The following question came in my email this morning and I decided to post it and give my thoughts. Feel free to join the conversation. I enjoy many of your inspiring blogs and this morning read “A matter of the heart, not the head.” You wrote: “ ...and there did not seem to be a … Continue reading Christ is in all
church
Qualifications of a minister of the gospel
Many words are used in the New Testament to describe spiritual leaders in the church. Bishop, or overseer (episkipos); elder (presbuteros); pastor; minister (diakonos); evangelist; prophet; teacher; apostle (one sent out). All of these, except perhaps the last, are used interchangeably and appear to be but different functions or gifts of the same office. An … Continue reading Qualifications of a minister of the gospel
A matter of the heart, not the head
As I walked the dusty streets of Plimoth, Massachusetts, Samuel Fuller fell into step beside me. “The church hierarchy in England says that we are not a legitimate church, because we have no ministers. A church is made up of Christian people; they don’t even have a church. Who made them ministers and bishops?” On … Continue reading A matter of the heart, not the head
A refuge
A refuge, a place where I could escape the storms that beat around me; that’s what I needed. When one is young, many storms are more imagined than real. But my father’s anger was real. He was not violent, but when he lost his temper angry words rang throughout the house, seemed to be in … Continue reading A refuge
Happy Thanksgiving
Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada. We often focus on harvest and food on this day. This year we have been getting a little rain and snow every week that interrupts harvest, then it warms up and dries up and harvest resumes till the next precipitation. So our congregation is delaying our thanksgiving supper for … Continue reading Happy Thanksgiving
What does “Mennonite” mean to you?
Some people consider themselves to be birthright Mennonites because their ethnic origin is Plautdietsch or Pennsylfannisch Dietsch and their parents held to certain traditional values that they called Mennonite. Those values may have been cultural; language, clothing, lifestyle; or they may hae been intellectual: a somewhat counter cultural emphasis on peacefulness and helping one’s neighbour. … Continue reading What does “Mennonite” mean to you?
The things I believe
I believe in the God revealed in the Bible. The great and terrible Almighty and Eternal Creator of all things, who hates all unrighteousness. I believe that He is at the same time loving, merciful and compassionate, a father for the fatherless. He knows everything about us and wants us to know Him and be … Continue reading The things I believe
The fulness of the time
Solomon’s reign was the golden era of Israel. All the promises of God were fulfilled in the natural sense. The son of David built the glorious temple and God showed His acceptance by sending fire from heaven to consume the sacrifices. Solomon’s reign was a reign of peace over all the territory promised by God … Continue reading The fulness of the time
Introduction to the New Testament -2
Acts of the Apostles - This is the second half of Luke’s history, the first part being the Gospel which bears his name. Again we see a meticulous historian at work, telling the history of the beginning of the church in chronological order and anchoring it all to places and people in the secular world. … Continue reading Introduction to the New Testament -2
The church as the most important family
There are serious consequences of losing a sense of family within the church. . . We assume that the nuclear family can meet this need, and yet some of the loneliest, most isolated people in our communities are married with children, often so frenetically busy with child rearing and/or caring for aging parents that they … Continue reading The church as the most important family
Flatlander Faith 