Years ago I was visiting a friend who had a deep interest in the Bible. He appeared to be a sincere Christian, with a concern for people who were entangled with the evil in the world. He had a special interest in the Bible’s description of the time of the end, and the return of … Continue reading Mid-week Reflection N° 3
spirituality
History is not mathematics
There was a two-shelf bookcase in the grade 11 and 12 classroom of the school I attended in Craik, Saskatchewan. That bookcase was our school library. I read every book in that bookcase during the two years I spent in that classroom, mostly during class time. I don't remember any of the books except for … Continue reading History is not mathematics
Midweek Reflection N° 2
Joe drove me home after the bar closed. When we arrived in the village where I lived all the houses were dark, except one where we saw a light in the kitchen window. We had imbibed enough alcohol that pounding on the back door of that house at one in the morning seemed a perfectly … Continue reading Midweek Reflection N° 2
Midweek Reflection, No 1
It was June of 1953, I was eleven years old, one of five boys who had taken catechism classes after school one day a week all winter and were now ready to become full members of the Anglican Church by confirmation. We came early to church to meet with the bishop. He described how the … Continue reading Midweek Reflection, No 1
Peaceable people of God
I debated with myself about whether I should use peaceful or peaceable in the title. I feel that there is a small nuance of difference in meaning and peaceable is better for describing the essential nature of followers of Jesus Christ. Of course, I wouldn’t have this trouble if I were writing in French, which … Continue reading Peaceable people of God
Danger in the Shallows
I have often heard preachers take Ezekiel 47:1-12 as their text and deliver stirring messages about the need to plunge into the River of Life. Here is the living water, flowing from the temple of God, turning the desert into a paradise, giving life to everything it touches. This is an allegory for the grace … Continue reading Danger in the Shallows
To every thing there is a season
And this has not been my season for writing. It has been a season for trying to keep up with my bookkeeping work, a season for medical appointments (for both of us), a season for packing and downsizing, with no time left for writing. Most of this other busy-ness will come to an end ten … Continue reading To every thing there is a season
The long-lasting effects of COVID
No, I’m not thinking about the lingering physical malaise that is sometimes called “long COVID.” I’m thinking about the lingering social, emotional, psychological, and spiritual effects caused by two years of social distancing, isolation, mistrust, and fear. We all went along with it; what else could we do without further isolating ourselves? Psychologist Jody Harrington … Continue reading The long-lasting effects of COVID
Peace in the storm
Chaos (physics) behaviour so unpredictable as to appear random, owing to great sensitivity to small changes in conditions. (Oxford) Image by yan1515 from Pixabay Weather forecasting is both a science and a matter of guesswork. Temperature forecasts are usually pretty accurate, rainfall forecasts can be wildly inaccurate. I have watched weather radar projections of where clouds will be … Continue reading Peace in the storm
THE SHEEPFOLD
The Bible frequently mentions a sheepfold, and no doubt people of those days understood exactly what that meant. But that was long ago and far away, do we really know today what a sheepfold looked like? According to descriptions I have read, there were several kinds. There were temporary sheepfolds with walls or fences of … Continue reading THE SHEEPFOLD
