spring – Do it now!
Sister’s Last Good-Bye
This is my wife's account of her sister's funeral. I think Rose was nine when I first met her. Her older sister was pretty young then too, and I didn't pay much attention to either of them. In time the big sister became much more interesting and through her I had the opportunity to get … Continue reading Sister’s Last Good-Bye
All Christians are hypocrites
□ True □ False I think we have to check the true box on this one. Let’s be clear though, that we are not hypocrites because we are Christian, we are hypocrites because we are human. The desire to appear to be better than we are is endemic in humanity. Becoming a Christian makes us … Continue reading All Christians are hypocrites
Winsomeness
More than 350 years ago, Blaise Pascal described what he hoped to achieve with his writing this way: People despise Christian faith. They hate it and are afraid that it may be true. The solution for this is to show them, first of all, that it is not unreasonable, that it is worthy of reverence … Continue reading Winsomeness
My Sister’s Obit
My wife posted her sister’s obituary.
The obituary for Rose Pearl Free can be read at the Funeral chapel website. Seeing her photo brought tears to my eyes; that was so her! So alive! I’m going to post (and flesh out) the obituary here, in case anyone is interested:
Rose Marie Pearl (Vance) Free passed away Sunday, December 29, 2019, at the age of 61.
Rose was born in Melfort, SK, the fifth of seven children to Allen and Louise Vance. In poor health as a toddler, she went to live with her aunt and uncle, Fred & Myrtle Forsyth, and sister Christine in Saskatoon for four years, returning home to Pathlow, SK, in time to start Grade One.
The family moved to Moose Jaw in 1969. At the age of 15 Rose married her best friend Butch Free; they celebrated their 46th wedding anniversary in October. The couple had two daughters.
Rose worked…
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Pressing On
Another inspiring post from Bill Sweeney.
Happy New Year!
I believe 2020 will be a great year.
Regular readers of my blog know that I’ve had ALS for twenty-three years. I’ve been on hospice for the last fifteen months, and in that time, I’ve had three close encounters with death. I don’t mean to make light of this, but I think you could say that I have one foot in the grave, and the other is on a banana peel. Knowing this, and reading that I’ve declared that 2020 is going to be a great year, you might be questioning the state of my mental health. I get it, but please hear me out.
I’ll admit that my mental health is not as good as it once was. I recently watched a movie for twenty minutes before realizing I’d seen it before. I don’t know if this is related to the ALS or just getting old…
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2020
2019 is almost done; a brand new unspoiled year lies before us. May we begin it by thanking God for bringing us safely thus far, and trust our hand into His to lead us safely through all that 2020 will bring our way.
We lost Rose
My phone rang this morning as we were getting ready to leave for church. It was brother-in-law Jim; his first words were “We lost Rose.” We were with the family yesterday around Rose’s hospital bed in Moose Jaw. We couldn’t tell if she knew we were there or not, but she was still breathing. Her … Continue reading We lost Rose
Ten easy ways to squander our spiritual heritage
1. Speak often about our goodly heritage but remain tongue tied when asked to explain what it is. 2. Say we believe everything in the Bible, but never read it from beginning to end. 3. Consider a worship service to be a spectator activity. 4. Never volunteer for any task in the congregation. 5. Be … Continue reading Ten easy ways to squander our spiritual heritage
Flatlander Faith 